• Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Mail
  • Gift Catalog
  • Donate
  • Register Now
  • Contact Us
Call Us: 800-487-1074
Global Volunteers
  • Countries
    • International Partnerships:
      • China
      • Cook Islands
      • Cuba
      • Ecuador
      • Greece
      • Italy
      • Nepal
      • Peru
      • Poland
      • Portugal
      • St Lucia
      • Tanzania
      • Vietnam
    • USA Programs:
      • Appalachia – West Virginia
      • Blackfeet Reservation – Montana
      • Rosebud Reservation – South Dakota
      • Española – New Mexico
  • Projects
  • Give
    • Giving Options:
      • Donate Now
      • Gift Catalog
      • Ways to Give
      • Philanthropy
  • Impact
  • Blog
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
Volunteer Voices Portugal

We are all beautiful

Our second morning in Beja dawned cool and crisp with a bright blue sky.  This was a positive foreshadowing of the day to come. As we all awoke to the tranquility of a small Portuguese town, we all began to realize the transition we had made from our chaotic lives of the United States to the beauty and chaos that is Lisbon. We now move closer to the “target” or  bulls-eye of this project as we are enveloped with the charm and uniqueness that is Beja.And this Tuesday brought many great opportunities and surprises as we explored our new community and its members.
Reba and Arlene had a good day impacting 91 students and had a lot of fun comparing their respective states of Colorado (Arlene) and New Jersey (Reba).  They found the interactive board a wonderful tool to bring their learning alive and to shout out a “howdy” from a cowboy.
Mary and Joe experienced the thrill of “National English Day” and were able to participate by providing the students an education on the American Thanksgiving story.  They continued their very full day by teaching adults in the evening and were very impressed by the commitment and energy these folks have to learn English from native speakers. Paul and Diane had an equally impactful and insightful day the Polytechnic Institute.  The morning class was filled with an in-depth discussion on prejudice, along with the origins of racism and entitlement.  This all led to the final call-out for all members of the global community to become self-aware.   That is the first step to help dilute prejudice and racism in the world.  And it starts in communities like Beja.
Both the morning and afternoon classes participated in a very interactive exercise called “Desert Island.”  Each group had to select 6 members of the society to “save” in order to start a new community on a desert island.  The choices made of a doctor, nurse, priest, pop singer and others all elicited laughs yet very important and serious debate.  Bottom-line, the students demonstrated the ability to “think” in English and have more confidence in talking in front of the class.
At the end of the day, we all gathered and enjoyed our second Portuguese lesson with Joaquin along with a short history of Portugal over the last few hundreds of years.
Dinner was a filling event with wonderful food and conversation but a little too filling for the time of night.  Key word: family style. Reba gave us all a gift by telling us earlier that one of her students that day had told her “she was beautiful.”  I reflected on that gift as I retired for the night.  Aren’t we all beautiful in some way no matter what situation we find ourselves in?  How do we continue to find that inner beauty in everyone?And critical to the servant traveler in all of us, that beauty comes from our ability to make a small yet critical difference in this part of our global community.  And another day awaits…

Share this:

  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)
March 20, 2012/0 Comments/by Michele Gran
https://205eev2oa0jm1t4yb914s1nw-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/2014-GlobalVolunteersLogo-Web.png 0 0 Michele Gran https://205eev2oa0jm1t4yb914s1nw-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/2014-GlobalVolunteersLogo-Web.png Michele Gran2012-03-20 15:17:002016-09-22 13:51:35We are all beautiful
0 replies

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

You must log in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Partner Communities

  • China 66
  • Cook Islands 44
  • Cuba 118
  • Ecuador 88
  • Greece 69
  • Italy 54
  • Montana 42
  • Nepal 16
  • Peru 99
  • Poland 77
  • Portugal 42
  • South Dakota 8
  • St Lucia 58
  • Tanzania 155
  • Vietnam 44
  • West Virginia 24

Categories

  • Boomer Volunteers
  • Conversational English
  • Couples Volunteering
  • Culture and Traditions Worldwide
  • Development Impact
  • Family Volunteers
  • Free Time Options
  • Global Volunteers
  • Group Volunteering
  • Impact Stories
  • Individuals on Teams
  • Projects for Professionals
  • Reaching Children's Potential
  • Repeat Volunteers
  • Retiree Volunteers
  • Staff Worldwide
  • Student Volunteers
  • Uncategorized
  • Volunteer Voices
  • Women volunteers

Tags

alumni volunteers American Indian culture Appalachian culture best destination peru Care for children Caribbean island College groups Conversational English cook islands economy covid-19 covid-19 consequences Cuba people-to-people donate for children Earthbox gardens economic support Essential Services food insecurity Funding your fee Health and nutrition High school groups Labor projects lgbt program peru resume resume high shcool retiree service-learning share food Spring break summer volunteer program support children Support women teaching children teaching english team leader things to do peru top places to visit peru tourism cook islands tours peru travel peru volunteer benefits Volunteer impact work on reservations Work with youth youth volunteering
  • About Us
  • Boards of Directors and Advisors
  • US and International Staff
  • Our Beginnings
  • Our Vision
  • Community Partners
  • Collaborators
  • Compare Us
  • Volunteer Vacations FAQs
  • Accountability and Agreements
  • Travel Risks
  • Impact and Outcomes of Service
  • Donate to Global Volunteers
  • Donate to a Volunteer
  • Money Matters – Explaining Your Service Program Contribution
  • Discounts & Fundraising
  • Alumni Center
  • News/Media
  • Privacy Policy
  • Agreements
  • Site Map
  • Contact
  • Podcast
  • Volunteer Portal
  • Employment
Global Volunteers
375 East Little Canada Road
St. Paul, MN 55117-1628 USA
(800) 487-1074 | toll-free
(651) 482-0915 | fax
globalvolunteers.org
email@globalvolunteers.org

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Subscribe receive notifications of new posts and updates by email.

Global Volunteers - Partners in Development ® | © Copyright 2002 - Present Global Volunteers
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Mail
  • Global Volunteers is an apolitical, non-sectarian, non-profit (501C-3) tax-exempt organization.
  • Send feedback about this web site and its administration.
Getting Acquainted Strike Day
Scroll to top
loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.