Today we were invited to the talent show of the school of Rancho Quemado in which we saw and enjoyed a lot of wonderful and adorable performances from the children. We even went up and sang a song in German that our fellow traveler Lucas had taught us. It was a super fun experience learning the song with the rest of the group late at night and just bonding over the fact that full-on teenagers would be singing a song in German to a bunch of little kids. We enjoyed stretching ourselves to sing in a language that none of us spoke and bonding over the experience of putting the entire audience in a similar growth zone. Apart from it being a fun, sudden idea from the group, it was also a way for us to get involved in the community that has received us with open arms. When we decided to go up in front of all the kids, we were showing not only them but the rest of the community of Rancho Quemado that they have made us feel so comfortable that we are excited to sing a silly song to them. This also demonstrated on our part that we were not just going to be spectators that were sitting down and passively watching, but that we would go up and sing songs for them, play games, and dance. Being a leader means taking the first step.
After that, we all came back and had some time to unwind and get some final tasks done. For a while we were all sitting at the dining table with papers all around us: drafts of letters; brainstorming papers; and, a long list of the names of every person that we have had the pleasure of interacting with in any way on this trip. We were all so focused on writing the best letters we could in order to show them how much they mean to us and how important they have been to us in our journey to become ethical leaders. In order to be good leaders you need to appreciate everyone who has helped you. We are not only helping others but we need to acknowledge that we need to be helped sometimes. Taking the time to express gratitude improves our impact on others because we are showing them that they are causing a good effect on us and it inspires them to continue to help out even more.
Pura Vida,
Sinai