YO YO YOOOOOO EVERYONE!! It’s your LDDs (Liders del Dia) Camila and Mariana. Today we had our wake-up call at 6:30 am in the morning, which was earlier than the past few days. We had breakfast at 7:30 am, followed by our mental warm-up at 8:30 am. We then started our walk to Santa Rosa School at 8:30 am for our CAP PROJECT!!! Once we got to the school, we worked up the energy by playing a game similar to Simon says, but with only two moves. The game was led by our PC Julio, with Shaila getting the winning title.

We also did some stretches to prevent any injuries and work up our muscles for a really exhilarating day. Then we separated into three different groups two of them were painting and doing touch-ups, while the last group played Cinderella, and cleaned the decorated courtyard. We kept the energy high by playing music while we were working. Sometimes we will even sing without music, maybe even Disney shows. Throughout working, we had 10-minute break times where we would get water, some snacks, apply some more sunscreen, and overall just take a break from working. After working the first half of our project from 9-12:00 pm, we had lunch. For, lunch we had Chicken with potatoes, rice, and salad. After we ate lunch we went back into working in two groups instead of three because the cleaning group had finished with their job and went into the painting groups. We just continued painting all around the school, until Jessica one of our Costa Rica families came by and gave us Jello with lechera or condensed milk. It was soooo good, after eating that delicious snack, we had to get back to work.

We finished up some paint jobs, and we had to correct some measurement mistakes concerning the paint. That concluded our CAP day 1, which was around 4. Some of us decided to go to the market, while others went home to enjoy the pool. Camila bought some marshmallows, chocolate bars, and graham crackers for some smores in the upcoming days. Once we got back, everyone was excited to relax and take some time to thank those who have taught us throughout our trip. We wrote letters to the Costa Rican families that we met and the guest speakers who have taught us a lot. These contributors have had a lot to add to our knowledge on sustainability and we thanked them for all they’ve done. Then we had dinner at 6:00 pm, consisting of pastel de yuca and salad. We concluded our day with the usual nightly meeting where Shaila and Yoselin received the LDD torch.

• Now on to personal relations, be prepared, we are YAPPERS!

Mariana: I really enjoyed my day today as a leader for our first-ever CAP Day with Camila. I really feel that I today became comfortable with the uncomfortable. Usually, I’m used to not speaking in front of many people who I’m not really comfortable with. However, being an LDD today was very helpful in growing out of that phase for me. I feel that when I was the leader I was comfortable speaking in front of everyone without being nervous. Being a leader today actually really helped my communication skills and punctuality. I feel that together, Camila and I were able to make sure to gather everyone on time and get everything started on time. Usually each day we have a question and a quote of the day. The Question of the day was “What will our Community Action Project mean to the community? What practices can we implement to ensure the best result of our CAP work?”. To me, this question means a lot because it really reflects how I feel about what I’m doing on this trip. I know that our project really means a lot to the community because since we are partnered with a school we create a wonderful and joyful environment for children. We are giving what the community needs and wants. Not what we want as a program just helping out when needed and giving back from what we learned throughout these two weeks here in Costa Rica. Learning about their culture, their family, and their ways of life. Some practices that we can implement are to really be hardworking and to really put in a lot of passion into the project. To really remember how our project is going to affect the children and how our project is going to make the community feel. Overall the day for me was really productive and I really enjoyed this first day of CAP.  🙂

Camila: My day as LDD went very well, and it was even better with Mariana by my side. The topic of my reflection will revolve around the quote of the day which was, “Never doubt that a small group of committed citizens can make a difference. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has.” This quote was by Margaret Mead, who is a US cultural anthropologist. This quote really shows our situation very accurately. We are a group of committed Glimpsers who are making a difference. The difference we are making is not just in our lives, but in all the kids who go to Santa Rosa School. The kids get to go to a school that is fun and interactive. Seeing how our progress has gone for day 1 makes me excited for the next few days. Seeing this project through is what has driven us to come on this trip and has continued to motivate us. This project is teaching me how to be more compassionate for others and is teaching me how to provide what I can and where I can. This marks the end of CAP day 1 :).