Time to play catch up! For the last two days I have had the opportunity to experience areas of Colombia where people do not make a lot of money. I neglect to use the word poor because often time in the states, we equate poor with poor behavior, poor goals, and poor self-esteem. That's not what I have seen.
On Sunday, we visited Giron, a smaller town near Bucaramanga. The buildings were old, but there was electricity. There didn't seem to be a "business" district. Homes and business were side by side. Tons of people were out at the market and going to the church for mass. A local school band performed many songs, including the NFL theme song, as a part of a concert. There were a few tourist spots selling Colombia merchandise, but most people were selling traditional food and crafts to locals. I was a bit of an anomaly in this space because darker skinned people tend to live closer to the Colombian coast. People were respectfully curious, but if you have ever been the odd-man-out then you know the feeling.
Monday was the day that I had been looking forward to the most, meeting the students of Institucion Educativa Damaso Zapata. This school of 5000 was a large and lively space that was perfectly situated next to a university. After meeting the principal for breakfast, Jenny and I were treated to a wonderful cultural presentation. Students dressed in traditional dress, presented research about food from Colombian regions, and had those delicious dishes prepared for us to sample. We were presented with gifts and took A LOT of pictures. We then presented about our lives in the United States. The children were so curious and asked such thoughtful questions. I was honored that they wanted to know so much and that the teachers kindly allowed us the time with their students.
The last two days made me think about pride and poverty and purpose. How does pride affect how people live in poverty? Does poverty affect a student's sense of purpose?
The photo that I am sharing is from our host teacher's classroom. The construction is of a new building being added to the university next door. Imagine a student looking out of the window at that school and thinking about what his or her future could be.
