Brainstorming questions to ask your peers can be a daunting task. However, it was not one that we would fail to accept. We sat down with Sam and Martim after our group nightly debrief to discuss their experience with School the World thus far. We both have been on School the World trips in the past and were happy to have the opportunity to relive some of the emotions we had primarily and discuss their new perspectives and ideas with them.
Q: What was the highlight of your day? Why do you think that moment affected you so much?
A: Sam: My highlight was seeing the playground complete. Finally all of the strenuous labor we have been putting in throughout the week has come together to create a final product. We came here with the goal of having a functioning primary school classroom and playground and I was happy to see both complete.
Martim: Seeing the community other people built a school at last year was an eye-opening experience for me. I made friends with a boy named Marvin there; through that friendship I realized how impactful our infrastructure and personal connections are in these communities.
Q: What are a few of the major lessons you have learned so far? How do you plan to act on what you have learned in the future?
A: Sam: Gratefulness. Now that I have seen poverty first hand, I know how important being grateful is. I feel like I have learned the importance of being in touch with what other people are struggling with around the world.
Martim: I have learned not to take anything for granted.
Q: What have you struggled with the most this trip? It can be a singular event or a reoccurring theme / idea.
A: Sam: The language barrier. I wish I could communicate with the kids with more ease. I also cannot help but struggle with the fact that even through all of the work that we are doing, we can't ensure that kids in these communities will stay in school through primary and secondary school.
Martim: I struggle with seeing this utter state of poverty and feeling like we just can't solve everything. We are building a school and playground, but there are so many more issues apparent here in addition to education.
Q: How has this experience made you more of a global citizen? How do you want to move forward with what you have gained?
A: Sam: I think that this experience of traveling to a third world country and helping provide necessary services is one that is important for everyone to have. Especially witnessing daily family life while shadowing the adults from the community is vitally important in realizing how important it is that we are aware of their situation.
Martim: Poverty is something you need to see with your own eyes to be able to understand.
Q: What about School the World's program is the most valuable to you?
A: Sam: Working in the community for this many days shows you how attached you and the children in the community become. That bond is really important.
Martim: We aren't just donating money, we are working here and witnessing the challenges the community is facing first hand.
We are so glad to have had the opportunity to have interviewed Sam and Martim. Their perspectives as first time travelers are so valuable and it was incredibly intriguing to discuss these topics with them. Seeing how much they care and understand the circumstances in these rural communities in Quiché is inspiring to us as returning School the World travelers and we know that they will continue to apply all that they have learned here in their lives in the future.
