despedida belice!

as i sit here writing this post, looking through photos of friends, and remembering times of laughter and excitement, it's hard for me to believe that the belizean chapter of my life has come to an end. although i will miss my life in belize and the friends i've left behind, i feel satisfied with our contribution to guinea grass village, and the lessons we learned along the way.

our last few months were packed full of life skills teacher training sessions, chess lessons and extravaganzas, women's group meetings, and HIV/AIDS lessons. somehow in the midst of all that excitement, we still managed to say our goodbyes and pack our lives into two reasonably sized suitcases. and i have to say that although it was teary and emotional, our last week in belize was one of my favorite experiences. i have never before had so many people speak so candidly and honestly about the meaning of our friendship with them, what they have learned from us, and what they love about us. it was so touching. we received so many loving embraces, words of encouragement and appreciation, and blessings that i feel like i may burst. what a beautiful farewell. thank you, belize. i will never forget.

our farewell tour began in the scenic village of cristo rey, where we spent our first two months in belize, with the ellis family.

what a great host family. thanks for always making us feel like part of the family.

standard 6 students gave us a round of applause for teaching them the reality of HIV/AIDS

peace corps volunteers in orange walk gathered for a farewell brunch in our honor. we love you, roma!

you rock, molly!

thanks for being a source of inspiration, jim and janine.

a HUGE thank you goes out to christen for hosting the brunch and being amazing, and to zach for your unconditional love and super awesomeness.

and for all our peace corps volunteer friends:

thank you for your love and support. we appreciate you and your good intentions. remember that there are lessons to be learned from difficult situations. and know that belizeans do appreciate you and all your efforts, but they may not tell you so until your time comes to say goodbye. it will be an amazing moment. and well worth the wait.

we started our round of farewells with a delicious lunch of escabeche, shared with a beautiful family. thank you to the canul family for your love and friendship. you are unforgettable.

our final farewell at school was just perfect: students thanked us on behalf of each class, we had the opportunity to say goodbye to the whole school, and we took this fantastic picture with the entire staff and student body. thank you, guinea grass pentecostal school, you have given us so many wonderful memories.

my girls: rosy, clari, julisa, and reina.

the heart desired women's group of guinea grass gave us a beautiful farewell party. they decorated the room and themselves in my favorite color, served up a phenomenal pot of escabeche, gave us touching gifts from belize, and made me laugh until i cried with the silly games we played. thank you, amigas, i know you are bound for great things.

my dear friend and chairwoman of the women's group, elisa. i miss you already, amiga mia.

and just when we thought the party was over, we had an official sendoff fiesta escort us all the way to the airport. i was tearing up all the way through the security checkpoint, but it felt so wonderful to look up at the viewing deck and see beautiful smiles and hands waving frantically as we boarded our plane. thank you ladies, you made us feel so special. melissa, elodia, and queta, i will be back before you know it!