Life as an ETA will often mean making more friends in a day than you can count using both your fingers and toes! Although it’s been more than six months since arriving at his host city, ETA Alexander Lopez-Perez was given a kind reminder of this when he participated in a Friendship Day hosted by SMA Xaverius’s student organization OMK (Orang Muda Katolik).

Inviting OMKs and youth groups from sister organizations in Payakumbuh, Batusangkar, Padang Panjang, Padang, and a few other towns, Bukittinggi’s Catholic youth group hosted this year’s gathering, and invited Alexander to speak and perform at the event.

Although Alexander had been a part of the planning committee since he started attending Sunday meetings in the past year, he was not expecting to host an activity slot all on his own. Nonetheless, there was more than enough stories to draw from and insights from the day’s team-building activities and ice-breakers for Alexander to give a thoughtful speech on the meaning of “belonging.”

As an American living in a community far from home, Alex, sure enough, inspired the audience to reconnect with old friends, reach out to those we appreciate but don’t often share that understanding with, and making at least one friend from social groups we may be unfamiliar with. Truly, whatever the definite meaning of friendship is—Alexander can be sure he found it somewhere that day.

Alexander Lopez-Perez is currently teaching at MAN 2 Bukittinggi, West Sumatra