Chatting to children of Travesuras kindergarten

What do you want to be when you grow up?

A simple enough question, and one you are always asked as a child. Posing this question to the children at the Travesuras daycare center, however, made it take on a new meaning. The center welcomes children from the local community, offering them a place to play and learn, as well as a hot meal everyday. In communities where only 10% of young people go on to continue their education past the age of 16, these centers are fundamental in giving children the early enthusiasm for their studies and their future to hopefully encourage a desire for further education later on. We headed to the center for the morning ahead of the Dia Del Nino last Sunday. Dia Del Nino was established in 1954 in order to protect children working long hours in dangerous conditions, and to promote every child’s right to education. Both being causes close to the heart of Voluntario Global, and the daycare center itself, we got a variety of responses to the question, ranging from “Doctor” to “Chef” to “Teacher. My personal favorite response to this question, however, was “when I grow up I would like to be taller.” 

After being served up a delicious, and very carefully prepared, plate of pretend food from the little would-be chef I can say without a doubt that all of those dreams are well within each child’s capability. Engaging, enthusiastic, lively, confident- qualities that can send anyone where they want to go. But there’s no doubt also that the children we talked to that day face more challenges in pursuing their dreams than most. The Dia Del Nino is all about celebrating childhood and the importance of education, education being the best tool a person can have to control their life and take it in the direction they want it to go. Voluntario Global and centers like Travesuras ensure that this tool is becoming increasingly available to more and more children. 

In celebration of the brilliance that is the mind of a child, here are a few responses to some of the other questions we asked: -What is the best thing about coming here (to the center)? -Getting bread at lunchtime! -What is your least favorite thing about coming here? (Question posed to a young girl who, on her own in the corner, was carefully folding up the clothes of her doll.) - Boys. The boys are just silly. (As we looked over at the boys she was referring to, they were swaying, arms around each other, wearing hats and pretending to drink beer. I couldn’t help but agree with her.) -What wish would you ask for from a genie? -I would wish for lunch! 

Perhaps the genie was listening, because about ten minutes later his wish was granted and we all sat down to a lovely lunch of stew and bread. It’s amazing how quickly a classroom full of excited, chattering children becomes immediately silent as soon as food is mentioned. Watching them all try and be on their best behavior so they would get the first helpings of stew, seeing how well behaved they were as they ate, and how polite they were in offering each other spoons and glasses of water, the importance of education took on a new meaning as well. Because a place like Travesuras isn’t just for enabling children to become the doctors, chefs, hairdressers and teachers they want to be: the real aim is to give every child the right start, encouraging success in their futures on a personal level as much as an academic one. With the great work being done at Travesuras Center every day, when they grow up every child from here will walk a little taller. http://www.voluntarioglobal.org/