Hola Parentals,
Today was Working Like a Local day, and we got to help a local farm with their daily duties. We woke up at 4:30am and made our way to La Canavalia, which was about an hour drive from our hostel. Most of the bus was asleep as we made our way there, but the few that were awake got to experience their first Nicaraguan sunrise. Our PC’s noticed we were zombie-like and decided to feed us and give us all coffee. We then split into 4 groups, each of which had a different section at La Canavalia. One group got to plow lettuce fields and fertilizer. Another group had the opportunity to chase chickens, collect their eggs and shovel their poop. The coffee group picked weeds and collected soil to plant coffee . The final group pulled dead vines and cleared anything decaying in a Chayotes field.
After working for about 4 hours, we realized how much work actually goes into getting food on our plates. The Glimpses struggled with the heat/humidity, the bugs, and the physically taxing work, it gave us an appreciation and gratitude for the easy accessibility for fresh fruits and vegetables at the local grocery store. It taught us that supporting local growers is important because of all the hard work and respect they give to the produce. What surprised us most today was that how much effort went into each task. We’re proud of our peers for keeping a positive attitude and a consistent work ethic. Everyone went in not knowing what they were getting into, but adapted to the environment and made the difficult jobs fun.
After the exhausting morning, we went back to the hostel to prep for tutoring and exchange our money, then we continued preparation for our CAP project. Based off of our visit to the ADIC yesterday, we decided to have a miniature garden(baby farm), so that the kids could learn to live sustainably. We also agreed upon painting the ADIC center in order to make it more kid friendly and provide the children with a colorful space. We then ate dinner and headed out for our second day of English tutoring. Today was better than yesterday because we are now getting into the swing of things(kudos to our teachers). We began actually teaching, rather than going over the rules. After, we headed back home and had our nightly meeting and self reflection. Overall, we’ve learned many things today about Working Like a Local.
#1 ITS HARD
#2 New found respect for agricultural work
#3 Unfortunately, all the hard work has little pay
Today was long, hard, and sweaty, but it has made the biggest impact on the Glimpsers so far. Often times, we just look at items as things, but in reality there is a vigorous process behind them that goes unnoticed. Building on today, we want to influence people to have respect for their items and not just think of them as things.
If you’re worried about your kids not getting enough exercise, don’t worry we got some good exercise today!
Charley & Christiana
Great work Christiana and group!
Momsie loves and misses you very much!
Christiana,
Saying a big hello from home. We are all well. Great work!
Miss and love you,
Momsie
Omg I’m pretty sure you were really tire. Have a good rest and God bless you all ?!!!
Wow, sounds like another great day of new experiences, learning, growing, and hard work! Our family loves the daily updates and photos. Great seeing you, Nicole and friends! So proud of all you’re doing, and all your hard work. Maybe now you’ll help us more with our yard work 🙂 So happy how all of you are helping others. Keep up the great work. Miss you Nicole, and looking forward to hearing about tomorrow’s adventure! Love, Mom, Dad, Monique, Kevin and Amber
Wow! What a hard but fulfilling day you had! I was exhausted just reading about all the hard work you all did. Your days start very early, I hope you are all getting enough sleep!
Glad to hear that your second day of tutoring went well! It’ll get easier with each session! Can’t wait to see more pictures! Love you and proud of you Marisa XOX0. Mom and Dad.
One more thing…. the Warriors lost tonight ?
Hello Tamy your brother mom and dad miss you very much. We hope you are having a wonderful time in Matagalpa and we hope you are sleeping well and and healthy. Love you
Hi Glimpsers! (Shoutout to the Dougherty kids)
My name is Haley and I am an alumni ambassador! I just wanted to send some words of encouragement. If you are homesick, tired of sweating profusely and eating gallo pinto, or perhaps emotionally and physically drained, remind yourself that this is not a vacation. This trip is meant to challenge you. You will be back to your privileged lives soon enough so do everything in your power to be fully present in every memory you are making. Keep making connections, learning about the culture, and reflecting on your experiences. Make it a goal to try at least one new thing everyday.
To the Dougherty kids: I want to know about everything when you get back!
Love,
Haley
Sounds like such a long day, but everything is a worthwhile experience! Hope you all get some rest, make sure to drink lots of water to keep hydrated.
Miss you Cynthia!
-Big Sis
Woah who’s mans is the cutie in the back row of that picture????????????
On a more serious note, working like a local is one of the most fruitful (literally) gg experiences and it looks like you’ve learned a lot.
Loved reading the blog! Can’t imagine all the hard work and conditions you all experienced. We all need to appreciate “things” more! Would love to see pictures! Stay safe, happy and healthy. Keep up the incredible work. Can’t wait to hear more!
Sounds like a long & hard day but I am sure it was equally rewarding! Love the commitment that you all have made! I am positive CAP project will be awesome.
Side note…Warriors lost yesterday but we now have a chance to win the series at home on Monday!!
Sovanny, Karen, and I miss you a lot Tamy! Enjoy the rest of your trip 🙂
Thank you so much for the well-written blogs! It sounds as though everyone is learning and growing in amazing ways.
Wow, Bridget, I can see you so clearly in this picture! I guess you ARE in Nicaragua instead of some secret SoCal trip. (Oh, you did tell me about the trip. Nevermind. 😉 )
I feel tire just by reading the blog on what your group has done, image how tire you guys must be! But I think it reiterates on how much effort it takes to put food on the table and not to waste them.
Love you! Daddy misses you a lot and he’s excited to get to watch another Warriors game 🙂 on Monday though he’s sad we haven’t won. 🙁
mom
Wow !! Another great day of getting the real life experience of the locals.
We are glad that this program has been meticulously designed to provide a first hand experience of working in the agricultural field. Now you all know what it takes to get the food on the table everyday !!
Ria, we have been showing the blogs to all the family members in India. Truly, we all miss you very much, but we are very proud of you for what you do there in Matagalpa.
Hope you got enough sleep on this tiring day. Wish you the best for the rest of the journey !!
Love you, baby !!
Sounds like an amazing and rewarding day! Char, I’m so proud of you and your teammates; enjoy every experience.
Love Papa Okmin (‘Master of Disaster’)
Hey Charley, Christiana, and Gabby!
Glad to see some familiar faces, this trip sounds exhausting but also such a great adventure. You guys are doing something amazing and helping so many others.
Proud of you three and the group you all are with, best of luck and I’ll see you soon in San Ramon. (-:
CHACH! I don’t know if you’ll see this, but hi. I miss you so much, but I’m glad to read that you’re having an awesome time. Can’t wait to see you on Monday! 🙂