Digging in the earth and breathing in the fresh air
listening to the birds call on the wind
I squat and reach, breathe and relax.
I am in the moment
my senses alive with the natural world.
I find myself in love with the garden, creating a sense of place
A destination in my backyard, a source for joy, food and restoration
All from a patch of earth
I Breathe it all, my breath on the wind.
Monday, July 5, 2010
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Coming in for a landing...
Jambo Friends,
Today is Wednesday, March 3rd, this is my third day home. I am starting to land and my mind is clearing. Today I taught my first yoga class since being back and it felt great. The positive energy and warm feelings in the room made me feel strong. As I begin to settle, the intense feeling of how lucky we are to find ourselves in this land of opportunity begins to grow. I do find myself grateful and in a bit of awe at how much we have going for us. I had worried that I might find myself feeling guilty... indulging at Starbucks, getting my nails done. But instead, I find myself marveling at this beautiful life we have and share with each other. Why are we so lucky in this cosmic draw? Why is my spirit, my soul, located in this body and life with so many gifts? I am full of grattitude. I am happy and blessed to have so much. I am grateful to have been able to share a piece of myself with the Children I was with in Tanzania. And even more grateful for the time they shared with me.
I have enjoyed blogging, and I still have many more behind the scenes stories to tell and share. I believe this journey is not over but perhaps has just begun.
Today is Wednesday, March 3rd, this is my third day home. I am starting to land and my mind is clearing. Today I taught my first yoga class since being back and it felt great. The positive energy and warm feelings in the room made me feel strong. As I begin to settle, the intense feeling of how lucky we are to find ourselves in this land of opportunity begins to grow. I do find myself grateful and in a bit of awe at how much we have going for us. I had worried that I might find myself feeling guilty... indulging at Starbucks, getting my nails done. But instead, I find myself marveling at this beautiful life we have and share with each other. Why are we so lucky in this cosmic draw? Why is my spirit, my soul, located in this body and life with so many gifts? I am full of grattitude. I am happy and blessed to have so much. I am grateful to have been able to share a piece of myself with the Children I was with in Tanzania. And even more grateful for the time they shared with me.
I have enjoyed blogging, and I still have many more behind the scenes stories to tell and share. I believe this journey is not over but perhaps has just begun.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
My bags are packed and I am ready to go....
It is Saturday afternoon in Moshi. It is so hot as I type this my face is sweating. Snow sounds really nice about now, sweaters, boots, mittens, clean cold air. Starbucks, Chai Tea, organic anything, okay I am getting carried away. I am packed pretty much, and after my shower I will be just waiting until it is time to leave. This has been an incredible experience, but I am ready to go. There is a few of us, mostly the "older" group, that is leaving this weekend. The folks that arrived with us are sad that we are leaving, the teen crowd does not care, but the over 24 crowd now is feeling out numbered by the kids and they say they are homesick. My partner Ali, feel sick today, it seems there are few who get by not getting sick. I consider myself very lucky. I stuck with my moderation, and "don't make a mistake philosophy" and it seems to have worked. I just need to make it through the next 30 hours or so and I will be home!
I will be sharing some more behind the scenes stories as we chat and I willl do more postings as I digest the past 3 weeks. I feel like it will take a year or a book to say and share all that there is to say. Thanks for your thoughts and support through all of this, for reading my blog and sending me your positive energy. I look forward to re-connecting with all of you and I hope to see you all soon! Let's do some Yoga!
Peace,
Kat
I will be sharing some more behind the scenes stories as we chat and I willl do more postings as I digest the past 3 weeks. I feel like it will take a year or a book to say and share all that there is to say. Thanks for your thoughts and support through all of this, for reading my blog and sending me your positive energy. I look forward to re-connecting with all of you and I hope to see you all soon! Let's do some Yoga!
Peace,
Kat
Friday, February 26, 2010
Last day of school for me..
