OK, I'm back and rested up to write about my day at Gloria's. So, I went back to Gloria's around 9 a.m. and it was breakfast time. I sat in a chair and the kids lined up to be fed their porridge. I was feeding kids between the ages of 2-4, and can I just say, it was so nice to feed kids who wanted to be fed, rather than the babies I've been fighting with for 6 weeks! After breakfast the kids were to be separated into the babies (ages 0-2), another group of 2-4 year olds, and then t he 5-6 year olds. Gloria asked me who I wanted to be with and I opted for the 5-6 year olds so to have a different experience from the babies.
She then handed me a broom and said I needed to sweep my classroom...so I did. Then all the kids came in for 'ring time' which is basically circle time where they all stood in a circle with hands linked, singing, dancing, and reciting their ABC's, counting, days of the week, and months of the year in English and Xhosa. The singing was so fun to watch, and they sang A LOT! After this it was time for exercises. They all lined up and Gloria lead some exercises, then she turned it over to me. It was funny because I do this for a living; in therapy sessions we're always doing various exercises and at that moment my mind was racing with 'what do I do in therapy????' So we quick did some animal walks--bear walks, crab walks, walking like elephants, and then we did some stretching. After this it was free play time and I was sent to the kitchen to slice up a ton of apples for morning snack. After that I went outside to fill up a tub of water for the kids to wash their hands in before snack. I brought the tub back into the center of the circle. They each washed their hands in the tub and I had a towel for them to dry their hands on. They ate their apples and I was to read a story to them. This was a bit like madness though. I chose an Arthur book and every time I turned they page they all lost their minds laughing at the pictures, I couldn't even be heard, nor could they really understand what I was reading anyway! After this they all lined up to march!
So, we took them on a walk around the block, all the while they were marching and singing. The people were in the streets waving and watching. One house had their TV in very loudly watching some Christian Xhosa music, so we stopped outside their house for awhile and the kids danced in the street. When we got back to Gloria's block the kids all lined up to race back down the street.
Back inside it was time for 'school readiness.' So I brought out 4 tables and tons of little chairs to the classroom. We put play-doh on one table, ABC blocks on one, Lego's on another, and puzzles on the last ones. The kids all came out to the tables and played here for awhile.
After this it was time for lunch. The big kids all just stayed at the tables to eat their rice. The little ones sat on the floor in their classroom lining the walls, eating their rice. When lunch was over it was time for 'rest time.' So I put all the tables and chairs away and we laid padding down on the floor and all the kids are laid down on the floor head to toe for a couple hours.
This was time for lunch for the teachers and I got to talk to Gloria a little bit too. She opened the pre-school 4 years ago and at that time there were only 8 children. Each year it's grown and now she has 70 kids in a 3 classroom space! Given that there are so many children in such a little space, everything really runs very smoothly. The kids are pretty well behaved and there's definitely a level of respect there. (Which I also noticed at Vicky's--kids actually respect their elders, listened when told to do something, without exception. Brought them tea and looked after me as well.) I could see a vast difference in behavior between these kids and most American kids I deal with... At this time Gloria doesn't receive any government funding because they say the space is too small...it's one of those things though where if she had more money she could expand, but she can't get the money to do so. She charges the families 50 rand a month (about $6) and sometimes the parents can't pay her, but she won't turn any child away. She does get some donations from tours and people like me who just drop in, which helps to buy the food. All of the kids come from within the township and so their parents don't have a lot of money, need to work, and often times aren't comfortable leaving their kids with anyone else. I also asked Gloria how long she had lived in Kayhelitsha and she said 15 years. I asked her if she'd ever want to leave and she said, "Oh no, I like it here."
Which brings me to a realization I had. Before when we were on our tours in the townships and passing them on the highway I would think 'that's so sad' and 'these poor people.' But the truth is...a lot of these people are happy there. This is home, they make the best of what they have, it's all they know, and it's ok for them. It was definitely an eye-opening experience and I'm so glad I went back for a night and spent the time there. Granted it was only 24 hours and my entire experience was very positive, but I came away feeling so differently than I had. It was comforting to me to see that it's not all doom and gloom to the people who live there. Now, with that said, there's definitely room for improvements!! Of course living conditions could be improved a bit, unemployment is high, there's HIV/AIDS, drug & alcohol abuse, rape... BUT the spirit of the people was undeniable and just really uplifting to see.
