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Week 3 Part 1

On Tuesday and today, we went out to communities with the food bank! Today's visit was to the community called Francisco Villa. There was a great turn out - 41 families showed up to the meeting. The purpose was to distribute cards to the families that they will need in order to get food from the food bank. The food pickups are organized so that every family does not need to receive transportation to the food bank facility. So, today there was also the nomination of a President, Secretary, etc. for the Francisco Villa food bank community. The president will pick up the food for the community and distribute accordingly (the first pickup date for this community is on August 2nd). It was a great experience to see the people that are directly affected by the food bank. I got to play with some kids while the meeting was going on. It was really funny - I was talking to these little girls while I was sitting down. Immediately as I stood up, the girls looked at me in awe. They started calling me "gigante" and "girafe" as they were blown away by my height. I am really glad that I got the chance to go the community because it makes all that we are doing at the food bank more meaningful.

Something that I have recognized over the past few weeks is the importance of being exposed to different cultures and lifestyles. I have learned so much from the people here in Merida even though I do not always understand what they are saying. The people here are so accepting, friendly, and respectful of others. By experiencing other cultures and people I think that we can become more aware of human characteristics and gain a greater respect for different walks of life. I am so glad that I made the decision to come here - being here makes me want to see and experience the rest of the world. 







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