Too Popular – Finally

The last two weeks has seen a flood of people coming in to register for classes. We show them our snazzy power point presentation, give them a tour of a computer and they are even more eager to sign up.

The MAJOR problem is computer space. With more than 30 new students, we are running out of computers to work on. We went around the school yesterday trying to see how many more computers we could fit in. We will modify the existing table-desks so that they can hold three computers. With several new tables as well, we have room for about 20 more computers. Of course … room and budget to buy are two different things. Hopefully that can be solved.

The first table is now at the welders for modification. Between Santiago and I, I think the modification needs are clear. We will see later this morning.

The heads of two regions in the country – Comayagua and Cortes are both interested in our program and have promised support. They are desperate to find ways to offer more schooling to students without any increase in their budgets. They rarely get their complete budgets as it is.

In our area, there are a number of primary schools that have computers sitting idle. We may be able to get them working for our students. That is another exciting opportunity. People are now wanting to help us implement the program in their area.

Side news. I only have a few minutes today to talk so must hurry. I filled out the evaluation form for Natasha – a government program that is enabling Canadian students to work abroad for several months – a semester. It is a fantastic program because it pays their expenses. Only one tiny glitch. Their evaluation numbers are opposite to what I expected. Number 3 is the highest score and number 1 the lowest. Fortunately, I sent a copy of the evaluation to Natasha for approval before submission and she caught the error. ¨We´re number three, we´re number three¨. No wonder our athletes have trouble going for gold.

Yesterday, Santiago and I went to lay out a Mandala garden – a circular garden which utilizes about 80% of the space for growing (with nitrogen fixing ground cover on the pathways we will actually be in the 95% range). We left Marcos, another worker, with the task of planting the mulch plants around the perimter and in the pathways. We will see on Saturday how he fared. We will see in a month or two how the plants fared. The circle is 10 M diameter so is a fair size. I am confident that it will prove a good alternative method for cropping vegetables. A family with 16 of these circles could feed themselves and, likely, make a basic income from sales. We shall see what it looks like with vegeta bles. So much easier on paper.

As we turned a corner, a flash of white ran off the road into a stream bed. Split seconds later, we heard guns cocking and police came into sight. Another few seconds and a police pick up sped off. As it was on our way, naturally, we followed. A second corner and we saw the fugitive dashing through a cornfield. The police were out and after him, firing as they ran (not too effectively as nothing happened to the runner – however, having done hunting in the past, I know all too well what adrenalin does to your shooting ability). Very shortly they caught up with him and we moved on to the next scene of the day.

We are trying to download an antivirus program. Our first attempt didn´t work. We tried again last evening. I will see how the computer in the school fared. My computer here at home, failed at the first attempt – I checked at 1:30 a.m. but seems to have succeeded in round two. We have to burn a cd and then try it out.

That is about it for news today. Having some repair work done in my house so have to run and get that organized. Santiago is planting some mint and basil seeds and I need to see how that is going. They are so small it is difficult to work with them. Hopefully one or two will grow. We can grow others from cuttings.

Yeni, Carolina and Jessica are working on the digital library, Manuel working on registration and liasons with other groups, Edel is working on programming and mathematics. I hang around and look busy.

TTYL

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Happy New Year

The New Year has started with a bang for us. This last week we hosted a group of seven leaders from CRWRC who work in various parts of Honduras. They were delighted to spend two days learning our program and finding out about our other projects. A number of them work in the field of village education and our program was an answer to their dreams. Hurrah.

In preparation for their arrival, we had several intense days working on books and getting them in shape to include in the digital library section of our program. We endeavoured to change the appearance and add colour and pictures to make the books more appealing. I realized (better late than never I guess) that my staff, having never read books, had very little idea of how to make a page look more interesting. Some crash courses and demonstrations later, we were all on the same page ... so to speak.

New students are arriving every day and we have several NGO’s making inquiries about our program. It is exciting to be on the cusp of something big (we hope). A visit to the head of the Comayagua region educational system started out cool but, after seeing our new and improved power point presentation, he was very interested. So interested, in fact, that he phoned the deputy minister and asked about our program and then phoned us ready to sign on. We have been confident that our system is the best of show in Honduras and these past two weeks are showing that others are also impressed.

At the same time, we tracked down two new types of stoves being made here in Honduras. Both use the Rocket Stove principle of combustion but one is movable and the other is stationary. It was such a pleasure to see them. The stationery one, Lucy (model name ... the stove that is) has good potential to incorporate a water heating system in the chimney. The makers, who came to talk to us about the stove, were quite pleased with the idea and, after I showed them a Jompy water heater (courtesy of my trip to Kenya), they were very excited. We can use gravity/convection and the waste heat to heat a small tank (200 litres) of water for domestic use. The babies should be rather pleased to have a warm bath I should think.

On Friday, we went to see yet another form of building using the Poured Earth concept. Gradually we are narrowing our search for a cheap yet durable building system that is within the reach of the poor. This may be one more piece to the puzzle.

We have had some cold, rainy weather. Once your body becomes accustomed to plus 30’ weather each day, a drop into the high teens seems like bitter weather. Of course, none of the people suffering mid-winter storms have any sympathy for our plight. I enquired from some of the guys working with me on a housing project if they had any family to rent for cold nights. They all thought they could spare one or two kids and still be warm enough themselves.

Manuel has been putting up with flooding in his barrio and the resulting backed up sewers, transport delays and so forth. The other day, in a crowded bus, his cell phone was stolen. He is hopeful that he can recover the information on his contact list from the phone company’s computers. Wednesday will see if that is the case.

This weekend was an adventure in cultural expectations. I keep hoping that I will get over these but ... sometimes I still get caught by surprise. I still like to make plans for the week and am never sure how to respond when others’ lack of planning leads to sudden surprises. Ah well ... it happens everywhere. How to live with chaos ... the challenge so far for January :)).

We are very hopeful that project funding will continue to roll in and that our project will be approved by those we have applications in front of. With the potential of some rapid expansion it is exciting but a wee bit daunting at the same time.

TTYL
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Grace

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,
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Graduation Pictures

 Mothers/Grandmothers - Maria Elsa, Gabina, Yohanna, Eunice, Julia and Lydia.

Gabina's daughter and grandchildren. As well, Natasha (Canadian Intern), Edel (to my right - our techie guru), myself and Dave (Canadian director for CPI).

 La Barca Students (20 other students studying there with 25 and more on a waiting list.)

 Grade 7 graduates.

 Grade 8 Graduates

 Grade 9 Graduates.

Cutting the Cakes. Manuel - Deputy Head (blue shirt on left), Carolina (pouring soda), Yeni (pink blouse to left of Carolina), Natasha (Canadian intern), Stingy cake server (but ... enough for seconds for most people ... so there).

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

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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

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Natasha teaching in Santa Cruz. Students include Samuel (in pink - taking his second grade - 9 - this year and moving out of gang life), Julia (single mother of 5 children), Francisco (his father is a labourer on a chicken farm), Vilma (far right - mother of two children) and Enrique (his mother makes a living by selling snacks to people on buses - he is also in second grade - 9 - even though he must care for his younger siblings much of the time). Makes it seem pretty worthwhile, doesn't it?