Working in a Group

Go Team Cucumber!

I think working in a group has always been different experiences for me. Coming from a background of endless organizing, I have always had to be able to adjust to different groups and working styles. This time, it was a lot different because, although in america we do have diversity, in this particular working group, we come from different backgrounds, ways of growing up, with many different languages mixed into it also.

I truly appreciated the group that I had to work with. I think what was important is that when we started to slip we were able to pull each other back up and support each other by any means. Many times it was a group effort and not an effort of a certain leader or person. Doing each interview we had to be able to work together and balance the work which I think we were able to achieve.

Yay dua leo :)

What?

Where did the time go? Here I am sitting, 1 month left. Is this even real? one more fucking month? That’s all I get? My mind is so blown I can’t even begin to come to grips with how much has happened. How much I’ve grown, and changed, and how much of me I’ve been able to discover. Right now I can’t even think back on everything that’s happened, like a blink of an eye it went by like that.

I’m freaking out.

Viet Nam you will always have a permanent place in my heart. And I promise to make this last month worth it, and I never make promises.

healthcare in VN

So last week we went to Southern VN on a field trip. I was so excited... until... I GOT AN APPENDICITIS! RoaoaOar. It was the scariest experience of my life. Because of my lack of understanding in Vietnamese, it was hard to communicate to the doctors, as well as the conditions of the hospital were a lot different from american hospitals. The bedside manners were a very different and I had to be able to cope with recovering through this surgery with major culture shock. I was very lucky that I had my family there with me. Without them and their endless visits I wouldn't know what I wouldve done, as well as the warm messages from all the EAPers and friends from Ha Noi. Chi Moc was also a very great help to me too.

Reflecting back on that experience I realized the strength of family, even ones that didn't know me that well. Their warmth and care made me realize that family is truly important in VN. traveling from the far outskirts of Rach Gia, they came to just make sure I was still breathing and alive. It was an experience I would never forget.