Day 3 - What to Write?

I'm not going to lie, I went to bed last night thinking about what I might write about today on day three. Nothing came to mind so I figured I would sleep on it. And then again this morning, I woke up thinking the same thing. 

I took a quick glance at the writing prompts included with this challenge in the event of writers block. Those were cute I suppose, but quickly tossed those aside. I'm not really one for cheesy writing prompts and this isn't fourth grade. Therefore, I'm going to wing it. 

I considered very briefly writing about the most recent tragic event that happened in Las Vegas, but we will hear about that for some time to come. I don't have very much to add at this point. But it made me think of sharing something joyful and lighthearted. I think that's the route I'll go today.

I love seeing the world and experiencing new things. I especially have loved seeing life through the eyes of my daughter, Ruth. When she discovers something for the first time, it's a blast to watch. All of a sudden, you find yourself as a parent planning activities, even the simplest of things, just to see how your child will enjoy it for the first time. Maybe even the hundredth time. 

I've always enjoyed seeing the children at the mission experience new things. Recently, some of the staff at the mission in Costa Rica took ten children, all about 10-12 years old, to a hydroelectric plant to learn about different kinds of energy. Fitting for a group of kids from Bajo Tejares with tons of energy... kidding. It was a really awesome experience for them, and something we are so happy to coordinate and provide to the children to broaden their minds. Believe it or not, some kids need to learn that there are other ways to go about life than to be drug runners, prostitutes, seasonal coffee pickers, or attempting to subsist on handouts alone when they grow up. These are talking points for another day though.

When I can't be there myself to see the kids try new things (which is most of the time since we don't live there anymore), I love a good story from the staff. My friend Laura was in town for the long weekend in order to attend a missions conference in South Carolina. Last night we had dinner and she shared a bit about the field trip with us all. There's no doubt the kids learned a lot at the hydroelectric plant, but more than knowledge, there was life experience to be had afterwards. Laura and a couple of other staff members that accompanied the kids took them all to the big, nice, relatively new mall in Alajuela for lunch. 

The kids had never seen an escalator before. There aren't buildings like that in their small town of San Ramón. This was a big mall, far bigger than the one in town where they all live. So they showed them all how to go up the escalator which was probably as good as taking them to an amusement part or anywhere else with exciting rides. The only problem was going up the escalator was more exciting and less terrifying than going down the escalator... which they refused. Alas, the elevator came to their rescue. 

I can imagine the curiosity in their eyes and the looks on their little faces throughout this whole experience. Now they can go back and tell their friends all about it. Then maybe one day, when they are in a big city with big buildings, and they walk inside to see an escalator staring them down, the world won't feel so big because they've seen it and experienced it before.