CAP Delivery Day 2
Hello Glimpser family and friends!
This is Arianna Standish and Kaylyn Ta, today’s Liders del Día! Today we woke up bright and early, excited to finish our Community Action Project at Arroyo Loro.
Accompanied by our fellow Youth Ambassadors, we arrived at the community and immediately went to work. Yesterday, we weren’t able to finish the fence due to the lack of resources. The fence was short by about 40 feet, but many of the Glimpsers donated more money, which bought us another roll of chain-link, and the fence was finished. We were worried that because of yesterday’s rain, the mural and concrete would be ruined. But to our surprise, they both turned out amazing! The basketball court was finished, with lines, hoop, and backboard painted. In addition to the colorful geometric pattern, Benjamin used his beautiful calligraphy skills to paint two inspiring quotes on the walls, “Que tus sueños sean más grandes que tus miedos.” and “Yo no studio para saber más sino para ignorar menos. “Your dreams are bigger than your fears.” and “I don’t study to know more but to ignore less”. After finishing the CAP an hour early, we bonded with the community members, played with the children, and celebrated the completion of our project with everyone. We thanked the leaders of the community for welcoming us into Arroyo Loro, and they in turn thanked us for working alongside them to create a better learning environment. They closed with a prayer for us, and we gave them donations of school supplies. We were sad to leave Arroyo Loro, but we left with a smile on our faces.
We boarded the bus back to the hostel, and had free time to pack. We can’t believe our trip is almost over! Then we finished writing our appreciation letters for the supporters of Global Glimpse, and had a group discussion reflecting on our CAP. We accomplished so much in 2 days, and it felt good knowing that we were part of something much larger than ourselves. By listening to the needs of Arroyo Loro, we learned the importance of serving a community rather than helping. For us, helping implies that we believe that we are better than the members of this community, but serving means a more equal partnership between Global Glimpse and Arroyo Loro. We also discussed our strengths and weaknesses as a team. Our passion, trust, and drive led us to work together, but we were also hesitant to explore different jobs. Overall, we were extremely proud of ourselves and each other for coming together as a team, and the experience of working with Arroyo Loro is something we will never forget.
Afterwards, we had dinner at Onanaye the very last time. We ate by candlelight, said goodbye to Sheila (the owner of Onaney) and came back for our nightly meeting. We continued our debrief of the CAP and talked about how we are going to take back the skills we learned during this time back home. And just when we thought we were done, Brayan showed off his dance moves (let’s just say there was a lot of twerking) and we had our own little dance party, which was so much fun. Tomorrow, we are having our final reflection and heading to Santo Domingo. Although we are excited to be coming home, we know that all of us will miss San Juan with all our hearts.
Shoutouts!
Ari: Hi everyone! I’m having so much fun here and I don’t want to leave even though I miss you guys! Give hugs to the dogs for me J
Kaylyn: Hey Mom and Dad! I miss you a ton but I think I’m going to stay here in the DR because I love it here too much. This trip has been absolutely amazing, and I’m going to miss everyone so much!
Hi Daisha and fellow Glimpsers,
What an amazing trip you are all having. I believe there is always plan that we have been chosen for. Your trip to DR sounds like a incredible journey for all of you! Awesome to be apart of??
Daisha I’m happy that you were able to experience this amazing trip. I love reading about all of the community involvement. Learning the culture, giving freely and lovingly is such a beautiful part of being a human being.
I love you Daisha and I miss you, we all miss you and can’t wait to hug you!! See you soon Daish and have a safe trip!
Love Mom❤️
WHOA – Benjamin, those quotes look ah-mazingggg! 😀 Congrats to everyone on such an incredible job! Sad to miss out on the dance party. I’m sure DJ Gustavo and Izaiah had it bumpin’ though!
Dear Ari – Amazing CAP – so proud of all that you Glimpsers have accomplished in the last two weeks. Thank you for being of service and hope that you have safe travels back to the Bay Area! We love you, Mom, Dad, Callum and the pets 😉
VH & Amy,
Congrats on finishing CAP! I know how stressful it could be but I’m so glad your fam was able to stick to it and work it out. I’m so sad that your time in that beautiful city and country is coming to an end, however I’m also extremely excited to have you guys back in the Bay with so many beautiful stories. I’ll be having knee surgery tomorrow as you guys are on your way back. That means I’ll be on my couch for the next few weeks with nothing to do :/ It would be totally awesome for you two to come visit me and tell me all about your time in the DR 😉 Wishing you all a safe flight! Love you lots!! xoxoxox
-jess
Hello VH,
I’m so proud of you and your friends for accomplishing such a great project. The basket ball court looks amazing (I hope you picked up some skills and maybe doing a little cementing our back yard when you get home, hint, hint!)
I also love the quotes – so profound and inspiring! We can all use that to remind us knowledge makes us less fearful and leads to achieving great things, including fulfilling your dreams.
I hope you’re getting contact information of all the friends you’ve made there. It’s hard not to bond after what sounds like an extremely fulfilling journey for all of you.
Reminder not to text or call us while you’re outside of the US. I will pick you up from the airport – can’t wait to see you! QV and VL will be there as well.
Love,
Mom
PS: Hope you bought little TT a DR’s badge/pin with the country’s flag. Her mom already started a collection for her, lol!
Alexa – I’m so glad you’re having fun and enjoying your time. I hope it was an incredible experience like James, Lila and I kept saying. Don’t forget these past 2 and a half weeks and the memories they brought you. I can’t wait to hear all about them! Love and miss you Sass!!! *purple hearts x100*
– Vicki
Thank you Arianna and Kaylyn for your daily blog. It looks like all your hard work has definitely paid off! Benjamin, the quotes are absolutely beautiful! Thank you again Global Leaders and Glimpsers for sharing with us all back home your adventures for the past 2 weeks. As I write my last comment, I am reminded of this quote by the English author John Milton that seems to capture the essence of your remarkable journey.
“Gratitude bestows reverence allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world.”
P.s. Kaylyn, if you were to stay in DR, I know a sure fire way to entice you back- short ribs and Korean tofu soup!?
Can’t wait to see you tomorrow! Love Mom and Dad?
Hi Sydney / Glimpsers,
We commend you on a job well done! You touched so many lives with your hearts and minds. Dad wants you to make a basketball court for him as a Father’s Day gift. (haha)
We are so excited to see you tomorrow. Dad is off early so we want to hear your tales and adventures of living in another world.
Love ya,
Mom, Dad, Cole & Max
Hey Kaylyn, Lucy, and Sydney!
It’s Sydney your ambassador! I am so happy that you guys completed your amazing CAP project! Good Job! Sorry that you had to leave so soon 🙁 I hope that you guys grew a lot from this trip, especially you Kaylyn! ( I have high expectations for you) I can’t wait to hear all about your time there! I’m sure it was amazing! Your food sounds great. I miss you all so much! Have the best of times!
Sydney
P.S. Kaylyn I waited so I can comment on your post but of course you’re one of the last people to have a post.