Just Open the Umbrella

Hey Team,

I'm going to continue on with my Campo miniseries (it actually probably will be less than a miniseries it will more likely be a micro-series, is that a thing?)

Anyway, Apparently my white Norwegian skin can't handle the Dominican sun (no surprise there, my Norwegian skin doesn't like the Iowa sun). By the end of the first work day I was hurting bad folks. I eventually got smart and switched to SPF 100 (no joke) and wore a baseball cap everyday. However, as a consequence for my extreme sun burns I ended up with sun poisoning. That was fun.

The  point it I was burned and it was apparent. Everyone noticed. This leads me to the umbrella. My compatriot Blair's mom was quite concerned about my sunburn. To the point where she gave me an umbrella to use to keep the sun off of my skin. I'm not gonna lie, I was slightly mortified thinking about walking around Jagua Clara with an umbrella over my head. Can you say "high-maintenance?"

At first I just walked around with it by my side to hopefully appease Blair's mom, however, it soon became clear that she felt it was necessary that I use the umbrella. So I did it. I sucked up my pride and I opened the umbrella. It was a little embarrassing; however, I'm still alive and Blair's mom was happy.In hindsight I'm really ashamed that I walked around with the umbrella by my side for as long as I did.

This taught me a valuable lesson of accepting generosity. Many times I am inclined to turn down anything that anyone offers me. I feel like I don't need it or that they need what they are attempting to give to me more than I do.  I even sometimes let my vanity get in the way of accepting another person's generosity.

In some way's it's a condescension. "I don't need help, I'm just fine."In some way it implies that there is nothing which that person can offer you. I believe that somewhere in our minds we have ingrained that if we accept help it makes us lower or weak. However, that is what makes it beautiful to accept the generosity of others. It is an act of humility. It states "Hey, I'm no better or worse than you are, we are the same, we are both human-together."When you accept generosity you acknowledge the fact that you have needs and you're not perfect all while acknowledging that that person can help you, that you are not above what they have to offer.

So open the umbrella, accept a meal, and be grateful.

In essence get over yourself.

Peace, Love, Iowa,

Corbin

My umbrella and I

Let It Be

Hey Team,

Sorry it's been so long since I've last updated but I've been uber busy over the last couple weeks. Anywho let's get started.

We went to Jagua Clara in late early February and stayed for ten days. It was definitely one of the most memorable experiences of my life for all sorts of various reasons. I stayed with a host family-my family-for all ten days. They are the Henriquez Almontes family. I have a mom and a dad, my dad is a farmer and my mom worked at home. I also had a younger brother, Eddy, who is 18 and a younger sister, Sarah, who is 15. They're the best. I WILL fight about that fact. On top of those living in the home, I also have ten (yup I said ten) other brothers and sisters living in other places.

Every night my brother, sister, and I would play cards for a couple of hours before going to bed (which was at around 9 o'clock every night. It. Was. Awesome.) We would talk, using the term talk incredibly lightly as my Spanish still leaves much to be desired or watch a telenovela (my brother and sister seemed to enjoy the one entitled "Perro Amor" the best-I was just confused about what was going on) if there was luz (electricity) which was not an incredibly common occurrence.

They were the definition of generosity of kindness to me. My mom made me coffee every morning and every evening. She seemed to always love the opportunity to give me something. Sometimes I would look over at her and she was always smiling at me. This is something I really had a hard time understanding. Here I was, an American, who spoke very terrible Spanish and could rarely communicate anything had barged into the lives of my family members for ten days. I took up space and a bed. However, I really had nothing to offer them. I couldn't say anything intelligent insightful. I couldn't even really crack a joke. I could barely communicate the simplest of ideas. I really just seemed to add extra chores (extra laundry to wash, extra coffee to make, extra time spent explaining the simplest of tasks) However, they seemed to genuinely enjoy my presence. In fact my mom in the campo told one of my leaders that she really liked me. This baffled me. How? What did I do? What did I say? How could they possibly know whether they liked me or not?

After a while I began to realize just how profound this is. Often times (especially in the United States) we define ourselves by what we have to offer. I'm good at basketball, I'm a great accountant, I'm smart, I'm funny...etc to the point where if someone doesn't "have something to offer" they are next to useless. We forget that people are people and therefore important, simply because they are. I think Max Lucado said it best when in one of his books he wrote, "You are valuable because you exist. Not because of what you do or what you have done, but simply because you are."

It is clear to see how the mentality of needing to "offer something" to feel of use has wreaked havoc throughout the globe. I see it far to often in my own life. I get depressed and discouraged when I feel that I do not measure up. I wonder what the world would look like we allowed ourselves to just be comfortable with "being." Also, if we allowed others to do the same, we valued them simply for the fact that they "are."

I was important to my family in the DR because I was there...and that is it. Talk about humbling.

Mi Familia (Left to Right Mom, Dad, Sarah, Me, Eddy)

Off to the Campo

Hey Team,

    Today I'm headed off to the Campo (Dominican countryside) for a ten day immersion. I will be living alone with a Dominican family, so wish me Spanish luck. We are told that Campo life is drastically different from city life and I'm very excited to experience a different form of Dominican culture. While we're there we will also be helping with some minor construction projects but the main point is to actively participate in Campo life. I'll see you all in ten days!

Peace,

Corbin

P.S. I am missing the Super Bowl tonight but sending all my support to my Pack! Bring home the Lombardi trophy to its rightful home!

Cuttin' the Rug

Hey Team,

Padre Bill the Priest here at ILAC arranged for us to have dance lessons tonight with some of his friends from the neighborhood. We learned different styles of bachata and merengue two of the most popular and traditional dances here in the DR.

