As for the second question, it depends on whom you ask. And what day it is. And what time of day, frankly – because we all have multiple opinions that just keep changing. A smattering of answers from the past couple of days…
Gracie: I loved going to the Caribbean beach when Amma and Poppa came to visit. We walked on this jungle path, and then the jungle cleared away and we were on a deserted beach with sticks and logs. It was the best beach day ever.
Maggie: I liked when I learned how to speak Spanish.
James: I liked getting to see all the wildlife – like the toucans that lived across the street, and the scarlet macaws.
Grace: And I liked all the monkeys – both the Capuchin and the Howlers.
Greg: Don’t forget about the volcano. It was…
All: RIGHT THERE!!
Processing through the whole adventure is a monumental task; helping our children to do that and then be able to articulate it to others is more difficult than we could ever have imagined. But our hope is that we will continue to reflect on the experiences we had, the things we saw and the people we met for a very long time. Earlier in the year we were able to see a photographer’s show at the Art Festival called 180 degrees. In this show, her work was all reflections – images captured on the surface of water. We have included our own photographic reflections here – inspired both by her show but also by this process we are now in, where the reflecting is as meaningful as the original experience.
Could you help us? Would you please take two minutes to share a comment with us telling us about your favorite story from this blog? We have over 6000 visits to this blog, and we’d love to know who all is following us, what you’ve gotten out of it, and why you were interested in our adventures. It might help us through our own processing.
Thank you for your love and support these past six months. We couldn’t have done it without you!!
Respectfully submitted,
The Muths
Hey Muths!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the "On Location" videos. They gave me a better sense of what you all got to see every day in Turialba. I've been following the blog to make sure Mr. Professor comes back to Minnesota - I still need my advisor! I hope you all have a safe return. (-:
-Ben
Ole, '12
I've read every one of your blog entries and I'm going to miss hearing about your adventures. Janet, my favorite thing was getting to know your kids more by reading the posts that they authored. The kids are so articulate and engaged and appreciative! After almost every post I thought, "I want to take parenting lessons from Janet". (Greg, I'm sure you're also a great parent!)
ReplyDeleteWhat posts stand out? Well, the one about the bugs because I'm bug phobic. :) And the one about Maggie's run-in with the water fountain! And I loved hearing about your perfectly awesome beach days, as when I was a kid I only got to go to the ocean a few times...but I thought those days were some of the most fun of my childhood. I liked hearing about what school is like in Costa Rica, too.
I hope to see you all soon!
Annamay
P.S. The story about Maggie and the water fountain stood out for me because it made me think about how I would deal with an emergency if I were in an unfamiliar place. Also, you never forget a story that involves blood and fainting.
ReplyDeleteAnnamay
Muths,
ReplyDeleteYour blog was truly the best one I've seen. And I've seen a lot. The mix of media, themes, reflections and observations made it wonderful to stay tuned. I tell people that yours is what I want to model our next blog site after. So as far as a favorite blog, nope. The mix of topics, both happy and sad, good and bad, exciting and mundane, made this site fabulous. Thank you so much for providing us with this inside look into your lives, and allowing us to travel along with you. I loved it all. (And I understand the difficulty answering questions. My tip, have one "down pat" answer. Most of the time people only want to hear that. For those who want more information, you can get into the meat of it with them. After a while, you'll get to feel who wants an extended answer, and who wants a generic one. I get these questions each day I'm in the States. I know it doesn't do justice to your experience, but it was YOUR experience that can't be explained in 60 seconds. It's hard. My heart and mind want to burst at each question, with images and feelings. But I've learned to keep these inside. It's impossible to explain to others.) Thanks again for your time with preparing the blog.
Hey You Guys,
ReplyDeleteI found out about your trip a few days before you left as we went sledding with our children. What crazy fate brought us together that day, I do not know, but for me it was a sweet reunion. You two are special people from my past and it was fun to be part of "your present" the few times I checked your blog. I hope in the future we can sled again!!
Lori (Valind) Verhunce
As you might predict, my favorite post was "El Dia de Deportes." This post not only reminded me of how much fun the Muth family is to be with; but also, it reminds me of the courageous, competitive spirit that I have noticed during my times in Central America. In fact, I recently played in a small basketball tournament at an indigenous community in Panama, Embara Drua. It is incredible to see how sports and physical activities can unite all of the differing personalities in any community and bring teamwork into practice. Hurray for Los Dias de Deportes, and thank you Muth's for this beautiful work of art, known as "Muth Family Adventures."
ReplyDeleteOne final note: it's possible that I own a large percentage of those 6000 hits to your blog. I think I checked the blog most of our cold wintery nights in Northfield, hoping for another Muth adventure to vicariously escape into. :)