This morning began with as an early one. After waking around 5:45
am, I, along with four other girls, headed for the cow pasture. As we
approached the location where the milking process would occur, all of us began
to wonder what the heck we were about to do. We began to take turns milking but
were always conscious to leave some for the next person in line. By the time
the fifth person had taken her turn, we were sure we had milked the cow dry.
However, to our surprise, when the professionals took our place, they made more
milk than the five of us combined.
I know a great deal of French. Spanish on the other hand is quite
a different story. I know some of the basics and have recently learned a little
more, but not near enough to engage in conversation. The professional milkers
were the opposite in that they seemed to know absolutely no English. Though we
could not verbally communicate, these men showed their appreciation through
their nonverbal communication. Through this, the five of us felt a sense of accomplishment:).
Not long after we completed the milking process, we joined the
remainder of the group to take a hike. The journey was somewhat intense. In
fact, I fell and more than once (I even have a bruise to prove it. If my clumsy
gene wasn't exposed, it is now.) After about and hour and fifteen minutes, we
had finally made it, and I was gazing at one of the most beautiful things I had
ever seen. This magnificent sight made the hike worth it.
As we made our way down to the water, somehow the thought of how
cold the water would be and the possibility of seeing a snake never crossed my
mind. Fearing nothing, I jumped right in. Watching about five people jump into
the water from the waterfall, I wished I could do the same, but I knew I was
too scared. As the number of people who had not jumped began to dwindle, I felt
pressure to follow suit. Barely talking myself into it, I swam to the shore and
proceeded to the jump site. As I tripped over rocks and tried not to fall in
too soon, I wondered what on earth I was about to do. Right before I jumped I
wished I could turn back. Before I knew it, I was in the water.
Later that evening we took dancing lessons from Geovanny. Though I
cannot remember a single move and there were very few male partners to go around,
I had a blast trying to learn latin dancing. The laughter and smiles shared
across the room were wonderful. I even had the opportunity to dance with one
very attractive Costa Rican named Kevin, who was quite a great dancer. Once
again, there was a language barrier. However, through dancing it was not
obvious. Taking the time to emerse ourselves into another culture like this
brought happiness to the natives teaching us and it was quite evident.
Today's lesson was that even if a language barrier exists between
two people, communication can still occur. Using hand gestures or even smiling
can create a sort of connection. I find it so amazing that even being from two
different countries the nonverbal communication can be so similar. Between
overcoming two fears in two days and finding an appreciation for simple things,
this trip really has already began to be a life changing journey after all.
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