Day 6: speaking with the trees (CAP Project part 2)

Hello everyone! Welcome back to the blog! We are today’s leaders: Ada, Grace, and Noemi. We had a very packed day with the second part to your Community Action Project with Pro Eco Azuero.

Starting off the day at 4:00 AM, we woke up bright and early to wake everyone up. We handed everyone breakfast, which was 2 apple slices, fried bread also known as Hojaldra (o-HALL-druhs), with sausage, and various juice options. Noemi-one of the LDD’s-was proactive in organizing the sleep deprived glimpsers in the hotel lobby. Making sure we had all the supplies and correct attire for our long day ahead, we hopped on the bus by 5:15 AM. The outside sky was pitch black and the atmosphere was quiet.

After a long bus ride and a quick bathroom break, we finally arrived at the tree planting site for our CAP Project Day 2. Sandra and her nonprofit team of Magnificos (tree planters) helped us situate ourselves in the muddy soil of the coastal mountains of Pedasi. Today’s weather was a stark difference from yesterdays, as there wasn’t rain splattering on our backs and dripping down our faces. Our battle today was against the blazing sun’s rays, that shone down on our weary backs as we planted in straight lines across the mountains. Although it was harder to scale the weed-ridden and steep terrain, the positive energy that our Glimpsers expressed made the arduous procedure more enjoyable. Our youngest Glimpser, Kyle (who just turned 16), remarked “it feels like a Discord call, the way we can’t see each other but are talking like in a voice call”. Because of our combined amazing efforts, we finished the daily goal of 500 trees in only an hour and 30 minutes.

Around 9 AM, we took the bus again to Pro Eco Azuero’s headquarters and had a bit of free time to settle down and change our dirty clothes before heading to a close-by museum on a whim around 10:45. Upon entering the museum, we were flooded with beautiful images of cultural wear and species native to the environment around Pedasi. This included the Halloween Crab that we saw yesterday on the trail and the cute spider monkeys that we are directly saving by providing a new habitat in the trees that we are planting.

Then around 11:30, we shared a delicious Panamanian lunch of chicken, white rice, vegetables, and a fried plantain, provided by the wonderful team of Pro Eco Azuero. We also had the task of washing our own dishes for today in their kitchen and it was a thoughtful way for us to give thanks to for this opportunity. Gracias Sandra!

We all then headed back to the hotel where we were free to do laundry, hangout with our fellow Glimpsers, or shower off all the dirt and sweat from earlier in the day. Around 3:15, we left to go to the local supermarket as well as the ice cream/milkshake shop. At the supermarket, there were so many items that resembled the American supermarkets back at home. The cultural similarity was very fascinating to us, as all the aisles looked exactly like we were back at home. However, one thing that stood out to us was the rack of machetes that stood in the corner. That definitely felt weird to see in the middle of a supermarket. We all purchased some snacks, and then walked past the town plaza to the milkshake shop. The milkshakes were delish!!! The moment the mouthwatering vanilla milkshake touched my mouth I swear I felt like I had ascended to heaven.

We had to return to the hotel where one of our GGL leaders taught us about the enneagram framework and led the seminar for our appreciation letters to help us reflect on what we have been learning. It really opened our eyes as all of us had never known about the enneagram which was created in South America and further developed in Berkeley, California. However, after the lectures, we had started to make connections about the concept to our own lives and wanted to apply the knowledge to ourselves. We’re excited to become more introspective and improve as not just leaders but as humans.

After the seminar, the hotel served us a delicious dinner consisting of fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and small salad. Past dinner, our nightly meeting consisted of a reflection of today’s triumphs and hard work, dedication to bonding with each other, and improving on yesterday’s shortcomings. When we were done with this reflection, the LDDs passed the torch to Kiara and Samantha, tomorrow’s LDD’s. Their talents were engaging and wonderful–Kiara showed us a card trick and Samantha taught us simple boxing moves and self defense.

We are extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished today and look forward to tomorrow with a different aspect of our trip–getting to know the local community and families. Thank you for reading!!

Live, Laugh, Love :3 –Kiara

Good luck on my brother and sister’s volleyball games! –Andre

I can’t wait to go back to work and eat Jack in the Box –Jorge

Good luck to my sister on her dance competition! –Kyle

Hi Sam!! I love you a lot –Grace

Hi Mom! –Ashley

Hai guys I ate tiramisu cause I miss u! –Ada