By Gidget Valadez

Little sleepy eyes up to make breakfast early

The schoolhouse calls

Dusty hair, sometimes coiffed, sometimes wild

The march of tattered backpacks

Covered in superheroes and sparkles

No coaxing required

There is a hunger for connection

A yearning for learning

About those things familiar in nationality, language, history, tradition, and culture

And about things far and wide, complex and nuanced

—

Discipline seems nearly unnecessary

Calm sweeps over the classrooms

Eyes focused like lasers on the teacher, the chalkboard, the textbooks

Broken benches, missing tabletops, rusted chairs

Heat pushing in from the open windows

The absence of technology

But a wealth of information being soaked into the brains

Of the beautiful children of Senegal

—

Most, but not all, get to take part in school

It’s not only where learning educational lessons takes place

It is also where connections are made, squabbles are negotiated to resolution

Where relationships are cultivated and deepened

Where respect, humility, discipline, confidence, compassion, empowerment, and empathy are fostered

Woven into the fabric of each child

Supplementing all that is taught within the confines of family and home

Children who become leaders help the teachers bring the others along

But really everyone helps everyone

No one is left behind

—

They read, write, calculate, give presentations, play, tease, laugh, sing, clap, and dance

Learning the ways of life in this place

While also learning the ways of the world

It’s part of how Teranga, or hospitality, is sprouted and nurtured from an early age

With the understanding that it is to be shared with everyone

Until the end of time

—

It has been said that it takes a village to raise a child

This concept lives and flourishes in every corner of Senegal

Senegal is my second home, and these people are my second family

It is an honor to love this village

And I am forever grateful for the love that continues to be reciprocated

And I pray for many more returns, Inshalla