I am getting more excited about the wonderful experiences that our team will have at La Gran Vista, a sustainable organic farm, each day we get closer to our departure. As a team, we’ve had a few months to get to know each other, learn more about Costa Rica, and individually think about what want to accomplish on our service trip. I imagine that each of us value certain elements of the trip differently. Before I leave, I want to reflect on the parts of the trip that I value personally and identify my personal goals for the upcoming service trip.
I spent much of the last few years learning about the environment and becoming a more informed citizen. Through my studies and the service work in which I participated in recent years, I learned much about the immediate problems facing the environment. I feel like have a slightly better understanding of the world as compared to when I first became interested in the environment; however, my picture of the world is incomplete, still developing, and constantly changing. I am excited to have a direct positive impact on the environment and to learn more about sustainable agriculture and the region of Costa Rica we will be traveling to.
It is a great privilege to be able to share the upcoming week with knowledgeable and interesting people who have similar values as myself, but as I have learned over the past few months, all come from different backgrounds and have unique experiences. I am really looking forward to learning more about my teammates not only during the trip, but also during the upcoming semester as we continue our service experience back in the Lafayette community.
Rather than looking at the work we do in Costa Rica as insignificant or something that will have a small impact on the world, I see nothing insignificant about this upcoming experience. This trip is a meaningful service learning opportunity that will help me shape my personal view of the world, and although I am off-campus for the direct service component of the trip, it will partially define how I remember my time at Lafayette. I am very much looking forward to my ASB trip to Costa Rica, and I look forward to sharing my expereince when I return.
Until then,
-Andrew