Charlotte

today is monday and we woke up at 6:15 for desayuno as a family. after breakfast we sat around the table and got ready for our first day of class and sorted out all of the packets we had for each class. for first block, Virginia and i taught 4th grade and it was amazing; the kids tried so hard and it was precious but it was so hot today. for second block i taught first grade with Virginia and Adelia. we learned how to write the english alphabet and the little kids never stopped smiling. after school we went back to our casita and all gushed over our precious panamanian dad, Edwin, then ate one of Fina’s incredible meals to recharge. at 2:00, we went back to the school to play soccer and make bracelets with all of our friends, and of course Felix helped us dj. we took turns being the goalie between two trees behind the school, and the boys do not go easy on you at all! when it was time to leave the school, we opted out of a rio shower and had our first real(ish) shower all week at Paula’s house. we saw our friends Seba, Yeison, and Felipe for the first time and had some great hugs before we went home, obviously stopping by the tienda on the way. we went back to the casita and set up hammocks and just hung out together, and while i was laying there, my closest friend Susana showed up and we ran into each other’s arms for the best hug you can imagine. i was so content. after about an hour of hair braiding, the kids playing subway surfer on the ipad, and helping the older girls with their homework, all the cousins and family of Fina joined us for dinner. after dinner some more friends came over and hung out until we had to go to bed then we finished our jam packed day with some devo and highs/lows. today was great because it was the first day that actually reminded me of this past summer and just the work we get to do in the kids’ lives because we also got to see the growth in the students through their behavior and their english. doing something like this is so much more impactful to me when you get to also see how you have changed the lives of the people here in cienaguita and how appreciative they are of everything we have been able to do here. so that was our day, and i’m excited for tomorrow and the rest of our week!