Time flies when you’re having fun

I can’t believe I am just a week away from marking three months of living in San Pedro. So much has been happening that sometimes it feels impossible to keep up. Ever since November, Christmas lights and decorations have filled the streets. It reminds me of home. Since Thanksgiving isn’t celebrated here in the DR, November feels like the official start to the holiday season, an invitation to prepare. The holidays aren’t here yet, but they’re approaching quickly, and it truly feels that way.

Work at Mercy has picked up significantly. I recently finished interviewing the women we serve and have now moved on to interviewing the leadership team—and I have even been interviewed myself. Having the opportunity to lead Mercy toward growth and accountability is something I never would have foreseen, yet I’m extremely grateful to have been trusted with such responsibility.

Last week, I revamped the workshop intake form due to the possibility of receiving a new woman. Normally, Mercy doesn’t use intake forms, but when outreach was more frequent, the team would simply invite women on the street to church, and if they came, they were offered a day of work and paid a day’s wage. I felt strongly that structure and uniformity are necessary in professional spaces, and the intake form gives us essential insight before welcoming anyone in.

Outside of work, I made the intentional decision to make November a slower month for myself. I took a break from the gym and from coming home, only to jump right back into work. Instead, I’ve implemented moments of silence to recenter and regulate my nervous system after long days. It has been incredibly beneficial.

This past weekend I celebrated my coworker’s birthday in Bayahibe, about an hour from San Pedro, and we stayed at a resort. Being in a different environment gave me a sense of peace I didn’t realize I was missing in the busyness of city life. I never knew how much I valued spaces of quiet and tranquility until I no longer had them. Sitting by the pool, chatting with coworkers, sipping piña coladas, and watching the waves hit the shore was exactly what I needed.

I also went to the mall in the capital for the first time. My boss took me to the movies, and apparently, cinemas in the DR don’t play English versions until 9 p.m., so we watched Regretting You by Colleen Hoover in Spanish—and I was proud to be able to keep up confidently. Before the movie, we walked around the mall and grabbed Starbucks drinks. We ended up being the only two people in the theatre, laughing loudly and making jokes throughout the film. It was simple, but it was special.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5: 22-23