In some ways an ending, in some a beginning

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here.

Posted by Chris Anderson

First I would like to apoligize for this Blog being posted late, for some reason it was not posted when I did do it. We are in Quan Tri now and I am reposting this at Clear Path Internationals office.
Today (Thursday 6-9-05) was another long day. We woke up early in the morning and caught breakfast same place as usual, in the first floor of our great inn. At 7:30 we were off to the Blind Association to finish our last day of labor work there. When we got there our mission was set out. Some were to weed the front grounds of the establishment, while another team was to dig a sports hole for equipment that would later be installed. We had some help from three of our interpreters which was great as well. Thanks guys!! Another hot day as usual, we all sweated together as we turned the front lawn brown and dug deep for the hole. This was a sad moment for some, being not only the last labor project for the Blind Association but also this is the last day of real labor work for the rest of the trip. We said our goodbyes to everyone there but we were not worried, for we will be seeing them the next day when we are marketing products for them in the morning.

We returned to the hotel to get ready for the afternoon portion of the day. We ate a great lunch as always, and instead of people taking the usual rest, we instead bought supplies and then planned what we were going to do for the last day of teaching both at the Children's House and saddest of all the Street Children house. We got all of our gifts together, balloons, candies, pens, toys, drinks, and other various items and set off at 1:45. We arrived at the Childrens House and began our activities. It was a light session. We started with games for the first leg of it and then we ended with conversation which we had to move inside because it started raining on us. We said our goodbyes to the kids at the Childrens House, exchanging email adresses and offering them to get in touch with us any time they felt fit for any reason at all. We were off to the Street Children's House.

We arrived to slight dissapointment for some. It was great to see those who reside there as always, but most of the children that did not live at the Street Children House were not there because the day before they had not attended and they were not aware that we were there for our last day. It was after all their summer vacation at this point. We had a great time nonetheless. It was an incredibly emotional time. The head mother of the house gave a speech that almost brought tears to many of our eyes. Some exchanged words and then we played with the children giving them all our gifts. They did not open one candy wrapper, they did not rink their Vinamilks, they only played with the Hug A Planets, beachballs and balloons we had given them. It seemed as though they were saving those things to savor the moment. It is hard to say what kind of impact we had on these childrens lives. All I can say is that they had an incredible impact on mine and made me see things more clearly than I ever thought possible. Their laughter brought me so much joy, and their respect for their teachers was incredible. Some of them may not have a father or mother figure, some of them may not have someone to play with or give them undivided attention when they go back to their homes, especially the ones who resided at the school house. For them, the hour and a half a day during the week that we had with them, was their time, their time to shine. The time we spent with them for me was priceless and beautiful beyond what words can explain at this point in time. Only two of my boys showed for the day, which was sad but we had fun. They seemed very grateful for what we had for them and what we did with them. I was very sad for having to leave. I have the reassurance of knowing that I may see them again when I return next year. Before leaving we exchanged hugs, and with other children other than my own students with whom I made connections with. I was close to tears but fought it back. I hope that these children grow up to have beautiful lives, lives reflecting the beautiful nature of their persons. Children of this age are the ones most affected by landmines and UXO. Children that come from poorer families, collect scrap metal to sell off for quick money. This is one of the most common reasons why there are deaths and injuries, also Bombis look like fun balls to play with and children are quick to do so, not knowing the consequences of their actions. This is one of the connections I made, I hope to God none of them have to deal with it, but they are in that age category, living near the DMZ, in one of the most infected areas for mines/UXO. My prayers go out for a brighter day.
So it was the ending of our teaching that we worked hard for, and the ending of our last labor project while here in Vietnam, but also the beginning of the last leg of the trip, and the beginning of absorbing what we did, and digesting it, trying to reflect upon it is now the big task.