It has been four weeks since we have all been in Minnesota together. Here is a video that shows Estela and Kevin's arrival which was kindly made and given to us by our friend Mandy. They arrived the same night that the Gold winning Women's Olympic Basketball players arrived, so it was quite a welcoming!
Since then we have been celebrating and been transitioning to life in Minnesota. Kevin started to work as a Social Studies teacher at Washburn High School. He is teaching geography courses as well as an African American Studies course. Both present different challenges related to class size and that fact that he is a white male teaching a class on African American Culture. Overall though things are going well as Kevin is enjoying his work and is very much glad to be back at Washburn. I (Cassie) am working as a Social Worker at Ramsey Middle School. While it is a new area of Social Work and a big learning curve, I am so enjoying the work, my interactions with students and my ability to use Spanish. Estela is spending her mornings at a Montessori school and reports that things are going well. There she is learning new skills everyday, including how to squeeze her own mandarin juice, sing new songs and interact with her peers. We are enjoying our time with family and friends, as well as exploring the community around us. We have spent a lot of time outside on our bikes, at parks and running around the lakes. Life seems full, but we trust it will slow down.
We think about Nicaragua every day. We communicate with our friends there on a daily basis and we are wondering how to best maintain these relationships. We miss the food, the heat (some of us), the lifestyle and the people. It will be a long process, but we are encouraged by the community that we have made along the way.
We have the intention of continually writing in this space. So come back soon!
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