African Time: Days 4-6

I am really sorry I do not have any pictures to update you all with! A) I do not have a cord to attach my camera to my computer here in Kayonza, and B) Our headmaster asked that we do not take pictures until the last week so that kids do not associate us with having their pictures taken and it be a distraction. I LOVE YOU ALL! In His Grip, Ali

February 23, 2012: Practicum Day 4

6:15 wake up has become routine. This morning, we came out and ran towards Tanzania. Again, it was a nice 30 minute run. At 8:00, we reported to the headmaster’s office to see what he wanted us to do for the day because students have midterms all day. He explained that Kelli and I would be writing a water project for Africa New Life in Kageyo. Kageyo is a rural area that has a population of over 3,000 people, many who are refugees returning from Tanzania. In this area, we were told that their only source of water comes from a dam shared with domestic animals. The proposal that we are writing is aimed to be presented and carried out. He told us that Living Water International will drill the hold in the school and then the school must raise the money to get pumps so that the water can be distributed to buildings across the school campus. If our proposal is successful, we will have helped get hundreds of people clearn and essentially improve their quality of life. This is a HUGE project. We were told that our proposal and such will be posted and available for people to see on the ANL webpage with our name attached to it. This is an incredible opportunity, but it is also very difficult because a) I have never written a proposal for such a thing, b) I am not well informed regarding water projects, and c) When Africans tell you something, they give you pieces, but do not give you the clear task. As we have begun, we have laid out that we will first present the background on both Kageyo and the school, then we will present our mission, some problems in Kageyo (sickness), objectives (along with prices), the community contribution, the impact the well will have on the school and community, the upkeep, and then a conclusion. Headmaster expressed that it is hope to not only have the well benefit the students, but also the community. We have not yet come up with a name for our water project, but we are trying to come up with something catchy. We got a good chunk of the work done today, but we still have a lot of work to do. We want our proposal to be professional and have the chance to succeed.

After working, we went to lunch (rice, beans and potatoes), and then we had teacher devotions from 2-4:30. Every Thursday afternoon, we have teacher devotions and the students do not have class. After devotions, Kelli and I worked on our water project some more before going to dinner. After dinner, we took some time to update our journals and read before heading to bed.

During teacher devotions, our topic of discussion was, “What is offense?” Offense is the act of causing anger or hurt feelings; something that causes sin or wrong doing. The devil uses offense to divide the body of Christ. In 1 John 4:16, it states, “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” We have been created in God’s image to love Him, love others and love ourselves. Offense is not part of that. God is LOVE! We must realize that the devil never rests. He wants to divide people so that we cannot work towards furthering God’s Kingdom. The scariest part about all of that is that He often uses the people close to us. We must not give in! The first 5 verses of Luke 17 can be broken down to describe this idea of offense. The first part of verse one is speaking to the Christian saying, “Temptation to sin is sure to come.” As we continue on to the second part of verse 1, we see the word “woe” used. “Woe” can be defined as: grief, affliction, misery, sorrow, trouble. Those feelings are used to speak to the offender. If the offender intentionally makes another sin, he will feel sorrow and trouble. Lastly, verse 3 speaks to the offended. It says, “If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he sins against you 7 times in the day and turns to you 7 times saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him. Not only are we called to forgive those who forsake us, but we are called to REBUKE our brothers. We need to sharpen those around us so that they can be the best versions of themselves.

I think it is such a cool thing that teachers spend time in devotions together on a weekly basis, praising the Lord, thanking Him, and praying for their students. I am excited to be a part of it for the next 3 weeks.

So as the week has been going on, I have gotten less and less excited about the teaching part of being here. Not only is it intimidating to be teaching 4 sections of 50+ students, it is also stressful that everyone thinks I know what I am doing. They do not understand that I am not a teacher yet and I am still in training. I don’t know if I am not excited because of how challenging it will be or what. Just recently I have decided to pursue a Human Development and Family Sciences Minor (HDFS) in hopes of becoming a Child Life Specialist (CLS). I do not have a passion to simply teach. That being said, I know that God has me here and in the classroom for a reason. I know that He will use this experience to show me what He wants me to do with my life and that excites me. It is my prayer that I can approach each day with an excited attitude and a spirit of learning and growing.

