Coming Back from the Cave...

Ok, so I guess the picture link doesn't work at the moment, unless you're
on my friend Nejda's computer...soooooo, you'll just have to use your imagination for the moment,
which will probably better than the pictures anywhoo ;-p

I've somewhat retreated for the last few weeks,
been hangin' out in my internal cave and enjoying my 'bear-ness'.
Ever since I found out that the name 'Vassi' means 'poop' in Hindi,
I've been feeling kinda poopy
and down in the dumps. Go figure :-) Ok, not really...I actually
laughed a lot when my Indian friends shared this farce...
Maybe it's that for the past few weeks, I've just been trying to
embody my 'poopness' by feeling that way...poopy.
Somewhat unsure about what exactly I'm doing with my life...

what does it mean to be truly helpful and 'of service'?

How can I be truly
helpful and of service when I don't have any clear underwear?

Who am I to
think I can be really helpful and 'of service' when my name means 'poop'?

What
is the meaning of life, really?

What does it matter when you don't have any clean
underwear?

What *is* that purple stain on my couch?

Who took my dirty tennis shoe?

Was
my dirty tennis shoe helpful and 'of service'?

If so, there may yet be hope for me...

and all those sorts of deep questions in life that Peace Corps will throw in your face.

Luckily, I've found the answer to all these questions....
the answer is...
are you ready?
It's Ultimate Frisbee!

Well, ok, maybe ultimate frisbee won't help much with dirty underwear or
missing tennis shoes, but it has gotten me out of my cave, which is an important
step for a bear ;-) During the kids' spring break, we started to gather at the
Momchilgrad stadium to throw plates around. (The name for 'frisbee' in Bulgaria is 'letiashta
chiniya', literally 'flying plate'). The best thing is that none of the plates broke and no one
got hurt. The kids have so much enthusiasm that it makes me smile just thinkin' about
them...Engin and Ervin and Djoshkun and Tolunai and Ilker and Djengis and Beisim and
Ashkun and Denis and Ohkan...the kids had quite a few laughs as I tried to
pronounce their names. Hey, I'm learning their names... and they're learning frisbee.
It all takes time, but it's oh so wonderful to be learning something with enthusiastic kiddos.

And, the whole thing is thanks to Nejda...I shared the idea with her, thinking
we might gather sometime in the next few weeks...hey, it takes time to be a bear. She said, 'Great,
the kids are on spring break. So, if you wanna do it, you have to act fast.' And I did, and I'm oh so
grateful. Thank you, Nejda!