Yesterday, a few selected students were given the opportunity to see the Ammonia district of Athens, an area that was almost hard to imagine from their descriptions. They described to us a world where children grow up playing by gutters filled with bloody drug needles and passed out women blocking their street games. This description was definitely a rude awakening to most of us, still with a fresh buzz from the island tour and Acropolis viewing of last week. Many of us left this concerned and overwhelmed; I know I, personally, could not stop thinking about the images they had described and how they seem to form an endless cycle for these people who used to have completely respectable happy lives in their country of origin.
This was followed by a riveting discussion about “The Power of Giving”. We were shown clips of Pay it Forward and were reminded that a simple action can have huge results that really can change the world. We were each given a single euro and asked to do something incredible with it that would change a life. We then boarded our bus in our conservative wear, ready to change the lives of many immigrant children searching for love in a foreign country.
We arrived to many smiling faces of children overjoyed to see us, one of them even releasing her excitement on the floor. It was really rewarding to see the parents there also, so happy to see that someone in this new country was ready to welcome them. Though most of the children could not speak much English, they were still having the time of their lives and appreciating the attention and a new feeling of belonging in a new foreign country that does not feel like their home. We definitely all left Victoria Square today having experienced the “Power of Giving” and ready to “Pay it Forward” with our new euros.
Hannah Alexander
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