Thursday, June 30th

Today was day 3 at Birdland! It was “civilian day” today, so all the Birdland students wore their nicest clothes instead of their uniforms. We started the day by working with the 6th grade. Each SAAS student worked with a small group of Birdland students to write letters about themselves, which will be sent to the rising SAAS 8th graders. Then a few of us accompanied the 4th and 5th graders on a field trip to the Food Reserve Agency, while the rest stayed behind and distributed stuffed animals to the youngest students at Birdland. On our way to the Food Reserve, we got a real glimpse of Lusaka. We passed through a large open-air market full of fruits and vegetables, and lots of people. The kids sang songs the entire way to the Reserve. At the Reserve, we learned about the preservation of maize. The students all took notes and asked very good questions. Everyone stayed completely focused and attentive throughout the entire tour. I know I wasn’t that patient in 4^th grade! When we returned to Birdland, we said goodbye to the students who had a half day of school, it was hard to say goodbye even though we will see them again tomorrow! Everyone was showered with hugs from almost every student. We were served another traditional Zambian meal for lunch that was generously prepared by Dorine. We got to try caterpillar! Once again, the food was delicious! After lunch, we met in the library to talk about the itinerary for the rest of the week. The meeting turned into a tear fest when we started talking about our experiences so far. Everyone is struggling with how to handle the emotions that this experience has produced. I know my eyes have really been opened by this trip so far and I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to come! After the meeting we returned to Pioneer Camp for dinner. We had a delicious barbeque followed by a special “house party” in Nick and Gabe’s chalet. The gracious hosts provided us with soda, hors d’oeuvres, and chocolate, as well as some John Legend to set the mood. All in all, today was very rewarding and we are all very tired!

Until next time,

Hannah