Thinking of Kaya

Anna Poledňáková volunteered with Kaya in Bolivia during summer 2009. She is an economics student from the Czech Republic.

It has been already a few months since I left South America and Kaya and still, from time to time, I catch myslef singing Daddy Yankee's songs, looking for a white minibus or just going through all the memories I have.

As I said at my little good-bye party with the local staff, when I was planning my trip to Bolivia I was sure I would have a great time, but I never thougth that it would be such an amazing experience as it was. Kaya is not an organization, it is a family and I feel really grateful that I was alowed to be a part of it.

Before I entered its office in La Paz for the first time I didn't know a lot about the issue of street children and although I tried to prepare myself for the poverty and bad living conditions the experience from the street outreach in El Alto remains as one of the saddest and deepest experience of my life.

On the other hand it was wonderful to watch the progress made by Kaya concerning the kids

already settled in the organization. In spite of everything they must have gone through, they are ready to open their little hearts and accept you as a friend, to trust you and to share their dreams and doubts with you. They let you be a part of their life and bless you with boundless love and happiness.

Thinking of Kaya, there are so many beautiful moments coming to my mind. Once in the minibus on our way home from the movies I saw how one of the boys covered the another one with the blanket because he was sick. They remained ly ing next to each other like two brothers. It is difficult to describe how it feels, it is just that there was so much love in everything they did. With them even the ordinary activities like doing homework or washing clothes became something special. It was so funny watching them playing, dancing…just being kids. It felt so good to grab their tiny hands, to give them a hug or make them laugh.

I will never forget any of these moments and the awareness of a place where people gave priority to well-being of their fellowmen before their own profit, where people care about each other and love each other encourages me to be a better person and spread the positive spirit.