C1B in the house!! Hey everybody, this is Grace and Monse coming to you live from Constanza. Today was probably one of the most emotionally challenging days for all of us, as we got a chance to be exposed to new perspectives that opened all of our eyes. We started off the morning at 7 A.M. to get ready to have sandwiches and oats, lemon, and carrot juice to start off the day. Some of us woke up earlier because of the LOUD cat fights that were going on outside in the wee hours of the morning. We headed out after that to Cecaini, a local school built to provide educational opportunities to impoverished children. We gathered in one of the classrooms to speak to the school’s only male teacher about his experiences as part of the staff. We were able to learn more about the way education is valued in Constanza. Thanks to Cecaini, children are able to receive vocational skills, free meals, clothing, medical care, and school supplies. Once the children starting pouring into the courtyard, we set up our materials to play intense games of soccer and basketball and practice our amazing face painting skills. By the end of the afternoon, we were not only covered in paint but emotionally fulfilled as well.
Next, we came back to our hostel where we enjoyed some delicious fish, macaroni salad, and vegetable rice for lunch. We laced up our thick soled shoes and zipped up our rain jackets to prepare for the rain, but nothing could prepare us for what we were about to experience at the local dump. After a thirty minute bus ride, we arrived to find people living and working amongst piles of trash, millions of flies, and amidst the smoke of burning rubber. As we carefully stepped off the bus, we couldn’t quite comprehend what we were seeing, even though according to our PC Katherine, “it looked cleaner than usual.” We then split up in to small groups and chatted with three people working and living in the dump. After spending an hour getting to know the community members, we learned that most of them had lived in the dump for more than twenty years with their families. We discovered that they sorted trash and attempted to sell what was salvageable for 10 to 12 hours every day, only to make less than $2 by the time the sun had set. Their houses were made of garbage found in the dump, and were constantly in need of reconstruction, such as in the case of one man whose house had recently been burned to the ground by the sun’s reaction with its materials. After thanking the locals with snacks and a kite, we made our way back to the bus and travelled back to our hostel for mandatory showers. The bus ride back was unusually silent as we reflected on what we had just seen.
It was difficult for many of us to collect our emotions in order to prepare for English Tutoring, but many of us found solace and laughter in our students’ enthusiasm to learn. After the regular two hour class, we walked back in gloomy weather to a dinner of fried cheese, mashed yuka, and steamed vegetables at the hostel. We ate as quickly as possible in order to still make time for our group reflections on our newfound perspectives on poverty on a local and global scale. Listening to one another’s feelings and ideas allowed us to reflect further on how we could bring the humbling experience back to our lives in the U.S. It was incredible to hear the caring and thoughtful words of each member of our C1B family which provided a great segue into our nightly meeting. As usual we shared lots of Big Love and passed the torch off to Peter and Jose for tomorrow’s adventure. We can’t wait for another 6 A.M. wake up call tomorrow!
Adios!
Grace and Monse
P.S. Love love love LOVE and miss you Mom, Dad, Rosie, Roman, Grammie, Aggie, and Purdy. Hope Purdy’s tummy is okay and that the cactus is still thriving. I can’t wait to see you and tell you every last detail of this life changing trip. 🙂 love, g
P.S pt.2 Mom, words can’t begin to explain how great it was to hear your voice and Peanut’s. I miss you all so much and I can’t wait to share all of my new experiences with you. I’m sad that I couldn’t call everyone, but just know that I love you all. I may come back a little big after all these snacks and delicious meals at Dilenia’s, but just know that my love for all of you will still be the same. Mucho amor, Monse
Thank you for this powerful blog post. I’m so grateful that you all are able to have these intense learning experiences together and to share “Big Love!”
Maya,
It was soooooooo great to talk with you yesterday! I checked in with your dad, and he loved getting your message too. Keep having an awesome time!
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox,
Mom
Gracie:
Incredible to hear today’s work. How humbling to hear that families live at the dump, salvaging what they can to support their families. Everyone here is good. Today Rosie found Aggie sleeping in front of your door. We all miss you and cannot wait to see you.
Lots of love ,
Mom
Hi Grace!
I love your guys’s thoughtful and detailed post! Hope you have a great rest of the trip!!
Abrazos, Sofie B.
Hi Monse & Everyone!
Thank you for sharing your your daily experiences. God bless you all.
Monse couldnt be more proud of you. Hope that you bring back the best of this trip. We miss you a bunch and we cant wait to see you. “Spot misses his mommy his lost without you. Grandma & Grandpa send hugs & kisses. Gael had teary eyes when he heard you called and ofcourse he wont admit he misses you but its “Ovbi” and Adrian wants his Mija back. We all miss you soooo much the house is not the same without you my lokita. Hugs and Kisses.
Te Ama,
Tu Madre Nelly
Hi Massuda and glimers I hope everyone doing good. Massuda I am so proud of u and ur friends for doing good deeds I hope these thing give u guys power that one day you young boys and girls change the world with your kinds hearth and good knowlage
Love mom
Grace and Monse:
Hard to keep my eyes dry reading that blog, but very hopeful about the knowledge you are all gaining. Can’t complain about “kids these days” after reading all your posts ;-).
Grace I’m so glad it’s going well, but can’t wait ’til your home.
Love you very much, Dad
Hi Mya and everyone! This last post almost brings tears to my eyes learning about the people who live at the local dump.. Each and everyone of you are amazing for being so helpful and caring.. This experience sounds more than humbling and really helps us see how fortunate we all are.
I’m so proud of all of your causes.. Thank you Glimpsers for being incredible leaders!!!
I miss you Mya and am so proud of you..!!!!! xoxoxoxoxoxo
Hopefully this post goes through. Thank you for this blog, we’ve been reading it daily but mostly from the phone and I’m finding that some/most of my posts are not showing up so today. we computer this! We are amazed at all of the work that you have all been doing and based on the voicemail we received from Maya D. the other day we know that you are having life changing experiences. This is truly powerful work that you are doing, you are embracing difference while celebrating the differences we find in each other. This is the work that will save humanity. Thank you for walking through your discomfort and embracing diversity!
Maya D. We miss you so much! I got your voicemail the other day and posted how exciting it was to hear you have this amazing experience even though the going can be tiring; this is probably life lesson #2 of this trip! We love you, can’t wait to see you and will have our cell phones ready for your call on Saturday!
Grace,
Loved reading your blog and getting a sense of how truly fulfilling, intense, and emotionally taxing your day was. You guys are amazing to be sharing yourselves so generously and learning so deeply from all those you meet.
Love and appreciate you so much,
Grandma
Hi Glimpsers! Always love reading your blogs, many emotional days, yet rewarding to help others. So glad you all had a free day to relax and take in ther culture.
Mya sorry I missed your call. Miss you. Rachel and Naomi are excited to spend some time with you when you get back.
Enjoy your last few days everyone!