I didn’t want to leave Texas this past spring break.

I went to San Juan, Texas over the break to help refugees coming from Central and South America with Huskie Alternative Breaks. Well, our hotel was in San Juan but we volunteered at Sacred Heart Church in McAllen, Texas, where the other volunteers picked up the refugees and brought them there.

Our site leader told us about her experience with the trip last year, but I still didn’t know what to expect when I actually got there. We started with volunteer service on Sunday when we got there after a 24-hour car ride. We were all pretty tired, but we were still willing to help.

There weren’t a lot of refugees to come because of the fear of not being wanted and accepted in the U.S. because of President Donald Trump. Our service included getting them toiletries, clean clothes, showers and food. I started off serving food. I noticed that some of them didn’t really eat. I can’t imagine what they went through before they got to the center, but our site leader told us a few of their stories.

One man had lived in the U.S. for years but he and his wife separated and he went on a road trip with his friend to Texas. He didn’t have any documentation, and he didn’t realize that he wouldn’t be able to get out of Texas because he would have to pass through checkpoints. So, he was stuck at the church. Another man was almost killed by a coyote, a person who takes people from Latin America to the U.S. for a fee, because he couldn’t pay the fee.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to talk to them because I don’t know Spanish. I had to rely on my fellow group members to translate so I could know what was being said. The language barrier really bothered me but I started to feel better after my site leader told me to say, “Quieres mas?” to ask them if they wanted more food. It worked! They understood what I said, but then they said something else that I didn’t understand, so I just smiled awkwardly and took their plates. They said they didn’t want any more food, by the way.

During our time there, we met a man and his daughter. My site leader translated as the man talked. He was saying that we have a good heart for wanting to help and that we are all human. This really warmed my heart because this is something that I’ve been saying for years.

We are all human. There aren’t any “different races,” but there are different ethnicities and cultures. The greatest lie told in history was that there are “different races” of people and that they are not the same at all. This lie was told so that a group of people could convince another group of people that they are inferior because they are of “another race” and the other group is superior. This was the only way for such an abhorrent ideology to grow and fester into the way we perceive people today. “Race” is socially constructed, which means someone made it up. We have our differences, but if you pay attention, you can see the obvious similarities in our differences. Like some of us have kinky, curly hair and others have straight hair, but hey, we all … have… hair! We have different skin tones but we all have skin, people! These are some of the obvious similarities in our differences, and there are many more.

I was so glad that they wanted to hug us and that we were able to make them smile. I hope they all get the required documentation that they need and that they make it to their destinations safe and sound. These people were so nice, and I just hope for the best with their situations.

On Friday, we got to have a fun day. We went to San Antonio to go to the River Walk and ride a tour boat on the San Antonio River. We also went to a Mexican market in the area. We had a lot of fun during this trip.

I think it’s amazing that seven strangers can all come together for one cause and find friendship and bonds along the way. It was great to help people, and it was nice to be in good company. I wish I didn’t have to leave Texas, but I have to get on with my boring college life.

So, that was my spring break. How was yours?