A Day ON, Not a Day Off

Today I celebrated Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life by giving to my community. I've wanted to do more than just sit around the house with the kids for a few years now, but two children two years apart, a teenager, and a husband who used to work on a schedule different from mine had me a bit worn out for the past few years.

We have a multi-use community park near our home. It includes a measured "track" that walkers and joggers use, a playground, and an outdoor stage with bleacher-style concrete seats. Unfortunately, the park is trashed almost nightly by people who drink their alcohol and leave the bottles and cans and the families that eat ice cream or pizza and leave the wrappers, napkins, popsicle sticks, and boxes behind. Every morning, however, a couple of people are paid to pick up the trash and sweep the sidewalks and random citizens looking to recycle glass bottles stop by to collect bottles that are still in tact. Despite the daily clean-up effort, the playground is never cleaned. The trash remains and the equipment is pretty filthy.

My children like to play at the playground, but one of the measures listed to prevent the spread of cholera (a new problem in the DR) is to avoid playgrounds. Although I'd be happy to avoid the playground, my young children wouldn't be so happy. This morning I had both the energy and will to clean up the playground, especially after my housekeeper came in talking about what she heard about MLK on T.V. last night. I took my rubber gloves, a bottle of bleach, bucket, and sponge and went to work. Ground water is available from various spouts around the park so I was able to wipe down the playground equipment and pick up the trash.

Afterward, the lady that was cleaning the rest of the park asked me if I am having a party at the playground. I told her no - I just wanted to disinfect it since I doubt it's ever been cleaned in the 4+ years since the park has been in the area. I then shared with her that today we celebrate MLK's birthday in the U.S. and our president suggests that community service is a good way to honor Dr. King's memory.

The most important point of this post is that IT...FELT...SOOOOO...GOOOOOD to actually get up and DO something about a problem and help meet a need instead of sitting down and mulling over the issue, pontificating about how my fellow Dominicans need to respect their environment and put trash where it belongs, and sitting comfortably in my home thinking about how dirty that playground is.

BEACH - It Does My Family Good!

While growing up in Indiana, the only "beach" I knew was the shoreline along Lake Michigan which was full of gritty, uncomfortable sand and lots of rocks and broken glass, dirty water, and a fishy smell. Needless to say, I did not have fond memories of the beach and my favorite ecosystems to visit are those that include mountains, tall trees, and fresh water lakes and rivers.

After living in Belize for a short time, I learned that "nice" beaches have plush comfy sand and beautiful blue green water. Although the beaches in Placencia and Caye Caulker, Belize are beautiful, I still didn't develop an affinity for beaches in general. Of course my first directed assignment was to a country where beaches reign and mountains are few.

We've been here 6 months and after yesterday's visit to Hemingway Beach 45 minutes outside of Santo Domingo, I finally understand how wonderful the beach is for my family and me. The beach is now one of my favorite places to visit with children because:
1. I don't have to redirect my children at all.
2. There is nothing for the children to break.
3. The children have hours and hours of free time to play with "dirt".
4. There are no issues with sharing since there is enough sand and water for both of them.
5. No bickering.
6. Sun and cool breezes.
7. Tons of leisure time with nature as opposed to the t.v. or computer.
8. No yelling.
9. The children are just less demanding in general.
10. It's enjoyable for everyone - even the teenager who never wants to go.
11. The children are worn out and ready for bed by the time we get home so bed time is much easier than usual.
12. My dear hubby and I get to rest.
13. It's good for my sanity and overall mental health.
14. The children, the teen, and dear hubby LOVE the beach.

Based on the reasons above, my new determination is to make it to the beach 2 times each month for the duration of our time here.

PLEASE Don't Drink the Bath Water!

The last two times I've given my 2 and 3 yr. olds a bubble bath, I've had to cut their bath funtime short because one or both of them could not stop sipping on the bath water. Although I'd tell them not to drink the water in the U.S. too, drinking bath water in the DR brings a whole new level of risk to their health and my sanity and our family's peace. The water is not treated in the DR and there are tons of parasites just waiting to find hosts like the little bodies of my dear Z. Mulenga and K. Amiri. On top of the usual risk just by virtue of being in the DR, our neighbor is in the midst of a cholera crisis that has affected a small portion of our population here. Bathtime was a great break time for me because they have so much fun playing and I can watch them from their bedroom while I read a book, but now it's turned into a not-so-fun time because I have to be the water policeman and hover to keep them from getting seriously ill by drinking it from the soap dish or acting like fish. We recently put bleach in the cistern to help mitigate the risk of cholera but it's still a gamble to drink the water.

Living in the developing world makes reaching my goal of not sweating the small stuff with the kids in order to keep the peace a little more challenging since there are serious potential consequences for stuff like sucking your thumb after playing at the neighborhood playground, stepping in standing water after it rains, and of course drinking the bath water.

El Arte de la República Dominicana

Last night we went to the Plaza de España just in time for a free outdoor performance sponsored by the Ministerio de Cultura in the DR. We arrived at 8:15 p.m. and that was early enough to get front row seats for the performance that was originally scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. In 2010, Santo Domingo was declared La Capital de Cultura en las Americas and according to last night's host Quito, Ecuador holds the title in 2011. I'm so glad we made to the performances and the weather was perfect at a breezy 80 degrees Farenheit.

