Posted By Rebekah Jaenicke, Delegate
Wow- where do I begin? This trip has been full of things we will never forget. Yesterday (Friday) we were able to take the PTL kids to a picnic. It was so awe-inspiring to see the change in the kids from just two days before. The kids who were hesitant and unsure of us had now become close friends. No longer did we have the wall between the Americans and the Kazakhs, and in some instances we were even able to communicate without the help of translators. My heart soared when the girl who on the first day would not speak, and whom we were informed usually does not participate in group activities, took me by the hand and led me to play in the river.
The day was full of games, food, talking, and laughter- How beautiful was their laughter! One of my favorite games of the day was played in the river. We stood in a circle in the water and passed a volleyball around, but if you caught the ball, hit the ball out, or did not hit the ball when it came to you the person on your right was allowed to splash you with one hand. The game was refreshing and we all had so much fun!
Ending the day was hard because it was our last day with the PTL kids, and we had already formed such great bonds with them.Later on in the evening the daughter in our host family, who speaks English well and was actually one of the translators for the picnic and today, helped Shannon and I write down the Kazak and Russian words we had learned. We wrote the translation, an English version to remember how to say it, and the Kazak/ Russian word. Her hospitality and patience are humbling. She constantly takes her time to teach me about her country, her language, and her culture.I can’t wait to see what comes next!
