Like every getaway, no matter the place or duration, the trip to Nicaragua went by like a flash. While I was there, I learned of more places I wished I had time to see and things I wished I could have done. But given the nature of this trip, I’m already setting my intention to join Jon and Angela when they return in December.
Regarding One Smile at a Time, Jon learned a lot about how much he will be able to do and Angela’s idea to just go down and raise awareness was great. OSAT will work in collaboration with local providers and we’ll take a phased approach in ramping up the capability to do more dental procedures and with some mobility. One thing for sure is that whatever we can do is sinecerelyappreciated by the recipients. I never saw so many kids so happy about getting a toothbrush and toothpaste!
I’m personally looking forward to learning more about Nicaragua. Having visited several developing countries, it’s been interesting to observe the various stages of emergence from colonialism into a global economy that must seem so out of reach to many locals. Like most of the Central American countries, the gringos are coming in droves, buying land and building homes, exposing the locals to wealth and lifestyles they feel they can only have if they take it. Although it can be a symbiotic relationship because of the jobs and money the tourist industry brings, there are tensions. But that can be good. Peter Senge, the author of The Fifth Discipline, calls the gap between current and desired state creative tension – it’s what drives the quest to close it. Unlike some tourist invasions I’ve seen, San Juan del Sur appeared to have that constructive type of tension. People like us come to help and not only are we warmly welcomed, people do whatever they can to help us make the most of it. Never once did I sense any malice or indifference, and never was I concerned for my well-being. Except for those damned mosquitoes!
