Day 5: Our First Day of Service

Our first day of service started with a delicious breakfast consisting of a native dish made up of potatoes, cheese, and eggs, served in casserole form. We piled into the van, excited yet apprehensive of what the day would hold. We stopped on the ride to Zona Tres to pick up a police officer named Darvin, who would ensure we were safe throughout the day. Then, arriving in the dump community for the second time during our stay in Guatemala, reality set in. For the first time this week, I realized the magnitude of what we were doing. I became acutely aware that for the next week, I, along with my companions, would be giving up ourselves entirely for the benefit of others. While this is an admirable action, it is one that I am unfamiliar with. I would have to give more of myself than I ever had before and get out of my comfort zone.

                Despite my initial apprehension towards the daunting task of offering myself up for the greater good of others, the day turned out to be surprisingly pleasant. We started off our day’s service with a presentation on the garbage dump’s elementary school’s beginnings and what its function is, and were able to ask the principle questions and learn more about the school’s impact on the community. After several questions, we went back to the bus to visit the local nursery.

                My very first impression of the nursery happened before we even walked in. It was right next to the entrance to the actual garbage dump, and to me it seemed a bit unsanitary and potentially dangerous. However, once we got past the guarded gates and were welcomed by a sea of eager toddlers, waving at us and screaming their greetings with overflowing excitement, my entire perspective changed. The warm, happy, and excited community was in stark contrast to the suffering and hardship that was occurring merely meters from the nursery’s walls, and the pure innocence and joy that these young kids had was, to me, amazing considering the crippling poverty they experienced at home. It was immensely powerful to see that even facing so much hardship at such a young age, these kids were just as happy and energetic as any I have ever seen. We sang the Guatemalan national anthem along with the kids to begin the day, and soon after went on a tour of the school with the principal. The school was extremely clean and nice, and it looked as good or better than any American pre-school that I have seen. The administration took great pride in their ability to teach their students valuable lessons and to give them as many tools as possible to succeed later in life. We ended the tour with a farewell from some of the students and headed back to the bus.

                After a brief lunch at the elementary school, the students at this school left for the day, giving us high fives on their way out. We then started our real work for the day. We began lifting huge bags of plant soil and moving it to an area in which the local workers would start a garden. Later, we shoveled sand into wheel barrows and moved it into the middle of the courtyard where we would be doing the week’s construction work. Then, we mixed the pile repeatedly with cement powder, and when this was done enough times, we poured water and pebbles into the pile and began to mix it, forming wet cement. For the remainder of the workday, we shoveled the wet cement into the wheel barrows and started spreading it in a space dug out for a sidewalk to be formed. We smoothed out the sidewalk, getting about two-thirds of the sidewalk finished, and went back to an after school program where local high school age students studied. After conversing with them in Spanish, which was a bit difficult, we went back to the retreat house for the day.

            The rest of the night was pure fun. The two of us played in a soccer tournament consisting of four teams of four, and we ended up winning the championship game. After a delicious dinner of grilled chicken and papas fritas, or the Guatemalan version of French fries, we sat down and had a powerful reflection. I finished the day feeling much different than when I started. Instead of apprehension for the tasks set before us, I felt excitement to help because the locals who were so welcoming.

Written by Daniel Bandelaria and Charlie Baca