This last semester I have had the great fortune to be involved with the Pinewoods Library off of Highway 29. The library is situated in the center of the Pinewoods trailer communicty. Open to all but home mostly to Latinos representing many different countries, the community has been a place where I have gone to learn more from the wonderful people that live there. Each Tuesday and Thursday of every week, I visited the library and served as an English tutor and conversation partner to the Latino adults that came to practice and learn the language. After my second week there I realized that the same eight to ten people kept showing up, and it was with these incredible individuals that I formed some really tremendous relationships.
Guided by the "maestro" Larry, a charismatic man in his early thirties who lead the discussions and lesson plans for most classes, I slowly understood what it was to become a tutor and a teacher. At first I was intimidated by the fact that most of the people I was helping were a great deal older than I was-some more than twice my age! However, I learned that the students were incredibly engaging and open to any help whatsoever so I glided into my role much quicker than I had anticipated. Every session we focused on something different- holding conversations in english, focusing on grammar, hammering in the different tenses (present, past, future, past progressive, etc etc), practicing writing, making them listen and translate and much more. Every student started off at different levels and brought various learning styles to the table, each of which were complemented by their incredibly friendly personalities.
Aside from the obvious advantage of getting the opportunity to practice my spanish on a weekly basis, my favorite part about working with the library was the great rapport that I established with the students there. Whether they were from mexico, Argentina or Peru, everyone shared one thing in common-a great sense of humor. I probably spent at least half of my time "tutoring" laughing my butt off at the jokes and funny expressions everyone made. One generalization that I can confidently make about Latinos without any worry of being offensive is that they definitely enjoy having a good time.
There are many things that I have learned from these people and many traits that I have come to admire profoundly. The first is the importance of family to their lives. Many of these individuals gave up nearly everything to come to the United States. Some left behind all of their money and belongings. Others left behind brothers, sisters and parents. Sadder yet, a few left behind husbands, wives and children. Despite the great distance that lies between them and their immediate families however, many have confided to me that they still are the central aspects in their lives. Many of these courageous people work long hours every week just to save up money so that they can send it back to loved ones in South America. Others take care to call their children every day at the same time to catch up on everything. The one thing they all have in common is that they intend to reunite at some point in the future-whether that be in Latin America or the States. One of the coolest things I have ever heard was when one of the men told me that he had a nine-year-old son who he hadn't seen in a year and a half. He said that he came to the U.S. to make money for his child so that he could go to school and get an education. Describing his son as his "dream," the man said that he intended to return to his home next year after he had saved up enough to ensure that his boy could become well-educated and have a better life than he had.
Overall, I have developed a deep admiration for the positive attitudes and perseverance that these people have displayed. Most have overcome all odds in the face of adversity. Most have sacrificed so much just to have the chance to live in our culture. I would highly recommend that every UGA student try to get involved with the members of the Latino community living in Athens through one organization like Pinewoods or another. I can say without any doubt that I have learned more valuable lessons working with these people than I have in most of my standard UGA courses.
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