Wow, I can't believe it has been almost two years since my visit to Ecuador for my research on the influence of international service on college students. That was an amazing trip, with wonderful students, and my experiences since then have been equally amazing. I've finished up the dissertation, and the process is officially complete. I enjoyed each step of the way, from my conversations with the students to travels near and far, the process provided me with invaluable lessons and a continued energy to assist students in their own journeys abroad. In about two weeks I'll be embarking on yet another trip, this time to Bolivia, with another group of students. I'm ecstatic and will once again be documenting parts of the journey here. The title of this post pays homage to the 2010 Stanford Women's Leadership Conference, whose theme this year inspired me to think back to my previous experiences as I embark on yet another adventure. I've had a chance to informally get to know the students with whom I'll be traveling, and am completely looking forward to getting to know each one on a personal level. They seem like an amazing group, full of anticipation, hope, cautious optimism, sincerity, and wonderful energy.
In the meantime, I wanted to post one final reflection from my time in Ecuador that made it into my dissertation. I was determined to include a creative heartfelt piece in order to hopefully bring the readers a little closer to the experience. Enjoy...
Prior to engaging in this research project and traveling with the students from VILA to Ecuador, I made note of my previous understandings of what challenges the students may have faced, and what experiences might have been for the people in Quito. I imagined that the experience would be quite different for each student, as some had traveled internationally before, and for others this was their first experience in a developing country. I expected that this experience would be life-changing for some, and exciting or interesting for others. Little did I know that this experience would change the way I see myself in relation to others as an interpretive participatory researcher.
One particular experience where the participatory nature of this research and entanglement with the volunteer experience came to life was when I accompanied a group of the VILA volunteers to the Plaza Grande, also known as Plaza Independencía, where the President's Mansion was located in Quito. The volunteers came up with the idea of reaching out to the shoeshine boys and girls who were selling candies in the Plaza. These children did not participate in the local programs where the volunteers were stationed, so the volunteers wanted to bring a moment of playfulness to their day, allowing the children to just be. The volunteers brought water, baskets, soap, and a tub and invited the children to play with the bubbles and have fun. At first I was not sure how the children or passers-by would receive this gesture of service, but I soon saw that my concerns were unfounded. Because the volunteers were there the week before, the kids recognized them and immediately ran up to the volunteers, even helping them set up. The kids thoroughly enjoyed themselves, working cooperatively with each other and even welcoming other young children who were not working who wanted to play with the bubbles. The smiles on their faces were the reward the volunteers were looking for.
I was sitting on a bench next to the group with my notebook, watching the joy on the peoples’ faces. The kids, the volunteers, and even people passing by could not hold in the smiles that the bubbles incited. It was particularly fun to watch a big bubble float away, and see nearly everyone who was there in the Plaza cheer it on and watch it float up into the sky out into the unknown. Before I knew it, two of the shoe-shine boys came to me and asked in Spanish, “¿Por qué no juega usted?” (English translation: “Why aren’t you playing?”). Since I had no good excuse, I rolled up my sleeves and dipped my hands into the greenish water that not only helped the kids to make bubbles, but also cleaned their hands from the shoe polish and dirt that served as reminders of their working reality. The two boys continually blew bubbles using only their hands and shared them with me, transferring the bubbles from their hands to mine. This was a simple moment that was very powerful in demonstrating the act of being with the children and the student volunteers. In that moment as a researcher, I realized how important it was to be involved in the experience, and not just observe from the outside.
After a little while, a gentleman in his late 30s who looked to be a tourist from a neighboring Latin American country approached one of the student volunteers and said, “I noticed you are doing this project for the kids. Is it just to make them happy and play with them?” She replied yes, and explained that they were students from the United States participating in volunteer projects in Quito, but they wanted to reach out to these children who were not able to come to the center. He then said he had wanted to do something nice for the kids, so he reached into his pocket and gave her ten dollars to buy all of the children ice cream. The ten dollars was more than enough to provide an ice cream to each of the fifteen to twenty children who were there. They were ecstatic and so appreciative to the man, each one thanking him for his generosity and kind spirit. He was inspired by the student volunteers to contribute in his own way.
This moment was truly a fusion of my horizon that I will never forget, and seeing the connection amongst each child, volunteer, and passerby allowed me to understand the influence of international service as far reaching as it could be. My understanding of the experience of international service focused on the volunteers and the community members involved with the projects. My horizon fused with the boys’ reality in that moment, as I looked down at the dirty soapy water and appreciated their comfort in approaching me to participate and share in the fun. Prior to this, I did not see the extent to which the interactions with others could have an effect on everyone involved. I realize that this is not representative of every single moment in international service, nor is it a long-term solution to the problems of poverty and working children. I did see that the volunteers were determined to make a difference in one moment in time. And, if this memory of that day in Plaza Grande can elicit such good feelings in me, perhaps it’s a memory that will stay with the children and will bring a smile back to their faces providing inspiration for their own imagined futures.
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