Saturday, November 19, 2005
Week 8
This week has been much of the same as before. Teach English, teach Math, try not to get frustrated, try not to yell, prevent children from beating on each other, prevent Teacher Billy from beating on children, console those you didn't get to in time, hand out pencils, sharpen pencils, sing some songs, hand out some balls, collect balls, find lost balls, have tea with the other teachers, and start again.
Some children are able to communicate well enough between what I know of Kiswahili and what they know of English. Many seem to get the jist of what is going on. Most still reply "Yes!" when asked, "Do you understand?" although some are now saying "Teacher, I don't know." And once they do, they often translate for those who still seem lost.
Dad has had a sore back most of the week. I figure between the push-ups with the children, picking children up, his general stress levels, and not enjoying his mattress he has strained something. As the resident pharmacist, and his daughter, it is my duty to cure him. Easier said then done, but as time proves, he is getting better, slowly but surely. Poor Babu ("Gramps")!
He also let me cut his hair this week. It took awhile but Fr. Mathew says that if my pharmacy career doesn't work out, I could always fall back on haircutting!
Tomorrow is the last Sunday of the church calendar, as Advent starts next week. All the local parishes are meeting at Maji Maji Stadium in town. It is the 3rd largest stadium in the country. We are to meet at the church and process into city. Should be quite the event!
I have some sad news. The family dog, Rocky, was hit by a car at the end of October. He was 10 years old. He gave us many good years. He and his rock-catching and log-carrying will be missed. I also managed to erase 300 pictures. Got to love digital cameras. I won't make that mistake again. I somehow mistook "formating" for "resolution" and said "yes" instead of "cancel". Le sigh. And, Gifti the goat is no longer. He was butchered yesterday. As Dad says, he has become another sort of gift, which we expect to experience soon. I've never had goat before. I'll tell you how it goes. Thank you, Gifti!
Next week the children write exams in English, Kiswahili, Math, and Rhymes. The Archbishop will be coming for a visit, also. The week after that, we pack and head out to Dar es Salaam. We are there for the day and hope to do some shopping before we board our plane bound for Amsterdam.
Thanks to Maman Spindler, The Littlest Spindler (Robert), Kristy, ChrisChan Marlowe, and Matthew Stinson for the notes this week. Mungu bariki!
Some children are able to communicate well enough between what I know of Kiswahili and what they know of English. Many seem to get the jist of what is going on. Most still reply "Yes!" when asked, "Do you understand?" although some are now saying "Teacher, I don't know." And once they do, they often translate for those who still seem lost.
Dad has had a sore back most of the week. I figure between the push-ups with the children, picking children up, his general stress levels, and not enjoying his mattress he has strained something. As the resident pharmacist, and his daughter, it is my duty to cure him. Easier said then done, but as time proves, he is getting better, slowly but surely. Poor Babu ("Gramps")!
He also let me cut his hair this week. It took awhile but Fr. Mathew says that if my pharmacy career doesn't work out, I could always fall back on haircutting!
Tomorrow is the last Sunday of the church calendar, as Advent starts next week. All the local parishes are meeting at Maji Maji Stadium in town. It is the 3rd largest stadium in the country. We are to meet at the church and process into city. Should be quite the event!
I have some sad news. The family dog, Rocky, was hit by a car at the end of October. He was 10 years old. He gave us many good years. He and his rock-catching and log-carrying will be missed. I also managed to erase 300 pictures. Got to love digital cameras. I won't make that mistake again. I somehow mistook "formating" for "resolution" and said "yes" instead of "cancel". Le sigh. And, Gifti the goat is no longer. He was butchered yesterday. As Dad says, he has become another sort of gift, which we expect to experience soon. I've never had goat before. I'll tell you how it goes. Thank you, Gifti!
Next week the children write exams in English, Kiswahili, Math, and Rhymes. The Archbishop will be coming for a visit, also. The week after that, we pack and head out to Dar es Salaam. We are there for the day and hope to do some shopping before we board our plane bound for Amsterdam.
Thanks to Maman Spindler, The Littlest Spindler (Robert), Kristy, ChrisChan Marlowe, and Matthew Stinson for the notes this week. Mungu bariki!
# posted by Chantal @ 2:12 a.m. 
