Wake Up Every Morning

I sometimes have to pinch myself to know that I am in Bolivia. I am no longer talking and dreaming about being a missioner in Bolivia. I am here. There are many signs that serve as reminders for living in Bolivia. I hear Spanish everywhere I go. It is in the grocery store, restaurants, buses, on the street, and in my new home. I am attending school instead of going to work. I have homework that is due the next day. I have a textbook so I can follow along with my teachers. I drink bottled water instead of drinking from the tap. My money is in Bolivianos rather than dollars. I have a voltage converter so I can use my laptop. There are dogs in the street, in the park, and on the sidewalk. Laundry is hung outside to dry. I hear 80’s music in every taxi that I ride in so I can get to my next destination. These are all the outward signs that I am living in Bolivia. I am in still in awe and amazement that I am here in Bolivia.
What captures my thoughts about Bolivia is how I wake up each morning. I hear the sound of a rooster which is my other alarm clock. It crows several times. I also hear the rain on the roof. It is the rainy season now. The rain has a distinct sound. It is hollow and loud. It also comes down fast and strong. After two hours, the rain is done. The evidence from the rain is the mud puddle outside. The light from the sun streams through my curtains even though I want to sleep more. I turn over so I can block the light with my body but it is not enough. I must wake up to start my day. I smell the beginnings of lunch. It always smells tasty with all the spices that my abuela uses. She lets the food simmer so all the spices are in a perfect arrangement with each other. This smell makes me excited for lunch and I can’t wait to come home after classes. I see the daily activities of my abuela in the morning. She makes my breakfast and sets it out for me to eat. She fills a pitcher of water to water all of the plants as long as it did not rain early in the morning. She has coffee and bread ready for a worker in the neighborhood. She takes food out to Whiskey, our ferocious and kind dog in the backyard. She puts the dishes away from last night’s dinner. If there are dishes to wash, she washes them. She offers little conversation which is a relief because my brain cannot form sentences in Spanish at 7:20 in the morning. I leave for school and she says something that I don’t quite understand yet. In my mind, it is “have a wonderful day at school.”
My walk to school is an amazing sight as well. In every direction, I see mountains. These mountains are lush and green, and extremely tall. I am inspired to go hiking and yet, I think I need to go to school. I can hike this weekend. I see people who are waiting for the bus or taxi trufi to take them where they need to go in the morning. I don’t know where they are going. I walk carefully to school. There is a high number of dogs that live in the street. Some of the dogs can be a wee bit mean and may have rabies. There are two ways of dealing with the dogs. One way is to pick up a rock which scares them. The other way is to let them walk past you. Both ways are helpful so as to avoid a potential bite. If you know someone that already has the rabies vaccine, then you can push them in front so they can be bitten first.
As I approach the entrance of the Maryknoll Institute, I see men washing cars. They take buckets with ropes attached to them and plunge them deep down into a canal. This canal consistently flows with water. I am not sure where the water comes from but it is a good business. There are always cars in the morning, afternoon, and evening. I walk a little bit closer and see women washing clothes. They are using the same water that the men are using. Then, they hang the clothes. Sometimes, the women chase after kids in between washings. I learned from the guards at the entrance that all of the men and women come from the southern zone. In the southern zone of the city, there is very little water. Since there is little water there, they must come to this area by the school. By the end of the day, they have packed up their things and go back to the southern zone. The routine starts the very next day.