"She goes to church, and I go to mosque."

I realize it's been nearly a month since my last blog post. I promise everything is going super well, I've just been very busy and updating on a regular basis has become impossible. It's also pretty hard to know what to write, because it's hard to transfer everything I'm learning and experiencing and feeling into actual words a lot of the time.

There are only three weeks remaining of my "summer in Bosnia", and I'm at a loss for words when I think of leaving this beautiful, but complicated little country. It's not that I'm dreading going back to "the real world", filled with responsibilities, deadlines, and school work. It's more that I feel as though I'm only just beginning to get settled into life here, I'm no longer like a newborn seeing everything with new eyes, but I'm starting to understand some of the things that complicate life here for the people that I've fallen in love with. I'm passed the point where everything is new and beautiful, and I think I'm at a place where there's a real opportunity for learning, and it feels a little like I'm being torn away from that chance all too soon.

Since I last wrote, our summer programming has started and has been in full-swing for about 2 weeks. I'm really enjoying getting to know the kids(even the troublemakers!) and there are a group of 6 girls who are completely infatuated with me and follow me everywhere. They're sweet, but I'm happy to get home at the end of the day and spend time with my family, who no longer think I'm special at all and just treat me like a member of the family(this is a good thing!) Working with children is also doing awesome things for my language skills, I've seen a definite improvement, and am able to follow most conversations the kids are having, even if I'm still not able to contribute very much.

Things at the centar have been...a little hard. I guess I don't really want to get into too much of that here, but I've been a little disapointed with the work placement part of this whole thing. It's been frustrating, but it had taught me things about myself, what sorts of things are not acceptable for me, and that I need to feel supported in order to be confident in my work abilities. It's also taught me some of the differences between Bosnian and Canadian culture, and although I do find some things frustrating, I'm very mindful that it doesn't mean that "my" or the "Canadian" way is better, it's just different.
We did have a meeting with the director of the centar on Friday, and I'm very optimistic that things will improve, and that both sides are ready to make a conscious effort to make the next 3 weeks better for everyone.

As frustrating at things have been, there was a moment this week that really reminded me of why I'm here, and that the centar does do beautiful things for people. I was doing a craft with two little girls, and I asked them if they were friends from school. They said no, and then some things in Bosnian that I didn't understand. When I looked at the little girl with the most English, she just said "She goes to church, and I go to mosque. But we're still friends, here."

I felt so full, and so sure that this is a worthwhile thing for me to be doing at that moment, that it made up for the month or so of frustration I've been feeling. There is a reason why I'm here, and the centar is a beautiful place, even if it's not a perfect place.