Today was my last day interning at
City Mission Educational Services and man was that a hard goodbye. I woke up
with a pit in my stomach and that feeling never really went away (may have
gotten increasingly worse thanks to all the cake I ate today, but that’s a
slightly different story). On our regular minibus taxi ride to school, the two
older women who are basically on our bus every morning and to whom we smile at
every morning, realized from the flowers and goodies we had that it was out
last day. They both looked shocked and we finally talked about our time spent
here and our plans, ending with them giving us all their blessings and best
wishes. That random act of kindness and care really started the day off hitting
me right in the feels.
When Pauline and I first walked
through the gates of CMES we were greeted by a 12th grade girl names
Ghusnaa, who explained to us that she wanted to get us goodbye gifts but
couldn’t afford them so instead she was going to give us tons of hugs
throughout the day instead; definitely the best gift possible. The rest of the
day that was filled with so much love, appreciation, and gratitude that at
times it was almost overwhelming. We finished up our one on one sessions and
looked back at all the work we have completed with the girls, which was an
extremely rewarding feeling. We also took about 5 million pictures with every
kid at the school and every staff member, much to the chagrin of Sir Conza, the
most traditional man I have ever met who almost never smiles. Once the pictures
were taken, the notes started rolling in. Not everyone, but a very good amount
of students wrote us hand written goodbye/thank you notes in the best English
they could. I never expected this aspect of the day, and was truly touched by
the outpouring of love from these kids, especially some of the most
unsuspecting.
During lunch, the teachers gave us
cake and went around to say a few words before we spoke. It really meant a lot
that every single teacher said something, considering all the other goodbyes we
have ever seen usually consist of the staff half paying attention. They all
expressed their gratitude more gracefully and heartfelt than imaginable, some
prayed for us, and some even gave gifts. When it was my turn to return the
thanks, of course I started to cry. It overwhelmed me that the staff and the
students would never really be able to understand how much they have impacted
my life. I think one of the most rewarding parts of this trip has been being
able to see everyone, including myself, change so much right before my eyes.
The students have gotten stronger academically and their compassion has grown without
a doubt. The staff has become so dedicated that they are even willing to work
when the paychecks have stopped coming in fully. And in terms of myself, well I
can honestly say this trip has changed me in more ways than I think I can even
comprehend, and much of that is due to the people from CMES.
It is an unsettling feeling to know
that today I said bye to about 120 students who carry the weight of the world
on their shoulders everyday, yet I get to fly back to the US in four days to a
life without many worries at all. My only hope is that they know, since I have
told them a million times now, that even though I am not here physically anymore,
doesn’t mean I am just going to stop caring about them. I have developed such a
love and appreciation for all of these students and hope that I can still act
as a resource even across the Atlantic. I can’t wait to hear about their
successes in the future, and see how many people’s lives they touch just like
they have mine. I will never be able to truly express my gratitude for the
opportunities CMES has given me, but all of my love goes to that organization
and the people there who made ‘work’ feel like home every day.
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| Meg & Pauline at CMES |
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