Counting on Success.

Urubamba, Peru – With Alison leading the count of “Uno, dos, treis…cuarenta y cuatro, cuarenta y cinco…ciento cincuenta y dos,” the numbers rose, as did buckets filled with rocks.

Throughout the day, several hundred more loads of water, cement mix or clay bricks were passed, fireman style, along a line and up to the roof of the Villa Marcello school, where Team Esperanza has begun construction on a second storey – under the watchful eyes of Salbatore and the Maestro.

At various points, you may have found John or Doris swinging a pickaxe, or Larissa and Cassandra F. using a heavy iron mallet to drive a spike into the roof. In the process, they were roughing up the concrete enough to ensure the new cement floor will stick better.

Or, you may have encountered the long line of buckets being passed between Nina, Ellie, Anisha, Sam and Cassandra C., to Douglas, standing atop a school desk, and up to Jessie and Vivek, perched over the edge of the school’s roof. Sunitha created a sport for those returning the empty buckets, setting up a tire as a basketball net.

Looking down toward the school's tarmac soccer field, you may have found Jared, Mike and Deanna, perfecting the mix of cement and sand, their shovels glinting in the bright sunlight. Baking on the roof, Kelly smoothed out the mortar holding the new bricks in place.

During recess, children from all grades flooded into the courtyard and Carling and Shannon quickly recruited them into games of Frisbee, futbol and duck-duck-goose. Canadians and Peruvians alike lit up, fun activities superseding linguistic challenges. A smile is a smile anywhere.

And these smiles melted our hearts.

Younger children played games in a circle and posed for pictures holding their hands in the shape of a Western ‘W’, while girls in skirts vigorously bumped a volleyball and a spontaneous game of ASB vs. all-comers erupted on the soccer pitch. Weaving around us with ease and passing balls through our legs toward an awaiting header by a teammate, they beat us to nearly every ball – despite wearing burgundy wool sweaters and slacks in the 30-degree heat.

The whole while, the verdant mountains loomed majestically around us. It’s really no wonder Peruvians have so long tied nature to the gods. In reflection, 'Optimistic' and 'Excited' were key words describing the outlook for tomorrow. After today's complete team effort that was both tremendously fun and rewarding, it's easy to see why.