Hope

I have to say it was kind of fun to go back to work after being gone a week as I was enthusiastically greeted by many with “Welcome back!” “How was your trip?” “We missed you”, etc.  Such great people.  I have been jumping back into it all and continuing my work on developing my own program.  Something new and fun that happened this week was that Jóvita (one of my office colleagues) and I met with a couple from Alabama who have been here about two years and are running a youth program in one of the nearby villages.  Some of the youth that attend our program on Saturdays also attend their program and have talked to Jóvita about how they want to have the two groups come together for an activity.  So, we met with the couple to discuss collaborating on a Saturday activity.  What was particularly fun for me with this meeting was that I ended up being a bit of a translator.  Jóvita asked me to come along to the meeting because she realized that they did not speak Spanish proficiently.  Well, when we first got there, we were speaking in Spanish…and they were doing fine.  But when we came across one word they didn’t understand, I said it in English…and you should have seen their faces – complete surprise.  I guess they hadn’t figured out that I was from the U.S. and spoke English.  Haha!  Jóvita told me later when we were laughing about this, that even though I may not look particularly Guatemalan, I could be assumed to be Latina and therefore others may not assume I’m from the U.S.  After our meeting I gave them a small tour of Common Hope’s site…I have to say it was really fun to say “We believe…” or “We do this or that” as I am part of the organization now.  So cool!

This blog post is going to be made up of a couple different observations/reflections that I’ve had since I’ve been here as I don’t have many new details to write about pertaining to what I’ve been doing this week. 

First of all, I have noticed the difference in transportation safety here.

1. Packing many people into a car, truck, or any type of vehicle is not uncommon.  It is not important whether or not there are enough seatbelts (or even seats) for everyone…just as long as the doors can shut.  You can do this in front of anyone, the police and all, and nothing will be said.

2. There are many motorcycles here – and very few helmets.  It is rarity for me to see anyone wearing a helmet.  It is not a rarity to see 3 (and sometimes 4) people on a motorcycle…usually two parents and a child or two.

3. Driving after drinking or when you are drunk is quite commonplace in the evenings.  The only thing that makes me feel a tiny bit better is that the cobblestones and speed bumps in Antigua make it impossible to drive fast…but still…quite different.

Just for fun, I think I’m going to start writing little lists like the one below…this is just a start for now.

A list of things I have learned about myself from some of the Guatemalans here:

1. I do not look my age (everyone assumes I’m younger).

2. I can pass for Latina of some sort

3. I look good in the color purple

4. I am a good dancer

5. I have pretty hair

Finally, in one of our meetings it was mentioned again the statistic of how many children fail classes, fail grades, drop-out, etc (I need to look up the percentages again and add them to this post)…but it is incredibly high.  It was just a big reminder of the huge wall we are up against…the school system isn’t what it should be…and the group of children we are actually impacting are just a small percentage of the Guatemalan children.  When you look at the numbers, it can make you feel pretty hopeless.  When you see all the red dots in the social workers’ offices by the names of children (indicating that they are failing or failed a grade) you feel a little defeated…. But then, you have to remember to look beyond the numbers.  You have to look at the individual faces.  You have to see the green dots between the red ones.  You have to see that girl who proudly shows you her many 100 percent marks in her notebook or the little boy who asks you to listen while he reads you his homework out loud.  You have to see the smile that crosses the young girl’s face when she gets all the multiplication problems correct that you have given her or the young boy’s intrigue and desire to practice talking English with you when he sees you writing something down in English.  There is hope.  In each one of these children and youth, there is hope.  I have a desire to change the world…and a couple years ago I remember being overwhelmed by all that needed to be changed in the world.  I worried about what I could do to make a difference…to really make a difference.  Then, with time, maturity, and reflection, I came to this conclusion.  I want to change the world.  I want to change the world, and I can do this by starting with one person or one child.  If I make a difference in one child’s life, then I have changed their world…and that is changing our world.  It still is overwhelming sometimes when I think of all that needs to be changed – of everyone that needs help – but I am going to do my best to do my part.  If I do, if you do, if we all do…then we really can change this world – I truly believe that.

As a quick addition, I would like to link Common Hope's Donar Impact Report.  It is very encouraging to read.  I love how Common Hope is very intentional in recording their work so that there are concrete statistics and numbers to show progress.  They also present it all in a very accessible and engaging manner.  Take a look!