Today was my last day at the school. It is also a Muslim holy day, so we only had about 25 kids. We did our usual stuff and then we started working on numbers. The classroom has many different levels in it. Some can do math problems while others can't wrte there numbers at all. The group who can do addition were very excited about it. I walked around and gave them easy addition problems and then either they would come back with there copy books saying "Teacher, Teacher" or I would stop by to see there progress. Several of them did really well. It is like they learn to spite the fact that every few weeks they get an inexperienced teacher thrown at them. Hawa their TZ teacher, has only had 6 months of training and has limited teaching skills, although I do think she has learned from us. Often CCS will send young 20 somethings or even 18/19 year olds, and from what they have written about the placement are completly over whelmed. Mama Grace did tell me that I was not a typical volunteer, that many are college kids and inexperienced. What we really need is a Teach the Teacher program, so that the permanet teacher can gain the skills to handle the classroom and then volunteers are there to help rather than run the class.
When it was time to leave it was sad and I did get misty at La La time and when I said good bye. I am very proud of all of us, as a group we all learned from each other. After the children left I gave Hawa the first aid kit I had brought from home. I showed her the wipes and the bandages, so she would know how to use it. We also left her with any paper we had, crayons and a few other things. She started to really cry, and put her head down on the desk, crying. It was an unusual emotional display and we hugged and said goodbye.
She does not have email or internet access so I guess I will have to use the mail to stay in touch. Which they say in Motown (Moshi) is very unreliable....we will have to see what the Universe has in store for us.
When it was time to leave it was sad and I did get misty at La La time and when I said good bye. I am very proud of all of us, as a group we all learned from each other. After the children left I gave Hawa the first aid kit I had brought from home. I showed her the wipes and the bandages, so she would know how to use it. We also left her with any paper we had, crayons and a few other things. She started to really cry, and put her head down on the desk, crying. It was an unusual emotional display and we hugged and said goodbye.
She does not have email or internet access so I guess I will have to use the mail to stay in touch. Which they say in Motown (Moshi) is very unreliable....we will have to see what the Universe has in store for us.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Another day in Motown
Today I was at the school without Ali. Ali went to Arusha to observe the Rwanda Genocide Trials which are being held here in Tanzania by the UN. She is going to law school in the fall and she was very excited to go. I was a little worried about handling the children without her but I was confident we would get through the morning.
When I arrived I spotted Fatuna, our injured girl, her eyes were bright and she was smiling. I told her I was happy to see she was feeling better. These kids are made of tuff stock. It is litterly survival of the fittest. No time to be a baby in Africa, grow up and survive.
We purchased copy books in town for .15 cents each. They are worth about 15 cents, but that is all they have, flimsy little paper books. The children were delighted! They cheered! Their old books were completely full, and it always took some time to find a corner to write on. Hawa inscribed the children's names on the books and then they practiced writing their names. Several of the older children can write their names well, and they were all proud of the new books. Today I needed to take the new pencils away from 2 children. They happened to be the 2 brightest kids in the class. The reaction was amazing. They were humiliated and both had their heads down. Now remember just a week ago, chewing on your pencil w as the thing to do. Now it was embarrassing. After a brief time, I gave them both back a nice pencil and we moved on. It probably is such a habit for them it is hard to break. I am happy to see that they care now.
I kept the pace going in class and the children were very good! Ali had given me a jump rope, and as expected it turned into an Olympic jump rope contest. Hawa was turning that rope so fast I could not believe it! These kids rock!
We had a nice day and I took some movies of them in the yard. Tomorrow is my last day and I leave on Saturday,
When I arrived I spotted Fatuna, our injured girl, her eyes were bright and she was smiling. I told her I was happy to see she was feeling better. These kids are made of tuff stock. It is litterly survival of the fittest. No time to be a baby in Africa, grow up and survive.
We purchased copy books in town for .15 cents each. They are worth about 15 cents, but that is all they have, flimsy little paper books. The children were delighted! They cheered! Their old books were completely full, and it always took some time to find a corner to write on. Hawa inscribed the children's names on the books and then they practiced writing their names. Several of the older children can write their names well, and they were all proud of the new books. Today I needed to take the new pencils away from 2 children. They happened to be the 2 brightest kids in the class. The reaction was amazing. They were humiliated and both had their heads down. Now remember just a week ago, chewing on your pencil w as the thing to do. Now it was embarrassing. After a brief time, I gave them both back a nice pencil and we moved on. It probably is such a habit for them it is hard to break. I am happy to see that they care now.
