A Dizzying Conversation

October 28, 2010

I concluded this evening that sitting and listening to seven girls ages 10 and under talking about their behavior for the last week and commenting on everyone's behavior is quite dizzying.You have to turn your head from one to the other as you try to follow their line of thinking, and then some through in some very random comments. Anyway, today was the day of groups for the girls home again and so I met with two of the groups along with several of the other staff. The one group we ended up having in my apartment to do something a little different for the team who was celebrating her birthday today. Both of the group sessions went pretty well in spite of distractions and such.

Earlier in the week I had another conversation that could have been dizzying but thankfully was not. One of the teen girls is reading the first of the Narnia books and I asked her what she thought of it. She proceeded to give me a not so summarized play by play of what has happened thus far but then she got to the good part which was sharing with me the analogies that she sees and what God is challenging her in. I have been excited to share the Narnia books with the children because I know that the Lord has used the analogies there to challenge me in different areas of my life. I am praying that the same happens with the children and that they will see them as more than just a fun book to read.

It looks like I will be taking one of the girls hiking up a volcano on Saturday if all goes well and the weather is good. Tonight I have been watching a lovely display of lightning across the dark sky but such storms are not conducive to climbing volcanos. If we are able to do the hike, I pray that it can be a time when I can encourage this young woman because she is beginning a new adventure on Monday when she starts her first job ever and begins to gain a little more independence and responsibility. She is also the first of any of the children at La Casa to start working so it is a milestone for everyone. We pray that she will stay strong in her faith in spite of the negative influences around her in the work world where she will be.

The Adventures of El Salvador Once Again

October 25, 2010

I have been back at La Casa de Mi Padre for a week now and am back in the middle of the busyness and adventures here. Last week little Karla (age 5) told me that she had forgotten when I looked like and that she thought I had been a lot taller (like 6 ft tall). I assured her that no, I was the same height as before. One of the teen girls thought I had grown taller while away, perhaps from playing basketball. So based on all of their comments, I am not sure if I grew taller or shrunk. But oh well.

Much of the week I spent reading with various of the children, helping with homework, or leading activities for the girls therapy groups. Because the girls home was just re-organized with the two youngest groups joining forces to be one large group of seven, we had decided to begin with some fun, light-hearted activities. With the youngest girls we played a game similar to "Duck, Duck, Goose" except that you have to run in the opposite direction of the person who tapped your head and then shake hands and say, "How do you do?" Because the housedad was also playing and shook their hands with great fervor, several of the girls could hardly say anything because of laughing so hard. With the middle age group of girls we played a game called "Password" that is a lot like the game "Telephone" except with drawings instead of whispering in someone's ear. It is great for then talking about communication. And with the oldest group we played "Imagine IFF" which is a game of getting to know each other. This coming week I will be doing more team-building type activities with them.

On Friday I went to the children's school for their "Feria de Paises" or "Fair of the Countries." Each grade had a country which they represented through decoration of their classroom, preparing traditional foods, wearing typical attire, and presenting a dance from their country. I felt a bit like I was walking in Europe since the majority of the countries represented were from there. the children were proud of their work and really they had done a good job.

Saturday was Family Visit day and I wandered among the families back in the pavilion. Several of the younger girls have a hard time talking with their grandmother when she comes to visit and rely on their older sister to always carry the conversation. When the older sister left, they were there with their grandmother without much to say. After showing the grandmother photos of her grandchildren, I gave the girls books to read to their grandmother to show her what they are learning. It was a humorous scene because they took turns reading her a page of their book, alternating all the way which meant that the grandmother was hearing both, "The Cat in the Hat" and "Curious George Cleans Up." I have discovered over the past few months that is a challenge to help the children and their families communicate and I am always looking for new ideas to help break some of the walls that they have up.

After the visit I stayed in the girls' home for a couple of extra hours to teach some of the older ones "Settler's of Catan." They had been wanting to play and it had never worked out. It was a good afternoon of play and I am sure we will do it again in the near future.

As we enter this new week, there are definitely challenges ahead. Several of the children are struggling in their behavior. Meanwhile various family members of the children are suffering the consequences of poor decisions which ultimately affects the children and their hopes and dreams. Please pray with us for the children and their families.

There and Back Again

October 19, 2010
Well, my journey has come full circle and I am back at La Casa de Mi Padre, settling back in with my work here. I return with another 90 days on my visa which is always a praise. When I walked into the girls’ home yesterday over lunch time, the youngest girl, Karla (age 5), told me that she had forgotten what I looked like and she thought that I was a lot taller. I had been gone less than two weeks but I guess that at that age, much can be forgotten. Today one of the teen girls told me that I looked taller now and that maybe I had grown from playing basketball again. I doubt it but I guess that it would not hurt for me to grow a little taller.

