By Cece Jablonsky

Being totally honest, before coming to Senegal I was almost terrified. One of the first things my mom said to me after I asked her if I could go on this trip was “NO! You will be kidnapped!”. After these words were said to me this began to make me believe that coming to Senegal maybe wasn’t the best idea. She started showing me a bunch of articles and pictures off the things happening around the world and pretty much telling me that if I were to go on this trip something bad would happen to me. She would try to give me every reason possible of why this trip isn’t such a good idea. But finally, after much convincing from Alter, she finally said yes knowing that she would be leaving all her trust in him for the next 2 weeks. 

         Stepping off the plane after a 7-hour plane ride, I was ready and excited to start this new adventure with my brother and all my close friends. Our first stop at Bondias house really gave me my first touch of Senegal. From the people to the food, I’ve never felt so welcomed in a community where nobody knew who I was. Sitting in his backyard talking with Becca about the first few hours of the trip, one of the women walked up to me and handed me one of the cutest baby boys I have ever seen. This left me in complete shock. I have never met or spoke to this woman in my life, and she trusted me to hold her newborn baby as she went back to preparing our lunch. 

         As we continued our trip driving through what felt like the middle of nowhere, I began to observe the idea of trust a little more closely. Seeing kids who looked about 8 or 9 years old walking around all alone in the streets made me think of their parents. I know for me my parents never let me walk around alone at such a young age but for kids around here it seemed totally normal. All the people here really show a sense of trust with not just within friends and family but also with complete strangers. This makes me think of what exactly my mom was afraid of. No matter where you travel in the world there will always be stories of all these horrible things that happen in certain places, but you never be shown the good things that happen. From what I have experienced so far, I have never felt more welcomed in a community where not only the adults, but the children will show so much love towards you. This will forever change my perspective on the world and will also change the way I act towards other people in the future.

         With my new sense of trust for Senegal, I have been able to do more and feel comfortable trying things.  Our first night on the beach, we went down to the beach and watched the sun set.  Since the water was cold, we decided to join three boys that were juggling a soccer ball and get some extra touches in.  At first, I don’t really feel comfortable going up to people and talking to them.  But based on all of our time with Kecouta and how I could see the good in the boys who were playing, I took a step.  Even though we didn’t play very well, they really wanted us to keep playing with them.  This showed me that being less shy or prejudiced – instead more open to talking to new people – makes connections possible and allows for more learning.

         For the rest of our time in Senegal, I plan to use this to explore important things like the religion of the country.  Before, I wouldn’t have felt I could do this in the way we are doing it.  But now I know that it’s an easier step to take.