I kept the pace going in class and the children were very good! Ali had given me a jump rope, and as expected it turned into an Olympic jump rope contest. Hawa was turning that rope so fast I could not believe it! These kids rock!
We had a nice day and I took some movies of them in the yard. Tomorrow is my last day and I leave on Saturday,
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Pencil Police,Putting out fires and EMTS…..
Tuesday we hand out new pencils from a recycled Bottle bottom which I have labled with stick on letters “Pencils”. This might be the nicest thing in the room. I tell them the rules, if you put the pencil in your mouth I will take it and you will get a chewed up pencil. Hawa translates and the seem to understand. Suddenly, I find I am the pencil police and within 5 mins. I have confiscated about 6 pencils. That seems to do the trick no need to take anymore for the rest of the day.
In Tanzania, atleast where we are, the people burn their trash. They burn it wherever and whenever. There is smoke and a stench in the hot steamy air. The air quality is awful. For some reason, today at school, someone started one of these trash fires directly in front of the school beneath the window. Within minutes the room was full of smoke. My black T-shirt had soot and ash all over it. The children were starting to cough and Ali was beginning to freak out. She took charge and went outside and with one of the TZ teachers threw dirt and water from our water bottle to put the fire out. It was one of those surreal moments. This is Africa. This is harsh. This is third world.
Remember the Hole?
Early on I told you about the cavernous hole in the play yard, there is a picture of it on the blog. Well today one of our students fell in the hole. She cut her head severly and was pulled out covered in blood. Hawa rinsed her off with water. I kept saying someone get her Mama, this is a neighborhood school, she can't be too far. There is alot of running around but not alot of assistance to the child. So I ask for some ice and bandages. The small shop next door sells ice pops so they give me one and I take the childs bloody shirt and do my VERY best to avoid touching anything ( and I do avoid touching anything) and hold the ice in the shirt to this poor baby's head. It is so hard to stay calm, but I know that I must. The girl is quiet which concerns me more than if she was crying, I keep asking Hawa to ask her if she is okay,,,, does the ice help? Do they have bandages? Antiseptic? Shortly we have a crowd of neighborhood women, lots of talking but no action. Where is her Mama? A new tattered dress appears for her and we take off her bloody uniform and put on her dress, I zip her up. Meanwhile the children press in closer all watching. Where is her Mama? After holding the ice for about 10 mins, the bleeding has stoped. It is a nasty gash. I ask for a rag, a scarf, something to tie around her forhead. Hawa appears with a dish cloth ( they use as hankies) and I roll it bandana style to make it as long as possible. It is not long enough to tie, so one of the women tucks it behind her ears. I tell Hawa the child needs to go home, and again I ask where is her Mama? She tells me that she was one of the women that was here earlier. I am confused by this... nobody but me and Hawa was taking care of this child. Her mother never came over to us. I insist that she must go home and get some treatment.
Hawa takes her litterly next door, which is home... but then decides to take her down the road to the Clinic. Ali and Hawa take her down the road where she receives an antiseptic and a bandage. Ali later tells me how crude this "clinic" is, we are just grateful she received some type of treatment.
During all of the mayhem we did learn that another child had fallen in the hole the day before. Her Mama showed us her injury which was a huge scrape and bump on the back of her 3 year old head. When we were picked up we had one of the local volunteers come and see the hole and we found out who was responsible for the land. We also discussed the incident with our mgt. at homebase, and we are all doing what we can to get the hole fixed.
While Ali and Hawa were at the clinic I calmed the children down with La La and a story. We then learned about plants and planted some beans in pots we made from recycled water bottles.
Today was the toughest day so far.
In Tanzania, atleast where we are, the people burn their trash. They burn it wherever and whenever. There is smoke and a stench in the hot steamy air. The air quality is awful. For some reason, today at school, someone started one of these trash fires directly in front of the school beneath the window. Within minutes the room was full of smoke. My black T-shirt had soot and ash all over it. The children were starting to cough and Ali was beginning to freak out. She took charge and went outside and with one of the TZ teachers threw dirt and water from our water bottle to put the fire out. It was one of those surreal moments. This is Africa. This is harsh. This is third world.
