|
A Parent’s Perspective of Nicaragua
By Linda M, mother of Mariah
As I am the only non-tour related parent tagging along, I felt it important to stay in the background and let Mariah fend for herself, yet be a source of support for all the girls. My anonymity allowed me the luxury of observing these girls. They range from 12 to 20 years old, span all socioeconomic backgrounds and hail from as far as Minnesota to Florida and a couple of states in between. They have only one thing in common-volleyball. We met the locals and the girls played in front of large cheering crowds. We walked through bazaars and muddled our way communicating as best as we could with our broken Spanish. We conquered our fear of height (and death) to do an incredible zip-line. All in all it was amazing to see these girls transform from individuals to a team, from acquaintances to friends, and from ordinary to extraordinary. And these girls truly are extraordinary! The conditions were at times difficult, but they handled it with a great sense of humor and were appropriately appreciative of the luxuries of the tour. They certainly have learned to appreciate the lifestyle we enjoy in the US.
As for Mariah individually, I was proud to see her rise to the occasion in her first international tour. She has played hard, been independent and has in a word - matured. As parents we wish for our children to grow up to be fundamentally good people, strong, and compassionate to those less fortunate. You hope they face life’s challenges with their sense of humor intact. This tour was a great step to achieving those goals.
My thanks to CJ and Tim who made this all possible!
|