Anyway, back to Gloria's. After naptime we picked up all the mats, put shoes on everyone and it was snacktime. After that it was just free time until their parents came.
Some funny things: the kids (both Vicky's and all the kids at Gloria's) were like obsessed with my legs! I had capri's on and many of them would stroke my legs or just touch them and look at me with these grins. I'm still not sure why--is it because they were smooth, or because they don't see legs much as the women are usually wearing long skirts and tights?? I don't know. But it was funny. They all were very taken with my necklace too--I always wear a diamond pendant that Ivan gave me and any kid who came near me held it in their hands and oohed and aahed over it. My watch too--which is just a cheap digital watch--many at a time would be pulling on my wrist and pushing all the buttons. My tattoos were a hit as well--they saw the one on my hand and both of them on my wrists and would just turn my hands over and over again running their hands over the tattoos. And my hair. I had a hat on but several kids took it off my head to run their fingers through my hair, and Vicky's son said, "Ooh, nice." They don't often get to touch white hair so it felt different for them. And of course they were loving having their picture taken and like any kid would rush to see what the picture looked like after it was taken.
All in all it was so much fun. There were a few times throughout the day that I just wanted to cry and I have no idea why. I wasn't sad. I mentioned this to one of the other volunteers and she said she has felt that way at Home of Hope before...just suddenly hits you--what you're doing and the whole experience. I don't know what it was. Maybe it was seeing what little they had and how happy they were, maybe it was knowing I'd probably never see them again, maybe it was creeping up on me that I only have a few days left here. I don't know. There was one kid in particular that I took to. I didn't ask anyone what his story was, but I could tell he was slightly special needs--I'm guessing CP, very mild retardation. Of course he grabbed my attention since I work with special needs kids at home and maybe part of it was that seeing him made me miss my own kids from work. I was also wondering what his life would become...it's not like special education is probably a priority and it just made me a little sad. But again, he was happy!
So that was my 24 hours in the township. I know I want to come back. I know wherever I travel in the future I want more time with a host family or something of that nature. You just get a totally different experience. I will take more from that 24 hours than from weeks of my suburban house with the electric fences around me...
Enjoy the pics!! The bottom one is my little guy...:)
She then handed me a broom and said I needed to sweep my classroom...so I did. Then all the kids came in for 'ring time' which is basically circle time where they all stood in a circle with hands linked, singing, dancing, and reciting their ABC's, counting, days of the week, and months of the year in English and Xhosa. The singing was so fun to watch, and they sang A LOT! After this it was time for exercises. They all lined up and Gloria lead some exercises, then she turned it over to me. It was funny because I do this for a living; in therapy sessions we're always doing various exercises and at that moment my mind was racing with 'what do I do in therapy????' So we quick did some animal walks--bear walks, crab walks, walking like elephants, and then we did some stretching. After this it was free play time and I was sent to the kitchen to slice up a ton of apples for morning snack. After that I went outside to fill up a tub of water for the kids to wash their hands in before snack. I brought the tub back into the center of the circle. They each washed their hands in the tub and I had a towel for them to dry their hands on. They ate their apples and I was to read a story to them. This was a bit like madness though. I chose an Arthur book and every time I turned they page they all lost their minds laughing at the pictures, I couldn't even be heard, nor could they really understand what I was reading anyway! After this they all lined up to march!
So, we took them on a walk around the block, all the while they were marching and singing. The people were in the streets waving and watching. One house had their TV in very loudly watching some Christian Xhosa music, so we stopped outside their house for awhile and the kids danced in the street. When we got back to Gloria's block the kids all lined up to race back down the street.
Back inside it was time for 'school readiness.' So I brought out 4 tables and tons of little chairs to the classroom. We put play-doh on one table, ABC blocks on one, Lego's on another, and puzzles on the last ones. The kids all came out to the tables and played here for awhile.
