Casey surprised us with a great treat today: Texas sized donuts. We all cheered when she arrived carrying a box full of these breakfast miracles. Even though we were filling our stomachs with the chocolate goodness, everyone seemed a bit quieter today. We all knew in the back of our heads that we would have to say our goodbyes later. Soon after our morning meal, we jumped into Glenn’s taxi for a ride to the beach that we would be cleaning up. When we got there, the stench filled our nostrils. Dead plants and garbage don’t mix together well, especially after a morning of shoving donuts down our throat. The lot of us went around with trash bags and gloves picking up as much trash as we could. Between the 20 of us, we got the work done. Some pieces we so big that multiple Jesuit students had to carry them. I recall one rope that took about 10 guys to carry. It was about as think as my leg. After seeing all these challenges with cleaning, I think we all grew as men and brothers, which many of us, especially myself, needed. After a very selfless morning, we were rewarded with a full afternoon of free time. Many of us spent it on the beach just chilling and working on getting our horrible tan lines out. Again, even though many of us were cracking jokes, Marc especially, we were preparing to say goodbye. The relaxing afternoon came to an end when we boarded the taxi to head to dinner for our farewell dinner and presentation. This consisted of a buffet of chicken, ribs, fish, rice, salad, and free refills of lemonade and fruit punch. I think this was the only time we were quiet on the entire trip. We were so occupied with filling our stomachs, that we didn’t have time to converse with one another. Eventually our bellies were full and it was time for Casey to present the video she spent hours making. It had pictures and videos of the group from throughout the week. This involved embarrassing photos of Suarez, Marc, Brock, and anyone else who was caught off guard. After the fantastic movie, Casey said some very moving words to leave us with when we left. It brought her to tears. Doc did the same thing, again, bringing her to tears. Then one by one Bobby, John, and I stood up to say some last things to thank the staff for everything they did for us. It was a fantastic trip. I would do it again In a heartbeat.
