Thursday, October 13, 2011

Into the Wild (2)

The kids are back from the wild.  Covered in mud and completely exhausted though, they are all full of joy and pride.

The parents, lining up in front of the main gate and welcoming them as if they are soldiers returning from a war, are more happy and proud.  You may think we are over-reacting.  But if you are in Hong Kong you should know the weather that we are now having.  Wind, rain, lots of wind and more rain.  In the last few days, the kids hiked with their gears in downpour and spent their night in the open with nothing but a plastic sheet over their heads and another plastic sheet beneath their sleeping beds.  They were cold and wet but their spirits remained high.  The kids from an ESF school left after the first night (and they got tents!).  So did the kids from Guangzhou.  But the ISF kids marched on, faced the rain, ate their soaked bread, took care of each other, looked for the right branches to make their rain shelters...

"I feel for the refugees", "Four walls and a roof are so precious", "My legs shook uncontrollably when I reached the camp site", "I was so happy to have reached the top of the mountain. It's beyond words", "Sai Kung looks even more beautiful in rain", "The raft broke in the sea", the kids just can't wait to share their experiences.

"They have grown so much in just a few days. You have to see it to believe it", a teacher who went with them said.

A big thank you to the teachers and trainers from Outward Bound.

2 comments:

Gweipo said...

sounds like it was a wonderful experience... I hope they'll have more of them and also let the younger kids experience this type of thing too.

W said...

Hi Gweipo, it's something that the kids are going to remember. The little girl collapsed in bed and fell asleep in 2 seconds. Luckily the school has promised an easy and fun day for them tomorrow.

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