It was a truly incredible experience, one that is hard to describe succinctly in words, but since that is essentially the point of this blog, I will try to do just that!
Week two was busier, hotter, and all around amazing. Not only did we paint the section of the wall that we cemented with hand prints from our visitors, but we built two recycle bins as well! I was very thrilled to have those built, because I really wanted our visitors to see that you can bring these projects home to your own communities in many different ways. Building schools out of bottles is laborious; building a recycle bin not so much in comparison, and they both can be used to teach invaluable lessons.
In addition to the actual work we did, we all left with new friends from all over the world. One of my favorite parts of this trip was when my counterparts and I stayed after dinner for over an hour with members of the groups from Mali, Zambia, and Tonga, telling jokes from our respective countries. One person would tell part of the joke, then we would all translate, respectively. My stomach hurt from laughing so hard, which proves that not only is laughter a universal language, but that you do not need to speak the same tongue to make friends, smile, blow off some steam, and essentially, celebrate life.
There is so much more I could say, but I will pause for now. I was inspired by so many visitors, and now have endless ideas about other structures to build out of bottles (coffee tables, bedside tables, etc), and I would love any input you all have as well, so email, comment, however you want to get involved, I look forward to collaborating, in any language!
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