DAY 10: CAP Day #1 (No. 8)

Hello and good morning, afternoon, or night :),

Xitlali here! Today was the first day of our Community Action Project AKA CAP! The day started with some yummy pancakes, scrambled eggs, and assorted fruit as our breakfast today. We then started heading to our CAP Project location, Aquiares Elementary School! We began by splitting up our group for all the tasks that had to be completed for the day. We had groups sweeping the gym, others starting to dig a canal with shovels, and others making a cement mixture in order to even out some uneven parts of the gym entrance. We had a break pretty early on to get to interact with the students there during their break from class! We got to see their curious faces and ask them questions about their interests and how they liked school. Around 11:40 we got to have a break and eat lunch, which was prepared by the lovely lunch staff at the school. We ate rice with chicken, beans, and broccoli, cauliflower, and beets! After the super yummy and filling lunch, the groups continued with their tasks. We reminded many to consistently drink water, take breaks when needed, and reapply sunscreen! We wanted to be sure nobody was too tired or too burnt!

As a Leader of the Day, I learned how to bring a group of people together and do something impactful. There were times when I was having difficulty grabbing the group’s attention, but eventually, Serenity and I were able to do it. It was pretty smooth being a leader other than that challenge. It wasn’t anything too scary for me surprisingly, I enjoyed being able to take care of the group in a sense and exercise my leadership skills. I really felt good doing work at the school and it felt nice to see the children that would eventually be able to enjoy the product of our hard work: a refreshed gym for their games and sports spruced-up ranches, and a safer gym entrance.
Also, hi ma ? I hope everyone at home is doing well and not missing my amazing presence. I’ll be home in a few days and I’m excited to tell you more in detail about everything I did. Also can we please get In N Out once I’m home ? Love and miss you guys so much <3 <3 <3!

It’s Serenity now! Today was packed full of work, from moving tons of rock and sand for the cement to the sweeping and cleaning of the gym, or the mixing of concrete for the entryway. Xitlali and I had made sure to give many reminders of personal breaks or water breaks, we made sure everyone stayed reminded of what was going on or what would happen. I know most of us wanted to just go home and be lazy but we prevailed and finished sooner than we expected. A lot of us were so exhausted but when we felt that the work was repetitive we would switch up what we did. I personally loved how everyone was there for one another, it was very admirable and commendable how each person would step up to help in many different ways, from switching jobs to grabbing water, or just checking in on one another. Today everyone really stepped up and showed their own leadership skills, on top of the LDDs being present and working hard we really made sure to keep everyone’s well-being in mind, making sure everyone’s wellness came first before the workload.

Hello mom and Ava, I hope all is well with you. I really miss you both so so much. I really miss music and my bed, but you guys come first always. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU AVA!!! I miss you so so much and hope 16 treats you well, I know I couldn’t be there to celebrate or to call but just know I kept you in mind the whole day. I mainly wondered what you were up to and how you were doing. I love you, mom. I’m so grateful I can call you a mom, you have done so much for me and Ava and I’m so thankful that you allowed me to as you say “embark on this new journey”. I have and will continue to love and cherish every moment I have on this trip, I know this is a once and a lifetime chance and I will never take this opportunity for granted. I love and miss you so much <3 <3 <3 Mwah :3

The group is excited for another day of hard work tomorrow. Look out for more photos and tomorrow’s blog post!!