Mother's Day Wishes from the Girls and a Note from the Teachers

A Mother's Day Greeting from Nicaragua

May 12, 2013

Dear TTS21 Parents,

The scene at our Little Corn Island house has been an odd mixture of writing research papers, heading to the SCUBA dive center, and sleeping just about anywhere to recover from a whopper of a virus.  Our final week of TTS21 has clearly held its highs and lows.  Last Saturday, the girls were literally breathless as our panga, a local ferry boat, jumped and splashed its way across the turquoise waters taking us to our tiny island getaway. Today, the girls proudly discuss SCUBA terminology and the colorful life of the coral reef.

While they have all been extremely busy attending dive classes or snorkeling, the TTS veterans never let their studies fall behind.  The girls are now professionals at time management, and are succeeding in meeting assignment deadlines while still making time to catch an extra dip in the Caribbean to cool off or hold a sunset photo session. The camaraderie shared amongst this group of young women is awe-inspiring.  Their love is touching to witness, in each of the small gestures seen along the way each day.  It's in Eliza's arms as she stocks the fridge with Powerade drinks to keep electrolytes up, or in the sincere cheers for Mimi as she tears up over seeing bioluminescence for the first time.   Each of the girls is fully accepting of one another's unique differences, so that together they are an incredibly strong family.  It is this closeness that is undoubtedly causing mixed emotions to surface as our conversations are beginning to focus on the transition away from the TTS family to life back home. 

As final deadlines end, we are talking more and more about what it means to actually be returning home.  Three and a half months ago, living abroad with a group of strangers caused both excitement and anxiety.  Now, those same emotions are present in your daughters as they discuss how their family and friends will perceive their newly developed global awareness.  Your daughters feel very closely connected to Central America, and are nervous as they struggle with how to create the clearest picture about how Central America fits into each of their hearts.  They are unsure of what it will be like to return to a stationary classroom in a familiar building and walk with peers through school hallways. Still, they are each counting down the seconds to their first hug from you and their first night's rest in their own beds!  They discuss what the reunion moment will be like, and each beams with bright smiles over whom they will see first and whether they will cry or not.  Many have painted a vivid picture of their first days at home and the first meal they hope to have.

Over the next few days, we will practice handling the inevitable question, "So, how was your trip?"  We will address the fears related to returning to school and peer groups, and discuss how to again find their place in teenage life.  Of course, we will spend plenty of time laughing, crying, and then laughing again as we revisit our favorite moments from the semester.  I am sure your daughter has already hinted to you about how she feels regarding her upcoming TTS graduation on Sunday night.  I encourage you to email your daughter congratulating her hard work in these final days of the semester and for her accomplishments these 15 weeks overseas.  I also encourage you to ask your daughter about her preference or vision for her first few days at home.  She may want a large party with family and friends, or perhaps you may be surprised to find out she wants some quiet time at home with just family.  Either way, she will need some time to process her experience, to look at pictures, or sort through souvenirs and laundry.  She may want to do that immediately on her first night home, or perhaps hide it away for a several days.

This has been an incredible journey, and I cannot picture this experience without your daughter.  She has amazing strength and charisma, and I admire her sense of self and love for the people around her.  I will miss each of your daughters and am thankful for all the adventures we have shared.  I will look back at this trip and admire each young woman that transformed TTS21 into a family of singing, laughing, and questioning borderless girls.  Kathryn's leadership and language prowess, Mimi's fondness for the world around her, Mikaela's combination of eagerness and smiling hesitation as she talks to someone new, Ruth's love for science and observation of minute details, Ava's passion for band and music, Abby's spunk and love for Dolly, Simone's endurance and optimism, Maggie's determination and vivid writing, Eliza's jump reflex after tripping and friendly hugs, Anna's smile and appreciation for experiencing life, and Annalise's laughter and quick humor all made this expedition more than just an academic semester program. With the love and guidance of four dedicated teachers, this family of passionate learners enthusiastically approaches any challenge or activity they come across as one cohesive unit. 

Thank you for sharing your daughter with The Traveling School.  I can't wait to see the next steps she takes, each one being one more step in her extraordinary path in life.

Hugs and love from Nicaragua to all of you amazing parents,
-Jen, Caroline, Heather & Liz 

Surfing in Guatemala

Project Wave Of Optimism

We just finished an amazing week in one of the most beautiful coastal towns I have ever visited. Playa Gigante (Giant's Beach) is a small community of about 3500 people made up of fishermen, farmers, panga captains, families, and surfers from around the globe. During a surf vacation, Peace Corps volunteers fell in love with Playa Gigante and began an organization based on positive community development, which today is known as Project WOO (Wave Of Optimism). We had the opportunity to spend a week working with this amazing project and immersing ourselves in the community and its culture, while enjoying the wonderful hospitality of our groupstay parents, Dona Lucia and Don Ramon.  Ramon is Bob Dylan-esque guitar-harmonica playing fisherman and Lucia is an amazing cook who runs a pulpería (grocery shop) out of her house.  We set up camp on their lawn and quickly felt right at home with home-cooked meals, dancing, and the sounds of ranchero and howler monkeys echoing through the night.

We woke up the next morning ready for Community Surf Day.  We spent the morning at the beach, with over 100 local kids, learning about the importance of being an "eco-surfista", painting faces, swimming in the ocean, kicking the soccer ball around, and helping in a beach clean-up. The kids kept the girls busy all morning.  Everywhere I looked there were kids playing with TTS students - Ava, Mikaela, and Simone had kids attached to their backs all morning; Emelia played "tiburones" (sharks) with the girls waiting to boogie board with Liz; Maggie & Anna started a pick-up game of soccer on the beach, and Annalise & Eliza were painting the faces of beautiful smiling kids.  It was a special day for everyone involved and a great way to kick off our week at Playa Gigante!

Throughout the week, we also partook in immersion classes, which consisted of baking bread with Dona Maria Elena, cooking traditional meals with Dona Reina, and hiking up Giant's Foot with our groupstay dad, Don Ramon.  The girls loved learning how to make the sweet bread - hand-kneading the dough, filling it with sugar and cheese, and putting it the handmade wood-fired oven to cook...que rico (yummy)!  Unfortunately, Jen & Abby ate so much bread, that they didn't leave room for lunch at Dona Reina's.  Nonetheless, we all got a chance to work it off with our hike up to the Giant's Foot, where 360° views awaited us at the top.

We also had the opportunity to help paint the local elementary school with local teachers & students.  Although there were many hands involved, Ruth was up on the ladder putting on the final coat, ensuring that it looked great!  The girls also got to play in a local softball game and visit the high school, where they shadowed the students and Kat did the translating.

Our last night, we headed to the beach for a sunset swim and saw something we hadn't seen since Casa del Mundo...storm clouds!  As we got back to the house, we heard the thunder getting closer and the first rains of the winter started coming down...and oh, how it poured!  The girls weren't fazed a bit...they started running in the rain, singing "Cielito Lindo" with Don Ramon, and roasting marshmellows over a lighter to squish between chicky's!  They're ability to live in the moment came through that night as their tents got flooded in a pool we had been wishing for all week...ay, ay, ay, ay...canta, no llores (sing, don't cry)!

