My Experience with Student Shoulder to Shoulder and the Llama Pack Project

Since I was very young I have always aspired to travel to Peru. What I did not expect was to travel with forty lamas up to a high Andean community to work alongside community members and to sleep in a tent under the stars. I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to travel to Peru with Student Shoulder to Shoulder to work with the Llama Pack Project. During our first week we spent our time teaching the children of Urubumba about the environment, the impact of lamas versus donkeys/ horses, and the benefits of trees. During the afternoons we improved the playground at the school and played with the children that we taught previously during the day. During the second week, we trekked up to a high Andean community, Chancha Chancha, to construct a tree nursery for a disappearing species of tree native to Peru. On the weekends we spent time touring the ruins of the Sacred Valley and shopping in the markets we encountered along the way. To my surprise, the ruins were not the most memorable experiences that I endured during my time in Peru. The relationships that I formed with the children of Urubumba and the community of Cancha Cancha were truly the highlight of my trip. These relationships lead to my biggest take away from my experience: a new definition of community. I learned through the kindness and hospitality of our hosts that a community can be formed by a group of people who share a common goal or ideology. When we were working alongside the natives of Cancha Cancha, we formed a community in which our background didn't matter, even in the presence of cultural and linguistic barriers. When I returned from Peru, I discovered a new sense of kindness and gratitude for my life at home. To this day I carry the lessons and relationships I encountered in Peru with me as I strive to make a difference in the lives of those around me as my community in Peru did for me.