Photo by courtesy of Chiara Catipon
On April 2, I went to volunteer at the Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, Texas, together with a few students from the Newman Centers of Texas A&M, Corpus Christi and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.
Because it was on the border with Mexico, the whole journey took two and half hours. We finally reached the Respite Center around 11am, and I knew that whatever was going to happen thereafter would be a new experience for me as an international student.
After security check-in and dropping off the care packages we had collected from students, I went inside and found there were almost 250 people, aged from infancy to old age.
I saw many people looking at us because they thought we were new incoming migrants. They had stories of unheard suffering, unexplained failures, yet never-ending hope.
When I started smiling, they smiled back and started socializing with me. Being a non-Spanish speaker, it was very difficult for me to understand their stories, but their eyes expressed how much pain they had gone through to reach the U.S.
The children were so adorable, and we were playing with them for a long time. When we had to leave and say goodbye, I saw their sad, innocent faces. It was so heartbreaking that it made me walk without looking back because my heart was so heavy; it was making me cry. Then one little girl came, hugged me from behind, and uttered the word “gracias” (thank you).
The trip was really an eye-opener for everyone. It made us realize how blessed we are in the comfort of our homes.
