From the Editor:
Coming back from my most recent trip to the Dominican Republic, I found it hard to get back into the swing of things here at home. I spent a month in a tiny community called El Cachote, which is at the top of a cloud mountain in the Dominican Republic. While I was there I worked with the community helping build a school, which will also be used as a hurricane shelter, and taught children English. This was all part of the International Student Volunteer program (ISV). The people in the Dominican are so welcoming and everyday I woke up in paradise.
The children there are amazing; one look at them and you will fall in love and want to take them home. While there I was completely cut off from phones and internet for the first two weeks. I know, right now all of you are gasping and thinking “is he crazy?” Trust me; it was just what I needed. To be cut off from the world and only communicate with those that are physically around me. I felt as if I was reborn. Quiet honestly I think everyone needs this; we all need to learn how to connect with those that are right in front of us.
Towards the end of my trip I had access to phones and internet but I did not use them everyday. I got so use to living the Dominican life style that even though I missed home, I felt content with life there.
No deadlines, no rushing, I didn’t have to worry about anything really. I was living the good life in paradise. As we all know, we can not stay in paradise forever, after awhile it becomes just another place. When I came home I had a whole new perspective on life and realized how fortunate we are to live here in the U.S. Even though the economy is bad and things may not be what you had hoped, take the time to get away and experience a new culture. It is something you will never regret, the only thing you will regret is not making the time to go.
Ed T.
