Rising Minds in San Pedro

So Im really behind on my posts. It´s definitely not from a lack of things to be writing about. It has much more to do with lack of internet and computer access and well...time. Trying to catch up a bit! Thanks :)

Part of my time in San Pedro La Laguna was spent volunteering for an organization called Rising Minds. (http://risingminds.org/) While I had originally wanted to be helping out in a school for the 2 weeks while I was in San Pedro, due to all the festivals, the students were not in session for over a week. 

So in order to keep busy and help out, I spent a few days helping other volunteers in their community garden. They are building the garden  and greenhouse out of post-consumable materials. The garden acts as a nursery and seed bank for community members to receive as an incentive for signing up for their health program. 

I was a small part in this large project, but got my hands dirty and face toasted cutting and stringing bottles onto bamboo shoots and assembling the greenhouse.

Greenhouse made from recycled bottles, bamboo, string and nails.

Once the kids were back in school, I was able to help at San Juanerita school in the next town over. Rising Minds has partnered with this school in hopes to offer financial and educational support for its teachers and students. The students at this school come the surrounding small villages around San Juan. Many of these families are migrant coffee workers and their kids are only in school half the year. Also, because the school pulls from the surrounding areas of the town, they do not receive as much government funding as the other schools in the area. 

While I was expecting many hardships and challenges at the school, I have to admit I had difficulty adjusting to the structure, organization and resources available at San Juanerita. It was a combination of shared cultural norms along with a deficit of resources in the community that had resulted in some of the things I saw at the school. As a teacher, I was overwhelmed by the lack of discipline, organization and educational practices present at the school.  I don´t mean to speak negatively about the school, or its staff and students. On the contrary- the teachers I met were devoted and cared very much for their students. The students were eager to learn and fun to work with. 

I immediately had this deep feeling of connection to this community. I wanted to work alongside the teachers, to help them create a better atmosphere in the classroom and improved learning experiences for the students regardless of the dire circumstances they had. At one moment, I contemplated canceling part of my plans for the following week of travel in order to stay longer to work at the school. 

I don´t know why I had this innate feeling of belonging with the school. Maybe it´s because I felt I could contribute with what skills and experience I have in some way. Maybe it had something to do with the kids reminding me of the students I taught back at home. There was something there. I can´t put my finger on it. And this connection might fade and I will just remember the experience. Or...God may have plans in the future, using this school or my experience here. 

In the end, I was honored with the opportunity to get a glimpse of the life of the children and communities in this area. I was grateful for the ignited passion that God renewed in my heart that reassured the gifts and plans He has for me in the future.