Aero: Marriah Gough – Costa Rica 2015 – Epilogue

Aero: Marriah Gough – Costa Rica 2015 – Epilogue
Creative Commons Image via The LEAF Project

Aero: Marriah Gough – Costa Rica 2015 – Epilogue

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Marriah Gough

Costa Rica was anything and everything. It was the experience that will certainly last a lifetime and has left and everlasting imprint on my heart. Right from day one there isn’t a thing that was worth forgetting, and that won’t be remembered. Before leaving, I had the mindset of being able to experience a new culture and relate it back to both my educational background and future as an educator myself. I wanted to compare and contrast the different cultures after allowing myself to break out of my shell and broaden my comfort zone. There were times in Costa Rica in which I was able to experience that, and there were times where I was not. When thinking about the future and working with students of different cultures and being open to diversity, spending time at Hogar Siembra allowed me to see just that. This activity involved going to an orphanage for young girls, a variety of ages even up to eighteen. These young girls did not have a parental figure in the picture, and basically were left hung out to dry it wasn’t for the orphanage. Being able to interact with these girls, and bring day to day necessities such as make up, pens and notebooks etc brought smiles to their faces, which you know means the world to them, knowing other people care. This allowed me to realize that as a future teacher, there are going to be times in which I have students in my class who do not have the best living situations, and school may be there safe zone or happy place and that’s it. Just knowing that I have that much of an impact on someone makes a difference. It also allowed me to look at a different cultural perspective by working with children who speak a different language, causing me to go out of my comfort zone and speak an unfamiliar language as well as learn from them. We learned together. It was challenging and sad at times because I didn’t always know what to say, or what they were saying but that is why it was an experience, I learned from it.

ML@FLCC Costa Rica
2015 Flickr Gallery

On the opposite side of the spectrum, I was expecting to learn a bit more about the culture itself, almost in a lecture form in more of an educational setting, but we learned them through mini statements and spurs of the moment type of instances. For instance, the driving in Costa Rica compared to the US, the school settings and times. I was told that schools are out of session the entire month of January unlike in the US because of the number of holidays that are celebrated during that time. We learned about the churches and the religion processes while at church, and money issues. Overall, the experience was something I will not forget. The host family is truly what made the trip. There were lots of laughs and events that I wouldn’t have been able to get through a textbook. I was able to learn a lot about them all on an individual level by practicing Spanish, and showing a sense of humor that I am not used to. It was what I needed to continue with my future; something new and different. If others were interesting in experiencing this trip, I would say the best piece of advice was to make the best of it on your own; you are what you make of it. The more you push yourself and find your true identity the better the trip will be.

Marriah Gough
LEAF Contributor