Darling's Days: Girls Will Be Girls!

It should not come as a surprise to me that a couple weeks after arriving here I had found some fabulous girlfriends. What also should not have surprised me were the things that brought us together. There are things that girls like, things we obsess over, things that mesmerize us, things that define us. These things, I have come to believe, are true for girls everywhere.

Do you remember in the beginning of He's Just Not That Into You when they show clips of girls all over the world discussing their boy problems? They show a clip from Africa with a woman saying “He probably just forgot your hut number,” and a clip where one British girl swears to another, “He so obviously liked you...” Well, it has been my experience that the subject of men is a universal girly topic that never ceases to unite us. Within days of knowing girls down here, we were already talking the “boy talk.” And I'm not referring to your casual “he's cute” comments, either. I'm talking about the “I have no idea what he wants!” conversations or “I think I gave him my heart...” tragedies. It is simply astonishing to me that these lovely ladies from a country so far and different from my own, are experiencing the EXACT SAME THINGS when it comes to our manly woes. What's funny too, is the way we react to one another. Always ready to give support, offer mutual hatred, or tear up over a romantic gesture. All in all, us girly girls, are all the same.

Besides men, I can promise you that the ever materialistic drive men make fun of us for is actually built into our very feminine existence. Listen (cough, DAD, cough) girls love shoes. Period. It doesn't matter if your in the US or Costa Rica, us chicas gotta have our fancy footwear. And purses. And nail polish. I'm telling you we can't help it.

It is no secret, either, that at a certain time of the month, us ladies crave a particular dark brown delicacy and turn to our favorite chick flick for it's promised comfort. This is exactly what you could find last month as one of my girlfriends and I sat on her bed in our leggings...eating chocolate and watching The Five Year Engagement...crying. This equally shared chocolate/movie necessity can be compared with that of our music needs. With a car full of girls the other week, on our way to the mall, we could be found misty-eyed while singing (loudly) to Jason Mraz's latest hit, I Won't Give Up. When it comes to our emotionally-driven chocolate craving craziness, it's been proven, we are all the same.

Lastly, I'll highlight my recently found favorite activity – watching soccer (or futbol, if you will). After Monday night Bible Studies, some of us girls can be caught sneaking into the boys' soccer van and snuggling up to one another to “watch the soccer game.” Which, every girl everywhere knows, really means to talk about our latest boy drama, shopping plans, funny stories, and future hopes and dreams. Yes, I submit to you, that female friends everywhere are all talking about the same things on the sidelines, with the occasional “Go, Fight, Win!” thrown in too.

So here we are: men-obsessed, nail-painted, fancy-shoe-wearing, top-of-our-lungs singing ladies. The following truth remains: while boys will be boys, girls will be girls. And as I close, I can't help but think of the profound title of that popular 80's hit, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, because that, my friends, sums it up pretty nicely.

Here's to you, my beloved Ticas: Maria, Maria Paula, Mela, Pipa & MJ <3