Today concluded our second full day of service. We were able to connect even more with the youth we were serving, and began to feel more accustomed to our surroundings at the school and boys and girls club. However, I wanted to focus on another interesting experience that fell upon me last evening (but expect more service posts in the future, once I have collected my thoughts).
We are staying in Hostel International Chicago, which, following its namesake, houses many travelers from all over the world. After a long day of service, a few of us ventured downstairs to lounge in one of the hostel’s more social areas. I had to ability to talk to an elderly man who claimed that Winston Churchill was the sole cause of World War 2, and that amplified sound is the “devil.” It was one of the many eye-opening experiences on this trip.
Shortly thereafter, I was able to connect with three travelers who had met earlier that day, one from northern Spain, another from Bogota, Colombia, and a third from Mexico City. They had all ventured alone to the States in hopes of becoming more proficient in English. I felt as if I was holding an endless bin of candy, surrounding by sweet-toothed travelers. There were all so eager to chat, just to have the opportunity to practice. I even got to break out the good ole Espanol for a decent portion of the conversation. We chatted about the lingual differences amongst the countries they came from, the difficulties in processing multiple tongues, and our travel motives and experiences. They were eager to hear about our ASB mission and the volunteering we were doing in the city, as well as the other groups and their agendas. I few even considered bringing those ideas back to their own countries and implementing service into their lives.
Anyways, I just found it interesting that something we all take for granted (English proficiency) is pricelessly valuable to others. I was also overjoyed to share our ASB outlook and to have such positive feedback from them. It was grand to connect with those from far away, and it was really an experience I did not foresee happening in Chicago. Wooo ASB!
Was the old man’s name Fritz Todt? Seriously though I am glad you had a chance to share your ASB outlook with your world travelers.
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