The uncharted - Canto Grande

I awoke to the sound of a screaming rooster, cars honking their horns, and people yelling from the streets. That’s what most morning where like living in the heart of Peru in a little place called Canto Grande. It was my first day stepping foot on South American soil and as I breathed in the dusty, Spanish filled air, I felt a rush that made me hungry for more knowledge of this uncharted place. Today I was to help a teacher and her class at a local Peruvian school.
After only studying the Spanish language for two semesters at a college level, I was put to the test. I tried to follow the teachers Spanish as she explained to me that after their morning lesson, we would go to the outdoor market to pick up groceries. I stepped into the classroom and I was immediately bombarded with children. They could not keep their hands off me. They were fascinated by my pale white skin, green eyes, long brown hair, and the fact that I was chewing gum. When I sat down with them, an inquisitive little girl started to play with my hair as a rambunctious boy grabbed the gum straight from my mouth.
The market seemed like a whole new world to me. Dead chickens hung from the rafters of the shanty houses, men stared, and emaciated dogs begged for food. A little girl’s tug on my shirt brought me back into reality. Her familiar brown eyes seemed frighten and I knew she wanted to hold my hand. When her hand touched mine, I knew my small town back in Pennsylvania was no longer where I belonged. It was out here in the world.
I would like to think that you leave a little piece of yourself everywhere you go even if you just make a small impact in some way. Even though I was the one supposed to be teaching them, they thought me more than I could have ever thought them. We can live two completely different lives, but in the end, we are still people.