First Days in Zambia

June 11-13th
Lea Groebe

After a long two days of traveling, it is amazing to be here at Fatima Girl's School. It is so surreal to finally be here after all of the hard working and planning that went into this trip. The trip so far has been extremely tiring and busy, but equally as fun. When we were on the bus and driving into the school, all of the students were lined up outside to greet us. There were all chanting and so excited for us to be there. This made me feel very welcomed. They sang a song to us as we were getting off the bus with their amazingly beautiful voices. I have never seen anything like it. We got off and immediately girls were rushing to hug  us. It was such a great way to start the trip and is something I will never forget. The next day (yesterday), we got up early to go to mass at 6:15. The mass was very beautiful and reminded me of our masses at Visitation. It is interesting to see the parallels between Fatima Girl's School and Visitation. After the mass, we went to go pack up some of the medical donations and bring them to the clinic because the clinic was in need of them. This was my first time seeing the clinic and to me, it was eye-opening. As I walked around, I saw many people lined up waiting to get medical attention. It was hard to see so many ill people needing help, just waiting for a doctor to see them. It made me feel good however, to bring in all of the donations that would help them. After the clinic, the team had the opportunity to get a tour of the entire campus. My favorite parts of the tour were going to the Barefoot School and seeing the village and market. I loved these experiences the most because I was able to connect with so many people. Almost everyone I encountered either shook my hand or said hello. I am so amazed at how welcoming everyone is here. These experiences, like the clinic, were eye opening. The lifestyle here is so different and the areas we saw were so run-down. Despite the conditions these people live in, they are so incredibly happy and I am so inspired by that. The rest of the day yesterday and all day today we painted two classrooms and the main dining hall at Barefoot School. The kids were around most of the time so it was fun to interact with them. They would peek inside and try to see the work we had done. I could tell they were excited. I will admit, it was not always the most fun job, but seeing the way it excited the kids is what made me want to keep going.  After just three days here, I can already say this trip will change me. I am having an amazing experience thus far and am excited to see what the rest of the trip holds.