23.

One of the reasons that I love working with kids so much – whether as a teacher or a camp counselor – is because they never make me feel a day older than 10 years old. I know that I am not one to say anything about “feeling old” but sometimes I just take a moment and wonder how I got to be 23. When did that happen? I still feel like I should be 19 and sitting in a college classroom. Instead, I’m the adult now and responsible for a group of young kids. Maybe since I do spend so much time with munchkins it’s easy for me to forget that I am actually the one in charge.

On April 14, 2013 I got to celebrate my 23^rd birthday with the bunch of wild animals that I call my students. It was actually more of a weekend of celebrating instead of just one day – but I’m certainly not complaining about more parties! Here’s a recap of my birthday weekend so you can feel like you were here to ring in my next year of life with me:

Friday: The last hour of the day every Friday is dedicated to letting our creative minds run free in Art class. Kara typically takes a break from the secondary students to help out with this class; this week she told me not to worry about planning anything because she had it all taken care of. My kiddos all filed out of the room and told me that I had to wait alone in there with my eyes closed. They aren’t very good at being sneaky but I loved their effort. They ‘tip-toed’ back in and burst into song singing me Happy Birthday! They threw all their cards into my lap and fought each other to give me a hug. Lori and Kara both made a delicious batch of oatmeal chocolate chip cookies (my personal favorites) and we feasted like birthday kings and queens.

Afterwards we played a series of balloon games outside. We did a variety of balloon races: with a partner we had to run from one side of the patio to the other while holding the balloon between our sides, backs, bellies, etc. or you had to go by yourself either running, bouncing, jumping, or skipping. Laughter was heard everywhere in that school as my third graders and I made complete fools of ourselves with those balloons. I loved the partner races because they all fought each other to be my partner but quickly realized that being with me was a bigger challenge because of the size difference. I had no coordination trying to bend down to their height while trying to run. They all eventually lost interest in the races and just wanted to play with the balloons – don’t you just love the innocent joy kids find the simplest of things? They were amazed at high someone could punch the balloon and screamed as they all watched it float away to its death on the tin roof. All I have to say is that it was a crazy afternoon of balloons.

I received precious gifts from a few of my students. Most of them are quite tacky and you would probably find at a garage sale or a second-hand store back home, but each student was filled with pride and excitement to give me their present so I loved everything. Julio gave me pink earrings and a snow-globe-esque trinket with a flower inside of it and it flashes different color lights. Elman gave me gray earrings, a tiny hair tie (meant for a baby), and a little koosh ball (from my own prize box). Hegna gave me a little jewelry box that not holds all of my rings. Geovanny gave me a tube filled with water and these precious stones that you can find in a river nearby. Rolando gave me a bag of chocolate (exactly what every teacher wants and needs). And my favorite gift came from Wendy: a stick of deodorant and a tube of toothpaste (message received, Wendy!). I have eaten all the chocolates, worn the earrings on several occasions, lost the hair tie and koosh ball, lit up my little flower globe at night, marveled at the rocks, and used the deodorant twice daily since then.

Saturday: Saturday was nothing special because we had Parent-Teacher conferences and then a fundraising event in the evening. I did have the blessing of my wonderful roommate who made a birthday cake for me and the other teachers to indulge in after our long day of school-related activities. We all came home after the event and dove into the delicious cake Heather made. It was a very rich chocolate cake with the flavorful hint of banana and peanut butter. It was so rich that a sliver was all you needed to feel full, but it was a very happy full that my stomach was feeling.

Sunday (my actual birthday): How can you not spend the day in a constant state of feeling content and with a giant smile spread across your face, when that day is all about you? In this small town, I really did feel like the center of attention as Sunday was filled with never-ending fun! I started my day by going to church and receiving an endless amount of hugs from friends and students. Then Heather and I headed over to one of my students’ house for lunch. Marco ran home on Friday telling his mom that it was my birthday on Sunday and begged her to do something, so she invited me to lunch when I had my conference with her on Saturday. (Heather works with his dad in the Micro Finance group here.) She made a special lunch for us – pizza! It was amazing and I ate too much of it, but I couldn’t let any bit of this rarity go to waste! I thanked them over and over again for making such a special meal for us and taking care of me on my birthday. I thoroughly enjoyed their company and food that afternoon!

After that we met up with the other teachers and headed off for an afternoon of play. Two of the 11^th grade students drove us out to a local river for us to relax and cool off in. It was quite the task to get there – we had to stop and ask for directions because the place is quite hidden, which resulted in us following a child on his bike on terrain that surpasses four-wheeling – but it was beyond worth it. It has been blistering hot here lately and the river felt amazing. Ignorance is bliss and we all chose to ignore whatever trash, bacteria, or other nauseating things were floating down that river. Instead we swam, splashed, laid down in the streams, and played in that river until our hearts were satisfied. We were a spectacle to the locals who were there but we all the same – just trying to escape the heat and have a little fun too. Besides retreating from the heat, it was a perfect activity to release some of the stress everyone had been feeling. We simply relaxed in that river!

That night everyone pitched in to make a birthday dinner that could compete with any restaurant I would have gone to if I were home. If I thought pizza was a treat earlier that day, I was in for an extraordinary meal later. Kara and Lenny made kebobs – shrimp ones just for me, vegetable ones, and chicken ones – that were devoured by everyone. Lori made mouth-watering hummus to dip crackers and tortillas into. Cassidy made another festive cake. And Beth carved out a mini-watermelon to pour a delicious cocktail into. All of my favorite things! I loved being surrounded by loving friends and homemade food. I treasure meals like this because it is a moment when we all seem to let our stresses and walls down to come alive around a table of great food.

I received a few gifts from my family here as well. Kara and Lenny gave me a beautiful blue bracelet from Roatan. Lori gave me a scarf that her mom knitted (which will come in handy once these blazing hot days disappear next November). Beth gave me some earrings so I can spice up my teaching uniform and feel more feminine. And Heather gave me a dark chocolate nut mix that I have refused to share with anyone else. Although I spent another birthday away from my parents and sister, and now this one away from my closest friends, I never felt sad or alone on my day. I am extremely blessed to be living here in La Unión with students and friends who do and give whatever they can to make someone feel on top of the world for their birthday. I had a spectacular day and could not have imagined spending the day that I turn 23 any other way.

We are nearing the end of our year together here. Just three more weeks of school, which means four more weeks until we part and move on to other things. Kara, Lenny, and I are staying for another year but we are losing Beth, Harriet, Cassidy, and Lori. It is a bittersweet time right now. Everyone is tired, nostalgic, and counting down the days until school is over. However, when we stop for just a moment we realize that these are our final days as a family here. Pray for this group of teachers that I have grown to love and have spent almost every single day with for the past 10 months. Pray for those who are going back home to find other jobs or go to school, may the Lord bless their path and may they settle down into a life that they love. Pray for those of us who are staying as we wrap up this year but are starting to prepare for and anticipate the next year. But most importantly, pray that we cherish our last days together. Our time is not over yet and we still have a month left to be together and enjoy every minute of it.