I arrived in Lancaster, PA Tuesday evening the 5th of October and left again very early on the 13th. In that week I spent time with family and friends and took care of some details with my computer, getting books and jeans for the children at La Casa, and other runnings here and there. A funny moment for me was when I discovered myself mixing cement Latin America style in the mountains of PA. (That means putting the cement on the ground, pouring on water, and mixing with shovels). The technique worked pretty well for the location and we were able to fill in behind the stone wall that we had built to help sustain a footbridge over a little stream.

I found myself often starting to talk to children in Spanish, especially younger children to whom I felt the need to say, “No, you should not… .” It makes me think that I must be saying “no” too much in Spanish since it came out so easily with the Spanish accent.

In my return to El Salvador I passed through Honduras to pay my car insurance and also to make sure that I got my 90 days. It was good to get out to camp again and to see the new baby on camp – Fernando – as well as visit with the staff and Evelin. Much to my delight Lisbeth warmed up to me very quickly and shortly after I arrived we were playing like old friends (well, maybe like an aunt with her niece). The time there was a little bittersweet because Evelin is facing another difficult time and I knew that I could not do anything but pray with her, encourage her, and leave her in God’s hands. And He is good and faithful so really that is the best place for her to be, if she would just make sure that she curls up there. One precious moment was seeing her read the book, "I'll Love You Forever" to Lisbeth in the car on our way to the city. I pray that the words sunk in for both of them.

My journey back to El Salvador took about nine hours instead of six to seven but I was able to catch up on journaling and use my computer for e-mails and such. This time they showed at least one decent movie which was a blessing. I enjoyed the sights and though I did not sleep, I took time to rest a bit. And so I give thanks for the chance to get away and yet return, ready for the next couple of months.

Autumn On The Mind

October 1, 2010

The last few days have felt a bit like rainy autumn days because the rains have brought in much cooler temperatures. Days like these make me long for the changes of autumn such as the beautiful colors,the shorter days (days here in Central America are always short), and the seasonal fruits and vegetables. Over the past 3months I have been reading "Charlotte's Web" with one of the girls here at the home to work on her reading comprehension. We finished the book this week and so today I took advantage of the fact that they had no school (because of the rains and flooding earlier in the week) to invite her over to my apartment to watch the movie. Even though the movie was in English with Spanish subtitles (and she cannot read quickly enough to keep up with the words) she enjoyed the movie and really the chance to get some special, individual attention. Since the movie and book speak about friendship and what is a loyal friend, we had some good moments discussing what it means to be a good friend. Anyway, within the book and movie, there are many references to autumn, the fall fairs, and such, so I am excited to be heading north next week to experience some of those things.

Tomorrow is the day of change in the girls' home. They are moving the rooms around and mixing up the groups. I plan to take at least three of the younger girls to my apartment for the morning so give the adults more freedom to get things done. If I am feeling particularly adventurous and energetic, I may bring five of them, but I am not so sure about that. I have been pretty tired the last few days trying to recover from lack of sleep earlier in the week. The new tia is settling in to the routine at the home and the changing of rooms will help to finalize the adjustments to the groups. The youngest two groups of girls have been united into one large group of seven girls. That group will be quite a handful to say the least.

About a week and a half ago I watched the two two year old boys at my apartment one morning while their tias went to a school event of the other boy in their care. I had toddler-proofed the apartment by taking away all of the glass items and electronics that did not have to out in the open. I remember with fondness making tents out of sheets draped over the furniture from my childhood so I did that in between the living and dining room. Ricardo crawled under it for a little bit but then while I was giving Emanuel some water, Ricardo decided to crawl on the armchair instead and from there stretch out on the sheet. Only he quickly discovered that the sheet was not solid material and he slowly fell to the floor while I watched from a distance, unable to get there in time to prevent his fall. Apparently he has had quite a few bumps to the head in the past because this one did not phase him for long. I decided though that maybe it would be better to go play at the park and so off we went to spend the rest of the morning on the swings, merry-go-round, and watching a bunch of ladies do some exercise routine ont he basketball court. The worst thing that happened at the park was Ricardo getting rather dirty, but then that is what little boys love to do so it was not a big deal.

I will definitely miss the children while I am in PA and Honduras but I know that time will pass quickly and soon I will be back working with them in some way whether it be in homework, reading, play, or group therapy times.