the end has come

the new volunteers come a week from yesterday. the idea that i'm leaving in 10 days hasn't even begun to sink in yet. i don't think i'll be overcome by emotion or sad & lonely (no, that part will come when i'm home, i'm afraid, when the reality has hit me). no, the question on my mind now is what's next? this is something i haven't given much thought to since my last blog post, what being caught up in everything going on here, but honestly what comes next? and i don't just mean seeing loved ones, hot showers, moving on to new adventures, exercising, etc. i mean what comes next in the development, the evolution of nate radomski.

to say that this experience has affected me would not only be an understatement, but also naive. every experience affects you, one way or another, that's a given. this experience has shaken me to the core. it's changed my thought perceptions on so many things: religion, poverty, politics, truth. it's awaken a passion that has always been inside of me, but for some reason have suppressed. it's revealed my faults and weaknesses as a friends, a companion, a human being. it's shown me strengths i didn't even realize i had. but through it all, the highs, the lows. the times i wanted to run away screaming and the times i couldn't contain my excitement. the times that the realities and injustices of poverty slapped me across the face. the times the beauty of simplicity inspired me, through it all, i'm still left with more questions. namely, what do i do with all of this?

yesterday we went to nuevo mundo to support vicki and the english department as they took their turn celebrating the 25th anniversary of fundación nuevo mundo. (each month the departments organize a talent show, if you will, of songs, plays and dance celebrating the founding of nuevo mundo, all leading up to the grand celebration in october.) and as we sat there, i couldn't help but be in awe of sonya rendón and pat mcteague. here are two women who started with a simple, yet ambitious, dream: provide an affordable, quality education to the poor. what's more, not only were they going to do that, they were going to do it on the backs of guayaquil's wealthy. it wasn't always easy, but they knew what they were doing was the right thing to do. so with a little luck, some generous friends and a spot of craziness, two women set out to do the impossible. and as i sit here 25 years later, looking at the fruits of their labor, the beauty of their campus, the prestige associated with the name nuevo mundo, the faces and families it's touched, i can't help but be overwhelmed. i mean, it's unimaginable. who could do something like this? who could turn a small idea into a revolution? a school that started out in a renovated house into one of the most acclaimed educational models in the world? but to talk with pat, you'd think anyone can do it. anyone can change the world, they just have to find their nitch. just like that. and you know what? i believe her.

i don't know what it is that i'm going to do to change the world. i don't know what i'm going to do in three months, let alone three years. but i do know i'm going to do something. i wasn't born in the united states, given the educational opportunities and advantages that i was to do nothing. father jim ronan, the founder of rostro de cristo, says this experience is a well of knowledge and emotion that we'll draw from for years to come. so with that thought, i take solace. i may not know what the next step is right now, but i know there is one. and i'm just on the verge of starting the journey.