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After my triumphant blogpost last month, I have been hesitant to post again, as little of note has happened since then, hence the stark contrast in titles. I guess I knew my high point wouldn’t last forever, but while I’m up I tend to forget about all those times I’ve been down during this roller coaster experience, and then I am harshly reminded.

The past few weeks have been kind of a bummer, due mostly to the horrible weather. I have not really minded the seven-month long rainy season in Costa Rica because, at least where I live, it tends to be gloriously sunny and hot every morning, so by 2pm it’s not that big of a deal when it starts to rain. BUT, due to a “cold front,” it began to rain first thing in the morning two Tuesdays ago and has hardly stopped since.

Fortunately, the rains caused no serious damage in Quebradas. Everyone’s homes are still in one piece and nobody was hurt. But community life as I know it pretty much came to a halt. All meetings and activities were cancelled (except for my English class, the only thing I had control over…). School was out for three days, even though most of the students and teachers live in the community. Homes whose doors were shut tight and neighbors who would always greet me in the street were closed up inside. Peace Corps Volunteers across the country were put on emergency alert and were not allowed to leave our communities, which most Volunteers couldn’t do even if they wanted to because roads everywhere were closed due to landslides. There was really NOTHING to do.

Not seeing the sun or being able to go outside or socialize for so many days straight got me pretty down, and I finally cracked and went for a run one morning in the pouring rain. Now all the bus drivers think I’m officially crazy. Other than that, I did lots of reading and dvd-watching, which was nice for a couple of days, but the novelty wore off fast.

The most disappointing part of all was that this week, a group of new Peace Corps trainees were scheduled to visit Quebradas for five days for Tech Week, just like I visited Derek’s site in Guanacaste during my Tech Week when I was but a wee trainee. All the ladies in Quebradas were really excited to host them in their homes, and I had lots of fun activities planned and was looking forward to getting to know them and show off my work. Even though the roads had reopened, the trip was cancelled for security reasons.

Things have started to clear up the past few days, and the sun has even peaked out from behind the clouds the past few mornings. The Scouts meetings were back on this weekend, and I had my final Junior Achievement class at FUDEBIOL, where I invited all the participants for a pot-luck lunch. Despite the less-than-ideal weather, it was really fun. Some of the female students brought their kids, who ran around and got muddy on the trails. Everyone shared something about their experience in the course, and my heart was warmed, if not my shivering exterior, by all the positive things they had to say. More than any group I have worked with in my time here, these guys really took advantage of what I was offering and worked super hard and I think that’s why they got so much out of it. Some of them are talking about continuing with the business at least through Christmas to sell gift packages for the holidays. Unfortunately, the final awards ceremony was rescheduled for when I will already be back in the US, but I have a good feeling that they may win something.

And yes, the most exciting news is that I will be back in the US in three days! It has been 14 months, and I am SO ready to go home and sleep in my own bed and hang out with family and friends and eat turkey and all sorts of other delicious foods that I have missed. This trip couldn’t have come at a better time, and I hope that I return refreshed and inspired to enjoy my last five months here and that summer finally comes!