Farewell Puriscal

As I prepare to leave Puriscal, you can imagine that the feelings are bitter sweet.  I am, of course, so happy to come home and see those whom I love and have missed so much.  Unfortunately, for that reward, I pay the price of saying goodbye to the wonderful people whom I have met and with whom I have worked while I was here.  

It was a beautiful morning, with the most blue sky showing as has probably been exposed since I arrived.  The sun was warm and the air quite fresh.  I soaked it in as I walked over to the Nursing home for one last round of morning exercises and excellent company.  The morning was different than usual as the staff were preparing for a fiesta to celebrate father's day.  We gathered for exercises but some were restless with anticipation of the party and did not want to attend.  Two of my favorite fellows opted out which I think was, at least in part, due to the difficulty of saying goodbye.  It made exercises a little flat, but we all pushed through it.  I took a moment to feel proud of the solid exercise routine we have developed over the past 4 weeks.  When I first arrived, though we were given general instruction as to what to do, the course of the exercises was quite rough and a bit all over the place.  With practice, I was better and better able to group exercises together that made sense, and to start with proper warm up and stretching and then build up to the more taxing exercises.  

After exercises, I sat with Rosario for quite some time and gave her a really good foot rub.  She gave me her usual instructions, "that hurts there, softer here, harder in that spot."  Her memory is short enough, that to her, this was just like any other day.  She asked me several times if I'd be there tomorrow, which is the normal line of questioning.  I reminded her a few times that I would not but chose not to tell her over and over again.  After a while, I took a seat with Guido and we talked about the whether and how much sun there was and a little about my trip home.  

The time passed both slowly and quickly.  Soon it was time for the party and we all meandered out to the  Salon were the party was staged.  There was a DJ playing Latin Dance music and as everyone took their seats for lunch, the staff surprised them each with a can of cold beer.  The room was so filled with excitement.  Guido used is best charm in an attempt to persuade Ashling to hide a second can for him under the table cloth, but she would not yield.  Lunch was soon served and it felt very exciting and special because we weren't in the usual dining hall.  All of the tables had white linen table cloths with bright orange accent runners which enhanced the mood greatly.  Since I knew I would be eating my last lunch with the staff at the CCS house shortly, I declined to eat but helped out by feeding Maria so that the staff could relax and sit down for their own lunch.  It's certainly not something you think about regularly, but it gave me the opportunity to be grateful for the fact that I can feed myself.  How vulnerable one is, when they are relying on someone else to not only remember and be willing  to feed them, but to do it with care.  I hadn't ever really considered the complexity of eating before; the importance of offering the right sized bites at the right frequency with a pause for a drink periodically; and tipping the glass at just the right angle so that enough liquid will enter the mouth, but not too much.  The preservation of ones dignity through wiping food off off of the face as it accumulates, but in a soft enough manner so as not to let the skin become sore.  Those who are parents have also learned these things.  

Once the meal was done, the dancing began.  I danced a bit but must admit, I was feeling a little too sad to muster the energy needed, besides, it was almost time for me to leave so I took the chance to make my way around the room and say goodbye for the last time.  In preparation for this, I had gone earlier this week to the photo shop and had several prints of different people made.  I handed them out to people individually, and told them how much I enjoyed the time spent with them and how much I would miss them.  The pictures were received warmly and the exchanges were so sweet.  It was so hard to walk out the door when the time came.  

When I returned to the CCS house, everyone was gathered for lunch and we enjoyed some story telling while we ate. When lunch was over, the staff presented me with the customary DVD, commemorating my stay.  I shared a thank you card with them and we all expressed our deep appreciation at having shared such a beautiful and meaningful time together.  Some of us then sat down and played the guitars and sang for a bit and then posed for some farewell photos.  As we sat around together singing and playing, a storm swept in and the rain began to pound the metal roof as lighting yielded thunder to serve as our percussion section.  I knew this was Costa Rica's grand farewell to me and I felt ever so grateful.  

When I leave the CCS house in the morning, It will be very sad as, though I have not mentioned this before, we learned upon arrival, that the CCS house in Puriscal will be closing its doors on September first.  Just as many of us have been effected in some way by the economic downturn, so too has CCS.  They are having to close 6 of their placements in order to stay solvent.   Because of the low capacity and low attendance at the rural sites, those are the placements that will take the hit.  There are already plans to re-open in 2012, but in the meantime, they will have to give up the lease on the current house, and all of the staff will be forced to find new jobs.  As I leave, I must face the fact that this is a permanent goodbye.  The salve is the memories in my mind and the love in my heart that I will keep with me forever.  Thank you to everyone who shared this journey with me whether in person or through my writing and photos.  Your participation is a gift to me, that will help give life to this experience, long beyond this time during which it has occurred.  May this be only one of many.