The New Kid In Town

The photo above was the view outside my living room window this afternoon. A group of boys were playing fútbol (soccer) in the small plaza. Several of the students I recognized because they go to the school that I’m teaching at. One, in particular, caught my attention. He has recently moved to Spain from Brazil, and in the class he does different activities because he’s at a different level than the others, since he has to learn Spanish…and now English too!

In the classroom, he seems a bit of an outcast, but obviously, he’s getting along just fine and enjoying the normal activities with the other boys in the town. As a kid especially, when you are in a new place, you are forced to just be thrown into a new school, make new friends, and learn a new language. In a way it made me think of my situation. I’m definitely feeling like the “new kid in town”. In the 3 weeks that I’ve been here, I’ve met so many people and have experienced a number of new things. I’ve learned new words, tried new types of food and have had to just throw myself into these new surroundings.

I’m a very social person and like to be involved in whatever situation I’m in, but it can be hard being the new kid in town. I can’t engage in the conversations in Spanish the way I can in English, and I don’t have many people that I can just call up to hang out. But what I do have is a great community that is willing to lend me a hand. And I have faith/hope that I’ll soon just be “one of the kids” speaking Spanish, mastering a few traditional dishes, and being a part of this little pueblo.

“Nobody trips over mountains.  It is the small pebble that causes you to stumble.  Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain.”

~Author Unknown