Day 5 visit with Maruge......Last day

Today I woke up at 5:30 am to watch the sunrise. It couldn't have been better. It was so pretty. Once again, I sat under my tree in the field. Shortly after arriving, Maruge came and sat with me.  He had his coffee and brought me a glass of water. We sat until around 7:45 am. My plane was taking off at 12:00 noon. We went inside and he told me I had to find something to do while he made breakfast. As I sat and wrote and thought and hung out with his animals, the smell that lingered out of his kitchen was delicious. He came out and rang the bell as if it were lunch time at school.  I walked into the kitchen and he had candles and a delicious breakfast on the table and something that looked like a present. I told him I wouldn't take it, but he insisted. He said it wasn't anything big, just a token of his appreciation. I thanked him and chowed down on my delicious breakfast.

After breakfast he told me it was time for me to open my present. So, I unwrapped it and there sat a letter and something else underneath. I unfolded the letter and was very impressed with his handwriting. He said, "I worked on it all class time." I felt like crying.  It meant so much to me that he took his time and wrote to me. The note said many things, but the thing that caught my attention was how grateful he was that I asked him about his family. He said I took a huge weight off his back, he felt okay sharing it all with me and that it felt so good to open up about it all. He said that I was the only person he has shared about his family with, I am so honored and feel so happy about the opportunity to learn more about him. He is so humble like I said before, he is a ball of yarn -  hard to figure out where to start, but it just unravels from there on out.

I knew that I was going to have to get in a van soon and head home, but there were a couple things I needed to accomplish, I needed to say goodbye to the kids and a good long goodbye to Maruge. So, we headed to the school and I said goodbye to every kid.  I gave each of them a hug and by the end I was crying. The kids were really looking at me with their young eyes and giving me hugs, it was so hard not to sob and break down. Some kids you can see right through and know their stories, others you feel as if there is a barrier that you haven't broken through yet. Saying goodbye to these kids was tough.

Realizing how long it took to say goodbye was crazy, but I had to sadly rush my goodbye with Maruge. The goodbye was still thoughtful and wonderful. Then, I had to get on the plane and head on home. As I got on the plane everything hit me - what I experienced, saw, felt - everything I saw came back to me. All the moments good and bad, inspiring and depressing, were with me. Maruge sat and waited and once the plane took off he waved and headed to his home.

Maruge is a soft spoken and gracious man. He doesn't have all that much to say, but when he does it is very meaningful. The simplest things make him so happy. We take many things for granted, for Maruge he is thankful for almost everything. I would not trade meeting Maruge and learning about him for anything. I grew as a person so much from this experience. He showed me that everyday is what you make of it. You have to make a choice everyday to be happy, it is your choice! He showed me to take nothing for granted, let people be unhappy and just worry about yourself. You are your own person, don't let people bring you down. Just stand up for who you are and live and breathe happiness.

I took so many things for granted that I will appreciate now, and realize how special they are. You can grow so much from one person setting you on a different path. Maruge set me on a happy trail, where I focus more on me and my happiness. People will tell you that you can't, but you just have to look at them in the face, trust yourself, and say watch me. Prove the people wrong who don't believe in you and cherish the people who do. Don't waste your time on the little things, life is meant to be enjoyed.

I thank Maruge for teaching me so many wonderful new lessons that would have taken a lot longer to figure out. I cherished every word he said, because I know he has so much wisdom. Personally I love quotes and I could take so many quotes from Maruge!

Thank you so much Maruge!!!