Hello family and friends and Feliz Año Nuevo from hot and sunny Tacna! I just wanted to post a quick greeting to let you all know that starting tomorrow I'll be gone on Mes de Misión with 3 of my community mates, one other Miguel Pro teacher, 2 Jesuits, 2 former students, and 33 rising 4th years (they'd be rising 10th graders in the states). Mes de Misión is one of the cornerstones of a Miguel Pro education, a mandatory month-long labor intensive service trip for the 4th years every January. This year we're going to a coastal town nearby called Ite, where we´ll be planting olive trees on a farm and doing some shepherding!
This month is going to be a definite challenge with the intense work, desert heat, and spending an entire month with 33 15 year olds who for the most part have never left home before, but I'm sure it will be a learning experience too. It's usually very formative for the kids so that part will be cool to witness as well. In the evenings we'll do lots of reflections and community building activities, plus once a week we get a day off to go to the beach so there will be some fun parts too.
So if you don't hear from me for several weeks (which you probably won't) don't worry, and I'll be sure to get in touch as soon as I can after we get back on the 31st. Please keep my community mates and me (and our sanity!) and all of our students in your prayers as we embark on this adventure, as well as our beloved Padre Fred who traveled back to the States yesterday for cancer treatment. All of Tacna is hoping he will hurry back in good health!
Best wishes for the new year, and be sure to check back in a month for all my Mes de Misión stories!
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