"Let’s play hide and
seek! Let’s play hide and seek!" A chorus of little girls voices rang through
the Cooperativa school grounds. Six little girls grabbed onto me and Christina,
another summer intern, holding our hands and pulling us to our feet. After ten
minutes of girl talk and hand games with these adorable nine year olds, they
were ready to play.
A wonderfully joyful
little girl named Brenda continued to hug me and talk to us about our American
lives back home. Then they taught us some words in Kaqchikel—how to count
from one to nine—and after laughing at our attempts at their indigenous
language, we all got up to play the universal game of hide and seek. But, here
in Guate, one person counts while everyone runs and hides together, much more
my style than hiding by one’s self. I have loved being silly and laughing with
these girls while running from the seeker. They have so much fun
playing these fun, silly, easy games. Their joy for life is so wonderful and
makes me think twice about my own and what is important to me. It is amazing to
see these kids who are so happy and lively despite their circumstances. They
are resilient and strong. We then played an exciting game of pato, pato,
ganzo (duck, duck, goose), and a Guatemalan game where the group circles around someone in
the middle, who is eventually ready to eat and essentially chases everyone around. I am
excited to report that I can actually understand and talk with these kids now. I am really happy that my
Spanish has been improving. I can communicate and learn from my students, which I am doing. A lot.
They have not only taught me their language, but about laughter and courage.
--Andrea
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