BANANAS ARE THE HILIGHT OF OUR DAY! We realized today how excited we get about having a banana at the end of every meal. We take them back to our room and put peanut butter on them for desert. The simplicity of life here is refreshing and it is fun to see the little things exciting us J

I FOUND THE COOLEST VERSE!!!!! ROMANS 5:2-5…”THROUGH HIM WE HAVE ALSO OBTAINED AVVESS BY FAITH INTO THIS GRACE IN WHICH WE STAND, AND WE REJOICE IN HOPE OF THE GLORY OF GOD. MORE THAN THAT, WE REJOICE IN OUR SUFFERING, KNOWING THAT SUFFERING PRODUCES ENDURANCE, AND ENDURANCE PRODUCES CHARACTER, AND CHARACTER PRODUCES HOPE, AND HOPE DOES NOT PUT US TO SHAME, BECAUSE GOD’S LOVE HAS BEEN POURED INTO OUR HEARTS THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT WHAT HAS BEEN GIVEN TO US.”

February 24, 2012: Practicum Day 5

6:30 Run. Report to work 8:00am. We began our day by working on the water project that we were assigned yesterday. As we worked on it, we found ourselves troubled by some of the details like finances and companies regarding water wells. We called Dwight (Our Community Development Professor) and spoke to Nathan (the man that does water development for Procom). Nathan had some good insight for us and was kind enough to read our proposal and answer some questions that we sent him over email. After working for a while, we spoke to Richard and the students that he brought with him to speak with the Senior 4 students about SAT prep. Kevin was up in Kayonza today for his practicum so we got the chance to talk to him for a bit and he came bearing food!!! After meeting with Kevin, Kelli and I went to lunch where we spoke with Pastor Fred, who was the man to organize our Practicum with Grace (the continent director for Go-Ed). Talking to him made me realize how disorganized our practicum has been thus far. It also made me realize that we just had to tell them what we want to do and that is how organization is going to take place. I have found it frustrating to work without a schedule and without knowing what is expected of me. After lunch, Kelli and I worked on the water project some more. When speaking to Nathan and Pastor Fred, we were informed that the place where our water project is being created for already has water pumps. Hearing this, we are now confused about the accuracy of our project. We then spoke with headmaster John to get some of the details, and he clarified that the project is not for Kageyo as a whole as he made it seem, but it is just for the school and the small surrounding area. After working on our project for the majority of the afternoon, Kelli and I met with to try and get our schedule figured out. I also spoke with Rita to see what she expected of me for Monday. She gave me the Skims (Curriculum) for P3 and P4 English Term 1, 2012. I WAS SO OVERWHELMED! To this point, we still have not observed a normal classroom session because the teachers have been reviewing for exams. Because of this, I will be observing on Monday and then I will take over on Tuesday. Meeting with Rita and asking her questions about what information to teach the class based on her Skims was not helpful, I will be teaching the P3 class numbers so I wanted to know how extensive that was supposed to go. Does she want the students to learn the words and the numbers as well as words such as first, second, third, etc. She responded, “Whatever.” Like I have been saying since I got here, this whole teaching thing is going to be completely trial and error. After talking with Rita, I sat In Moses’ office and spoke with some other teachers for a while. They spent the hour asking me questions about America. When they ask questions, I also learn a lot about the African culture. There are so many cultural difference that I would not even pick up on without them asking. For example, they were asking about marriage. I did not realize that marriage contracts/license were not common. They had no clue what I was talking about.

Around 5, Kelli and I met with Charles, the man in charge of Sponsorship. Part of what I really what to do while I am here at Africa New Life is get involved with the Sponsorship process and explore the field of Social Work. During this meeting, we decided that instead of teaching 2 levels in the classroom, I will just teach P3 English and then I will spend the rest of my time working in sponsorship. I will edit letters, work on children’s files, visit homes to collect information, and work with counseling on some Saturdays. Before talking to Charles, I was not very excited about starting work on Monday, but now I cannot wait! I am excited to be in the classroom and explore that side of things, but also spend time in sponsorship. I know that God wants to challenge me in the classroom, but also enjoy this experience.

After these meetings, we talked with Belis, Daniel, Flower, Christine, Dorkis, and some more of the older kids. We then went back to our room to watch the Hannah Montana Movie. The number of people watching quickly grew, so we moved out into our living room where the couches are. The girls had to leave and within 5 minutes, we were watching THE HANNAH MONTANA MOVIE with 22 middle school boys. They absolutely loved it and that put a smile on my face J Our boys are so sweet.

