Lauren's Experience

I press play and the music fills my ears. “De camino a la vereda,” from the streets to the paths. As I listen to the song more carefully, I look out the window for the first time. I press play and the music fills my ears. “De camino a la vereda,” from the streets to the paths. As I listen to the song more carefully, I look out the window for the first time.

What I see amazes me.

All of the stereotypes of third world countries become a reality: women with baskets on their heads, naked children playing in the street, and people riding bicycles everywhere.

Next thing I know, my head bangs against the window as the car goes into a “gringo hole” in the middle of the road. The nicely paved road by the airport turns into a dirt road with rocks and holes everywhere. De camino a la vereda! I can’t believe I’m going to be living here for an entire month.

The simplicity of life in Nicaragua continues to amaze me each day. No high school drama, no worries about appearance or friends. The night before I leave, I start to cry.

I cry for everyone in Nicaragua who suffers from poverty or sickness, but mainly I cry because I have fallen in love with a country that I have to leave. It has become my home and has welcomed me with open arms.

I run through the streets singing songs with my friend from the kids center, Carita Feliz, or “happy face.” But at the same time I feel that I am abandoning Nicaragua. I can’t just leave all of these people here with their never-ending hospitality.

I return to Texas, with air conditioning, a TV, no mosquitoes, and fresh water. But something is missing. I go back to school in August to start my sophomore year and all the same stress returns: What are your biggest strengths? What area of academics do you enjoy most? What do you want to do with your life? I know exactly how to respond. Nicaragua. People ask what I mean, and I tell them that whatever I do with my life, I want it to involve helping people.

A man I met there, Peder Kolind, told me Nicaragua needs not just money. Anyone can send money. They need hands-on help. People need to bring business and resourceful leaders into the country to help their economy and help organize and reform their corrupt government. Youth is the engine of the world, he told me. At that moment I realized that I had somewhat of a responsibility.

A year later, I return, and all of the children are excited to see me as they run out of the convent to jump on to me, grab my legs and shower me with hugs and kisses. One day as I watch over about 40 of the young kids on the playground, one of them, Noel, comes over to me. Somehow we started talking about what animals certain people could be.

“Alex es un mono!” (“Alex is a monkey!”). I laugh and ask him what animal I would be. “You are too beautiful to be an animal,” he tells me, “you are beautiful not only on the outside, but on the inside too, and that is why you are different.” I tell him he is very wise at only 9 years old and that I would describe him, and every other Nicaraguan, the same way he described me.

I now have a completely different perspective on life from what only my eyes allowed me to see in the United States. The inside of the tiny houses made out of just scraps of wood and plastic is more beautiful than anyone could imagine. You walk in as a stranger but are greeted as an old friend as someone runs to bring you a chair.

No matter how difficult their life may be, these people are genuinely happy that you are there. I look at the little girl, Jenny, who sleeps on a piece of cardboard on a muddy floor that gets flooded when it rains, and she smiles at me.

I take a picture of her that reminds me to be grateful and happy for everything in my life. I want to share the experiences I have in Nicaragua with every one I know. I almost wish there were some sort of “Hajj” that people would have to take at some point in their life. But instead of reaching Mecca, they would reach the breaking point of ignorance and would be able to open up their eyes to the world.

I continue every year to take people from my school to Nicaragua in hopes of helping preserve Nicaragua’s beauty, and I hope that in the future, as I go back every year, I will bring something new to help the people who have helped me to see.