Today
was a day full of emotions. We all started the day out knowing that it was
going to be a rough day having to say our final goodbyes to the students,
teachers, and staff at Red Bank Christian Primary School. During the
twenty-five-minute van ride from our hotel to the village, we all discussed how
we knew that it was going to be hard having to say goodbye and that we wanted
to do everything we could to make the last day great for everyone. Once we
arrived at Red Bank, we all went our separate ways to teach our last
math lessons to the students. During the day, many of us had our students write letters to us
about themselves so we would have something to remember them by.
It was heartbreaking to have a majority of the students write about how they wish we weren’t leaving, how they hope we come back
soon, and how they will cry once we leave. In one of my classes, the students
wanted to teach me a traditional Mayan dance, The Punta. The
students enjoyed being able to teach me something new about their culture. When
the students were teaching the dance, everyone formed a giant circle around the
people in the center to watch and laugh as we tried to learn. As the
dance continued, other students came into the classroom to join in.
The
teachers and staff at Red Bank were gracious enough to make and serve us lunch
today as a thank you for the past six days we have spent in the school. They
made us one of their traditional meals: stewed chicken, rice, beans, potato
salad, and watermelon. The teachers made
the plates for the students who were assigned to their class and served them
their lunch. After lunch, one of the UofL students, Ashli L., gave a speech
to thank the teachers for how much we appreciated them making our lunch, for
welcoming us into their school and community with open arms, and for teaching
us so much more than we ever thought we would learn on this trip. When we
thought that lunch was coming to an end, the teachers surprised us by giving each of
us a special gift to thank us for everything we have done for them over the
past week in regards to teaching math and helping in any way possible in the
classroom. After this special moment, we
went back to class with the students to finish out our day before we had to say
our goodbyes.
After school let
out it was difficult for everyone to say goodbye to one another with the
possibility of never getting to see the kids that changed our lives so much in
such a short amount of time again. The hardest part was being asked by the
students when we would back to visit them. While many of the other UofL
students walked their kids home from school for one last time, myself and three
others (Ashli L., Karima, and Kelsey C.) played soccer or as they
call it “football” with a group of the boys. For me personally, this was a great
way to end the day with the students. It allowed for the last moments spent
together to be fun rather than emotional. Needless to say, the students in Red
Bank were much better soccer players than we have ever dreamed of being! After our
game was finished and everyone had finished their goodbyes, we took one last
drive through the village and stopped at two of the stores to purchase additional
souvenirs for ourselves, and our loved ones. Being able to purchase gifts in the
village was a great way for us to help support the Red Bank economy and purchase souvenirs that we will forever hold close to our hearts. After our final stops in the village, we headed
back to our hotel to start preparing for our day of traveling back to Belize
City tomorrow.
-Amber Huser: Standard V
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