Save a Life Please!

1 February 2011

Just like old times

I love children. It has been a while since I have worked with little ones. The babies at KMET were a delight. It was very difficult for them to tolerate a white face. At 9 months they don’t notice but by 16 months (right on time for stranger danger) they let out a howl. It didn’t matter a bit to me. I knew I could get them playing and interested.

There is no teaching for early childhood education. The 2 women who watch the little ones while the mothers (all young girls) continue their education at the center, have no training.  So this morning this crazy muzungu with her bucket of tricks arrives. (It was really a giant tub for water play). Quickly it was filled up and pans and spoons and cups were put in and blammo they were hooked. The tiniest ones got their own pots, but the 2 yr olds circled around and played until they were worn out.

There’s a really sharp little one named Audrey who clearly should be the leader in the classroom. That girl figured out how to pour from one cup to another, how to help another kid fill up his and then when I handed her a puzzle she kept at it till she got it right.

Audrey the Dynamo

The best part of this was teaching the teachers what to look for, how to develop creativity, and their realizing that creativity leads to better decisions and problem solving. Their eyes were aglow as they began to see things in the kids they didn’t know were there. They were hungry for more and more information. Zones for the classroom, what to do with a sand table, reading to the children before nap, they are delighted to do it and feel they are accomplishing something. How I wish I could stay for weeks and teach this to the ECD classes (Early Childhood Development). If only I didn’t have to work to pay for the OVAAT thing, I would be here for months at a time.

In the afternoon Monica and I visited the provincial hospital. It’s a death hole. People lie on filthy beds with I.V’s dripping from re-used bottles. There are no sheets on the beds and there are 10 people in a room. Flies buzz about and family members must take care of the sick. You cannot imagine it, and I could not photograph it for you. But in this great big world, with all we have this is wrong. It’s just wrong.  And then I had to remind myself I was only a raindrop. I couldn’t take on all the different problems I would have liked to solve. I guess I have to leave some for someone else.

But truly  people you need to donate to us to help KMET. Buy a tee shirt or just send us $10. Every penny is used for the programs. I get no salary and the Board works for free too. And so much can be done with so little. So let’s get going. Give what you can and save a life.
www.onevillageatatime.org. You can hit the donate button or go to Tiny Revolutionary to buy one of these tee shirts.