Day 10: We climb for fun. They climb for survival.

Dear Reader,
       Today is Saturday, the day of relaxation and sleeping or at least that's what it is for me at home. However today my Saturday turned away from relaxation and imbedded itself in hard work and determination. Kit and I work up at 4:30am this morning to do none other than climb a mountain in order to see a volcano errupt. Pretty exciting stuff, right? Wrong. I don't think I've ever been so tired in my life. In total we ended up going 6.8 miles, which isn't bad for a hike up a mountain, but it is tiring for me. However, the most disappointing part of this experience was that we never saw the volcano explode, instead we heard it. Unfortunately, the clouds picked today to cover everything, ensuring that we didn't see anything. It was kind of sad. We'd come such a far way to see the volcano, but we never did. However, the view from the top of the mountain was astounding. It was such a peaceful place, full of natural beauty. I didn't want to leave the top of the mountain; it was just so beautiful.
     
       Today I also had a minute of reflection. I'd never thought about the farmers and workers we would meet while climbing up the mountain. For the most part I considered it to be a touristy place, but I was proven very wrong. There carrying huge bags of vegetables and were men with horses, women carrying babies on their backs, and grandmothers wearing sandals. However, these kinds people were not climbing the mountain for fun, they climbed because that's where their crops were. A decent portion of Guatemala is rural and live the lives of farmers. Climbing this mountain was their everyday. This very idea was astounding to me. I could barely make it up the mountain once, but these people did this everyday. I admired them, inspired by their work ethic and strong wills.
     
        No doubt that climbing the mountain was hard. In fact, I've never sweat so much in my life, but it was definitely worth it. Not even just to see the volcano, but because it was so fulfilling, both athletically and emotionally. Granted those were some of the four hardest hours I've had since getting here (even the babies couldn't compare).Yet, I wouldn't give up the hard work or the memories for anything. Today was a great day for me to look outside the box and see more of Guatemala in aggregate. I saw sides and shades of Guatemala that I'd never seen before. It made me glad that I could diversify my perspective and mind, because that's what this trip is for, right? Not only to have a complete cultural experience, but to redefine myself as a global citizen. Slowly, but surely I think that goal is coming to fruition.
Sincerely,
Journey White