I took pictures of all the classes and the teachers and gave the teachers their gifts. I gave them all t-shirts that said “South Dakota” on them. Unfortunately they had a meeting at 3 so I found a pickup on my own after talking with them about an hour more about supplies they could use. On my way, a wedding procession walked by so I got to see some of the kids again. Some of the parents even recognized me and one father called out to me, shook my hand and thanked me. Doesn’t that make you feel special. It’s so cool that they recognize me as a teacher and respect me. Even the pickup driver recognized me. It’s a great feeling. They definitely made me feel appreciated. I tried to say how thankful I was that I got the opportunity to volunteer there but I’m not sure it came through how strongly I felt. My Spanish is better, but still not good enough to express such strong emotions.

There’s nothing like talking to a person less fortunate than you to realize just how lucky you really are. It’s one thing to see pictures and even experience the life, but it’s another to hear someone talk about their dreams that will likely never be realized. I’ve talked with the other teachers and with a few other people in Santiago and they’ll ask how much the plane ticket cost for me to come here. Then they grimace when I tell them. There’s only so much you can do to help. It’s just unfortunate that they were born in this situation.

Yesterday, I left Santiago about 9:30, took a lancha to Panajachel and from there a shuttle to Antigua. I found a hotel and then went to visit my other host family. I picked a great day to visit because they were celebrating a student’s birthday. Maria turned 5 years old yesterday. She was born here and adopted by a couple from San Francisco and they came down here with her and their son to study Spanish and to learn a little more about her native culture. For the fiesta, they had a piñata and a “Hello Kitty” cake. They skipped out on the traditional fireworks. Tere fixed tostadas and tamales. It was a bit strange though: the kids broke the piñata, then we ate the cake, then we ate tostada, then popcorn and finally the tamales for dinner. It was fun to see the family again and play with the kids a bit.

Today, I woke up and went to church but in Parque Central, a ton of people congregated because there was a half-marathon. I almost considered going back to my hotel and changing so I could participate but that was before I knew how far the race was. After sitting on my butt for 2 months, I don’t think it would have been a good idea to suddenly try to run 13 miles when I’ve never run that far in my life. I spent the rest of my day walking around Antigua and doing a bit of shopping and spending a lot of time in a café reading my book. Then I went to see the Tere and the family again before I left to come back to the Sharing the Dream Center.

I fly back in just a couple days. I can’t believe I’ve already been here 9 weeks.

Theresa

go to July 19