My School Activity Experience

One morning, my school held a socialization session about Saint Mary’s Way. After the assembly, all ninth graders went to the hall to listen to the explanation of the activities. Even though the hall was quite noisy, I stayed focused because I was curious about what activities we could choose. When it was time to decide, I immediately chose the visit to Panti Cahaya Kasih because I wanted to meet the cute little children there.

After the groups were formed, we started planning the visit, preparing what we needed, and
dividing tasks. A few days later, my friends and I went to Borma to buy snacks that were safe and suitable for children. After that, we prepared the goodie bags, and imagining the kids’ happy faces made me even more excited.

However, a day before the visit, my mom told me that a family member in Surabaya had passed away. I had to go with my family, so I couldn’t join the activity. On the day of the visit, I could only watch the photos my friends sent. The children in the pictures looked happy—some were laughing, some shy, and some even crying. I felt glad for them but also disappointed that I couldn’t be there, even though I was still happy I helped buy the snacks.

When I returned to school, my friends shared their experiences. I felt a bit jealous, but soon the teachers asked us to make a Canva presentation for students, teachers, and parents. On presentation day, I was nervous, but everything went smoothly and I felt relieved afterward. I stayed to watch all the other groups’ presentations even though I eventually felt bored and tired from sitting too long.

A few days later, as a replacement for the main activity, my friends and I were assigned to visit a daycare in Santa Maria. The place felt calm, and the children welcomed us with their cute behavior. We played with them, helped them eat, and one child even stuck with me from start to finish. It was tiring but heartwarming, and I felt a surprising sense of peace while spending time with them.

We also ate meals there for three days, including nasi uduk, porridge, and nasi kuning. I saw Nico and Zevan helping prepare food, and the teachers were very patient while feeding the kids. Watching them made me realize that many children needed the teachers because their parents were busy working. It made me feel grateful that my own parents always try to be there for me.

At the end of the activity, I remembered a verse from 1 Thessalonians 5:18 about giving thanks in all circumstances, and I felt like it perfectly matched everything I had experienced—both the happy moments and the disappointing ones.