Grace
The smile of God, kept frozen by chilling creeds;
kept hidden in folds of frayed language,
worn, patched liturgy.
God’s favour, infinite grace, dispersed in drips and drab.
Inaccessible supply points;
Miniscule amounts – sufficient for moments
... never a lifetime
... never enough.
Birthrights stolen and vendored back as new goods
in pottage crusted packaging;
impoverishing even more the already disinherited.
Stateless refugees frantically trekking from one citizenship seller to another;
their rightful, royal lineage ragged and unremembered;
unaware that their documentation is already well ordered
and eternally complete.
Imagine cascades of grace:
Flooding with reckless abandonment;
Sparkling spray clouds soaking all and sundry;
Pulverizing be-stoned and fraudulent boundary cairns;
Gushing and sweeping unused and unneeded into unmapped cracks and corners;
Pooled verdant and living in every reach and bend.
Imagine pounding waves and Fundy tides of favour
sweeping away mouldered forts of fanaticism,
freeing the shores forever
to unlimited access, unfettered supply.
Imagine no need for crudded containers,
no quack practitioners leaching life blood;
no marketable value to be exploited.
Imagine Grace.
Infinite.
Free.
And Mary found favour with God. (Luke 1.30)
December 2010
Santa Cruz de Yojoa
The peace of Christmas be with you always,
bb
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Friday, December 3, 2010
Graduation Pictures
Graduation Number 2
Yesterday was our second graduation ceremony. 32 students graduated from a Grade Level. Included in that number were 5 mothers and 3 grandmothers. 9 of the graduates were finishing their second grade in less than one year – a first for Honduras.
There are so many stories from this group of people. Marie Elsa finished her Grade 8 studies. A year ago she rarely spoke to anyone and very consciously stood behind others in any group setting. Yesterday she asked to give and gave a lovely speech at the graduation. As the first woman in her village to achieve that level of education, her husband and two children are very obviously proud of her.
Lydia and Julia, both single mothers and grandmothers as well as members of our Board in Honduras, finished Grade 7. Lydia has taken charge of one of our satellite centres and uses her own home to give a number of young people an opportunity to study with us. Her project for Grade Seven was to take reading material from our growing digital library and do reading with the local primary school. Lydia’s self-confidence has led to her leading a women’s group which now has 5,000 tilapia growing in tanks and ponds on a piece of property bought by CPI for agriculture projects.
Julia works as a maid to help provide for her family. She also helps monitor student progress and activity, often supervising in the school when we are short staffed. Her infectious laugh is contagious and encouraging.
Gabina, my age mate, was accompanied by one of her daughters and several grandchildren. She has grown in confidence and is so excited to think about finishing Grade 9 and moving on to Teachers’ College.
Earlier this year, a teacher from a community realized that there were many young people without opportunity to continue their studies. She came to our office with a list of 50 young people who needed help. Thanks to CPI supporters and this teacher, computers were put in an empty classroom in La Barca and yesterday 5 of those young people graduated from Grade 7.
Francisco’s father spends hours each day in the ammonium laden atmosphere of chicken barns. He was unable to attend Francisco’s second graduation (Grade 8) but his mother and sister were there. As an old chicken catcher and farmer, Francisco is a favourite of mine.
Three sisters graduated from Grade 7 and 8. Their single mother receives money from relatives in the States and that is enough for them to live on. They are dreaming of a chance at University study, even though their mother is almost frightened to think of such daring.
Wilmer, who works during the days, finished his studies during the evening hours. Yohana lives in a village without electricity but would come to the school to write exams and so forth. (We stretched things a bit and let her study with textbooks at home.) Her early pregnancy had stopped her from completing Grade 9 several years ago. Now she has completed her studies.
The staff, Edel, Yeni, Carolina and Manuel, worked hard to make sure that all was in order. It was such a treat to check on the lists each day and find things moving along. I am so proud of their work. Natasha, our Canadian intern, spent an afternoon baking cakes in my small toaster oven and turbo cooker. She had ten cakes baked and we decorated them with frosting and M & M’s on Wednesday morning. They were a huge hit.
The last week also saw three letters of interest from various NGO’s to use our program and a lovely letter from the Deputy Minister of Education asking us to pursue the GED program as well. She also asked for our diagrams of classrooms made from shipping containers.
Tomorrow we move our office to new, larger quarters. Everyone is excited about the new venue. It is less prone to dust and traffic so will be welcome. I shall move as well and stay in the old place – more room for me and many more plants.
