It’s only been a week here in the Dominican Republic and already I’ve seen so many new things that I could never experience at home. First of all, the people here are so different! It’s so lively and fun here. I walk into the village and there are people everywhere. I sit outside at the base and hear at least 5 different sources of music coming from the stores, streets and houses. Kids are always playing at the base, even when school is out and it’s just us around. The biggest thing that surprises me every time is just how hospitable and considerate the people are. As we walk through the village, they wave and say “hola” with a large smile on their face. Those who know English don’t hesitate to talk with us, and those who don’t will try anyway! I went to a local convenience store to get a Coke and the store owners brought out a stack of chairs for my friends and I to sit on. It just surprised me because it’s not often that that happens in Canada. Sure, it could be that our white, glowing winter skin just screams “Canadian” or, “Americano”, as all the kids say, but I really believe that Dominicans are simply warm hearted people.
On Wednesday I went with Sophia, Zach, Jordan, Don and Rachael to Nueva Creacion to teach, and Compassion to play with the kids. Sophia and I taught 3 classes at Nueva Creacion: one of them we went to twice. That classroom was so much fun, the best one I’ve gone to yet. The kids were about 11-13 and were so intrigued by Sophia and I. they were eager to learn, and quick to help us when we pronounced something wrong or asked them, “cómo se dice?” A few of the kids drew Sophia and I pictures and wrote “te amo!” meaning, “I love you!” My name, Sierra, is way too hard for the kids to say, or even understand. So I decided to go with a nickname of mine, Ce-Ce, which sounds like the Spanish word for yes: “Si.” So my name meant "yes-yes". The class clown decided to call me “No-No” all day.
At noon - 2, school closes for “Siesta”; the two hottest hours of the day. The kids go home and so we ate lunch and then went into the village to explore. We weren't even 5 meters into our walk and kids began to swarm around us. A little boy came up to me and held my hand without even looking up at me for an okay, yet he was practically crying out for love and attention through the way he wouldn’t leave my side. Soon there was a little girl holding onto my other hand, and she too wouldn’t leave my side. After a few minutes, there were about 20 kids walking alongside the 6 of us. The children brought us to a cow field to play a game of baseball with a basketball, a large stick as a bat, and pieces of garbage as bases. These kids know how to have so much fun with so little. We had to climb under a barb wire fence to get there.
In all honesty, at home, the kids would climb through and run ahead to start the game, which is understandable considering their excitement. But once these children climbed through the little hole, a few of them stayed behind to hold the fence to make sure we didn’t snag our clothes. As I crawled through the opening, a little boy gently wiped some dirt and leaves off my pants. I was so touched as he went on to help the other people in my group in the same way. On our walk back to the village, we were lead through the jungle as a short-cut. A barefoot 2 year old in front of me started crying; her feet were cut or injured, so I put my arms out and she let me pick her up. Her arms went around my neck and she stopped crying. I carried this beautiful little girl the whole walk back, because I just couldn’t let her down and make her walk. A few times she rested her head against my shoulder or held her arms tighter around me. I felt her lean back and take a good look at my face out of curiosity and, content that she was okay to be with me, she’d put her head back on my shoulder.
Again we came across a barbed wire fence, and six kids raced ahead to hold the whole fence up for us to comfortably walk under. The amount of love these kids pour out to someone they don’t even know made my heart melt. All they want in return is love from us, and I think I can say on behalf of the whole class that that is not a hard thing for us to do.
These next two weeks we will be in Sabana Grande doing construction work. I know I’ll love that too, as its a different way for us to serve God through serving people. However, without a doubt, I will be so happy to go back to Nueva Creacion to see the adorable kids again and give them the love they so badly want from us.
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