Having been in Antigua for a week, I am beginning to gain a sense of familiarity here. The streets, the food, and the people. My home-stay parents, Dona Lucky and Jose, are some of the kindest, most genuine people I have met. When I first walked into the house, my first instinct is to ask where to leave my shoes (because in Asian culture we do not walk into homes with our shoes on). Jose immediately said, “no worries! This is YOUR home now!”. Dinner quickly became the time of the day I most look forward to. We have a full table: Maya, Andres, Scilla, and I (from UT), Mateus from Brazil, Carlos and Tom from Ireland, and another Tom from the UK (all volunteering for a school in Guatemala City). Not only do we have amazing food served for us, but we always have great laughs and conversations, even with the language barrier. Jose said his dream was to have a large kitchen with a big dining table for his family. He says he never imagined his family to come from all parts of the world, but yet here we are.
One night, Mateus brought his camera to the dinner table, and before we knew it we had a full-blown photo-shoot (mostly of Jose and Lucky, but some group pictures too). Jose and Lucky could not stop giggling and laughing through it all, and I made a comment on how photogenic they are. Lucky responded in Spanish, “it is because we are happy! If you are happy, it will show in the picture. You need to have souls like kids.”
It amazes me how quickly my home-stay became a second home to me. Not only does this place fulfill my physical needs of food and shelter, but moreover it feeds my soul. In a house with 10 people whom I had only known for about a week, I feel incredible content and at peace here.