TTYL
bb
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Africa and Back
Nimesharudi kwangu. Since last talking to you, I have had a two week trip to Kenya. A group in Kenya (Bethany International) is setting up an integrated agriculture training centre in Garissa. They asked if I could come over and give them some ideas and advice both in the layout of the school and in the preparation of curricula.
Garissa is near the Tana River (the largest in Kenya) and features a population of traditionally pastoralist people groups. The Somalis have moved into the area even more since the troubles began there twenty years ago. Money from the diasporas (Somalis living abroad in Europe and North America) and from Somali economic activities on the high seas (read piracy) has fuelled property buying and building in Garissa, Nairobi and other parts of Kenya. Influxes of Somali refugees has doubled the population and made the Garissa area more powerful politically as well. The Somalis have become a major player in politics and economics in the past few years.
Conservative Islam has also moved into the area. The call to prayer and sundry recitations were a prominent audio background throughout the day and night. When we lived in north eastern Kenya twenty years ago, Islam was present but the women did not wear the full covering they do now. The vast majority of the Somali women now cover themselves with a full veil (called a ‘ninja’ by the local population – including the women themselves) when in public. There are still forays into ‘fashion’ with decorated and embroidered coverings and very intricate henna designs on feet and hands.
I was able to see some new parts of Kenya on a trip from Garissa to Mombassa. That bus trip featured some off road stretches and took about eleven hours for the 450 some kilometres. A road is being built but may take a few more years to accomplish. Surprisingly, I saw two new animal species this trip, despite not having time for a game drive. The caracal and galago were both new and delightful finds.
It was lovely to reacquaint myself with various Kenya dishes. Well cooked traditional food is good in any culture and, with so many various cultures in Kenya, there are many types of food to sample. Irio, nyama choma, camel stew, Somali rice, Swahili pizza, mandazis, chai, ugali and samosas were all part of the menu ... and very well enjoyed.
My Swahili was rusty but I managed fairly well, especially in understanding what was going on. Kenyan Swahili is not as polished as Tanzanian Swahili so my grammar was noticeably better on several occasions. That stood me in good stead when I would forget a word or, worse, throw in the correct Spanish word. I found myself thanking the clerks here in Honduras in Swahili this morning. Sigh.
In the course of looking for supplies and equipment, we saw a new development in Kenya. Finally, two companies have developed small greenhouses and shade cloth units for small landholders. These are affordable for lower middle class farmers and repay themselves in less than one year. With simple drip irrigation systems, they are also very easy on water. The banks have realized their potential and are lending money for them as well. Now, to try and get them here in Honduras. The cost of a >1000 sq. ft. greenhouse with equipment is less than $1500.00 USD. With the vagaries of climate change, this is a huge step in food security.
When we toured one of the companies’ show house, I asked the girl showing us around when she was setting up her own greenhouse (that was partly to see if she was actually sold on the idea or not – if it isn’t good enough for the employees then we should take a closer look ... right?). She told me, “next month it goes up”. She already had plans to build a second one and within two years she was going to be working on her own and earning more than she could as a ‘tour guide’.
One greenhouse is enough to provide a family with a very moderate income and two would provide a living of choice. One person can take care of two greenhouses without trouble.
We also saw several new pieces of equipment developed for small farmers and businessmen. A new maize grinder (built in Kenya and much sturdier than Indian/Chinese models), a hand cranked rock crusher (beats the man sitting with a hammer to make gravel), a water pump (100 litres/minute) that can work with one hand and the Jompy stove (a fantastic new unit to heat water and cook at the same time over charcoal or open flame) were all new items.
One of the focal points of our time in Garissa was seeking to find ways to utilize a new tree in the area, Prosopis juliaflora. This tree was introduced about twenty years ago and has spread rapidly. The good news is that it is keeping areas covered with trees despite the pressures of increased population. The bad news is that it does spread quickly. However, it has been my experience (speaking humbly of course) that trees are very easy to catch so complaints about the spread of such a species are not too credible.
The tree fixes nitrogen, provides good charcoal, is easily worked for furniture (can be glued together to make laminated boards) and carvings, has high protein leaves and pods (the pods can be ground and the flour incorporated into porridges and chapattis) and flowers prolifically. It also can be harvested repeatedly and will come back from the roots or trunk (coppices readily). There is some concern that a 100% diet of the leaves or pods may cause problems ... but a 100% diet of anything is a problem generally speaking.