--Liz

Weekly Reflection, Raction, and Response (RR&R) on Affecting Change

"Ahh! Ahhhh! Ahhh!" a desperate, panicked voice screamed forty feet below near the ocean-cured rocks.  Yet as Lisa talked about our week at Project WOO, and we shared snapshots of our experiences on community surf day, the stranger's screams were subdued to a mere drone in the periphery of my consciousness. When Lisa registered there might be someone calling for help, I did not understand how grave the girl's situation was until I looked down onto the rocks embedded in the ocean below and saw her precariously close to the rocks and the crashing, potent waves. Then Lisa, Derek (WOO workers) and TTS teachers rushed to help her and I merely watched, aware that I don't know how to help her and feeling fear, not bravery to help. This moment was intense and scary. Watching the approaching waves, fear rose in me. Fear for the girl getting twisted and hitting the unforgiving rocks. It also conjured up fear by reminding me of my moment of ocean stress when I lost my surf board in the far out waves at El Paredon. I felt an overwhelming feeling of sad helplessness too.  When I was struggling, I assumed anyone would help me as Heather and Henry did. Since anyone could fall into my position, others would empathize and as a good Samaritan, help me. Although I now empathized deeply, I did not feel readily able to help. I also felt a separation from Karen, being safe on land.

As I heard the desperate cries but did not recognize them as urgent; it is commonplace for people to know of the plight of others but not fully acknowledge it and care.  It is also common for people to be fully aware of the plight empathize but still feel a degree of separation and this not fully empathize and take action.

My metaphorical realization helped shed light on why so many US world citizens can take no action to preserve the natural state of our planet or help with the plight here in Central America.  Especially when our degraded earth and the Central American struggles are, in part, our fault.  I have been hyper-aware of environmental issues; I think partially because the state of our globe affects me.  But prior to TTS, I have not known or cared fully about the hardships here.  Traveling through Guatemala, Chiapas and Nicaragua and learning and interacting with the people, however, have bestowed me with a deep empathizing connection.

Now, I want to help and make a change, but just as I felt overlooking the ocean, I am not sure how.  It is not that it is too scary and potentially lethal, I just need to think more about it.  As we have learned, it is difficult to affect real change at the root of a problem and not merely the symptoms.  Yet I think this experience also makes me more understanding of why people at home will not feel as impassioned as I do;  they have maybe heard the drone of calls for help but never witnessed the issue firsthand.     

--Anna, Senior, NY

Hello from the Corn Islands,

As I write this update, all of the TTS21 girls are off on their first SCUBA dive.  The waters surrounding the island mix between bright turquoise and deep shades of midnight blue.  The water is clear, allowing the girls to see the bottom of the ocean from more than 30 feet above.  The sun is shining, and the breeze is providing some sweet relief from the heat.  Needless to say, it is not a hard place to enjoy our final week of the semester.

We arrived here by plane and ferry on Saturday.  We have our own house, complete with our very own pila for washing clothes and a large kitchen.  The girls were all smiles at the sight of fans in each of their rooms.  (Feel free to remind them of that when they complain for a lack of air conditioning this summer).

Yesterday was filled with classroom instruction as students were introduced to the world of diving.  It's unbelievable to see how quickly they have become adept at the technical aspects of their scuba equipment – you should see how fast they can connect all of their dive gear already!  Only one day of instruction and they already use terms like, “BCU, psi, and regulators,” as if they were already old scuba pros.  This morning each diver took their first breath underwater in a few feet of water off the beach.  Mikaela described the moment as, "totally crazy to take a big breath and just hear yourself breathing.  After it actually worked -  I just thought it was the coolest thing ever!"

If you’ve ever gone scuba diving, you know that divers talk a lot about healthy ears – which are essential in pressurizing as the girls descend and ascend from underwater. Mimi was thrilled her ears were great and didn't cause any problem at all.  And, while the beginning Open Water divers were taking their first breath of compressed air, some of the other girls went snorkeling.

It is typical for about a quarter of the girls to drop the Open Water course before they become certified scuba divers. This can be from fear of being underwater, issues with their ears, or anything that makes the girls choose to pass on scuba diving as their sport. This semester is no exception, and a few girls have chosen not to complete the course.  These girls are well-cared for – with world-class snorkeling from the beach, and plenty of good books to read in the sand. We will let you know if your daughter chooses to drop the course.

Two of the girls are working on their Advanced Scuba certifications, Abby and Annalise, and they were lucky enough to dive with a noisy pod of dolphins yesterday. But, in general, all of girls are loving the warm water, and a much needed break from classes.

Diving will end at the end of this week, providing a few days to complete final projects and transition activities to prepare for the return home.  There are mixed emotions swirling around the conversation of going home, both excitement to hug loved ones and to sleep in their own beds, as well as sadness for leaving such a powerful semester abroad.  The TTS21 family is a close community, and we will be focusing the final week's discussions on what it means to go home and how to share their transformative experiences with friends and family.  But today, it's time to focus on swimming with rays and watching as huge crabs enjoying a lunch on the sandy ocean floor.

Thank you for all of your love and support throughout the entire semester.  It has been a pleasure traveling in all of your company, both in person on the Campus Visit and on the blog.

I will be sending another update soon regarding the specifics of our transition discussions here, and descriptions on how TTS is providing support for your daughter as she prepares to adjust back to living at home. 

For now, it's time to go welcome the divers back --  here come 9 smiling girls in wetsuits! J

We will keep you updated on all of the members of our community as the semester slowly draws to a close. Thank you for sharing your daughters with us.

All the best,

Gennifre, Jennifer, Jim & Price

Jen, Heather, Caroline & Liz

Hello from Week 13 in Nicaragua!  The sun is shining upon us every day, sending down rays of happiness and energy as we visit with el gente and enjoy delicious comida.  The TTS21 family has been a busy group, using their Spanish skills to learn about the historical cities of Leon and Granada, and now speaking regularly with our group-stay family.  While in Granada, the girls set up teams of two, each specializing in one historical location, to then teach the rest of the group as walking tour guides.  Maggie and Abby were slightly disappointed to find the famous fort of Granada was closed, preventing the group from viewing the sunset from the guard tower.  Upon further practice of their Spanish translating skills and attempts to persuade the guard to let our school inside, they discovered the fort will actually be closed for a whole year, pending renovations.  Nevertheless, the walking tour was fantastic and will surely be rivaling the competition of Lonely Planet.

Classes have continued to progress each and every day, and the students have worked as a single team as they use their Spanish to learn about the world around them.   Kathryn translated an entire sustainable farming tutorial for the group at Finca Magdalena during the infamous TTS 3rd Annual Food Day.  Ruth taught the group about the United Fruit Company and their legacy in Nicaragua.  The science class argued the success and failures of GM foods, and the entire TTS group discussed NAFTA and CAFTA and the effects on Central America. Each class has been working hard in preparation for upcoming final exams.

Science:

The final segment of the semester has incorporated a closer look at agricultural practices around the world, as well as a more in depth study of both Guatemala and Nicaragua.  Students analyzed the composition of soil, and then completed a soil study in Santiago, Guatemala.  Students applied the soil identification triangle to accurately label the soil designation of the Lake Atitlan area.  Students observed the surrounding landscapes, recorded signs of past landslides, then problem solved to determine the different soil characteristics which would increase the probability for such disasters.  The study of agriculture continued with a discussion on sustainable agriculture, along with several guest speakers and experiential opportunities to local fincas (farms).  Students participated in a coffee finca tour, and applied their Spanish speaking skills to ask local Nicaraguan farmers about the local strategies and consequences of pest control.  Mikaela talked to several sources at Finca Magdalena, which led to a larger discussion within the classroom on the creation and implementation of pesticides throughout America.  Maggie, Eliza, and Abby embraced the opportunity to let their debating skills shine as students debated the pros and cons for genetically modified foods on Food Day.  The semester will culminate next week with students completing a research paper and oral presentation on an agricultural topic of their choice relating to Nicaragua.  Ava is focusing her studies on the effects of pesticides on the local biodiversity levels, and Ruth is analyzing the presence of physical and chemical resistance of organisms to the various pest control strategies of Nicaragua.

