Saying Goodbye to La Esperanza

The other morning, I looked out the window of my room, and a got a view of the house across the street hanging up their laundry. I spent some time taking in my surroundings; the simple houses in the community, some made with cinder blocks, and the rest with just metal sheets; the children playing on the street and the laughter that carries; the taxis beeping their horns waiting for passengers; the several tortillerias making fresh tortillas. La Esperanza is a simple community, unfortunately sandwiched between rivaling gangs. Throughout my time here, I have been exposed to hearing about family members of my students get shot, people I know being extorted, and different stories about the hardships of the community. Violence aside, I’ve also had to deal with cultural differences, the way people go about doing things, the seeming lack of efficiency, disorganization, chaos, and other little things. But despite all that, I’ve also been exposed to the beauty of the life and the will of the people here.

One last view from the roof

In the past two years I’ve been here I’ve met so many people from the community — from the students, to the teachers, to the UPAVIMas themselves — and it has been amazing spending time with them and getting to know them over my time here. We spent October hosting and attending gatherings to say our goodbyes to the people here.

Throughout the year, I’ve had an ongoing joke with two of my Fourth graders from last year and one of their little sister. They would always still be hanging outside school when I’d be waiting for the green bus to go up to Cenma. They would jokingly tried to accompany me, and we kept it going until I finally promised them that at the end of the school year, I would take them up to Cenma. This was more than a month ago, so I naturally forgot about it, until the last week of classes when the two girls came up to remind me about it. I was happy they remembered, and invited them out on Friday after the last day of classes.

It was my first time spending time with students outside of school, and I really enjoyed it. They were marvelous company, trying to converse with me in English the whole time. I treated them to pizza and some arcade games, then we ended the afternoon with ice cream right before going home. It was so fun seeing my two Fifth graders be little kids again, and the youngest one had a shine in her eyes the whole afternoon.

Spending time with the girls was a simple reminder of the hope I have for the youth in the community. They are such sweet girls with dreams that I hope they will work hard to achieve.

We had a lot of year end moments with the Guatemalan school teachers, so we decided to make separate time with the Montessori teachers of the Pre-K students. These teachers are special because they are also UPAVIMas, and throughout all our get-togethers I’ve gotten to hear their stories about the struggles and hardships they’ve been through. Their continued will and attitude towards life is something I admire in them, and the love and passion they have for teaching and their students is something I respect.

I always love having them over and spending even the littlest of time with them, and they've become dear friends. I snapped a picture with the two teachers of Montessori-I who happen to be two of my favorite women in UPAVIM, and who make the most enjoyable company.

One of the last gatherings we hosted up on the roof was an “open invite party” for all of the UPAVIMas. We put a sign up sheet on one of the main hallways in the building, and invited all of the women to bring some food and show up for one last get-together. It was a fairly small and simple affair, but a lovely one at that. We had a few games and dancing, then shared some food.

Perhaps one of my favorite goodbyes was with the current president of UPAVIM, Dina. We had hosted her up on the roof several times, and this time around she invited us to her house. It was a small house that was home to her plus two of her children and their families. We all crammed into the dining room-cum-master bedroom, and spent the evening eating, talking, and looking at old pictures. Dina was a gracious host and was so happy to welcome us into what she calls her humble home. It was another reminder of the joy that the people in the community find through simplicity. It shouldn’t have surprised me that despite how full her house is, she still had space for all of us. She has the hugest of hearts, and has become a mother figure to me in my two years here.

A few days ago I packed up my bags, and said goodbye to La Esperanza. I say goodbye with a heart full of love and gratitude, and finally, with a smile, for after all, this isn’t really “goodbye,” but a “see you again soon.”