Hello– my name is Nick Szabo and I was ”El Lider del Día¨ today, which was our final day to finish the CAP project. With a couple bangs on their doors, my fellow Glimpsers arose from their slumbers to start another exhausting, yet rewarding day in Matagalpa. With a delicious breakfast — yogurt drink with a possible PB&J opportunity (which I personally seized) — we all hopped on the comfy bus with AC and headed over to Los Pipitos. While the others rode straight to the destination, I took a detour with Chelsea to pick up some succulent watermelon and bananas for snacks. I couldn’t believe that bananas in Matagalpa cost less than 5 cents in US dollars!
When I arrived back, everyone was at work: some were doing finishing touches on a beautiful jungle painting and the Los Pipitos mural, while others were constructing the crafts table. With a deadline to meet, the projects were completed efficiently. Interestingly, while the ¨builders¨ (which I was part of) struggled to finish an uneven, semi-haphazardly constructed table, the ¨painters¨ had extra time to do side projects! Some great little jobs included painting the psychology room door, drawing a hopscotch game, and making a sunflower from a circular black spot on the sidewalk (created by accidentally spilled paint). We all took a deep breath during a snack break when we chowed down on yummy Pringles chips, watermelon and bananas. As the day progressed, the rain clouds approached ominously. After a full lunch, we went back to work and completed all of the described projects, with some time left to clean up– what a mess the floors were! Note to self: use tarps and newspaper when using many gallons of paint. We presented all of our work and were treated to delicious cake and oh-so-sweet Coca Cola. I was especially touched when Yadira, the head of Los Pipitos de Matagalpa, gave us a brief, heart-felt speech of appreciation. But don’t forget those rain clouds– we all ran outside to embrace the pouring rain; you can imagine that Yadira noted how soaked our clothes were when we gave our final hugs goodbye.
We arrived back at the hostel and quickly split up into self-reflection groups, where we ¨debriefed¨ on the completion of our CAP project and the impact the experience has (and will have) had on our lives. In fresh clothes, we enjoyed our dinner and shortly after headed out for our last tutoring session. Like my other peers, our tutoring group threw a celebration for our students– with games, laughter, pictures (LOTS of selfies) and providing of certificates. As kids asked for our social network profiles and ran around the room asking for signatures, we all took in the love and joy that was given in exchange for our teaching. With smiles on our faces, we departed from Colegio San Luis for our last time. To have shared this experience with my fellow Glimpsers has been a pleasure. To serve as leader of the day has been an honor. And most of all, to think of all of the opportunities, hopes and dreams ahead of all of us Glimpsers is inspiring. The more roads we travel, the more paths that reveal themselves.
