Today was the big day, a dollar a day. We had all anticipated the bucket showers and all the rice and beans we could ever stomach. Rules were no shopping, no snacks,no electronics or electricity,(and for me no huggies wipes)(: . It was a day where we all were on the same page, when all was said and done we realized that maybe having all the things we think we need aren’t necessary. For breakfast we had a roll with butter and pineapple pear juice. After we went to the Cerro de mogollon community where we encountered a group of farmers and their families. And event though some of us were feeling under the weather we all supported each other and kicked today’s butt. One of the community leaders was a farmer, told us about the education and health facilities there. We learned that there is a primary school that hold about 15 students and that’s for grades 1-3. The part that really hit us was when he said the secondary school had up to 700 students and ONLY 6 teachers. To think that 6 had to help and teach a crowd of 700, it sounded unreal. Out of the four community leaders. We saw the crops and all the animals. We even had an opportunity to herd a goat. Some other sites were the houses and the river.
The people we saw we so kind hearted and just amazing. They greeted us with such enthusiasm. On the way to the river we had some “obstacle courses “. Whether it was walking on logs to get over waterways or jumping gaps, the whole experience was breathtaking. When we got to the river the community leaders showed us these little wholes in the ground where they would get their clean water. The whole group had thought, ” wow, the ingenuity.” They had utilized the earth in a way that was just amazing. We stopped for lunch and had pasta and rice which wasn’t what we expected but it was delicious nonetheless. The people in my group, Alyssa, Justin, Irene, Stephannie, Moriah and Sofia, were lucky enough to have lunch in his home. There we met his wife . She told us about how she wanted to be a nurse when she was a little girl and all the struggles she faces getting there. In a town of a couple thousand she is the only nurse. When we asked her how many patients on average she got a day, her reply was around 40. We had looked at her in just awe. For a woman that treats. around 40 patients in a day, she only makes 400$ in a week. Even through her struggles in life being of service to others and making a difference, makes it all worth it to her. After lunch we went back home and continued the rest of our challenge. This is the part that really made me proud, because we couldn’t just listen to music or go shopping or anything like that, we all sat and bonded and most of either made new friends or grew a stronger bond with another one. We had so much fun being with each other that we had gotten shushed for laughing so hard. I think seeing how dedicated the whole group is what surprised me the most. Dinner was a little bit of a bust as well, unfortunately our dinner was switched and we ate pizza. Even through all the people who were sick and all the nice food, we still got what we needed to get out of dollar a day which was completely amazing.
Hi everyone and Justin: I enjoy reading about your days activities and I look forward to seeing pics too! Hope everyone is doing well. I am Justin’s aunt, a nurse too, from San Francisco, please tell him I said Hi and I miss him and hope he’s having a good trip, and that I see him in your pics. Hope this next week is a good one for you all!
Hi everyone! Wow, what experiences to remember… This trip has taught you all so much in so little time! Hope it continues to be as it is now…I am so happy I got to talk to you Justin! And Thank You Ms. Grover for saying hello from us…he has a big family awaiting his return!!!
What An Awesome Experience For Your Group. At Least Tell Us There Was Beans & Rice On The Pizza 🙂
Sounds like such an eye opening day and like you all learned a lot of lessons that will stick with you. Please tell Arianna that everyone says hello and that she is greatly missed and loved! I hope those who are sick recover quickly! I look forward to hearing about what you all do next!
Travis(Arianna’s mom)
Hello Glimpsers and Lauren,
I love reading your daily blog. It is so interesting and I feel so happy and proud of all you are learning and experiencing. Lauren, I really miss you. We are taking good care of your bunny. Love Mom.