We did find a place where they are making charcoal briquettes using charcoal dust and clay. They can make the charcoal dust from any carbon source, including leaves. This opens the potential for utilizing this tree in even more ways. As we talked with people about seeing this tree as a resource instead of a problem, it was wonderful to see their excitement. In an area of Kenya that is desperate for economic building ideas, this tree offers a great opportunity.
There are many ideas that can be transferred to Honduras and I look forward to working on that in the coming months. Now, adventures over for a few months, it will be back to the school work here.
TTYL
bb
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
English Lessons
Natasha, our Canadian Intern Student, has been teaching English to our students. She has travelled out to various villages and held three day seminars. The students are excited about learning this way and it has been a wonderful way of telling the whole village about our school. Natasha has been fantastic about taking public transport and spending time visiting with the students and their families.
This week she is holding seminars in Santa Cruz.
The Ministry of Education is having trouble paying the teachers. Consequently, there is no school. They are contemplating shutting the schools for the rest of the year and simply giving everyone a pass. This has been done before but truly does nothing good for the students. It makes our approach so much more valuable. Students receive the whole curriculum, regardless of what happens.
TTYL
BB
This week she is holding seminars in Santa Cruz.
The Ministry of Education is having trouble paying the teachers. Consequently, there is no school. They are contemplating shutting the schools for the rest of the year and simply giving everyone a pass. This has been done before but truly does nothing good for the students. It makes our approach so much more valuable. Students receive the whole curriculum, regardless of what happens.
TTYL
BB
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Catching Up
Wow. It has been a month since I wrote. However, the number of readers writing to let me know that they missed the blog ... well, much like hearing good things about Obama on CNN.
On Tuesday, Muanuel, Chepe and I visited our most remote school in Las Delicias. When the road is not all that good, a seventeen kilometre trip can seem much longer. We drove through gorgeous valleys and constant vistas of verdant mountains and hazy horizons. Truly spectacular.
The village is on the edge of a forest reserve and at a higher altitude so the air was clear and fresh. Our host, the man who is working hard to provide this education opportunity to his village met us as we drove up to his house. We were invited inside and, after seeing the computers and so forth, sat down and visited.
This is the first Honduran home that I have been in which had books. It was incredible to see two small bookshelves filled with reading material for children, adults and reference. Obviously, we have a very good family to work with here.
After some time, the man invited us to see his garden area. He has several innovative things happening there. He is planting lablab (I think that is the name – he wasn’t sure) beans as a ground cover and green manure. He is also planting rows of Madriado, a nitrogen fixing tree which will fertilize the alleys between and provide a trellis for black pepper vines. It was so very exciting to see some of these practical, low cost ways of improving income potential being implemented.
On the return trip, I had Manuel take his first driving lesson. He was sweating profusely by the end of the journey. He did well although getting that foot to move between brake and accelerator was a challenge. No crunches though so all was well.
That afternoon, we drove to another location with some papaya seedlings. I drove too close to a projecting stone and it sliced my front tire. What a bang. I was so sure I had destroyed the truck. Phew. Only a tire. We were happy that it wasn’t raining, muddy and a busy road (well ... track). The spare was in good shape but lacking in air. There was enough to limp to the nearest tire place and get it filled. What a relief to make it there safely and without further damage.
Yesterday morning I replaced the two front tires. Had to double check that small things like the valve caps were replaced and my two old tires also in the truck. Sigh. I do hate little fiddles.
We are hoping to have another graduation in November and the list of potential grandaunts is being drawn up. That will be exciting to see some more progress being made.
Our Canadian intern, Natasha, has been doing a stellar job teaching English in various village locations. This week she is experiencing the other side of life in a foreign country. A bad meal on Sunday night did a number on her digestive system.
One of the seductive things in another country is to arrive at a nice location (in this case a tourist type lodge at the top of a mountain park road) and see something familiar on the menu. After a number of weeks of ‘local’ food, the temptation is to order a hamburger. However, all too often, that is the very thing which is prepared poorly. That is not a surprise. We all stumble when trying to cook something from another culture. I have been disappointed (or, as in Natasha’s case, negatively affected – politically correct statement there) on a number of occasions when I had hoped for a touch of ‘home’ and, instead, received a touch of something else.
On the brighter side. Friday I was given a lesson in cooking one type of Honduran soup. As I have mentioned before, soups here are fantastic. A friend showed me how to make seafood soup. It turned out to be fairly easy and I made my own batch on Monday. Everyone who tried it was impressed so I must have gotten the main points of the lesson. It has some nice spices and coconut milk along with a variety of vegetables so it is hard to go wrong with that.