We enjoyed a trio playing romantic ballads on the guitar, mandolin(?) and maracas and then the rest of the night was dedicated to children.

We listened to and watched a group of children playing Christmas songs on recorders, two groups of children dancing folkloric dances to merengue and some other music from the southern part of the DR.

The night (for us anyway) ended with an adult group performing folkloric dance and then any and everyone in the audience dancing merengue with one of the children or adult performers. I loved it - it's so refreshing to be in a place where people just get up and dance without worrying about who is watching or whether they are doing it right. It's even more beautiful to see multiple generations of people having fun together and celebrating their folkloric culture.

Lessons Learned or Re-learned on Duty

1. Communicate with your family or friends - at least 2 people before you travel locally or across state lines. Let them know where you are going, travel dates, ways to get in contact with you. It's not fair to those that love you to leave them in the dark and have them worried sick.

2. Be incognito when spending time in unfamiliar environments.

3. Treat others as you want to be treated - even those that don't look like you, speak your language, or live where you live.

4. There are consequences for every action you take - even when you're not at home. You just can't hide from the universal LAW of cause and effect.

5. Family is important so do your best to maintain a healthy relationship with family members.

6. Have fun in moderation.

7. Every group should have a sober friend to drive or even just to chaperone the ones that are drinking.

8. Don't drink until you lose your mind and don't use drugs.

9. Don't use drugs in other countries where the rules and fines are worse than what you are willing to deal with.

10. Keep it legal in general.

11. When a woman says no it means no.

12. There are no get out of jail free cards like in Monopoly just available for the general public.

13. Paypal someone enough for a one-way plane ticket in case you ever need to get home fast.

14. Take responsiblity for your life without guilt or judgement. No one else can solve your problems.

15. When you need someone's help - leave the attitude at home.

16. Register with the Embassy whenever you travel abroad.

17. If irresponsibility and shadiness has been the M.O. for the last 13 years, you can bet money on it that the trend will continue. Act accordingly.

18. There is a solution to everything and the sky is not falling. If you're not physically on fire, then you'll probably live to talk about it later and maybe even laugh too.

19. Sometimes people just need to vent.

20. Helping others can really give a boost to your sense of joy.

MAID MADNESS

First, let me start off by acknowledging that this is not my deepest, most thoughtful, post. I recognize that there are wars going on, children being abused, people dying from AIDS, and lawless states in the world and in the grand scheme of things, this is a really tiny problem. That said, in my tiny world I have been been informed of some very upsetting news today by my usually pretty-good housekeeper.

SHE...THREW...AWAY...ALL...OF...MY...COOKED...FOOD!

For those that know me really well, it is not surprising that I was very angry to hear that my food was thrown in the trash. I LOVE food and I LOVE good food and I LOVE healthy food and healthy food is EXPENSIVE in the U.S. and it is a precious commodity for me here in the DR. I left written instructions in Spanish and apparently left out the word vieja or old when I wrote that all the food should be thrown out. Never mind that she throws out the old food every week in preparation for our weekly stock-up trip and never mind that my dear hubby was in the house and she could've just asked him if I really meant to throw out ALL the food since I've NEVER EVER asked for that to happen before. Nope. No questions. Just quick action.

The worst thing is that I had home-cooked Thai food that I was looking forward to eating and that my oldest son even ate and my dear hubby thought was delicious (this doesn't happen often). I spent my hard-earned time cooking that food and I also used my panang curry paste that my middle sister sent me from the U.S. as well as my red curry paste that I bought the last time I was home for training.

I was in shock for about an hour and then just upset and so now I'm releasing the anger and I'm forgiving this mistake publicly so I can let the whole experience go and continue having a fantastic year in 2011.

My dear hubby volunteered to write the notes for her now since Spanish is his native language and not mine. Also, from now on we will have a conference after she reads the notes just to make sure we're all on the same page about what I need.

As usual, I'm going to end on a positive note and that is that she is making me dehydrated raw buckwheat granola and raw flax crackers for me today.

Finding the Good in the Dominican Republic

Happy New Year! During my first walk of the year, I started thinking about how important it is for me to recognize the good in everything. I decided to keep a running list of things to appreciate here in the Dominican Republic, so I will update this post at least once a week so I can document all the positive and focus my energy likewise.

1. I love that there are trees everywhere in my neighborhood.
2. I appreciate the beautiful orchids in many of my neighbors' gardens.
3. I'm thankful that I can take daily walks to and around the park near our home and feel safe doing it.
4. I love that the kids can go outside to play almost every day of the year.
5. I like that bachata, salsa, and merengue can be heard in the streets for no special reason.
6. I love that people will dance anywhere with few, if any inhibitions.
7. I love that the city has free performances every Saturday night in the Plaza de España.
8. I appreciate that tourism police and national police are always present in abundance where there will be lots of families or people gathering.
9. The Aquarium is FABULOUS! It is beautifully designed with space to have picnics outside and walk along the blue-green sea. There is a playground for kids and the bathrooms are decent. Fantastic place for a family outing.
10. Hemingway beach - clean water, nice sand, not too much riff-raff, beautiful view, and the kids LOVE it.
11. Plaza de España - The free performances and the open space.
12. El Centro de Cultura de España and all that it offers. My son just completed a free, 3-day art workshop last week.