down to the wire

The transformation is nearly complete.
While I am still here in the US going about my daily life something happens when I know that I am to leave my comfort zone. I start to take on the cultural psychology of where I am going.
Anyone traveling in Latin America knows the word "tranquilo" and "vente minutos". There is a cultural definition of time and it sure isn't what we know here in the US. The concept of time is one way to define a culture. Think about our concept of time?....
Everything must be instantaneous, or at least resolved in the time it takes to run a TV show.
People are not free here to honor the time it takes to create. Most are compelled to "wrap it up" and move on long before the heart allows.
In Guatemala you can sometimes tell the travelers who have not been there before. They fidget in line, grumble under their breath and generally feel as though something should be happening.
Well, something is happening..."Vente minutos" is the standard answer to our incessant questioning of "how long, how far" etc. 20 minutes becomes the runningjoke evenwhen you know its farther than that. They seem to "know" that we gringos need an answer to that question. But the magic occurs during the wait.
As I incorportate "guatetime" into my psyche while I am still on US soil, I can experience a dichotomy in my thinking and feeling and its OK! Tomorrow, the first leg of my journey...