Started from the bottom, now we´re here

As the day comes to a close, we´re all getting ready for bed, taking pictures, and probably doing some last minute packing and struggling to make everything fit. It´s so unbelievable that today is our last full day in Nicaragua and it will be a while until we´re all able to be together again as a group. Today, we did a final reflection on our whole trip which included a lot of laughter and a few tears. After, we were able to take a final stroll around Leon and do some last minute souvenier shopping. We then ate our last dinner at our favorite restaraunt, Quiero Mas, and did our final nightly meeting.
During our final reflection, we reminisced on the past three weeks here in Nicaragua. It´s crazy to think that just twenty-one days ago, we started out as strangers and were completely foreign to this country. We started out at the airport at SFO and our first impressions of one another. We then went over the adventures we did, such as living on a dollar a day, or climbing and sliding off (or for some falling off) a volcano, the stress and amount of sweat during our CAP project, a beautiful day at the beach, and how far we all have come. We all learned many valuable lessons here in Nicaragua. For example, the culture and history of the country, or the legends it holds. I think all twenty of us have gone through an epiphany that we will hopefully carry over to the States. During our reflection, we realized that we are all so lucky to have so much and more. We were so lucky to be able to emerse ourselves in the culture of Nicaragua and learn from one another. We saw so much poverty here that we´re all so appreciative for all the little things now, such as running water and air conditioning. We are all also so lucky to have spent the time together. After a busy but very fast three weeks, we are no longer twenty strangers, we are even more than friends. It may be really corny, but I feel like we have all become family no matter how different we all are. Despite some tension and a few misunderstandings, we all opened up and this whole trip was just so memorable because of how much we all really cliqued. It´s so bittersweet that we´ll be home in about 24 hours, because we probably miss our families, the internet, or In & Out. But the hardest part will probably leaving one another. Except it´s not a good bye, but a see you later. So I hope as we arrive in California or Chicago tomorrow, we can all carry over the lessons we have learned and keep our frienship. Our unity clap tonight described everything perfectly in one word: forever.