Weekly Blog 3

4.5 hours today
118.5 hours today

My third and final week went really well. I am grateful to have the experience that I did with such great people by my side. I felt a real connection to South Florida’s wilderness and the people I worked with. Sandoway has opened up my eyes to passions that I will most likely pursue in college. For the last few days of the week, I have been working outside in the pre-summer heat. I tried my hardest to make the best of the time I had left this week. Unfortunately for me, the week went by really quickly. I felt that there was so much left to do (in terms of tasks and spending more time with everyone) with so little time left. Though I am relieved by the fact that I did do a lot and I worked very hard. The more and more I think about it the more it seems like it paid off! The most unexpected thing happened today as I was leaving Sandoway for the last time. A man who only spoke Spanish asked me for assistance after he asked me if I spoke it myself. He was from Argentina and he left his keys, phone, and wallet in his locked car. He told me that he had a friend in Coral Springs at a La Quinta that could help. I called the hotel and asked for his friend. We got in touch with him and he said to call the police department because they do that kind of stuff. The non-emergency dispatch person told me to call a locksmith. That’s so that’s what I did. I had to explain everything that I was doing so the man was on the same page as me. I finally got a locksmith to come to where his car was parked. The company asked for a credit card for payment. I told them his wallet was locked in his car! I finally figured everything out for the guy. He thanked me for my help and said I was a lifesaver. I’m really glad that I was capable of helping him. I’m fifty-percent Hispanic and I used to be fully fluent, but I lost it over the years. Now with this experience, it makes me think about my Spanish skills and how much better I am than I thought I was. Anyways, this week I’ve been clearing and cleaning a lot of the animal enclosures. It was really difficult, but I knew I was being helpful so I kept on going. Senior Project may be almost over, but I hope I can volunteer at Sandoway again in the near future.