The staff here at the school is making great strides at adding complementary material to the curriculum and creating forms so that we can begin registering and reporting on line. I sometimes feel a bit unnecessary as they forge ahead. It is so exciting to see them gain confidence and creativity.
The last thing to talk about. While in Canada, I received three Rapid Washers. These are a plunger type unit which washes clothes in a bucket. It washes much more thoroughly, quickly and with much less soap and water than by hand. It still is manual labour but much less. This week we had a demonstration/trial run with some clothes of mine. Then staff took them home to give them a work out. The reports so far are quite good. Julia, used it to whiten some of my things and it was amazing. I had thought some stuff was beyond help but it brought new life to those clothes. Hurrah. Since it is ‘mechanical’ maybe it can be cross gender as well. Hmmm – don’t get your hopes up too high.
TTYL
bb
On Tuesday, Muanuel, Chepe and I visited our most remote school in Las Delicias. When the road is not all that good, a seventeen kilometre trip can seem much longer. We drove through gorgeous valleys and constant vistas of verdant mountains and hazy horizons. Truly spectacular.
The village is on the edge of a forest reserve and at a higher altitude so the air was clear and fresh. Our host, the man who is working hard to provide this education opportunity to his village met us as we drove up to his house. We were invited inside and, after seeing the computers and so forth, sat down and visited.
This is the first Honduran home that I have been in which had books. It was incredible to see two small bookshelves filled with reading material for children, adults and reference. Obviously, we have a very good family to work with here.
After some time, the man invited us to see his garden area. He has several innovative things happening there. He is planting lablab (I think that is the name – he wasn’t sure) beans as a ground cover and green manure. He is also planting rows of Madriado, a nitrogen fixing tree which will fertilize the alleys between and provide a trellis for black pepper vines. It was so very exciting to see some of these practical, low cost ways of improving income potential being implemented.
On the return trip, I had Manuel take his first driving lesson. He was sweating profusely by the end of the journey. He did well although getting that foot to move between brake and accelerator was a challenge. No crunches though so all was well.
That afternoon, we drove to another location with some papaya seedlings. I drove too close to a projecting stone and it sliced my front tire. What a bang. I was so sure I had destroyed the truck. Phew. Only a tire. We were happy that it wasn’t raining, muddy and a busy road (well ... track). The spare was in good shape but lacking in air. There was enough to limp to the nearest tire place and get it filled. What a relief to make it there safely and without further damage.
Yesterday morning I replaced the two front tires. Had to double check that small things like the valve caps were replaced and my two old tires also in the truck. Sigh. I do hate little fiddles.
We are hoping to have another graduation in November and the list of potential grandaunts is being drawn up. That will be exciting to see some more progress being made.
Our Canadian intern, Natasha, has been doing a stellar job teaching English in various village locations. This week she is experiencing the other side of life in a foreign country. A bad meal on Sunday night did a number on her digestive system.
One of the seductive things in another country is to arrive at a nice location (in this case a tourist type lodge at the top of a mountain park road) and see something familiar on the menu. After a number of weeks of ‘local’ food, the temptation is to order a hamburger. However, all too often, that is the very thing which is prepared poorly. That is not a surprise. We all stumble when trying to cook something from another culture. I have been disappointed (or, as in Natasha’s case, negatively affected – politically correct statement there) on a number of occasions when I had hoped for a touch of ‘home’ and, instead, received a touch of something else.
On the brighter side. Friday I was given a lesson in cooking one type of Honduran soup. As I have mentioned before, soups here are fantastic. A friend showed me how to make seafood soup. It turned out to be fairly easy and I made my own batch on Monday. Everyone who tried it was impressed so I must have gotten the main points of the lesson. It has some nice spices and coconut milk along with a variety of vegetables so it is hard to go wrong with that.
The staff here at the school is making great strides at adding complementary material to the curriculum and creating forms so that we can begin registering and reporting on line. I sometimes feel a bit unnecessary as they forge ahead. It is so exciting to see them gain confidence and creativity.
The last thing to talk about. While in Canada, I received three Rapid Washers. These are a plunger type unit which washes clothes in a bucket. It washes much more thoroughly, quickly and with much less soap and water than by hand. It still is manual labour but much less. This week we had a demonstration/trial run with some clothes of mine. Then staff took them home to give them a work out. The reports so far are quite good. Julia, used it to whiten some of my things and it was amazing. I had thought some stuff was beyond help but it brought new life to those clothes. Hurrah. Since it is ‘mechanical’ maybe it can be cross gender as well. Hmmm – don’t get your hopes up too high.
TTYL
bb
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