Algebra 2:

Students have continued to progress through the semester, completing several units of study in the past month and a half.  Students applied the principles of functions to graph and solve for inverse functions; they also analyzed conic functions, solving for critical points before constructing equations for parabolas, hyperbolas, circles, and ellipses.  Maggie and Ava regularly switched off using the whiteboard to teach various problems to the class.  They have embraced the opportunity to work together to problem solve through challenging questions, and have unanimously requested several times to hold extra classes to review the covered material.  The final unit of study on probability and statistics challenged students to identify inclusive or exclusive events, and then apply the correct equation to calculate the solution.  Students have analyzed standard deviation and the variance of several experiments then determined and identified the presence of outliers in the data sets.  The final cumulative exam will cover all chapters of the semester, with a stronger focus on the final two units of study.

– Jen

Math Concepts

The Math Concepts class has been very busy since our last update. The girls finished up the job search unit with mock job interviews based on the resumes and cover letters they created. Eliza interviewed for an internship with a green architecture firm; Simone applied for a position as a trail maintenance team leader; Kat interviewed for an internship with a non-profit in Nicaragua; and Annalise applied for work as a pharmaceutical tech. We then briefly studied saving, investing, and some basics of economics in order to lay foundation for the girls to understand the economics of NAFTA and CAFTA. Our study of these free-trade agreements culminated with a round table discussion on Food Day that was attended by all members of TTS21. The girls each took on a different persona and discussed the pros and cons of NAFTA and CAFTA from their assigned perspective. We completed our study of trade with a class debate on the World Trade Organization. Kat and Annalise argued in support of the WTO while Eliza and Simone argued against.

The last unit of our semester will allow us to take a step back from the global economy to investigate our own personal priorities. Our final Happiness Unit will pull in ideas from the iLife workshop on life passions and previous Math Concepts discussions on choosing a fulfilling job path. As girls read articles and complete a final project requiring them to look toward their future and contemplate how they will balance financial goals with less concrete, but certainly not less important, goals in areas such as lifestyle preference and needs for personal growth and fulfillment.

Pre-calculus

Emelia and Ruth continue with dedicated hard work in Pre-calculus. After completing our study of trigonometry, we moved on to conic sections including circles, ellipses, parabolas, and hyperbolas. The girls learned to mathematically appreciate the parabolic reflectors behind their headlamps that focus the light into a beam allowing them to study in tents after dark. They also had fun in a demonstration on the properties of ellipses that uses tacks and string to draw perfect elliptical arches. Ruth and Emelia are now finishing up their study of sequences and series with a small project involving the Sierpinski Triangle. We will finish the semester with a brief study probability and a final exam.

Beginning Spanish

The girls of the beginning Spanish class have continued to build on the enormous progress they made at the Mountain School. They have engaged in conversations with surf instructors, tour guides, hostel owners, and guest speakers. They have become comfortable asking questions to order food and navigate towns and have moved on to much more complicated conversations about daily life and culture with locals. Mikaela and Ruth used their Spanish skills to ask our guest speaker at Finca Magdalena about organic farming practices. Eliza and Simone practiced Spanish while playing with local children during recent community beach day with Project WOO. Abby continues to fearlessly engage in conversation with adults and children alike, always learning. Ava’s in-depth study of the uses of saber versus conocer and por versus para at the Mountain School prepared her to be a leader in our class discussions. We have studied various other grammar topics in class in order to give formal background to what the girls are learning through their immersion experiences. Additional topics have included the present progressive tense, weather expressions, the personal a, and reflexive verbs. We will complete the semester with an individual oral exam for each student and a group skit to showcase the girls’ Spanish skills. The skit will be performed one night in the Corn Islands and promises appearances from most influential people we have met on our trip.

--Heather

Advanced Spanish

To learn with your heart and not with your eyes, is a theme from El Principito (The Little Prince) that the girls will be elaborating on for their final essay as they wind down their semester here in Central America.  In addition, they have been reading, translating, and presenting current event articles and continuing to have conversations with the people we meet.  Each girl has had to complete a final project based on her level of fluency.  Kathryn translated the 1-hour presentation of our guest speaker, Felix Pascual, at La Finca Magdalena, while Annalise talked to the local workers to gather information about the petroglyphs on Ometepe Island and presented it to our group.  Anna and Emelia created exchange activities with our groupstay family, Don Ramon y Dona Lucia, in Playa Gigante, where we played name games and learned all the words to Cielito Lindo..."ay, yay, yay, yay, canta, no llores", (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjJDv1IeF8I) while Don Ramon accompanied us on the guitar.  It's been quite a week for immersion here in Playa Gigante and the girls have been taking full advantage!   --Liz

Class updates from Caroline . . .

Literature & Composition

I cannot believe the last two weeks of the semester are here! My classes are busy as we work to turn in final projects and assignments and take final exams. Juggling a packed schedule of cultural immersion, community service projects and academics is a testament to what your girls have become: seasoned TTS pros! The Lit students are currently writing the final drafts of their persuasive essays and finishing Tortilla Curtain, T.C. Boyles’ novel about a the interconnected lives of two men in a Los Angeles suburb.(http://www.nytimes.com/books/98/02/08/home/boyle-tortilla.html) The novel debates questions of immigration and class, asking the reader to re-evaluate the concept of the American Dream. The girls will take a final exam on the novel next week as we transition to the Corn Islands. For their persuasive essays, the girls have chosen their own topic and evidence, using a variety of sources from the semester including personal experiences, guest speakers and conversations with people met on our travels, books and articles, class discussions, and personal observations. Mikaela is writing her essay on the topic of teen pregnancy and early motherhood in Central America. She argues that because the vast majority of young women in Central America marry and have children at a young age, young women miss out on education and other experiences, depriving many of the chance to form an identity outside this role or to reach their full potential.

History

The history students are wrapping up the semester by writing an apology letter for a wrong-doing they observed this semester. Abby is writing her apology to the indigenous Maya of Guatemala, apologizing for the lack of education and understanding in the United States regarding the genocide that happened during the Civil War in Guatemala. Emelia and Kat gave their oral presentation on the events and implications of the Iran-Contra Affair last week. To wrap up our semester, we will be reading articles about the current politics and affairs of Nicaragua as well as staying up to date on major events in Guatemala and Central America, including the recent ruling in the Rios Montt Trial (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/19/world/americas/judge-in-guatemala-annuls-genocide-trial.html?emc=eta1) and the major spike in immigration from Central American countries to Mexico and the US.

Elementary School near Playa Gigante

Travel Journalism

Travel Journalism is revving up to write and attempt to publish final articles. Kat is writing about volun-tourism, using Project WOO (http://www.projectwoo.org/) as an example of the benefits and importance of giving back to and interacting with the communities in which we travel.  (See Surfing For Change video: http://www.surfingforchange.com/portfolio/surfing-for-change-travel-guide-to-nicaragua-full-movie-2013/) Annalise is looking at the differences between learning a language in a classroom and learning a language while traveling. She is writing about how being able to communicate in the language of the countries where you travel enhances and changes the traveling experience. The girls are also hard at work organizing and choosing photos for their final photography portfolio – an amazing endeavor showcasing three and a half months’ worth of skill-building and experimenting with new methods of picture-taking.

