Curtain Call

Seven weeks ago, my students from Olanchito Ballet had their recital before a standing room only crowd at the cultural center. That venue never fills up unless the municipality was giving out vouchers, or free meals to go with political campaigns. Somehow, rain or shine, all cultural activities I´ve organized also made the exception. Last year´s show only had seven ballerinas taking a bow, but this year, my adrenaline got the best of me and I ended up with 37 excited ballerinas and hip-hop dancers taking the stage by storm. It was a bittersweet, nevertheless, perfect conclusion to my service as a volunteer in Honduras. I knew it was going to be a long and exhausting road to the finale, but I couldn´t have asked for a better day for me in Olanchito, where, everything, actually went right.

Fast forward to today, as I reach another personal milestone. I remember my days back in the corporate world and daydreaming in the office of doing the kind of job I wanted, meeting new people and seeing more of the world. Check, check, and check. I finally got to do Peace Corps, met a ton of people along the way, and somehow got to know nine new countries in the process- Spain and all of the countries between Mexico and Panama. Not so bad to be a daydreamer afterall, eh?

After almost a month of being a former volunteer and spending much time traveling, decompressing and reflecting, we may all be asking, "What´s next?"

"HOME" is the definite first answer, but after that is all up in the air for me. This is the first time in my life that I´ve allowed myself to become this spontaneous and worry-free (constantly trying my best not to freak out). I have a definite idea of the things I want and don´t want in my life and I´ve been letting my faith and instincts guide me each day. The process has been terrifying, but undeniably, exciting. I´m really enjoying this whole "do-not-plan-too-much" state of self.

There have been days where I´ve been restless and wished I was back home already, but at the same time, I know all this down time is doing me a lot of good and keeping me from jumping from one big thing to another like I usually do. Much reflection remains to be done, but one insight I already gained is that my time here in Honduras was one amazing experience, but it is also up...and it´s time to go home. I think I can live with that.