Charlotte Reider-Smith

Charlotte is passionate about women's and girl's issues and environmentalism. She plays soccer, rides horses, and has also run track, cross-country and wrestled. She enjoys art including painting, drawing, sewing, and designing; she once made a dress out of recycled food packages. Her goals for next year are to embrace discomfort, explore a new culture, and better understand her own strengths and weaknesses in Ecuador. A general life goal of hers is to work in an area that she cares about and agrees with morally. Charlotte is inspired by artists who do what they love no matter what.

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Changes

This post is a sort of accompaniment to my previous post titled “I’m Confident.” I wrote near the beginning of March Ò I was told I would change. ThatÛªs what everyone said about Global Citizen Year – they changed, you would find change in yourself. I didnÛªt entirely believe this. My U.S. family visited me…

16 July, 2015

Re-Entry Reactions

-signs are in English -there are a lot of white people -I tried to speak to my cat in Spanish. Without thinking, I saidvenga

09 June, 2015

A List: The Best and the Worst

Challenges food machismoism Best family friends

03 June, 2015

I’m Confident

The first months at my new home, I tried really hard to fit in. I tried to act like an Ecuadorian. I thought this meant dressing like my new sisters in jeans and ballet flats, even though I hate ballet flats. To not go running in the streets because most Otavaleos only go running in…

20 March, 2015

Simple Pleasures

Enjoying the hail/rainstorm/flooding from the comfort of the car. Some cars were flooded in feet of water and the hail floated on top of the streams. Plantains – in all forms (fried, baked, in balls, sliced, with cheese) My new best friend Ariana (sheÛªs 10). I was waiting for my order of plantains (where her…

27 January, 2015

Vagringa / Varinga / Vaginga

The white jersey dribbles down the field, to the right, where in some fast-paced seconds, she steals the ball and places it on the feet of a colored shirt 20 meters down the field. They cheer and holler, the crowd of ten or so. Que rico estÌÁ la noche, the night time air. For the…

06 January, 2015

On Writing

Dear Readers, I want to write to you now – whoever you are. Maybe you read my last blog post. It’s 1:35am right now and I’m writing because I am feeling inspired to write and because I want to address my previous blog post. I don’t think that blog post is real. It’s not me….

16 August, 2014

My own trail

I’ve always liked to diverge. Rebecca, Abby, and Sam ski on ahead. I plop down in the snow, waiting for them to disappear. I want space to get lost in the snow and the trees. I want to find my own way down the mountain, far from their tracks and voices. I lay back, looking…

04 August, 2014

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