Physical Education

In P.E., students recently completed teaching student-led classes. In pairs, the girls designed and led the group through a work-out. Mikaela and Kat organized a capture-the-flag game in a park in central Granada. While in “jail”, prisoners had to do squats, push-ups and sit-ups before they could re-join the game. Eliza and Ava created a fast-paced workout which included short, high-intensity arms, legs, and core work-outs. We are all looking forward to scuba diving next week on Little Corn Island, which we hear is a tropical island paradise, far off the beaten path, unspoiled and completely unaffected by tourism. They say there are no cars nor roads-just good ole walking and swimming. WOW!

Global Studies

The girls have written their last R, R and R (Reflection, Reaction and Response) for Global Studies class and are in the process of finishing Enrique's Journey, a non-fiction account of a young migrant's harrowing journey from Honduras to the United States, jumping onto and off the moving boxcars to evade Mexican police and immigration authorities (http://www.enriquesjourney.com/). Each class we have divided the girls into discussion groups to talk about different aspects of the text. Ruth, Emelia, Simone and Eliza discussed the various communities Enrique encountered on his journey north. They decided that the leadership (Government officials, priests, etc.) in each community often set the tone for how immigrants were viewed and treated. For their final reflection, the girls will choose a passage from the book and analyze if and how they have read or understood the passage differently after taking Global Studies at TTS given all their background knowledge about the historical, cultural and political implications of the issues raised by this book. (See New York Times recent article: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/27/world/americas/central-americans-pour-into-mexico-bound-for-us.html?emc=eta1&_r=0)

--Caroline 

**As an aside, today when checking in with Jen, she suggested the book Enrique's Journey has been  a powerful read for all the girls. This is a book, as a parent, you might want to read either before or after your daughter returns from the semester. 

On Food Day from Caroline

Finca Magdalena

Each semester the Traveling School class dedicates one day to an interdisciplinary study of a major issue shaping the part of the world in which we are traveling. In other words, we look at an important regional/global topic from a variety of angles. On TTS21, the girls examined the issue of Food in Central America. Finca Magdalena (http://www.fincamagdalena.com/) on Isla Ometepe, a volcanic island in the middle of Lake Nicaragua, provided the perfect setting to celebrate Food Day. The finca is a community run coffee cooperative that sells their beans to fair trade buyers in the United States and Canada. After Somoza was ousted by the Sandinista Revolution in the late 1970s, the Marxist leaders of the new government of Nicaragua nationalized lands previously held by Somoza and other wealthy land owners and redistributed them to campesinos (regular folk living in rural areas). Finca Magdalena was a result of this land reform effort.  Ferdinando, who we met on the Finca, has been working among the coffee plants since he was 10 years old and had fought in the revolution and seen the finca change from a privately owned plantation to a community owned and operated finca. He spoke to us about the issues facing the finca today and the difficulty the cooperative is facing in making enough money to support its members. Most farmers in the cooperative have outside sources of income to supplement what they make from the coffee they grow on the finca. The roots of issues such as the ones facing the members of Finca Magdalena are what we try to dig up during Food Day.

The day began with Ruth's presentation on the United Fruit Company (now Chiquita Banana).  She did a phenomenal job exploring the effects that mega corporation has had on the history and politics of Guatemala, including inciting civil war. Additionally, Ruth led us through the conditions banana workers face in packing houses and in the fields today, and how these problems are being addressed through banana workers' unions. The Advanced Spanish students (Annalise, Anna, Kat, and Mimi) presented current event articles from publications written in Spanish about issues around food in Central America. Emelia told us about small farmers in Florida who are having trouble competing with produce grown in Mexico and sold cheaply in the US. Anna explored a fungus attacking coffee plants throughout Central America. Later in the day, Felix, the finca boss, told us how the farmers at Finca Magdalena combat that fungus without pesticides using garlic and onions. The science class got into a heated debate about the necessity and safety of genetically modified foods. Ruth, Maggie, and Mikaela argued against Genetically Modified (GM) foods while Ava, Abby and Eliza led a spirited attack in favor of them. At one point, Jen, our moderator, had to silence both the debaters and the audience as we all competed to make a point or ask a question. We came to the conclusion Abby should be a lobbyist. Kat translated for our guest speaker Felix, the jefe (head/chief) of Finca Magdalena. She did an admirable job translating difficult economic and agricultural ideas to the group. Felix, quiet and unassuming, patiently explained the history of the finca and some challenges facing coffee farmers today, as well as answering innumerable questions from the science girls eager to gather information for their research papers.

After lunch, we staged a round-table discussion in which the girls discussed the pros and cons of NAFTA/CAFTA (North American/Central America Free Trade Agreement). Each student was given a role representing a person in the US, Mexico or Central America affected differently by NAFTA/CAFTA. Eliza was a wealthy Mexican farmer in favor of NAFTA; Abby was a lobbyist on behalf of major corporations benefitting from NAFTA/CAFTA policies; Ava was a worker at a jeans factory in the US who felt her job was compromised by US manufacturing moving to Mexico and Central America where labor is cheaper and regulations fewer; Miki was a worker in a garment factory in a free trade zone in Nicaragua. In their roles, the girls debated and discussed the pros and cons of Neo-Liberal economic policies like NAFTA/CAFTA and explored how these policies were issues of class and race in addition to issues of economic theory and policy. Finally, we looked at NAFTA/CAFTA's effects on immigration and discussed questions of nationhood, citizenry, and national identity.  Although the girls' (and their teachers’) heads were virtually exploding as the day came to a close, we were proud of the different ideas and opinions we had shared with each other and of the new understanding we had come to about FOOD.

Throughout the day, the girls kept track of the ideas and issues we explored and thought critically about how those ideas connected to each other by creating a web. We drew the word “food” in a box in the middle of a giant piece of paper taped to the wall. The girls then drew lines coming off the word in order facilitate their understanding of the different factors affecting the production of and access to food in Central American and how the issues connect to each other. By the end of the day, the web was a mess of bubbles and a tangle of lines. The next morning we took a moment to reflect on the previous day. We used the phrases, words, and ideas expressed on our web to write “found poems” - the web became the inspiration for poetry. After sharing our poetry with each other, each girl contributed her favorite line from her own poem to compile a group poem. The girls' poem is called “11 Borderless Girls” - in it they declare they are no longer a “mono-culture of minds”. 

Here is the found poem the girls wrote as a class:

Eleven Borderless Girls

Everything has a place where it started, in the ground, near the roots Capitalism makes food a commodity, but why can't people just eat?

Ethics and morals versus human starvation Goods move freely, unfettered, between borders Free Trade is a carnivore, a dog on the leash of politics Giant capitalist companies swarm developing nations, flies to a rotting piece of meat Conniving arms stretch and grow, connecting our globe There is a fungus among us and our small farmer says just spray it with lime.

Trickle down lies, realities

It's a race to the bottom out there.

Our heavy word soak into the dirt, nutrients for what we grow.

We are not a monoculture of minds anymore. Global citizens, 11 Borderless girls.

--Ruth, Mikaela, Ava, Annalise, Anna, Simone, Eliza, Maggie, Emelia, Kathryn, and Abby

Reaction, Reflection, Response -- on leaving Guatemala

February 2nd, 2013: The plane smells like old people and manufactured air. I'm sitting next to two other TTS girls – I forget their names – Eliza and Simone, maybe? Everything is going by too fast. I'm still tired from yesterday, and it seems unreal that I'm on this trip. I'm flying to a new country. I'm about to embark on a crazy adventure. The plane tilts for a moment, and my gaze falls out the window. My heart flutters and I suck my breath in: Guatemala. The city is crowded – cars, people, buses. The mountains are expansive – lush, inviting, and peaceful. The plane touches the runway. I'm here.

