“By tomorrow, you will have a new family.”

This is what my driver told me Sunday night, on my first ride to Antigua. After a long day of flight delays and hanging out in the Houston airport, I finally made it to Guatemala and arrived at my homestay just in time to pass out in the room they so wonderfully prepared for me.

I am living in the home of a couple, Jose and Lucky (pronounced, Loo-key) Morales, which turned out to be more of a mini-hostel – at least six other international travelers occupy the place. This is to my liking. I do not feel like a stranger interrupting the family’s daily routine. I feel like one of many guests who support their business and enjoy their hospitality. Jose laughs a LOT, and Lucky is sweet, motherly, and a fabulous cook. (Photo = the street the house is on, with a view of one of Antigua's surrounding volcanoes, called Agua - I think)

Yesterday was my first day with Camino Seguro (Safe Passage), and I couldn’t help but think back to Camp Lakewood. In my many years as a counselor there, I was a veteran camp person. I returned every summer and immediately rejoined a long-established circle of friends. Brand new counselors took time to find their place there, and we veterans took time to see them as “camp people” like ourselves.

On my first day, I got a taste of how that felt. I met a troop of about fifteen returning Camino Seguro volunteers, who hopped on the bus, eagerly greeting each other, chatting about work and recounting recent weekends together. They welcomed me and two other newbies warmly, and I have no doubt that I will soon find my place in this Camino Seguro family, but I know it will take a little time. So things go.

With my rookie counterparts, I got a mini tour of the site in Guatemala City, including office/admin building (“Casa de Hogar”), educational reinforcement center (“CRE” for the Spanish acronym), and preschool (“Escuelita”). Highlights included sitting in the warm, sunlit garden of the CRE for lunch, and assisting one of the preschool classes. My office is located inside the preschool, and I was advised to take a break every now and again to spend time with the kids. “It keeps you grounded,” said Leigh Ellen, whose job I am essentially taking over. It reminds you why you are ultimately here.

Why we are ultimately here... Well, you can read the official description, but on day one alone I experienced a great reason to be here. The three-year-olds in the classroom I visited were practicing writing their names. Each child was given a paper with his or her name at the top and told to write it fifteen times. One little boy, concentrating so hard that he poked several holes in the paper, got to fifteen and asked to write more. He practiced writing his name until well after all his peers had moved on to other distractions (as three-year-olds do), and each time he finished the name, he held the paper up to show me. I would say, yes, perfect, that’s very good, and he would return to the page to repeat it. A kid that diligent, even so young, already has the mindset to go way beyond the conditions in which he’s living. We're here not only to provide him the skills he needs, but to show him the support and respect he may not experience elsewhere. This boy is worth something, and with Camino, he will grow up knowing that.