Well....the last day of school has come and gone and we are left with mixed emotions. We're delighted by the response of the children and amazed at what they were able to learn. Several got up in front of the class and answered questions in English about their names, grade, ages, where they live, information about their parents, what they like to do and what they want to be in the future....kind of a "final exam". We wish we had known when we started all that we have learned in the last three weeks because we think we could have done a better job. But overall, they seem pleased with us and we are certainly pleased with them. We ended up doing the final slide show and certificate presentation to the whole group at once because school needed to dismiss early. Both the lower elementary and the upper elementary sang a song and the hit of the day was the slide show that Warren developed.
I think they would have liked to have a slide show twice as long!
School dismissed early because La Tortuga wasn't available on Friday...Ricardo said she was "resting". We traveled out in the morning in a much larger truck Warren named "Gonzo Galope"..... the Galloping Goose. Then, for some reason, we had no ride home in the afternoon. So Ricardo and Yanira decided we needed to hike down into a ravine and back up on the other side to make our way to a different road where we could catch another truck. The hike was difficult and they felt we needed to leave early to make the trek.
It was high adventure and we all made it safely, although Ricardo almost got stuck trying to get through a small gate! Several of our students make this trek every day to go to and from school. I can't imagine doing this in the rainy season!
When we passed Stanho and Idalia's house we were given the gift of ganoes....a small, very sweet banana. Yum!
When we finally got back to Berlin we had one last "coke" together. Thanks to Yanira and Ricardo for the support, patience and good humor!We ended our afternoon class on Thursday so we could walk the way of the cross with friends in Alehandria on Friday...but more on that later. We provided soft drinks for everyone in the afternoon class and had a great time singing "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes". We decided against certificates for that class because attendance was not extremely consistent.
Today we are packing for a bus trip to San Salvador and the next phase of our trip. I hope our computer will successfully connect to the wi-fi there. If not, I'm not sure how I'll write the blog but I'll keep trying.
!Que Bueno! How important to try! To put yourselves out there. To engage with the people. Not to worry about perfection, but to prepare as you can and give what you can. And it turns out beautiful. Just like Warren and Linda have done, they have done a world of good in a dusty corner where people are living their lives and have an event of their lives, where they will go no one knows at this point.
ReplyDeleteLike the philosopher said, "There is no solution; seek it lovingly." May many of us have courage to follow in your footsteps wherever they lead us in this wide world.
Thanks, Amigos, for representing us and touching lives.
tomasypocomas