Sunday was our much needed Free Day. After eight straight days of field trips, tours, activities, seminars, and teaching English, we learned that lack of sleep can affect performance and mood. We slept in later than normal, some of us went to church, some of us played games, and some of us slept even more.
One of the most important people who inspired us was our GG leader, Louise, because she guided us through the whole day by saying things like, “go get everyone from upstairs to eat” and “make sure you account for everyone at the meeting”. In general, though, Louise really pushed us to step out of our comfort zones and stay on top of things, especially on a day where students were free to go explore on their own. And while we have seen and heard from many great leaders so far, today we stepped into the role of a leader and experienced it. Being Lider del Dia is not an easy task but together we overcame all the challenges to keep things together. We even made it to English Tutoring…on a Sunday night!
For us, being out of the country for the first time is a wonderful experience and we saw today that life in Panama is different from life at home. For example, in Panama, stores are closed on Sundays so that families can be together, unlike how in the United States Sundays are usually spent shopping or eating out.
We needed all the rest we could get though because our CAP project began today, so let’s “pass the torch” to today’s LDDs to tell you how Day One of our execution went:
CAP 1
Our day began with an early wake-up call at 7 am. As our first day of the Community Action Project began, we divided ourselves into separate groups and designated group leaders to manage their part of the four-part project. To clarify, our project was created to benefit the pueblo of Bajo Corral. It consists of environmental signs, small reforestation, a new school mural, a community gardening/compost area to reduce waste, and the restoration of the school bathrooms. Groups made progress in every area, and each group worked alongside the elementary students to include them in their school’s makeover. After four hours of profuse sweat, we finally sat for lunch and enjoyed lots of laughs and the company of the wonderful children (who returned from almuerzo in their own homes to be with us). They LOVE to talk and share their stories.
The students who attend Bajo Corral remained active in the projects all day, whether they were painting, moving bags of dirt, or scrubbing bathroom floors. They are a lot of fun, too, and we ran around A LOT. As the long day of labor came to an end, we left having learned hard work is crucial in order to make an impact. We also learned that when you are the Lider del Dia it is important to keep the group united because as our Global Glimpse family grows, we need to be even more connected. It was nice to have responsibilities that taught us how to be better people overall. One of the people who inspire our Global Glimpse Delegation is our bus driver, Ronaldo. Not only does he transport us where we need to go, but he also helps us with our CAP at Bajo Corral. He does the nitty-gritty work alongside us. He sweats. He shows us how things work. He goes out and finds fruit from trees nearby and shares them with us. He will make chicha for us tomorrow (fruit juice!). The days are hot and hardworking, but Ronaldo is willing to push through to help our Global Glimpse team. So, he leads us too.
We returned to the hotel, showered quickly, and then began preparing our English Tutoring lessons. We LOVE this experience… the class always ends too soon!
(Additional note from PC Nathan–If you want to see more pictures of the kids teaching English, you can follow @ifarhu_clasedeingles on Instagram! We set up this account to keep the high school students engaged with their classes and motivated to keep attending. It’s definitely worked. We’ve never seen Panamanian students so EXCITED for class. They ask me on Instagram, “when is the next class!” Our kids are really owning their roles as teachers. You should all be proud of them!)
Tomorrow will be Day Two of our CAP execution. Wish us luck!
Wow! Love that we get to see you all get down and dirty with the kids, love it!! Hoping today is just as memorable and you got the rest necessary to continue in this wonderful experience you’re having Cassidy…. Cailey Carly and I miss you soooo much and look forward to a full recap in less than a week!! Keep looking to the sky at night as we are!! We love you and miss you more… xoxo
Camilo, hijo. Vemos que sigues tan feliz como el primer día. Maravilloso el trabajo que están haciendo para la comunidad. Te extrañamos mucho. Un beso 😘 Mamá, Papá y Antonella.
Good Morning Morgan,
Looks like you guys got a lot of manual labor done, 👍I love it! I’m sure the locals appreciate all of your hard work. I requested to follow the IG page🙂
I will see you in 5 days I can’t wait.
Love & miss you so much
Love mom 🌛😘
Hola Camilo
Te felicito por la acción social que estas realizando esto te engrandecera mas como persona estoy muy orgulloso de ti
un gran abrazo
Hola Camilo
Te felicito por tu gran espíritu social y servir a los demás estoy seguro que te enriquezaras más en lo personal
un gran abrazo
Hola Camilo ! Se nota que están comiendo bien rico y que haz disfrutado harto con tus amigos! Sigue aprendiendo y disfrutando al máximo Panamá! Cada país es un maravilloso mundo de sorpresas únicas e inolvidables !
Un abrazo bieeeen grande
Te queremos mucho !
Hi you all have really been busy. Tyra I see they have you out of your comfort zone and you are sweating. I know who to call when I get to my next DIY project. I hope you continue to learn and make some lifetime friends. Love you and can’t wait to hear more from you all. Love Auntie
Morgan,
Just thinking about you baby😘😘
Love mom
Hellooo Alex how r u.. we r here missing u ..
Todo se ve muy bien espero te estés divirtiendo ayudando.. call me plz we lov u ..
Hey Morgan,
Looks like your working hard! I cant wait till you get home so you can share all of your experiences with me
Love Granny😘😘
Hola Alex. Escribo msjs y no sé porqué no salen te extrañamos mucho .. espero ya estés bien y disfrutes de todo. Te amamos todos..
Morgan,
Trying to send something again. Hope you’re having a wonderful time!!! Do your thing Sis!!!
Love Angie!!!
HELLO MORGAN, This is Aunt LILLIE and Uncle Joe, Love all the nice pictures. Looks like you all are having fun.I am looking forward to hearing you are back home.
Enjoy yourself, and please be careful, LOVE YOU💕
Morgan
😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘🤗😘🤗😘🤗🤗🤗
I miss my good night kisses
Love mom
Hey Brisa, counting the days to have you home mi niña hermosa. Continue enjoying this journey you will forever nourish this moments. when you get back, maybe and just maybe you can start your own project painting your room. Blessings my love.
Hello Alex. We miss u a lot,
Pero estamos muy contentos de verte Feliz y haciendo cosas muy buenas a la comunidad eso es muy bonito .. te queremos mucho .
HOLA MI CORAZONCITO LIZ B VEO QUE TE PUCIERON A TRABAJAR JUNTO CON LOS NINOS ME DA ALEGRIA QUE ESTES APRENDIENDO COSAS NUEVAS VER TE FELIZ ME HACE SENTIRME FELIZ TE QUEREMOS Y TE EXTRAMOS MUCHO DISFRUTA ESTE VIAJE A LO MAXIMO DILE A TUS COMPANEROS QUE LES MANDAMOS MUCHAS FELICIDADES POR ESTAR COMPARTIENDO ESTOS MOMENTOS CONTIGO.Y YA DESCANSA QUE MANANA LES ESPERA OTRO DIA DE TRABAJO BUENAS NOCHES {:
Hola katia espro que te la estes pasando bien estos ultimos dias aprovecha al maximo el tiempo que te queda