Reflections from hosting the Guatemalan girls (Lilly)

Holy, Deysi, and Josefa with Lilly (bottom middle)

When hosting the three Guatemalan girls (Deysi, Josefa, and Holi) I felt a strong bond and connection with the girls right away. They inspired me, because even though they were a thousand miles away from home they still had glowing smiles and positive attitudes each and every day. My biggest challenge with the girls was when it came to my little Spanish and their few words of English, but we still found a way to communicate and connect.

When I think back on my experience one thing that will always stick out in my mind was when we decided to switch cultures for the night with the girls. We got out all our clothes and they got out their traditional clothing as well and then we swapped. I pulled on the top then daisy helped with the skirt rapping it around me tying it off with a beautiful beaded belt. The woven designs of flowers and birds were vibrant with colors. My sister Jackie then polled out some skinny genes and converses. We giggle and laughed all through the night taking thousands of pictures.

I think about all the experiences that brought us closer together from making tortillas to watching Hanna Montana on TV this experience is an experience I will always remember and keep in my heart. I feel as if the bonding we made will last for a life time.