After the first week of being here at New Life Christian Academy, it is my prayer that I allow God to work in my life based on the plans he has for me and not based on my own. “Thy word is a lamp on to my feet, and a light onto my path.”

February 25, 2012: Practicum Day 6

This morning, I got up at 6:45am and did some ab ripper before going to meet Daniel for breakfast at 8. We had Africa tea, a muffin (which are NOTHING like Aidah’s) and bananas. Around 9, we headed out to help with Umuganda Day. This is a holy day all across Rwanda and it takes place the last Saturday of every month. Last week we were out at the farm for it, but this week, we went to help work on the sector building. We started by moving bricks from one pile to a pile closer to the new building they were constructing. The sector building they currently have is not big enough so they are constructing a larger one right beside the old one. After moving bricks, we made an assembly line with some of the Rwandans and we passed bricks down the line to rooms further from the pile. They were using the bricks to lay the floor of the building. The sector that we were helping in is called Mukarange.

Helping with Umuganda Day is actually very refreshing. When you go out onto the streets of the town, you see no one because everyone is out doing community work. We wouldn’t find a day such as this in America; a day when every citizen is helping out around the town. I think it is a beautiful thing and it truly reflects the personality of Rwanda. The people of Rwandan are very warm, welcoming, and community oriented. They will drop what they are doing to help a neighbor.

After helping with Umuganda Day, Kelli and I went back to our room and relaxed for an hour or so. I blogged and then we began to write P4 science lesson plans for Kelli’s class on Monday, We were told to report for lunch at 12 promptly, so we did. Well 12:30 rolled around and then1, but still no lunch. As we waited, we played some Simon Says, and Duck, Duck, Goose with some of the younger children that were hanging around us. We finally ate lunch and then planned to go on a tour around Kayonza with Daniel (also called Emma), Belis and Christine. We had planned to leave for the tour around 12:5, but again, that did not happen. We left around 2:30. Africa Time. We truly are getting a sense what Africa Time means. It is very hard for me to be patient because I always have things I need to accomplish such as lesson plans, journaling, blogging, reading for Literature Class, or spending time with God. The American way is, “I have things to be doing. I can’t just wait around.” I continue to reflect back and realize that God is trying to teach me that time is irrelevant. The things that need to get done always get done and I place too much importance on time and having to get things done. God is teaching me to enjoy and embrace the relationships that are placed in front of me while I am here.

On our tour, we walked down through town and 1^st met Christine’s mom who has a shop located very close to school. We continued walking and went past the market, which is only fully open 2 days a week. Then, we visited the public primary/secondary school and 2 vocational schools. The vocational schools are for kids who finish secondary school and can’t get jobs. They are very similar to US vocational schools as far as the concept of preparing children with the skills to get jobs. At one of the vocational schools, there was a volleyball match between 2 different schools taking place. The fans from both teams lined opposite sides of the court. They had African Drums and would carry on and sing when their team scored a point. The court was dirt, with a regulation net, and both teams had uniforms. Many of the students played in high-top chucks which was humorous. After visiting all the schools, we visited the hospital in Kayonza. As we toured around, we saw where women give birth. There is a waiting room, a delivery room, and a recovery room; patients move through rather promptly. We then saw the rooms where sick women and sick children stay. There were no children in the children’s room, but there were women in the women’s room. Many of the women had IV’s in and looked miserable. I would have loved to sit and talk to them, but I just offered a smile and a wave and I received a smile and wave in return. That completed our tour of Kayonza for the day. Before heading back, we bought 3 boxes of water which only cost 3600 franc a piece which was nice! When we got back, the girls watched the Hannah Montana movie because they had to leave early last night, Touch (a boy from our house) was on my iPod, and Emma used my computer.

I am starting to get a little frustrated that they feel like they need to always have plans for us. I appreciate their amazing hospitality, but it does not leave much time for us to reflect and relax by ourselves. Either the students or teachers tell us when to be at dinner or when to go out to town. I love being here and having a more “African Experience” than in Kigali, but I would also love the opportunity to explore on my own. Everyone knows where our room is so even when we are in our room, we have to expect that someone will come knocking on our door to come into our room. Because we live at work, we do not have anywhere to go and just be alone. All that being said, I am thankful that the people here are very nice and welcoming! This experience is definitely challenging but I am so blessed to be here!