It was Thursday that week and I did not feel connected with the kids quite yet. I was kinda disappointed, but I figured I wouldn’t have my moment with them. As a pull out activity that day, I was the one who was going to take the lead and do it, so I figured I might as well do a rap with them. Writing songs has always been a huge thing In my life, so I thought why not do something song oriented in the place where Bob Marley made music famous. I took a group of 14 kids out by the yard and I had them each give me a word and I was going to put those words into a rap. I did not expect much, but what happened was literally beyond me. The kids connected to me and they were laughing and having a blast seeing the things I came up with, and they got even more excited when they offered to help and I put their line in the song. When the rap was written out, one girl grabbed the paper and started rapping it with the other students! She was on fire, she had flow and she smiled so big when it was all over. When lunchtime arrived, she could not wait to share it with all her friends, my song was being sung, or in this case rapped, all over the schoolyard. It was the best moment of the trip, it felt so good that this rap went over so well.

The next day, this same little girl came up to me and sang to me a song that she wrote for me! She was telling me how much she loved me and how I helped her. I could not hide the smile on my face, I felt so much joy and I do wish I could have taken her home with me. I will never forget that 11 year old that captured my heart in Jamaica with an infectious thing called music.