Thoughts While Fishing

As I sat at the little fish pond where 4 people and I were fishing many thoughts were going through my head. One of them was "Why won't these damn trout bite my line?" among many others. In that peaceful setting I began to think about everything else that had happened during the trip. Our arrival 2 weeks ago in the rain, the arrival of tropical storm agatha, and the near destruction of San Pedro. I thought about how working in that setting changed who I was as a person in a mere instant. When i walked into that village and looked at the houses... my heart fell into my stomach. I nearly cried looking at the destroyed houses, and the families that had lived in them. I was in utter awe of everything i was looking at. It looked like a war zone. In that single moment, I became so much more grateful for everything I had ever recieved in my life, and began to feel like a horrible person for everything I had complained about in the past. In that moment, I grabbed my crowbar put on my gloves, and got to work.

I remember not caring at all how long i had to work for. For a few days, i went to San Pedro every day that week, some days for morning and afternoon shifts. I made a few new friends, including 2 Canadian guys who were pretty much exact replicas of my Uncle (my favorite uncle from canada). In working there i also made stronger bonds with the people i was working with, realizing that possibly a few of them were going through what i was experiencing as well. As i was thinking about this, i finally got a bite, which distracted me briefly. It was a tiny and pitiful fish, so I threw it back. I returned to my thoughts, now turning to the lake we had gone to before, aka Lago Atitlan. It was probably the most beautiful thing i had ever seen, even with some trash in the lake. I had so much fun there, despite hurting my back on a dive and having to lifeguard-save three people. Jumping off a 25 foot high deck and the view made up for that. As nostalgia about the lake set in I finally got a bite, and ended up catching a large trout. SUCCESS! After this we left, to pick berries.

I think what I can take away from these thoughts is the fact that despite bad things and failures, life can and will go on. There are always better things that can be achieved further on in life. For example, going from small fish to big fish, San Pedro to beautiful lake. Life can suck sometimes, but there is always a chance for things to get better. Fighting through the bad is what makes strong people... its what makes great people. I'm glad that I realize that now, after seeing what we all saw. I hope that everyone else on this trip has taken away something from what we saw.
Aside from my emotional thoughts about this trip, it has literally been amazing. I've loved pretty much every second of it, and am going to be very sad when we leave. New friendships made, bonds strengthened, unforgettable experiences, awesome kids, great teachers. Its been great.

I am 100% sure, I will never forget this.