April 13th, 2013: I take a deep breath, and I let the cold (yes, cold!) air conditioning wash over my body. I feel lighter, without Shannie Pants (group gear bag), my big pack, AND my day pack somehow attached to my body. I'm sitting by myself (I couldn't deal with smelling Eliza´s sweat), but I keep peaking my head over the seats to see what everyone is doing. It doesn't feel right being separated from them (even as much as 2 seats). I hear Carol laughing, Kat farting … yes; everyone is going what they normally do. I can´t contemplate the fact that we´re leaving Guatemala, the country where I have dug my roots in deep and can´t stop myself from growing in. The tip of the plane lifts up, and we´re flying. I see faces hidden in the mountains below, smiles of all the people I've met, and a history I now know better than my own. We´re gone; we´re up. On to the next place, as usual.

I worried for a while I wouldn't change. I wouldn't grow from this trip. I realize every step I have taken has been ingrained in my head, in my memory, has solidified the woman I AM. Yes, I can´t wait to go back to a pantry full of food, parents to take care of me, but now I have learned of places and history I will never forget. Everything that has been added to my big blue pack isn't just souvenirs – it´s guerrillas, it´s guns, it´s tortillas, it´s dirt soccer fields, it´s trajes, it´s everything. I honestly can´t believe 2 ½ months have passed us by, and the last 30 days are in the stretch. Thirty days? I contemplate what life will be like when I return home – normal, yes, but so different. I am different. I have learned of injustices known to not even my own parents, learned the cruel ways of my own country, and have learned of the happiness that exists despite all of it. Another plane ride soon approaches – even 30 days will give me time to learn more.

I said I will be different when I go home – it´s true. I asked Carol tonight how old you have to be to start a non-profit. She said it didn't matter. At the same time, a chorus of other hostel-stayers behind me added their knowledge – yes, age doesn't matter. Just get a sponsor-- I have a friend who did that – Answers which give me hope for when I touch back down in Boston. No, I don´t have to start a non-profit, but I am PASSIONATE enough to do so. It is this passion which I have gained on the trip – a desire to be a global citizen. My plane rides do not stop here – change doesn't stop here. And it doesn't have to me who changes – it will be me who brings the change.

--Maggie April 14th, 2013

Mountain School Update

Our week at La Escuela de la Montaña (The Mountain School) was a transformative language and cultural immersion experience for the girls. Some girls worried that their brains might explode with four hours of intensive language instruction each day, but they thrived with the one-on-one individualized attention and learned more than seemed possible in one week. Ruth and Simone were ecstatic to finally learn the past tense. Abby loved her teacher Tito’s fast-paced instruction and covered an impressive amount of new grammar. Maggie practiced her conversational skills in long discussions with her teacher, Lorena, about Guatemalan history and politics.

Throughout the week, the girls ate all their meals with local families, allowing them a personal experience in the daily life of a typical Guatemalan family. Annalise connected with her host brother during several pick-up soccer games. Emelia and Kat were often the last to return from dinner, having been absorbed in discussions about Guatemalan people and culture with their host mother, Adelaida. The other girls had the chance to also meet Adelaida later in the week when she came to give us an empanada cooking lesson.

In between classes and meals, the Mountain School arranged to have locals come to speak to the girls about their personal experiences in the Guatemalan Civil War and the history and founding of Fatima, the town nearest the school. The themes and issues that the girls have been reading about in their classes all semester were brought alive by these intense first-hand accounts. Ruben spoke about the forming of the local community of Fatima by a group of families that left a nearby coffee finca after being exploited as workers for many years. Pedro gave a heart-wrenching account of his kidnapping and torture by the Guatemalan military. The girls were especially affected by Gloria’s story of serving as a guerrilla for eight years during the war. Mikaela in particular found this account to be one of the most powerful experiences from the week and drew connections to the reading the girls have done from Bridge of Courage as part of history class. On Saturday, the group visited Santa Anita, a nearby cooperative town that Gloria and some of her fellow guerillas formed after the peace accords were signed.

Midway through the week, the girls helped host “Noche Cultural,” an evening of crafts and games that was very well attended by local youth. Eliza worked with a local little boy to use recycled bottles and paper to make a little pig they named Señor Flamenco. Other girls played cards and chatted in Spanish. Anna enjoyed the opportunity to talk with Guatemalans close to her own age and spent most of the night deep in conversation with local girls.

At the end of the school week, the girls helped prepare and serve lunch to the host families that had feed us all week. They showcased their Spanish skills with a performance of the song “Rayando el Sol”  and thanked their Mountain School teachers with an adaption of a TTS awards ceremony, for which they hand-made personalized awards for each teacher. At the end of the week, we were sad to leave the host families and teachers, but excitedly anticipating the beach. ¡Vamos a la playa!

-- Heather 

Surfing in Guatemala

 This week the TTS21 girls traveled to the small town of El Paredon on the western coast of Guatemala. There they stayed in small thatch roof huts right on the volcanic sand beach. During the week at El Paredon, the girls took a week's worth of surfing lessons from the staff, which included several top Guatemalan surfers. They started out learning how to stand up and balance on  a surf board and, by the end of the week, they were paddling and catching waves making it look easy. The girls also spent plenty of time swimming in the ocean waves and basking in the sun. During the week they were able to witness the surfing of Henry who is ranked the fourth best  surfer in all of Guatemala. All the young surfers at El Paredon have started a program called the Guatemalan Surf Project, which is a project that allows local children of El Paredon to rent a surf board for Q1 (the equivalent of 13 cents). The surfers at El Paredon teach the kids how to surf so they have an activity to do when they get out of school during the day. 

 All of the TTS21 crew was sad to leave the beach and say fairwell to their surfing friends but also very excited to embark on the next portion of the journey to Nicaragua

 

Annalise, Senior, WY

Favorite Things We've Done Since the Parent's Campus Visit

• Emelia: "I bought a traje at the women's weaving co-op in San Juan!"
• Simone: "I was so excited when I stood up on my board and caught my own wave."
• Ruth: "I decided that I'm moving to the surf camp in El Paredon so I can surf for the rest of my life."
• Mikaela: I liked being taught to surf by the 2nd best surfer in Nicaragua."
• Eliza: "We went to a candle lighting ceremony at the Mountain School that gave us good luck in our travels."
• Ava: "My favorite thing since the parent trip has been kayaking around Lake Atitlan."
• Anna: "I loved making Alfombras."
• Annalise: "The homestays at the Mountain School were my favorite since I got to practice my Spanish and play with lots of kids!"
• Maggie: "My favorite part of the surf camp was reading in a hammock looking over the Pacific Ocean."
• Kathryn: "I got sand stuck to my toenails on the beach."
• Abby: "I was overjoyed when Jen´s husband brought me a new camera!"

--Kathryn, Senior, VA

Updates and Phone Calls Coming Your Way

TTS21 Parents,

I know it's been a bit of a lull since you've had phone calls from your girls. They have been out of reliable contact since they went to the Mountain School -- no news to you. Well, after a week at the beach, the girls will have lots of surfing stories to share with you -- hopefully tomorrow. They're also promising a few updates about their Spanish immersion classes, and what they've been up to since then. And, the TJ girls are promising some surfing photos too!


