Santiago's third grade class went for a visit to a farm as a celebration of spring and to have an experience of farm life since they are in the agriculture block right now.
I felt honored to be asked by the teacher to come as a chaperone since normally only teachers go with the class. I had the best time!! Being in a beautiful setting with a group of great kids who love to sing, play, tell jokes and just enjoy life was very refreshing!
We came in the morning and they were preparing the earth to plant the "maiz". A couple of mules were used to make the rows for planting. The kids very enthusiastically helped the farmers and as some of them said several times: This was the best day of their lives!
There were so many varieties and colors of corn...very fun for all of us! We also saw the importance of rain collection...all this fields are watered by rain water collected in barrels and also the time of planting is now, because rains are soon to come and of course, the influence of the stars and the moon phase are greatly taken into account.
There were many plants of nopal...which we have learned to use and cook in many delicious salads and soups.
After we helped with planting, we took a looong walk down to the side where more help was needed.
The kids collected sticks, rocks, seeds, and many more treasures along the way.... they climbed trees, hiked and enjoyed being outdoors...which city kids never take for granted.
Along the way we saw a lot of animals and the kids especially liked the baby lambs which looked really tiny and some of them were nursing!!
Here's Santiago's classmates one by one...I had to do close up pictures... I know Santiago will forever love them and treasure their time spent together.
His classroom has 9 girls, Ashia, Valeria, Jazibe, Sara Luna, Fatima, Sara Abigail, Luciana, Isabel and Pamela.
And 4 boys: Alonso, Ian Luca, Eduardo and Diego.
How lucky he is to have such fine friends, they are so special. Very innocent, they remind me a lot of the friends I used to have when I was that age, very innocent still, open and in love with life.
After our long walk, we came to the house where lunch was being prepared. We were welcomed with a very refreshing "agua de tamarindo" and then we were put to work right away because help was needed to make the "blue" tortillas by hand. The kids all took turns and did a wonderful job.
When the tortillas were done, we all ate a delicious meal prepared by "tia", a wonderful cook indeed. Chicken, beans and rice and of course home made blue tortillas...yummmy!
Then it was time for a well deserved break. The kids played in different games for a long time until the boys found a soccer ball and that was it!! They immediately convinced the girls to play a game and it was very complex...they took turns, some players were sitting on the bench for a while, happily cheering their team, the players took their role seriously and maestra marcela was the referee. Some of the girls who were sitting and waiting for their turn, went in look for some refreshments to sell...clever girls!!
Then, when it was Santiago's turn to sit on the bench. He took a stick and started narrating the game...very funny!!
You could tell he spent a lot of time watching the world cup last summer with colombian slang and all!!
Soon, he found another friend to help him and make it all even more interesting...now a colombian and a mexican commentator....hillarious!!
When the game was done, it was "milking time". We all went to the cow shed and the kids took turns milking the cows. They behaved really well for the children and the kids were ecstatic to finally be able to milk a cow...it was an unexpected surprise for them!
What a day!! It couldn't have gone better. Teacher, chaperone, helpers and kids had the best time!!
I feel so blessed to be able to experience this precious moments in life, to savor them and enjoy them.
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