Little Wonders

Hi again! 
 
This trip has been one of the greatest experiences of my life! I am so happy that I got the chance to do service in a beautiful country and meet so many amazing people.
 
But one of the greatest things that I got to see on this trip were cultures and landscapes that are complete 180's from what I am used to. I grew up in a fairly upper class suburban neighborhood in Rockland County, New York and now go to college in the vibrant little city of Hoboken. So when I came to Jamaica, I definitely felt a culture shock here. 
 
It took a while to get used to the way things go in Jamaica. Smaller portions of food (meaning I'd only get one scrambled egg at first instead of my usual three because I love eggs), spotty power outages, a lack of AC. It took a lot of getting used to, since it was just normal to wake up to make a breakfast of a three-egg omelette with bacon, in a house powered by a generator, with very regulated temperatures. 
 
But those feelings went away in probably minutes when I got to the church on Sunday. I saw that the people of Jamaica were so passionate about their faith and just wanted to announce that they believe in God and thank the Lord for all of the blessings in their lives.
 
When we went on the crocodile tour, and met all of the crocodiles in the wild that even had names, it just got me thinking about how proud the people were about their wildlife. Wildlife really plays a role in landscapes and cultures here. 
 
Those little wonders were just from the first real day here. Throughout the week I saw how Jamaican people lived their lives. The poorest tend to stay close to home, and just be with other people because they didn't have a place to work. This is very different than in America because our country prides itself on hard work. You get your benefits if you put in the effort. Coming here gave me a better sense of understanding that sometimes there are other factors that prevent people from putting in the effort. And the way they respond to those factors, by hanging out with other people, is so great. Not having a job is something, but if you surround yourself with people that care about you, you can get through it better. 
 
Driving from Treasure Beach to Negril saw so many different landscapes. We went from seeing dry areas, bumpy roads, and scarce places of business to areas covered in trees with smooth highways and streets lined up with places of business. Despite those differences between the two places, the people all seemed to act the same. It reminded me of how laid back and welcoming the people are here. 
 
Sure, I miss America dearly. I miss my bed and my family and my school. But I am so happy that I came here. I am so happy that I am getting the chance to see ways that other people live, having not had much exposure to it at home. I plan to use what I learned on this trip to be more active in doing service and exploring cultures (for example by joining Habitat for Humanity and other organizations at Stevens). No matter what I do, I will keep the people and this land in my heart as I go about the rest of my life. I have a newfound appreciation for people and places. 
 
Negril, I'm ready for you!
 
-Monica M. :)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

From Queenie to Papaya

It's already Wednesday and it's unbelievable to think we'll be leaving this beautiful country in a few days. This trip has been everything I could have imagined and more. We found a little home at Taino Cove in Treasure Beach. On the southwest side of the island, the resort is deep in rural land overlooking the ocean. The houses nearby a large and colorful, with large gates and lots of land surrounding them. The site we were working on was nestled into the side of a mountain - it's safe to say that I wasn't expecting this landscape. To be completely honest, when I thought of Jamaica I thought of beaches, some more beaches, and a few more beaches. It was breathtaking to see so much greenery everywhere we went. Our new home for the next few days, Whistling Bird, is a little piece of the jungle - beautiful and green - right on the beach in Negril. The tree frogs sing their song and the ocean breeze eases the humidity. The landscape is totally different than Treasure B...
Read more

The Work Ends

The week has come to an end and the Saturday when we first flew in seems so long ago. Thoroughout the week we not only did service and experienced the culture of Jamaica but we also bonded as a group. We talked about who gets ore out of service, the ones receiving the service or the ones providing it? I feel like I have gotten so much out of this experience that it is hard to say it affected the people we helped more. The children at the schools are receiving bleachers or an extension to their school, but i received an experience i will never forget. I formed close bonds with people who were strangers to me before this week. I got to see actual progress being made on these projects and know my sweat and hard work went into it. When we left the worksite today it looked like a building was taking form there and not just a few stacks of cinder blocks. I had so much fun on this trip and felt like I did a lot of good work. I'm going to miss Jamaica but who knows mayble I'll be back!...
Read more

To Higher Heights

Today was our first day at Higher Heights Academy. The kids are younger, the school is smaller, and the worksite is alot hotter. And by alot hotter i mean 105 degrees. I honestly do not think I've ever sweat more in my life, but the progress we made, made it all worth it. Our goal was to lay a meager 2 rows of blocks to make the foundation for an extension to the school, and we surpassed it. We laid 5 rows! That progress made the entire day of blistering heat, dripping sweat, and even a little nausea completely worthwhile. I would say that today was the most rewarding day solely in terms of work that we've had yet.  Something I have to note is everyone's concern for each other's well being, on and off of the worksite. I can honestly say that there was not more than 10 minutes that passed by without someone asking "Do you need someone to switch out for you?" on the worksite, or more generally, "Are you okay?", "Do you need water? bugspray? sunsc...
Read more