So, when the group arrives in Antigua tomorrow, if all goes as planned, they will have some time to try to connect with you at home. The teachers hope to get the girls to the Internet around 2pm MST, but if you don't hear from your daughter tomorrow, she will have access in the coming days when the group arrives in Nicaragua.

Keeping my fingers crossed,
Jennifer

More Class Updates from Caroline

Literature and Composition:

In addition to reading short stories by local authors, the girls have just completed the arduous task of writing "This I Believe" essays. This essay asks students to write about a personal belief and to explain and defend their belief with anecdotes and examples from their lives. The students took on the challenge whole heartedly and wrote about, to name a few, their belief in the beauty of language, in playing games as a way to connect with others, and in the appreciation of small natural wonders. The girls did an admirable job understanding and discussing Rosario Castellenos's short story "The Cooking Lesson", a dense but rich story about a young woman's dissatisfaction with her role as a wife. Through a feminist lens, the story takes on various themes including the difficulty women have in maintaining a personal identity while fulfilling society's expectations of "wife" and "mother". As we prepare to leave Guatemala and head into Nicaragua in the coming weeks, we will begin reading Tortilla Curtain, a beautifully written work of fiction exploring Mexican immigration in the United States, and begin writing a persuasive essay. 

History:

During their time at the Mountain School, the girls read and responded to Bridge of Courage, Jennifer Harbury's collection of testimonies from guerrillas fighting injustice in Guatemala's 36 year civil war. To prepare them for this reading, we explored the history leading up to the civil war including a close examination of the role of the United Fruit Company and the role of the US Government in Guatemala. Additionally, we read several excerpts from Rigaberta Menchu's memoir, I, Rigaberta Menchu. An activist for indigenous rights, Rigaberta grew up extremely poor in rural Guatemala and won the Nobel Prize for her book. Next week, our last in Guatemala, will involve discussing Bridge of Courage as well as ending our unit on Guatemalan history by looking closely at current events and politics. Anna gave the history class a thorough oral presentation introducing Jennifer Harbury. Mikaela will talk to the class this coming week about the controversy surrounding Menchu's book and her Nobel prize. As we enter Nicaragua, our studies will shift to the modern history and politics of that country, namely the Iran-Contra affair.

Travel Journalism:

The photojournalists of Travel Journalism continue to capture our journey through their camera lenses. They took a photographic series of our experience building alfombres during Semana Santa and are currently working on a portrait assignment at the Mountain School. For most pictures they take, the students are asked to practice specific photography techniques and to write photographer's statements explaining their work. The girls recently completed their second article, a 500-word opinion piece on a current issue in Guatemala. They will begin their third article in the coming week and will continue to hone their picture taking skills as they plan their final photography portfolios. 

PE & iLife:
Since our last update, the girls have hiked over 30 miles with significant elevation gain and loss through the Guatemalan countryside. They too have paddled into significant headwinds along the shores of Lake Atitlan in addition to their regular PE classes in town plazas doing circuit workouts and yoga. They are excited to test their skills in the ocean in the coming week, where they will have surfing lessons. In iLife workshops, students and parents participated in a Finding Your Passion workshop and will move on to discussions of the college application process including applications, acceptance and rejection, financial aid and more. Students will also begin to work with partners on developing their own leadership skills. In PE, they'll be creating lesson plans and then teaching Student-led workouts. They will also begin to participate in leadership activities as they become chieflets working alongside the teacher who is Chief for the day-- planning daily schedules and seeking out activities to share with their classmates.  

Class Updates from the Teachers

Hello from the Mountain School,

There has been so much excitement in the last few weeks for the TTS21 family.  We left San Cristobal de las Casas during the second week of March following an epic week full of guest speakers and midterm exams.  The students were all wide eyed and sitting on the edge of their seats as we visited with supporters of the Zapatista Movement of Chiapas, Mexico.  The girls were all motivated by the camaraderie and strength they witnessed amongst indigenous people of Mexico.  The group grew stronger as they returned to Guatemala to embark on a 3 day backpacking trip through the steep volcanic mountains surrounding Quetzeltenango.  Each day welcomed the girls to a grueling 12-mile hike up intense slopes with overfull daypacks on their backs. Upon completing each couple hour summit, the girls all high fived each other and laughed at their dirt covered faces.  The mirador overlooking Lake Atitlan was the perfect end to the hike, or at least it was a moment to remember before greeting the parents two days later. The 2013 TTS Campus visit was an incredible success.  Parents each shared their strategy to keeping interests a part of their life during an iLife class, and there was not a dry eye in the room at the First Annual Campus Visit Poetry Slam.  The TTS21 journey continued via kayak, as the girls waved goodbye to their parents and paddled toward San Juan la Laguna and Semana Santa.  Full class days were back in full swing, with several breaks taking place to admire the many colorful and spiritual processionals that passed our hotel.  The girls became quick friends with the women at the cooperative in San Juan, returning to create an alfombra on Good Friday.  The girls were incredibly humbled and proud to be the only woman assisting a well-developed team of husbands and sons in the street full of alfombras from one end to the other.  It was truly an Easter experience the group will never forget.  Easter arrived and the TTS21 family headed to the hills outside of Xela to attend The Mountain School.  The girls have had 4 hours of intense one on one Spanish instruction each day this week, leading to an impressive development of Spanish speaking skills amongst the entire group.  The week was also full of guest speakers, including a former finca campesino (farm worker) who described life on a coffee plantation as well as a surviving Guatemala’s Civil War.  This week has been full of learning, and the girls are both exhausted and motivated as they continually start more conversations with the villagers using their newly polished Spanish skills.  The week will continue with more classes and meals at local homes, where the girls again use their Spanish to join families and enjoy three home cooked meals every day.  Classes will continue as our group heads to the coast for surfing lessons and to celebrate our final few days in Guatemala. 

Our best,

Jen

For a closer look at what each class has been working on throughout the past couple of weeks, each class has a brief summary of their activities below:

Science Update:

Following midterms, the science curriculum concluded the unit of study on tectonic plates.  Students interpreted and completed a comprehensive data analysis of the world's plates, discussing what type of plate movements created mountain ranges, islands, earthquakes and inland lakes.  Before heading out on the backpacking trip, the students studied astronomy and created their own constellations, incorporating regionally specific cultural components into their myths.  The students enjoyed admiring the Milky Way and watching satellites pass overhead during our super early morning hike to the mirador above Lake Atitlan by headlamp.  They waved goodbye to the stars, watched the sunrise, and then completed a field journal entry on the volcanic chain surrounding the lake.  Most recently, the students have begun the soil and agriculture unit.  Students collected soil samples alongside the waters of Santiago, and then used several identification methods to identify the soil components.  The unit will continue with a look at the regional agricultural practices, culminating with the semester's Food Day In Nicaragua. – Jen

Global Studies:

The Global Studies curriculum came to life in Chiapas, Mexico as students saw firsthand the human rights movement of the Zapatistas.  Several guest speakers shared their experiences living within the conflicted political reality of southern Mexico.  Students visited a cooperative, as well as an educational project where all of the students were vocational teachers and vice versa, and everyone from the local indigenous villages was welcome to study and help one another free of charge.  While observing the spiritual rituals practiced in Guatemala during Semana Santa (Holy Week), students discussed Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, dissecting their own pyramid of needs, and reflecting upon how their past choices may be influenced by various sections of the triangle.  Students spent time writing a reflection on the changes they see within themselves, and how they will incorporate those changes upon their return home next month.  Students discussed how making a change is difficult, compounded by any number of obstacles that can dissuade a person for sticking to their goals.  Central American gangs were analyzed, again with the lens of Maslow, which began a longer discussion about passing judgments on others.  Students will continue to work with the Hierarchy of Needs as they begin reading their novel, Enrique's Journey, next week. –Jen

