When I first arrived to Paraguay, all I wanted to do was go back home. I whined and complained about everything. I had a nasty attitude towards everything because I wasn’t used to the environment and my Spanish wasn’t that good. I didn’t put any effort into trying to see what it was like to be a Paraguayan.
During the past week, I had to talk to the displaced families, play with the kids at the church, and help sort clothes and food. By spending time talking to the families and seeing their living conditions, it made me realize the importance of me being here. When talking to the families I saw many children with no shoes or proper winter clothing, which showed me the importance of sorting the clothes by gender and sizes. In addition, while gathering census information, a lot of people approached us to help let us know what they needed.
From this trip, the main thing I would take back home is a smile really does go a long way and that you should always be open-minded about new things. When I finally opened up and had a more positive attitude, I made a lot of connections with people such as my home stay sister, kids at the church, and the Santa Ana kids we worked with. Even though sometimes we couldn’t understand each other we changed each other’s lives in a real way.
Zakirah, 16, E.L. Haynes Public Charter School
2 thoughts on “Paraguay 2014, Day 12 – We changed each other’s lives”
Good for you!
I was a fellow in 2008 and let me tell you , my friend had the same feelings as you. I even sent her this link and she laughed with me. By the end of our trip she thanked me for helping her open up and give it a fair chance. It changed our hearts forever . We still keep up with the fellows and see their growth continue on. It’s truly inspiring.