Hello family and friends

My name is Terrel, and I was the leader of the day today. As the Leader of the day, our day started off with wakeup call of 7:30 AM, wakeup was a smooth and quick process. The start of our day began at 8:00 AM with breakfast consisted of fruit, yogurt and granola with a side of hot cocoa, fruit juice and toast mixed with egg and spinach.

After breakfast, we went to the meeting room to participate in a program seminar to discuss our Community Action Project. We discussed the meaning and importance of the community action project, and why it should be sustainable and bend to the needs and wants of the community. We went over the who, what, and why questions and how it applies to our project.

Following our program seminar, we traveled from La Primavera to Pucara Tambo for about 30 minutes. We took a tour of the ceremonial center and viewed the medicinal gardens and animals like, llamas, guinea pigs and rabbits. We learned a lot of Ecuadorian ceremonial practices and culture, we viewed the living quarters of people that pass through the ceremonial center. Next, we got to participate in a traditional cleansing ceremony. The ceremony involved a plant called “Nettle” which was passed over the body to repel any negative energy.

After finishing the tour and the cleansing ceremony we ate lunch, which consisted of Cuy (Guinea pig), Ceviche (onions, tomato and red pepper), two variations of Ecuadorian potato’s, traditional Ecuadorian cheese and Faba beans, that are native to Ecuador. The Cuy (Guinea Pig) was the best part because it was flavorful and a pleasant experience.

Riding back from Pucara Tambo the bus ride was loud but fun! We listened to music. I was able to come out of my comfort zone a bit and feel joy for others that were having fun.

For the cooking class we made empanadas. I found baking for the first time a bit tough, but with the help of my group members I was able to push through and make delicious empanadas. Afterwards, we were able to try multiple fruits that are native to Ecuador at Nativa, and I was surprised about the flavor and am glad I had the opportunity to try them. For dinner we ate Ceviche (Mustard, ketchup, onions, chicken, tomatoes and lemon juice.), fried plantains, popcorn.

Following dinner, we were able to come back to the meeting room where I was discussed the events of today, listened to others Roses and Thorns, Plus and Wishes. At the end of the day I was able to pass the torch to Niakale in the nightly meeting.

Quote of the day: “vision without actions is merely a dream; action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world.”

This quote resonated a lot with multiple people of the group especially with me, because this quote has been exemplified in everyone’s daily lives and is very relatable. Many people have visions but are too afraid to take action. Sometimes people aren’t afraid to take action but aren’t realistic when turning their goal into reality. Moving forward, we hope to take this into consideration as we begin planning our community action project.

Tomorrow is our first free day in Riobamba. We will be going out with the GGL leaders.

Parents please expect phone calls from (11:00AM – 4:45PM) from the internet café tomorrow, the number may be odd, but please pick up!

All the best,

Terel