This morning I went and interacted with children that came to the eye doctors on a school field trip. As a part of this Rotary club, it was our project to volunteer to show these kids where to go for an eye test and entertain them while waiting for the rest to finish up. As teenagers, some of the adults just left that part up to us because the little kids were so drawn to our attention. All the kids that showed up today live in a poor area of Cur
itiba and most families can’t afford to visit the eye doctor for an exam to determine whether their child needed glasses or not. So we took care of 107 different children all different ages
, from 2 different schools and it turns out 60% needed glasses. The barrier of the language was not a problem. We helped them pick out glasses, paint their faces and took a couple pictures. The picture on the left is Zsofi (Hungarian inbound) and I next to our Rotarian banner. The picture on the right is a young girl wearing her school uniform choosing what color glasses she wants. They had all kinds of styles in every color for these kids to choose from. This was the end of the boring/most important things that had to be done.
After about half the kids got through the eye exams we brought out the face paint and they all lined up boys in one line and girls in another. All the girls asked for was a butterfly, a heart, a mermaid or a flower and all the boys just wanted a skull. I think the little girl’s masks are “masterpieces” because they drew them themselves so I simply just copied their ideas!
Only spending a couple of hours with these kids went by fast. It also wasn’t enough because they influenced my life and at the same time I inspired them. Today got me thinking about everything I have and got me second guessing everything I want. Today I got to connect with little kids that have never imagined doing what I am here for this year. Because for them, a well spent typical day is playing with their friends around their villages inventing games and what they want to be in when they grow up. I inspired them today because they helped me with a little Portuguese while I taught them English. And now they want to travel the world because we showed them where we are from.
Zsofi and I are two of many in bounders apart of this exact Rotary district. Here in Curitiba, there are at least 30 different Rotary clubs. For those of you, that are not familiar with Rotary clubs… It’s basically the group you connect with and they do all kinds of life changing projects. These projects keep you involved with the community or culture. The members of the club can also be your mentors while you are here. You don’t have to see them all the time but they meet once a week to plan more projects or reflect about previous ones. They are always there for you to reach if you need anything so it’s comforting to keep in touch with what they are doing so you get to know them too. My first Host dad is the president of this club so that’s how I get to be a part of these activities. You do not have to be apart of the club to attend these activities its just how I am offered to be apart as well.