After this it was time for lunch. The big kids all just stayed at the tables to eat their rice. The little ones sat on the floor in their classroom lining the walls, eating their rice. When lunch was over it was time for 'rest time.' So I put all the tables and chairs away and we laid padding down on the floor and all the kids are laid down on the floor head to toe for a couple hours.
This was time for lunch for the teachers and I got to talk to Gloria a little bit too. She opened the pre-school 4 years ago and at that time there were only 8 children. Each year it's grown and now she has 70 kids in a 3 classroom space! Given that there are so many children in such a little space, everything really runs very smoothly. The kids are pretty well behaved and there's definitely a level of respect there. (Which I also noticed at Vicky's--kids actually respect their elders, listened when told to do something, without exception. Brought them tea and looked after me as well.) I could see a vast difference in behavior between these kids and most American kids I deal with... At this time Gloria doesn't receive any government funding because they say the space is too small...it's one of those things though where if she had more money she could expand, but she can't get the money to do so. She charges the families 50 rand a month (about $6) and sometimes the parents can't pay her, but she won't turn any child away. She does get some donations from tours and people like me who just drop in, which helps to buy the food. All of the kids come from within the township and so their parents don't have a lot of money, need to work, and often times aren't comfortable leaving their kids with anyone else. I also asked Gloria how long she had lived in Kayhelitsha and she said 15 years. I asked her if she'd ever want to leave and she said, "Oh no, I like it here."
Which brings me to a realization I had. Before when we were on our tours in the townships and passing them on the highway I would think 'that's so sad' and 'these poor people.' But the truth is...a lot of these people are happy there. This is home, they make the best of what they have, it's all they know, and it's ok for them. It was definitely an eye-opening experience and I'm so glad I went back for a night and spent the time there. Granted it was only 24 hours and my entire experience was very positive, but I came away feeling so differently than I had. It was comforting to me to see that it's not all doom and gloom to the people who live there. Now, with that said, there's definitely room for improvements!! Of course living conditions could be improved a bit, unemployment is high, there's HIV/AIDS, drug & alcohol abuse, rape... BUT the spirit of the people was undeniable and just really uplifting to see.
Anyway, back to Gloria's. After naptime we picked up all the mats, put shoes on everyone and it was snacktime. After that it was just free time until their parents came.
Some funny things: the kids (both Vicky's and all the kids at Gloria's) were like obsessed with my legs! I had capri's on and many of them would stroke my legs or just touch them and look at me with these grins. I'm still not sure why--is it because they were smooth, or because they don't see legs much as the women are usually wearing long skirts and tights?? I don't know. But it was funny. They all were very taken with my necklace too--I always wear a diamond pendant that Ivan gave me and any kid who came near me held it in their hands and oohed and aahed over it. My watch too--which is just a cheap digital watch--many at a time would be pulling on my wrist and pushing all the buttons. My tattoos were a hit as well--they saw the one on my hand and both of them on my wrists and would just turn my hands over and over again running their hands over the tattoos. And my hair. I had a hat on but several kids took it off my head to run their fingers through my hair, and Vicky's son said, "Ooh, nice." They don't often get to touch white hair so it felt different for them. And of course they were loving having their picture taken and like any kid would rush to see what the picture looked like after it was taken.
All in all it was so much fun. There were a few times throughout the day that I just wanted to cry and I have no idea why. I wasn't sad. I mentioned this to one of the other volunteers and she said she has felt that way at Home of Hope before...just suddenly hits you--what you're doing and the whole experience. I don't know what it was. Maybe it was seeing what little they had and how happy they were, maybe it was knowing I'd probably never see them again, maybe it was creeping up on me that I only have a few days left here. I don't know. There was one kid in particular that I took to. I didn't ask anyone what his story was, but I could tell he was slightly special needs--I'm guessing CP, very mild retardation. Of course he grabbed my attention since I work with special needs kids at home and maybe part of it was that seeing him made me miss my own kids from work. I was also wondering what his life would become...it's not like special education is probably a priority and it just made me a little sad. But again, he was happy!
So that was my 24 hours in the township. I know I want to come back. I know wherever I travel in the future I want more time with a host family or something of that nature. You just get a totally different experience. I will take more from that 24 hours than from weeks of my suburban house with the electric fences around me...
Enjoy the pics!! The bottom one is my little guy...:)
