It’s hard to believe that the week is almost over, and we have so much to be thankful for. Today at JASY camp we talked about Gratitude. When many of us think about what we are thankful for we say our jobs, money, stability, material things, and our ability to live extravagantly (no matter how that may be).
When we asked the campers the same question we got humbling responses. Our campers are thankful for food, shelter, family and friends, waking up this morning, God, and life.
One of the reasons this mission trip means so much to many of us is that it’s a reality check. We are so incredibly lucky to have stable, comfortable lives. We don’t have to worry about where we will get water the next day, if we will have food, or if we will have a bed to sleep on.
But most importantly, we remember here in Kingston, Jamaica that we have a gift that we can bring these children. Its love. Love is enough. Really, love is all that any of us need to survive in this world. And love is something we can give without hesitation to everyone of these children.
Yazmin Fernaays talked to us today about her day, “Thursday is always an awesome day at JASY camp. I teach swim lessons and Thursday is when you see all the skills come together in the water. It was amazing to see all five of my level one swimmers put their heads under water. Just four short days ago one of my girls would not even get in the water unless I held her at all times. Another great moment was watching my advanced older girls all swim butterfly really well. It just fills me with joy to see the way their faces light up when they accomplish a new skill whether it is big or small. And that’s what JASY camp is about the joy and love we all have to share with each other and to celebrate new things we have learned from each other.”
Gabriel Cerullo also shared with us his moments from this week, “’Sir, may we go to the diving, sir?’ The children here at JASY are respectful, patient and eager to swim! Yesterday, two boys told me that they could not swim; by the end of today’s lesson they were swimming front crawl across the shallow end. These kids are 100% lean muscle, but it is difficult for some to tread, float, or even swim. However, we are working together everyday this week, and with simple, clear instruction combined with proper guidance and guarding, each child has shown, and will display, major aquatic improvement. I just wish I could stay until every last camper is able to keep themselves a float and safe in the water.”
Tomorrow will be a hard day for all of us. We leave the children we have made bonds with. We leave the volunteers we have grown close to. We pray that the impact we have made here is long lasting. We hope that we have left footprints on the hearts of those we have met this week. Pray for us tomorrow.
With love,
The 2015 JASY Volunteer Team