I have a bad habit of feeling the need to constantly be perfect at everything- which is the opposite one needs to be doing when dancing. The moves are important but you have to feel the music (like in dirty dancing right?) Once I started just moving, not stressing, I was having a blast. It was great, it was nice to not think and just move and have fun.

One of the aspects about the DR that I like the best is the fact that music and dancing is a part of their culture, it's a tradition that's common to everyone. No matter who you are- you dance. No matter how you were raised, what you do for a living, or how much money you have- you dance. Dance has a beautiful way of connecting everyone. Intrinsically, with the emphasis on dance and music, comes the ability to let go, forget, and relax.

This is something that everyone could learn to do every once in a while. We get rapped up in the rat race. We are concerned with the future so much to the fact that we miss the time that is passing right now. What is the use of stressing all the time? It will only waste the short time you have on this earth.

So, take some time. Let go. Have fun. Relax (Suave, my friends, suave.) Enjoy the dance.

Peace,

Corbin

Language Barriers: Mariposas and Corvettes

Hey Team,

While I was at service last week a child asked my to draw "una mariposa" for him. I looked back at him like an idiot and said "¿Mariposa?" The child kind of smiled and then began to draw.."Ah! A Butterfly!" He smiled when he realized I understood and then continued on whith his craft.

One of the aspects of living in the Dominican Republic that I have been struggling with the most (besides the lack of Diet Coke) is the laguage barrier. Back when I was still taking Spanish, I was decent, by no means fluent and that has been over a year and a half ago. Now I am driving the Spanish struggle bus all day. I'm trying to do extra work on top of my Spanish class so I can at least be communacative. It's frustrating. I want to talk to people but I can't so I feel like I just come off as rude.

The frustration over the language barrier is at it's when I go to service every week. Let me tell you, if you have trouble understanding Spanish just wait until you hear small children speak it. As a general rule children speek quietly and quikly, not a great combo when you are trying to learn a new language. This is especially challenging as culturally Dominicans in general speak more quietly than Americans and the Spanish language is already much quiker than English. To get a grasp on children speaking spanish just image Alvin and the Chipmunks speaking Spanish.

At my service site all I want to do is talk to the kids, ask them about their lives, give them someone who will listen- essentially I want them to know that they are cared about and important. This is not such an easy task to accomplish when you are basically limited to "¿Cuántos anos tienes?" and "¿Comó se llama?" My name can even be a complication as two integral sounds in my name don't really exist in Spanish. When I say my name is "Corbin" I get all sorts of crazy looks- the other day I got called Corvette (like the car).

On Wednesday of last week I was watching a child color a horse in a coloring book. I was racking my brain trying to figure out something to say to him. All I could think was how wierd I must come off right now, just sitting here watching the kids color. The boy I was siting next to leaned against me while he continued to color. At that moment I realized that language isn't always necessary to send a message. Presence is important and is not dependent on language, a smile or a hug can mean a lot.

Maybe language evens get in the way of being fully present sometimes. We think about what to say, but we don't listen; we are off in our own thoughts and not paying attention to the real human beings in front of us.

Peace,

Corbin

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Hey Team,

I've now been in the DR for a little over two weeks and am settling into a regular routine. We had a orientation week so we just started our "normal" schedule last Monday.

In the last two weeks I have:

• ridden many a guagua (a public bus that comfortably fits about ten people, however the owners pack as many people as feasibly possible, I counted twenty-five the last time, and ride around with the door open)
• visited Sousa, a beautiful but incredibly touristy beach in the North
• visited Cien Fuegos, the urban slum in Santiago
• discovered that in the DR Diet Coke exists in the form of Coca-Cola Light-it's not the same but it will have to do
• Spent some time at my service site for the semester, Caritas in Licey, a feeding program for children before they go to school
• Plus more...

I have learned:

• Corbin doesn't translate into Spanish so I should just be prepared to have people mispronounce my name (My favorite was when I was called Corvette- like the car)
• In the Dominican Republic, traffic laws are just suggestions
• In the Dominican Republic, it kind of is a fashion show
• A little (I still have a lot to see and experience) about life in the Dominican Republic, good and bad
• How infinitely blessed I am back in the United States to have a home, food to eat, access to education, and loving friends and family
• Plus more...

A lot has gone down in the last two weeks, but what sticks out the most to me about the DR is the huge gap between wealth and poverty here.  One can see a tin home next to a large home with several cars parked in the front, a child with no shoes standing on the street as a BMW drives by. It's shocking to see such poverty next to such wealth. It is even more shocking to realize that this discrepancy carries to all parts of the world. For instance, there are great excesses of wealth in the United States. Many people drive nice cars and have nice homes; however, many people go without in America and throughout the world. Perhaps we just don't take notice as much because the discrepancy is not in your face: the rich and the poor standing right next to each other. Take this next week as a challenge to look at your city/ community in a different light. When you see a child with loving parents and warm clothes try to image a child in a third world country with no parents and limited access to what they need. See an opposite reality because it is indeed a REALITY of this world.

Oh! Well, Hey there...

Hey Team,

I see that you've stumbled upon my corner of the internet. I have a corner of the internet because I'm going to the Dominican Republic (DR) to study and do service for four months. I thought I would write my thoughts and experiences down for all the world (read: probably just my mom, Hi mom!) to see.

While I'm down in the DR I hope to be challenged in a way that leads me to ask tough questions about my life and the world around me. I probably won't have any answers or great insights but I feel some questions don't necessarily have answers; the best one can hope to do is ask the right questions. I'm not exactly sure what will happen or how I will be effected, but that's the fun isn't it?

That being said... "Let us step out into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure."-Albus Dumbledore (JK Rowling)