Today was an interesting day. Instead of walking to school, Joe, Emmanuel and I took a “Moto Taxi”. Yes a motorcycle taxi and yes I did wear a helmet. Emmanuel made sure my driver did not drive too fast as the roads are full of bumps and holes. I held on tight and off we went. People stared at the Musugu woman on the motorbike, but it was fun. At school, I spent the first hour and a half with a young male teacher named Patience working with the 4 year olds. They are a handful, especially when showing off for me but Patience is a great teacher and had them doing everything he asked. They did some table work and then we played with balls outside.
Teste came to pick Joe and me up at 10 a.m. and off we went to the Goat Market. I have been looking forward to this for months! The market is open on Tuesday and Friday every week and they not only sell goats but also chickens and other animals. As well, there are household items, clothes, shoes, fabric, and vegetables. Today I am buying 5 goats for families – Joe is buying some as well but only 10 fit comfortably in the back of a truck. Next week, I will buy more. Teste does the negotiating with the goat sellers and chose some really great black and white goats. It is very hectic and busy at the goat market and of course the two white people stood out like beacons in the night. I also bought some fabric as I am having some bags made to take home.
As I told people during my fundraiser, goats are very important to families – they provide meat, milk, cheese, and make a great difference in helping families sustain themselves and support their families. We loaded them on the truck and brought them back to the preschool and tomorrow we will give them out to families. All the kids were excited to see the goats.
There was some commotion at the school when we arrived. One of the little girls had been hit on the legs and buttocks – apparently by her mother. She had difficulty walking and was very sad and upset. This is just not acceptable here or anywhere – discipline is one thing but beating is quite another. Teste tried to contact the mother but could not get in touch with her. The father however did come to the school. He admitted that the mother had beaten this little girl. We took the little girl home to see Cathy so she could decide what to do. After calling the police, it was decided that she would stay overnight and the parents would be questioned tomorrow. Lunch and a bath were given and soon she was colouring.
After this, I met with two of the teachers at the preschool to show them everything I had made and brought for the school. They are always looking for new ideas and I was very happy to share some with them. They especially liked the song boards and learning some new songs. It was great fun. Some of the materials can also be used for the adult English classes.
That is quite enough for one day............Needless to say, I am being immersed in a wonderful culture and learning something new every day.........
No comments:
Post a Comment