THE LAST RIDE

Hey, its Luis Torres and Simone Darden the two people you’ve been waiting for! Today was our last day in Las Tablas, Panama. We are tapping in to let you know we are still alive, breathing, and having fun. This morning we woke up bright and early at 7:00AM to begin our packing process. We are sad to go but most are very excited to get back home. It’s been a blast and we are ready to close off this chapter. After we woke up, we had this closing activity where we all shared gratitude to one another and even ourselves. We started off by tapping on the shoulder of someone who answered specific questions such as, “who had made an impact” and “who did you wish you got to know better.” It was really sweet seeing everyone open up and come closer in that moment.

“Lider Del Dia,” this is the title that we’ve been given for the day. This experience can be very eye opening for some and it was for me (Luis). It also felt like just another day having fun with my fellow glimpsers. We have all had the chance to be leader and even after all of our own designated days we still continue to lead in the styles that we know and new ones we learned. I’d like to share that in my Leadership Style Survey I scored a 21/25 on 4 of the 6 leadership styles. As much as I’d like it to be, this isn’t a flex its just a testament to my abilities as a leader, which I work on improving everyday. I definitely couldn’t have done this alone. My fellow leader, Simone, was extremely helpful, resourceful, and patient. I also want to thank my two assistants, Fabian and Angelica, who helped me keep my head straight and a focused mind to get me through the day. As mentioned above we played and emotional game of “touch someone who”. Many of us didn’t expect much going into it, but it turned out to be a very insightful experience. We were able to anonymously express ourselves and how we felt about our fellow glimpsers without being shy and we all got a “glimpse” of how much we mean to each other.

Hey, now this is Simone. Today being, “Lider Del Dia,” was easier than I thought. Usually, in positions like these I shy away or otherwise avoid it. However, I took more of an initiative to make sure everyone was present and in the know. I also wanted to make sure that everyone had a good time since it would be our last full day here in Panama. As the previous paragraph mentioned, I couldn’t do this on my own either. Luis was on top things when I often forgot what was next, he thoroughly communicated with me when things in the schedule had changed. I would like to thank the program for letting me grow as a person and I would like to shout out my family for letting me go and supporting me for all this time. On our bus ride back I expected to take a nap, however one my favorite songs played and I woke right up then me along with many others, started singing along to various songs. The bus ride that I thought would be long and boring was short, exciting and an amazing bonding experience.

This day was a really great way to close off a once in a lifetime opportunity. Without Global Glimpse, we wouldn’t have been able to do the activities planned for us, on our owb. Global Glimpse allowed us to be travelers and not just tourists. We had the opportunity to visit schools, paint murals, make friends, visit local families, watch the local celebrations for Las Tablas, enjoy local food spots, try typical foods, speak Spanish, and be savvy travelers. We are grateful for the program organizing this and creating an unforgettable itinerary.

We’re going to close this chapter off with a big thank you to all our fellow glimpsers: Gianna, Fabian, Angelica, Mary, Ella, Ethan, Andrew, Avery, Morgan, Angel, Judson, Jacob, and Nathan. We would like to thank our GGL’s Silvia, and Stephanie, our PC’s Ariel and Luzania and the Panama Site Manager Paco. Thank you all for making this experience one to remember.