An interesting bunch of people

Personally, I am very shy when I first meet new people. Just like my last Global Volunteer trip to Peru, I was presented with the daunting task of acquainting myself with my fellow volunteers and forming new friendships. I had to leave my reserved facade on the airplane as I exited. Although we are from differing backgrounds - students, mothers, and educators - we all embarked on this journey for the same reason: to leave our mark on the world. In these first three days, I have been blessed to meet five incredibly unique individuals (not including my mom, though she is rather “unique”), with many unusual life stories. First, we have Kendra from Kentucky. At our morning meeting and breakfast, she told me that she had indeed tried peanut butter and bologna sandwich. This made me cringe, but she insisted that it was actually good... who knew? Next was Haley, another Kentuckian and Moorehead State senior. Her Walmart stories are hilarious, maybe it was the way she articulated them; she had our whole table cracking up. She also told us of her buffalo tipping days and that we should never try it because “they are fast and scary.” Next we have Sylvia. Don’t let the skull pattern phone case confuse you - she is one of the sweetest people you will meet. Over dinner she told us that on her many travels around the world where she ate ants, worms, and rattlesnakes. You could say we were all surprised when we heard that the lady who eats all these “creatures” is terrified of her grandson’s caged geckos. Our fourth member is Katie. While having a snack at a local bakery and cafe, she showed me pictures from her recent visit to Italy. Her first photo was Cinque Terra. At that moment my jaw dropped, and my traveler’s envy kicked in. Visiting Cinque Terra is in the top ten of my bucket list which consists of over 250 items. Hopefully one day my travels will bring me there! Finally, we have Papa Bob. A common name, but a very uncommon man. His life is resembles a book. Each chapter takes you to a different part of the world. This chapter takes place in Texas. Over our dinner of mashed potatoes, beef of sorts and salad, Papa Bob told us of how his son saved the life of a child. The admiration in Papa Bob’s voice was amazing as he told us of how his son, with the help of a teacher saved the life of a little girl who was stabbed in the heart with a pencil. Consequently, Bob and Sylvia’s son made an appearance on Oprah, one of my idols. Our final team member is my mom. The students at school refer to her as Auntie Suzie. There is a lot to say about her, but this week I learned that she has mastered simple addition, subtraction, and multiplication. She exemplifies the motto that hard work pays off, noted in her elementary math skills. This is interesting bunch to say the least, and I can’t wait to see where the next two weeks takes us.

Entry submitted by: Devon

Message of the Day: “Living begins outside your comfort zone.”