Day 7

Here I am with Estefania and Nichole at our first day of community service at Buen Pastor. Special shout out to the Platy Crew!

Hello my friends! Today was my first day of my community service assignment. I am volunteering at a place with troubled, female teenagers, it goes by the name of Buen Pastor. There were approximately 40 girls at Buen Pastor ranging from the ages of 11 to 17. 

The moment I got there two girls greeted me and were very friendly, meanwhile the rest of the girls were partaking in a giant game of volleyball. It was very interesting, especially in the beginning because none of the girls understood English, so communicating at times was challenging. 

We stayed outside for a bit and partook in a few different other activites. We played a game of follow the leader, where we had to run around the playground and follow the person in front of us. I must admit, I was out of breath the first time around the playground - it is very hard to breathe at such a high altitude!

Oh, there were also two additional ladies volunteering at Buen Pastor. One is named Gabby and she is from Philly and is still in high school. The other is named Michelle and she is from Washington and graduated college in 2010. Both of them speak English very well and were very engaged with the females at Buen Pastor.

For our last outdoor activity, Gabby taught the girls karate. Apparently she is a blackbelt. Cool! I partook in the karate lessons.

Here I am assisting Maria Rosanna in her karate lesson - rockin' the Platy Tee!

Some of the girls were interested in learning a few words of English. Maria Rosanna asked me how to count passed 11. I then attempted to teach her.

 Here I am trying to teach Maria Rosanna and her friend how to count to 20 in English!

After the karate and the mini counting lesson, we went inside. The set up of the place was very interesting. It seemed as though each girl had their own schedule - some went to school while some rested, or did homework.

I got to talk to a few different girls and I tried to get to know them a little. I asked numerous questions regarding their likes, dislikes, and favorite things. At first, most of the girls were one of two things. either very shy or very snoody.

Something I found very interesting was that none of the girls claimed to be "amigas," they said they were only "companeros." The difference between these two terms is like saying that someone is your friend versus your acquaintance. Most of the girls said that they weren't "amigas" because they only got to know each other for a little bit and would try to pry information about each other's specific case and then they would no longer give them time of day. 

I found this pretty sad, yet real, at the same time. 

Another thing that many of the girls voiced, was that they just wanted their "case solved." I am uncertain of the reasons behind why each girl is in this specific shelther, but none of them were willing to share what it was that landed them in their current circumstances.

Another encounter that I had today was with a 16-year-old girl who was looking out the window, crying. I asked her what was wrong. She didn't want to talk much. But what she did tell me was that she did something bad last Wednesday and that she misses her house. She told me that she was going to be stuck in Buen Pastor for a year. 

Sigh. Sorry for all the sad writing today. It's not my fault!

On a lighter note...

I had a banging vegetable sandwich today from Don Esteban's. It had cream cheese on it. 

Also, I walked to school today with my friends. Hooray!

Hasta luego mis amores!