¡Hola! ¿Como
estas? No puedo creer que la semana que
pasó tan rápido.
Hi everyone! Our trip went by so fast that I think at
first it might have just been a figment of my imagination. Then, I think back to everything I learned
and how much I have changed in one week, and I know that this past week will be
a part of me forever. The people we met,
the towns we saw, and the bonds we created are all a part of what has changed
each person individually.
For me, I
can’t believe the week is already over; I wanted to stay much longer! Throughout the week I know that our blog has
been read and sent out to numerous family and friends, and I wanted to say a
thank you to everyone who has supported us along the way. It means so much not only to me, but to the
entire group that we have so many supporters.
Let me tell you how this week has affected me.
Arriving in
Ecuador late at night and driving to the hostel, I couldn’t really tell that
there was much of a difference between Baltimore and Guayaquil. It wasn’t until Sunday morning when we drove
to Arbolito for mass, that I realized how different our lives were. Seeing the town of Arbolito broke my
heart. Until recently, most of the roads
were all dirt, which made bus travel very difficult to nearly impossible. Thankfully, most of the roads were paved, but
there were still some roads that I would look down, and just see dirt. Houses were another thing that caught my
eye. Most of the homes were one room,
small little squares, with little to no roof.
I could only imagine how difficult it is for these people during rainy
season.
I think
the one thing that stood out most to me once we got to Arbolito, were the
smiles. Not so much on our faces,
because most of us were still a little overwhelmed with the scenery, but on the
faces of the children and families at the church. Every single one of those faces was smiling;
I don’t think I saw a single frown. It
showed me how courageous these people were.
I know that, had it been me in their situation, I would probably not
have been happy and smiling. Most of
those people probably aren’t happy with how they live, but they make the most
of it. That was something I carried with
me the rest of the week; to make the most out of what I am given.
The entire
week, I learned more about the people I was with, and about myself. Each of the people in the group and the
patients I had an opportunity to talk to influenced me in some way; whether it
was big or small. I know though, that
there was one person who really affected me; Anthony.
I met
Anthony at Manos Abiertas, which means “open hands”; the after-school care
program we went to on Thursday. When it
was time for recess, I decided to join in on a game of fútbol. At first, I think all the kids were testing
me; who knew an American girl could play soccer? Anthony was on the other team with 5 other
kids. The first time I went up against
him, I was completely shocked by his talent.
In my opinion, he could have easily been on one of the Under 15 National
teams; he was that good. He was weaving
in and out of all the players and was just about the only person playing on his
team. When there was a free moment I was
able to ask how old he was; he was only 12!
I don’t think I hid the shock on my face because he just laughed a
little. It wasn’t until much later in
the day that I started to think about him.
He lives in 28 de agosto; the poorest area in Guayaquil, in my
opinion. Almost all of the people that
live there are kind of stuck there, because they have no education and no
transportation. In that area, the roads
are not paved at all, so buses have an extremely difficult time travelling
through there. As I thought of Anthony,
I thought of the opportunity he may never have because of where he lives and
his situation. It made me think about
all that we take for granted here in the United States. We have opportunities that we don’t even
think of, and Anthony doesn’t have that chance.
Anthony
is in the blue shorts
At the end
of the week, I thought a lot about everything that I experienced. I knew one thing for sure, I wanted to help;
I wanted to make a change for these people.
Before we left for our trip, Ms. Beth had us right down 3 of our hopes
for the trip. One of the things I wrote
down was that I wanted to see if I could find out a little piece of God’s plan
for me; I think I did. I think Ecuador
and these children and the patients are part of my life. Ms. Beth just came back from a year in
Ecuador. During the year, you work at a
certain place in the morning and then an after-school care program in the
afternoon. I hadn’t given this much
thought when I first heard of it, but now I am considering it as a big
possibility once I finish college. I
would have the chance to be with the patients of Damien House in the mornings
and then work with the children at one of the after-school care programs in the
afternoons. I really, truly feel that
this is something that is part of God’s plan for me.
It was
hard saying goodbye to all the patients we met at Damien House and Sr.
Annie. I met a lot of great people that
showed me how to love. They opened their
hearts to us from the moment we got there.
Even after years of having people turn their back to them, the patients
welcomed us with open arms and open hearts.
In just one week, I was able to make bonds I will never forget. Each of us seemed to be especially close to
someone at Damien House, and for me, it was Segundo. Every day he would light up when I said hello
and immediately engage me with talks that I sometimes didn’t understand. At our despedida (our goodbye party), I
started crying because I knew I was leaving all of these amazing people. When I went over to him to get a hug, which
admittedly, I got about 20 from him that day, he whispered in my ear to stop
crying. He said that he would see me
again and that I had better make my visit soon!
It was one of the hardest things I had to do when I walked out of Damien
House and away from the patients that became a second family to me.
I will
forever be grateful that I had an opportunity to come down to Ecuador; I cannot
give my thanks enough. I hope everyone
reading this blog has been able to connect with the patients and children as
much as we have. Thank you for your
support and prayers.
¡Chau!
Blanca (Carolyn)
