Anyway……

One of the reasons I believe this past trip to the DR has impacted me more than other trips is because I became equals with the poor. They were my friends, my neighbors, my coworkers. In fact they fed me when I was hungry and gave me their beds to sleep when I was tired. I experienced more generosity in a day from the poor, then in an average year from some of my friends back home. Its not that my friends back home are not generous, but rarely do we serve each other in a sacrificing way with no strings attached or debts to repay.

Most people become self-righteous when they serve the poor. They want people to see how kind they are and give them glory for having such a “big heart”. Anyone who works in the development department at an nonprofit organization knows this well. Often, in order to get big donors and sponsors for one’s special events, the organization must promise web and print recognition as well as verbal recognition during an evening.

I think there is a difference between serving the poor and working in partnership and relationship alongside the poor. Serving the poor through volunteer activities is a good thing but there still is often a “us” and “them” vibe going on. The relationships are short-term and often shallow. When you work alongside the poor, their burdens become your burdens, you share together the triumphs and the tribulations of life. In fact, the people you intend to serve often end up serving you in ways you never imagined.

To my friends in the D.R……

Thank you, this summer was a privilege.

I think this is a brilliant idea. Why? Because as we move forward in the digital age, I fear we are growing further away from each other. Some would argue that the internet and social networks are making the world a smaller place, however, I believe the relationships and networks we build through social media are superficial compared to the relationships built through one on one, long term, personal interaction.

Think about what you would want in a code of conduct for your city or community. I believe there is power when people come together with common values, common mission, and  common purpose. How can you engage your city to change the world?

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

- Margaret Mead, US anthropologist & popularizer of anthropology (1901 – 1978)

Today I met with my friend, Kayla, at Starbuck’s to talk over some Esperanza business and catch up in general. It was nice to share our struggles returning back to America from the D.R. and have someone understand the feeling of loneliness and loss that no one else could possibly understand unless they had experienced serving the D.R. themselves.

Something that is really scaring me is that already I am experiencing some sort of burnout or distance from my ambition and calling to serve in the D.R.. I’ve been procrastinating on working on Engage and letting excuses and distractions stand in my way from pushing forward. My biggest distraction is money both personally and professionally. Currently, I am struggling to find employment and my bank account is down to a dangerous level with both major repairs on my car and computer looming over my head. I’m already leaning on my parents more than I should as is and I really want to be independent of them financially. Professionally, I’m letting the recession serve as a reason to put things on hold with Engage even though I have identified so many new, exciting, and worthy projects to take on.

Despite situations that are out of my control like the recession, I realize that there are still many things in my life that I can control and that I need to take responsibility for the direction of my life. I’m hoping that I will be able to regain focus and start fresh next week after my boyfriend, Michael, leaves back to Japan to finish up his program.

Let all of us recognize our excuses, take responsibility, work hard, and move forward.

This week, I will not be able to update much as I will be in the field interviewing associates and taking photos for various projects. My last day in the office will be friday. I look forward to sharing many stories when I return to the US.

- 2009 report for our “Esperanza y Vida” program. This involves many interviews with loan recipients in outlying bateyes and attempting to record significant numerical data.

- Creating a complimentary services overview to briefly describe all our side projects. Hopefully we can share this with fellows, volunteers, staff, and incoming groups so we don’t have to keep explaining what we do over and over again.

- Creating a guidebook for fellows with everything from safety protocol to grant-writing to safe places to eat and stay.

I’m about half way through my trip and I am really happy so far. I feel like i’m learning a lot!

• Santo Domingo
• Los Alcarrizos
• Mao
• Palmajero
• La Haina
• Puerto Plata
• Hato Mayor
• El Seibo
• Las Terrenas

40 hrs/wk x $8.50 hr x 4 wks/month = $16, 320 USD

In the Dominican Republic, there is a minimum monthly salary but it varies by industry and company size. For companies with more than $4 million pesos ($111,124 USD) in assests, they are required to pay $8,400 pesos ($233 USD) per month.

In industries such as tourism (which employs a large percentage of the population), monthly pay is only required to be $6,500 pesos ($180 USD) a month.

Here is a picture of the cost of living in the Dominican Republic:

Lunch= 120 pesos ($3.35 USD)

5 gallon water jug= 50 pesos ($1.4o USD)

Typical Transportation to and from work each day= 75 pesos ($2 USD)

1 months rent for a bedroom in a middle class house= $7,725 pesos ($215 USD)

Now after looking at this, you can see that the minimum wage in the Dominican Republic is not even remotely close to a living wage. This forces people to eat one meal a day or live in extremely unsanitary conditions. This is shocking and something to think about…..