Algebra 2:

The midterm exam concluded the class study of logarithmic and exponential functions.  Chapter 8 began with an analysis and application of direct and indirect variation equations.  Students applied the variation principles to problems in chemistry and other real life word problems centered on our travels in Central America.  The course continued with an intensive look at rational functions.  Students used factoring and least common denominators to eliminate and simplify complex functions, solving for a variable and then checking their answers using substitution.  Students analyzed function transformations and practiced graphing several parent and altered functions on the same graph.  While completing problems on inequalities and rational equations, students applied several strategies to determine any extraneous solutions.  Students are now completing chapter 9, involving the study and application of step and piecewise functions.  Students created tables for complex data sets then analyzed the data to determine any linear, exponential, or quadratic patterns.  Following a unit exam this week, students will begin their study of conic sections as we head into Nicaragua. – Jen

Math Concepts:

For the midterm project in math concepts, students summarized their learning for the first half of the course by creating a personal financial survival guide.  Students explained the important aspects of budgeting, managing ATM cards and bank accounts, credit cards, and how to maintain a strong credit history.  They also addressed loans, debt, identity theft, and lease and rental agreements.  Each student identified personal financial goals and strategies to use to achieve her goals.  Following midterms, the math concepts class began their unit of study on careers and employment.  Students discussed and analyzed the various job markets of personal interest, then chose a specific job they would each realistically like to apply to in the near future.   Students each created a resume and cover letter for their chosen job opportunity, implementing confident writing styles into their letters.  Students discussed and analyzed strategies to prepare for an interview, how to best represent themselves in an interview, and how to follow up with a potential employer.  In preparation for upcoming mock interviews, students interviewed each other and provided feedback, specifically focusing on body language and other nonverbal behaviors that could impact and interview.  Following the unit on employment, students will begin reading and critiquing different types of investment opportunities.  – Jen

Pre-calculus:

Emelia and Ruth are enjoying finally being able to work together in Pre-calculus now that they have completed the independent study section of the class. After midterms, they spent two weeks working with trigonometric identities and equations. Verifying trigonometric identities can often be tricky because there is not a set procedure to follow, and students must instead try various strategies to progress through these problems. Ruth and Emelia had fun creatively solving these trigonometric puzzles and were able to find more than one solution path for many of the problems. Additionally, through work on verifying identities, we were able to practice writing more formal mathematical proofs.  In the last section of chapter 5, the girls combined their previous knowledge of trigonometric functions with their experience using trigonometric identities in order to find solutions to trigonometric equations. Previously, the girls have solved many problems involving right triangles. With the addition of the law of sines and law of cosines in chapter 6, they are now able to solve problems involving non-right triangles as well. – Heather

Beginning Spanish:

The beginning Spanish students can hardly be called beginners anymore! Following midterms, the girls read what was for many of them their first book in Spanish, Patricia va a California. Without having to directly translate every word, the girls were successful in understanding plot and participating in discussions about the book in Spanish. They enjoyed following the story of Patricia, a girl from Panajachel, Guatemala who goes to study and live in California. We started the book while we were visiting Panajachel, just before meeting up with the parent group, so the story came more alive thanks to the students' personal familiarity with places mentioned in the book.  Students practiced new vocabulary and verb conjugation patterns as they appeared in the text and wrote a letter to the main character to tell her about the United States and ask her questions about Guatemala.

This week, the girls are achieving enormous personal growth during their language immersion experience here at the Mountain School. Each student receives four hours of daily one-on-one instruction in Spanish tailored to her specific needs.  The students' language progress was evident on a recent visit the home of a Mayan priest in a nearby village. On the hike to the village, they engaged our guide in a discussion about the history of the surrounding town. The girls were able to understand most of the description of the ceremony without the help of an interpreter, only needing a few hints about key new vocabulary related to the ceremony. – Heather

Advanced Spanish:

The girls are in the heart of the Mountain School where they are receiving one-on-one Spanish instruction for 4 hours a day.  They've been speaking, reading out loud, writing, and working on mastering grammar concepts.  They've also had the opportunity to practice what they're learning at meal times with their local host families.  After this week, I'm sure that their confidence will soar!  As we go into the final weeks of the trip, the girls will be finishing up El Principito (The Little Prince), reading current event articles from local periodicals and newspapers, conversing with people we meet, and aiding with local logistics in Nicaragua! --Liz 

Language Immersion

Dear TTS21 Parents and Friends,

I know it's been a little while since you've talked with your daughters. I chatted with Jen during our weekly check-in yesterday, and she updated me on what's been going on since I departed with the parent group. Upon our departure, the girls began a two-day kayaking trip on Lake Atitlan. They paddled from the village of Santa Cruz to San Juan, hugging the shore, stopping for snacks and swims. In San Juan, the girls visited a women's Co-op and had a weaving lesson-- making their own bracelets. They spent the night with local families and enjoyed home-cooked meals and family time. The next morning, the group made a strenuous crossing to the coastal village of Santiago. Here they stayed for the duration of Semana Santa. They caught up on classes, witnessed a variety of Holy Week processions, and luckily for them, were invited back to San Juan to participate in making an alfombra with some of the families they met earlier in the week. According to Jen, these carpets are (in San Juan at least) typically created by the village men, so it was quite a feat to have our girls out there building a carpet for Easter Sunday.


Here's the amazing result of their work -- don't they look proud? Rightly so! Next, the girls packed into their own chartered "Chicken Bus" -- aptly named el Conejo or the Rabbit, as in the Easter Bunny -- and traveled to the Mountain School. The girls will be there through the weekend -- studying Spanish four hours a day, one on one with their native language teachers. The girls are already making huge strides with their skills and very excited to be practicing what they've learned with their families from the village who they're eating meals with all week. So far there have been hikes and there will be a service project in the village. There are also speakers every night, and the girls are so beat at the each of each long, satisfying day, that they barely get their teeth brushed before they're all asleep well before the regular 10 o'clock lights out call. Learning new things can be really exhausting!

El Conejo most likely looked something like this!

So, while the girls are at the Mountain School, they will have no access to the Internet or phones. They will be back in contact by early next week, but for now, here's a brief glimpse of what's happening for our TTS21 Spanish language learners.


Ciao,
Jennifer

A few "Where I'm From" poems from the Poetry Slam

Picture this -- a terrace with hammocks and benches overlooking a lake guarded by three volcanoes, 11 TTS21 students, 8 TTS21 parents, 4 TTS21 teachers and myself. Imagine Literature students, after weeks of writing, practicing, and even reciting in a San Cristobal coffee shop in front of strangers their original poems, the day has finally arrived for their final recitation (aka, the Poetry Slam). There are even judges! So now that you're with us, and after you read through some of these poems -- I presently have 4 of the girls' poems and will try to collect the rest, I promise -- you may also be able to imagine that there was nary a dry eye in the house.  Read on, and you'll understand why! There may be a few typos/mistakes, as I'm reading hand-written poems in pencil (or one's that I photographed), so bear with my transcription!

I am from grey hair and wool sweaters

bad jokes and crinkled eyes

the youngest of three daughters

born in November

the one who ruined Thanksgiving and Christmas

I am from rocks kicked down

the dead-end street.

