Meet Wendi

Wendi is an 8-year-old (at least, I think I heard her say she was 8, but my Spanish is so bad, who knows) Guatemalan girl I meet in Los Andes. The first time I met Wendi was after our first full day of service, when some of the more athletically-inclined ABers were playing soccer. I had given my phone to another kid, named Nestor, who was very quickly learning how to master Cut The Rope. Wendi soon approached us, wanting to have her turn on my phone. I tried asking Nestor to give Wendi a turn, but after miserably failing at my Spanish, I eventually gently took it out of his hand and gave it to Wendi. I don't think I've ever seen another 8-year-old girl so excited. It took her a while (and the almost constant instruction from Nestor and his friend who had joined) for her to get the hang of it, but every time she completed a level, she would smile and look up at me. 

Later that day, I learned that, during coffee season, Wendi goes with her mother to the fields every day to help pick 2-3 bags of coffee. I also learned that most girls in Guatemala don't go past 1st grade in their education. That really hit home. When I was eight, I was already enrolled in weekly private violin lessons, ate 3 good meals a day, went to a private Christian school, was on a summer swim team, owned more craft kits than I could ever finish, and had the whole world open to me. My 9-year-old cousin just self-published a book! And this little girl was picked coffee with her mom, and the majority of her peers had already quit school for good. It just doesn't make sense to me, and it's even harder for me to accept. 

During the rest of my time in Los Andes, I interacted with Wendi quite a bit. She helped me paint the rainbow fence outside the schoolhouse, I drew a mini-mouse cartoon that she happily copied and colored in, and she ran around the school with my phone, taking pictures of everything.  

On our last day in Los Andes, we had a small closing ceremony, where many of the schoolchildren were gathered and said words of thanks for our help renovating their school. Afterwards, we (the ABers) were given the opportunity to give small gifts to certain children we had gotten to know during service. I wish I could have given something to every child in that room, but I didn't bring too many things with me... So instead I grabbed a small kitten journal I had brought from the States and placed it in Wendi's hands. I think she immediately became one of the most popular little girls in the room, because other schoolchildren kept crowding around her to see it. 

I don't even think I ever had a real conversation with this girl, but in a very powerful way, she inspired me. She inspired me to do something with my life, to realize how much I have been given. I want to do something that helps little girls like Wendi, that helps them dream for the stars and get there. I have no idea how I'm going to accomplish anything close to that, but at least for now, I'm determined to find out.