LLACHAPA
18
'Hearing Roldan talk about the love he has for his community was infectious, and his passion was impossible to miss".
SPECIAL OPPORTUNITY TO VISIT ROLDAN's SECOND HOME
We visited Llachapa on our sixth day in Peru, and it was truly an incredible experience. This village was especially meaningful for us to be welcomed into, because our mentor, Roldan, and his family lived there for about three years during the pandemic. So many of these villages have left a deep impression on us over the past week, but this one in particular showed us that home isn’t just about a place—it’s about the love and emotion tied to it. Hearing Roldan talk about the love he has for his community was infectious, and his passion was impossible to miss. He put so much of himself into what he created in Llachapa, and we could see that the moment we stepped off the boat. Roldan didn’t grow up in this village, but as he told us, Llachapa is where his heart and soul live. He and his family never planned to live there long term, but sometimes it is in the unexpected challenges that life throws at you where you find yourself. Through him, I learned what it truly means to be home. Roldan created a life for his family with what he had and did everything he could to make it and the lives of those around him better. Being fortunate enough to learn about Roldan and his past while visiting Llchapa made our time there mean so much more. The stories attached to the places we go are what give those places life. It’s not about what we have, but what we make of it. As we adjust back to life in Michigan, we hope to bring with us the perseverance, dedication, kindness, trust, and joy we experienced in the Amazon, using them to create a sense of home wherever we go, just like Roldan did for us. Family and community are what you make of them, and Roldan showed us that in a world full of things you can’t control, that’s one thing you can.
We visited Llachapa on our sixth day in Peru, and it was truly an incredible experience. This village was especially meaningful for us to be welcomed into, because our mentor, Roldan, and his family lived there for about three years during the pandemic. So many of these villages have left a deep impression on us over the past week, but this one in particular showed us that home isn’t just about a place—it’s about the love and emotion tied to it. Hearing Roldan talk about the love he has for his community was infectious, and his passion was impossible to miss. He put so much of himself into what he created in Llachapa, and we could see that the moment we stepped off the boat. Roldan didn’t grow up in this village, but as he told us, Llachapa is where his heart and soul live. He and his family never planned to live there long term, but sometimes it is in the unexpected challenges that life throws at you where you find yourself. Through him, I learned what it truly means to be home. Roldan created a life for his family with what he had and did everything he could to make it and the lives of those around him better. Being fortunate enough to learn about Roldan and his past while visiting Llchapa made our time there mean so much more. The stories attached to the places we go are what give those places life. It’s not about what we have, but what we make of it. As we adjust back to life in Michigan, we hope to bring with us the perseverance, dedication, kindness, trust, and joy we experienced in the Amazon, using them to create a sense of home wherever we go, just like Roldan did for us. Family and community are what you make of them, and Roldan showed us that in a world full of things you can’t control, that’s one thing you can.
by EVA DROLET