Cereal in the bushes

and kingdoms in the trees

I am from frogs at the farm

where blueberries are picked when the sky is red

from Unadilla theatre

chocolate chip cookies and ladled out punch

I am from

“I hate that dog!”

but let me give her a kiss before bed

from golden days and rugby stripes

and singing around the fire

underneath a million other universes

floating up in the stars

I am from Christmas trees that scratch the ceiling

and family dinner under our own kitchen forest

from spaghetti and mac & cheese

and flank steak as our favorite present

I am from one if by land, two if by sea,

hand-me-downs and

“stop stealing my clothes!”

the three sisters that travel the world

I am from endless days of rainy games

of Lancaster and Route 2

from the field of dreams

and wheels and dash

I am from Mama Mia in the kitchen

Petoskey stones and blue eyes

those mountain tops and many miles

that are covered in my sweat

I am from where I want to be

from who I am and

who I’ll become

work hard but let yourself dream

from memories that travel

over the earth and to the

house at the end of the street

to where I stand under

the tree with

the swing

Maggie O. – Sophomore, Massachusetts

My Turf-filled Shoes

Walk inside the door of where I live,

   and what do you see?

A big, green carpet, black and red curtains

   and a plasma screen TV

I come from my mom’s bedroom

   then moving across the hall

As I got older, I got the depths

of the basement

   Basically my apartment – mini-fridge and all

Three little creatures roam near my feet

    small paw prints traced throughout the floor.

Jumping, scratching, barking

Even their tiny howls when the fire trucks are near the door.

I come from pound and blasting music

Where I’ve been taught about

   Free Fallin’ from Tom Petty

Where I’ve been told about Night Swimming

   time and again by R.E.M.

I’ve learned there’s no crying in baseball

Even when you’re bleeding or

   hit in the temple

I get hot and sweaty in treacherous

   catcher's gear

Never remembering to throw off

   my mask without an example

Turf-filled shoes and spit-covered instruments

Seven hours a day of band camp

and pointed toes

   I’m from drum-stick clicks and

bamboo reeds

The saxophone at all of the Friday

night shows

8-5 step with shoulders to front while sliding

    Podiums and slight breezes that

Give us great satisfaction

G-man, Yo mama, no practice Thursdays

   and eyes with pride

   when we’re rehearsing with our

pants off.  Wouldn’t call it attraction

I’ve been taught Cleveland Indians

all the way

Baseball caps and Jacob’s Field

   on radio, TV, or even in the

Stadium I listen

   Oh, and if you like the Yankees,

better carry a shield.

I’m from traditions that only we know

   one present and ‘Twas the Night

Before Christmas on Christmas Eve

Watching every award show possible

   And witnessing the ball drop at

Times Square on TV

My radio station in 97.0 WNCI

   and my mall is named Tuttle

I shop at Bath and Body Works

and  Hot Topic

If you have Graeter’s Ice Cream

without me, better make it subtle.

We’ve been to Max & Ermas every Wednesday

   So many times, we’ve memorized

   The menu

I order Laredo steak and my mom –

A nice, big salad

We get free cookies every time,

   good enough to send you.

I come from an interesting series of injuries

one so bad – changed forever & my

   lip split open.

   A crazy neighbor who watches

If you touch his car

If he sees it on camera, your

   trust is nearly broken.

My memories live in the stars

   in music and inside jokes

   The people and places engraved

In my mind – lock and key

   hard to find.

Ava D.–Sophomore, Ohio

Every Other Week

I am from starfish and coffee

maple syrup and jam

from runin’ round in circles

and accidents will happen

I am from shepherd’s pie, treacle pudding

overcooked roasts, and mushy peas

from hummus, pita bread, and rolling grape leaves

I am from homemade mac n’ cheese

tuna casserole, and hamburger spinach and rice

I am from family dinners at 6 o’clock

and eating dinner in front of the TV

from hardwood floors and stiff couches

deep red carpets and sinking into cushions

I am from settee beds and toast

I am from late nights in the hospital

that bring false hope

I am from sun-bleached ticket stubs

safely guarded in my Tom’s box

I am from two rooms that hold different memories

two pasts divided into every other week.

Simone M. –Senior, Washington

Where I’m from is a Georgia farmhouse

                                     a Kentucky street

                                     a Maryland neighborhood

                                     a Virginia suburb

                                and a Tennessee mountain.

I’m from 1314 AD and

                plaid clothes

                green armchairs

                stuffed bookshelves.

Candy filled jars, Cape Cod beaches

   And a basement that could run its own yard sale

I learned to trust from an Elvis Costello poster

   and

I learned to sing listening to Athens Bands

I eat vegetarian  haggis and

                pineapple stir-fry

                pumpkin bread and

                Indian food on Thanksgiving

I’m from ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas once a year,

                Easter egg hunts in the early morning

                April Fools Day food and

                homemade Halloween costumes

Cards for every holiday with

   a piece of gum included

   and too much tape.

Where I go to school

   we stomp the feet and

   Wednesdays are practically Fridays

At that campus where dogs attend class

   and socks are worn with Chacos

I’m from that town

   where she loves the beat and

   a huge marble cross  glows into the night.

I’m from 4^th of July fireworks and

the rooftops of University buildings

                Sawdust, wood fences

                and a best friend who lives in a stall

I’m from the places I’ve been and

                The faces I can’t forget

I can’t leave them behind

                they live in my mind

I’m from mix CDs of memories and

                Overstuffed bulletin boards

I’m from 272 miles of perimeter trail

   and

The guardian angel I carry with me

   as I seize the opportunity for change

   and chase the sun.

Eliza M. –Junior, Tennessee

Oh, and did I mention that the parents and teachers were invited to join in with their poetry? We had  "Where I'm From" poems from Caroline and Jen, original poems delivered by Holly B & Suzi S., and a song from Ira too. What a powerful moment for our group.  Below is a poem written by Holly as a tribute to all the girls and how far they've come this semester.

Assurance to Step Back

She moves with Assurance

Although lighter of skin, she blends in somehow

Accepted as she speaks their language

She is different from the one we knew at our home.

She leads by stepping back

back from comforts; back from technology..

She expresses with pencil, not keyboard.

Her American idols are no longer center stage

but a guide who charged her up a mountain

and one who led her through a poor school.

She moves with Assurance

    towards a heart filled with compassion

   and thoughts toward others; not self

She gives me confidence that I can change –

metamorphasize into someone more global

with the ability to step back, so I can

   move ahead like her.

Holly B. – Ruthie’s mom – writing about the TTS21 girls

And . . . from me -- one of my old favorites (that I borrowed and didn't write myself) . . .

Prayer for our Daughters

May they never be lonely at parties

Or wait for mail from people they haven’t

written

Or still in middle age ask God for favors

Or forbid their children things they were never

forbidden.

May hatred be like a habit they never developed

And can’t see the point of, like gambling

or heavy

drinking

If they forget themselves, may it be in music

Or the kind of prayer that makes a garden

of thinking.

May they enter the coming century

Like swans under a bridge of enchantment

And take with them enough of this century

To assure their grandchildren it really

happened.

May they find a place to love,

   without nostalgia

For some place else that they

can never go back to.

And may they find themselves, as

we have found them,

Complete at each stage of their

Lives, each part

They add to.

May they be themselves, long after

we've stopped watching.

May they return from every kind

of suffering

(Except the last, which doesn’t

bear repeating)

And be themselves again,

both blessed and

blessing.

--Mark Jarmon