Oh Honduras

I believe most of the world is aware by now, but for those of you who don't know, there was a military coup here in Honduras on Sunday. I just wanted to let everyone know that I'm safe and to tell a little bit about what's going on here. I'm not sure how it appears to everyone on the outside or how the international press is describing things, but where I am, things are actually just like normal. I believe the only protesting is going on in Tegucigalpa, which conveniently is 12 hours away (although it didn't feel as convenient when I had to go for my medical checkup). People outside of Honduras know more about what's going on than a lot of people here do, but I think everyone is just waiting to see how this plays out. Peace Corps has us on standfast, which means we aren't allowed to travel anywhere, and has told us to have passports ready and our bags packed just in case we have to be evacuated. So far I haven't heard that this is going to happen but it's been a waiting game for the last couple days. Not very fun.

This is the news for now and I hope everyone is doing well and not too hot now that it's almost July.

Risk Taking and Adventure Seeking

I have never thought of myself as a risk taker.  I’ve always been cautious when it comes to making decisions, especially those where there has been potential for me to get hurt (in any way).  I started thinking about this more the other day on the bus with a friend of mine who is another Peace Corps volunteer.  She is similar to me but we started talking because we both had recently been described as risk takers and didn’t understand why.  We were in complete agreement that neither of us were big on taking risks as we were passing through the outskirts, the most poverty-stricken area, of Tegucigalpa.

 

Perhaps it was just a result of looking out the window with the eye of an outsider as a result of the conversation and thinking of home, but it occurred to me that living in Honduras is a risk that not a lot of people would take.  Leaving a place where it is comfortable and you know what to expect is not easy.  That got me thinking that maybe I am a risk taker in the sense that a lot of the things I do in my life do not follow a ‘normal’ path and have very uncertain outcomes.

 

I like to think of it as seeking adventure in my life since I have no desire at the moment to do it any differently.  Is this good or bad?  I don’t think the answer would be the same for everyone, but for me, I think it’s good.  There is no where else in the world I would rather be right now and I am constantly thinking about all the cool places I could live in and travel to next.  Living and working here has made me think a lot about what I want to do with my life and although it could change, I know that whatever I do, it will take me all over the world in search of the next adventure.