Remember the Hole?
Early on I told you about the cavernous hole in the play yard, there is a picture of it on the blog. Well today one of our students fell in the hole. She cut her head severly and was pulled out covered in blood. Hawa rinsed her off with water. I kept saying someone get her Mama, this is a neighborhood school, she can't be too far. There is alot of running around but not alot of assistance to the child. So I ask for some ice and bandages. The small shop next door sells ice pops so they give me one and I take the childs bloody shirt and do my VERY best to avoid touching anything ( and I do avoid touching anything) and hold the ice in the shirt to this poor baby's head. It is so hard to stay calm, but I know that I must. The girl is quiet which concerns me more than if she was crying, I keep asking Hawa to ask her if she is okay,,,, does the ice help? Do they have bandages? Antiseptic? Shortly we have a crowd of neighborhood women, lots of talking but no action. Where is her Mama? A new tattered dress appears for her and we take off her bloody uniform and put on her dress, I zip her up. Meanwhile the children press in closer all watching. Where is her Mama? After holding the ice for about 10 mins, the bleeding has stoped. It is a nasty gash. I ask for a rag, a scarf, something to tie around her forhead. Hawa appears with a dish cloth ( they use as hankies) and I roll it bandana style to make it as long as possible. It is not long enough to tie, so one of the women tucks it behind her ears. I tell Hawa the child needs to go home, and again I ask where is her Mama? She tells me that she was one of the women that was here earlier. I am confused by this... nobody but me and Hawa was taking care of this child. Her mother never came over to us. I insist that she must go home and get some treatment.
Hawa takes her litterly next door, which is home... but then decides to take her down the road to the Clinic. Ali and Hawa take her down the road where she receives an antiseptic and a bandage. Ali later tells me how crude this "clinic" is, we are just grateful she received some type of treatment.
During all of the mayhem we did learn that another child had fallen in the hole the day before. Her Mama showed us her injury which was a huge scrape and bump on the back of her 3 year old head. When we were picked up we had one of the local volunteers come and see the hole and we found out who was responsible for the land. We also discussed the incident with our mgt. at homebase, and we are all doing what we can to get the hole fixed.
While Ali and Hawa were at the clinic I calmed the children down with La La and a story. We then learned about plants and planted some beans in pots we made from recycled water bottles.
Today was the toughest day so far.
Week 3...
Week 3
Monday morning and back to work. The children behave fairly well today. They listen and their manners are improving. When we hand out the pencils we are thanked loud and clear, and they seem proud of themselves. I am also having some success in getting them to keep their hands down. They do this reaching begging thing with their palms up and out that drives me nuts--- it is a begging gesture, and that is the best way I can describe it. I am handing out the pencils, just hang in there and you will get yours!
Speaking of the pencils – on day one Ali had new nice pencils for everyone. We sharpened them and handed them out. Now just 9 school days later ---they are half missing, chewed on and a general mess. I tell them it is Bad Manners to put your pencil in your mouth and if they do – I will take it from them. To my surprise, I only need to take away about 2 of the pencils and both are from 2 of the older boys, who seemed stunned to have lost their pencils. Life goes on and we finish the day feeling like we are making progress.
Monday morning and back to work. The children behave fairly well today. They listen and their manners are improving. When we hand out the pencils we are thanked loud and clear, and they seem proud of themselves. I am also having some success in getting them to keep their hands down. They do this reaching begging thing with their palms up and out that drives me nuts--- it is a begging gesture, and that is the best way I can describe it. I am handing out the pencils, just hang in there and you will get yours!
Speaking of the pencils – on day one Ali had new nice pencils for everyone. We sharpened them and handed them out. Now just 9 school days later ---they are half missing, chewed on and a general mess. I tell them it is Bad Manners to put your pencil in your mouth and if they do – I will take it from them. To my surprise, I only need to take away about 2 of the pencils and both are from 2 of the older boys, who seemed stunned to have lost their pencils. Life goes on and we finish the day feeling like we are making progress.
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