Friendship in Unexpected Places

We find friendship in unexpected places. I found friendship in unexpected places. I found friendship in Perú. I had this dream that I would arrive in my Peace Corps site and start working right away in things that would ‘change the world’. Have I changed it yet? I doubt it. What I do know though, is that I have changed myself, at least so far. And hopefully along the way I changed a person or two. As a Community Health Promoter I do not feel like I have done much to change my community. As of right now I have not had the chance to do anything meaningful, at least that is how I perceive what I have done here so far.

I have made friends though. Many who I just play volleyball with, and a couple who perhaps I have had the chance to illuminate, if I may use that word, in matters of the world. Here are some of their stories…
One of the first friends I made in site was a fourteen year old kid named Gonzalo.

I think we clicked because I accepted him for who he was. He was a tall, extremely lanky, expressive and at the same time delicate boy. He came from Lima with his sister to visit his dad who is a native from my town. I have two strong memories of the boy. The first of other kids laughing at him for not being able to hit a volleyball. The second of spending time with him and his sister at his dad’s restaurant watching Bollywood movies and trying to imitate Indian dance moves. I remember saying goodbye to him in the plaza, and him telling me that he wanted to travel the world like me. I gave him my cell number when he left assuming I would never hear from him again. How wrong was I! We exchanged a couple text messages before his departure to Argentina with his mom. After a month or so of not seeing each other he made sure to call and say goodbye the day before he left for Buenos Aires. I hope to email him once in a while. I know he will be happy that he made a friend from a country he didn’t even know existed.

The second person I made friends with was Yuli. She works at her dad’s restaurant and their store. I have found myself spending a lot of time with her in the past two months because she is always around. She is studying tourism in Huaraz, our department capital. I can have really smart conversations with her about anything, she is very smart. She is the only person in my town who knows some English, so I try to help her in the conversational level. Right now she is not studying because her oldest sister is no longer around, so she has to help all the time. I tell her constantly to keep studying, and remind her of the importance of finishing her degree. I know she will finish, at least if I stay around and keep reminding her.

The third position goes to my new friend Doña Eulogia. I haven’t talked to her much but I consider her my friend. I remember my second day in site. There was a party in town and she dragged me to the dance floor. It was hilarious and so much fun. A couple weeks after that I interviewed her in her house. So far, she has the most humble house I have had the chance to visit, yet she is the most energetic person in my whole town. Yesterday I was walking to my house when I encountered her. Interesting interaction that was. She was very happy to see me. Then she asked me if I had some rice I could give her, and then invited me to her house for food. I came to her house an hour later with a pound and a half of rice. And left an hour later with a belly full of delicious potatoes and cabbage and having read a full chapter of some religious book she made me read. I listened to her talk about her family, her experiences, and her hopes for the future. She gave up the chance to move to the States with a family from the US embassy because she was afraid to miss her family. Right there we clicked again. I completely understood. With tears in my eyes I told her that I missed my family. “Your mom must really miss you” she said to me. Silence. No words could come out of my mouth. “I know” I thought to myself as I hoped she could not see the tears streaming down my face in her dark ash stained kitchen.

Lastly I have made friends with Cynthia and John, two siblings from Lima who spend their vacations in my town with their family. I leave them for last because perhaps they are the ones I have touched the most. I have had the chance to spend time with them during the last two months, and have had a ton of fun. Cynthia is going back to Lima because college starts up again this week. I never imagined how much I meant to them until yesterday when she gave me a card she made from scratch. It was beautifully decorated and said beautiful things inside. She made me realize that sometimes just offering people your friendship is enough to change who they are. In the letter she says how much these past two months have meant to her, and expressed how much admiration she had for me. It is difficult to find people in the “sierra” or mountains who truly understand what Peace Corps is, but she gets it. Sometimes when I’m frustrated she calms me down by telling me that it is normal to feel frustrated as a Peace Corps volunteer. I will truly miss her here in Huantar, and I look forward to the moment we meet again. I will think of her everyday when I look at my wall and see her card taped to it.

This experience has been extremely hard. It was hard from the beginning and continues to be difficult. I don’t think it will cease being so. Hopefully these friends that I found along the way, and those I am bound to bump into in the future will walk with me hand in hand along the arduous yet rewarding path to December 2010.