I missed the weekly blog post this week because of several things, but I wanted to write something short this evening to fill the space until next week.

The big news is that we had visitors! Hurray!! Dr. David Hansen and Matthew Byrnes from New Mexico State University were in Costa Rica visiting CATIE, a school in Turrialba, and were kind to make a trip out to visit us. It was short—just an afternoon and an evening—but it was so good to have them here. We walked the farm, talked with Solin, ate a lovely dinner with food from the farm, and I got to pester them with lots of questions.

The best part was getting to talk with people who bring fresh eyes to the project, to hear their initial thoughts, considerations, and ideas. Although I’m still pretty new at all this, my eyes aren’t as fresh as they were; I’ve gotten down into the daily routine of the place. As I walked with the two of them, they were able to show me things I hadn’t seen yet—like ripe green beans, 15 steps from my front door! They’ve been ready for a while now; I just hadn’t looked for them yet. I was busy eating the lettuces planted around them. I can’t tell you how much I love fresh green beans! They were also able to pose questions or offer a solution to a problem in a way I hadn’t thought of yet, and I was continually reminded at how good it is to ask for help, to involve others, and to see things from another point of view.

And so, armed with some new ideas and fresh enthusiasm, I’m ready to face this week. As I continue to pursue a rhythm for my time here, I have been thinking about patience and waiting. Or rather, I’ve had to be patient and wait. Apparently, that’s something I need to work on, as I found myself frustrated more often than I would like last week. I want to be in the middle of things, knee deep in creating something wonderful and outstanding. I want to be a part of this community, I want the tomatoes to be ripe, I want my Spanish to be better, I want to have created something lasting for this place. But you only get to those places by starting at the beginning, and taking things one step at a time. So I’m trying to catch myself before I get too frustrated, and to remember that I’ve got time. I’ve just got to put one foot in front of the other.

Something that’s helping with that is writing everything down, seeing the bigger picture, and mapping out a tentative plan for the next months. Ideas, projects, goals. Tentative, because I know it will change, but I think that will be a good sign. Readjustment is a good thing.

So, as I take little steps every day, in lots of things, I’ll know I’m moving forward, and I can be patient and wait for things to unfold.

The first of our tomatoes this season!