Day 12
My Girl Students
About a month ago I went on a field trip with the first formers (freshmen). I wasn't too thrilled about this field trip because last year's ended up being 17 hours long (12.5 of those hours were on the bus). And of course, you're spending the whole day on a bus with 70 14-year-old-girls only to get off the bus and be joined by 70 14-year-old boys! So, we set out at 5am for Belize City, to visit the House of Culture and the Belize Museum. You wouldn't believe how excited these kids can be at 5am. Honestly, the annual field trip is one of the best events for them. Their bags are full of snacks and they are wide awake! On the way to Belize City I slept and they took pictures of me sleeping. As we got closer to the city the girls were all standing looking out the window singing at the top of their lungs (the bus driver was nice enough to play the music they like). The people on the streets would all turn to look at this loud singing bus as we drove by and the girls would scream and wave. It was so great to see the faces of the people light up when they saw the joy of these girls. Everyone, men, women, young, and old couldn't help but smile and wave at them, many of them even started laughing. It's amazing how contagious joy is.
We visited the Museum and the House of Culture. Mostly the girls saw everything as a photo op and I'm thinking about 400 pictures were uploaded to facebook that night. They don't get the opportunity to travel much and they never get to travel with their friends. School is their only chance for socializing. Although Belize City is only 2.5 hours away, many of the girls told me they had never been before. The House of Culture is right on the water and one girl asked, "Miss, can I go touch the sea? I've never seen it before!" To say that field trips are a big deal is an understatement.
The way home was much the same, singing, dancing, and taking pictures. There are no rules about standing on the bus, not sitting on the top of the seats, or keeping your hands inside so you can imagine what happens with 70 crazy girls. By the end of the trip my head hurt from all the noise, but I didn't mind it too much because I know how much the girls enjoyed the day and I enjoyed seeing them that way. They are loud, they are crazy, they talk constantly in class, they sing at the top of the lungs, they act like super models in pictures, they wear me out, but I love them so much, even their craziness. Their joy and excitement for life is contagious.
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