20-20
Romance began quickly with the deafening silence of the Hopi reservation. It rings in your ears as you slowly realize the reason your mind is frantically searching for something, searching for sound. For a southern girl used to the chaos of cicadas, crickets, buzzing fireflies, the wind ticking the leaves providing a rustling laughter, and creaking rocking chairs, the desert waits for me to make the noise. It allows me freedom. I allows me to make a difference, even one so small as noise. Romance ended quickly as well. Shower uno's soft water, hours of trying to get less slimy, and lessons about hot water amounts will haunt my nightmares for years. Week one's dust storm taught me that the headscarf is a must. Week two's meetings with students taught me to hope. They live everyday as though it is their last. In some ways, I LOVE that part of them that allows them to reject the norm, pave their own paths, and excert creativity over anything they touch. I also HATE it. I ...