Pictures: I read Where the Wild Things Are with my kids, and I had the kids make crowns (Max was the King of the Monsters in the book, and had a crown). They thought of all sorts of creative ways to decorate them--without my help! I was so proud of them! (note: a lot of the kids here have trouble with arts and crafts/creative activities because they have very little self-confidence)
So I’ve obviously been busy and haven’t had as much time to post recently. We work hard here but I’ve been thoroughly enjoying it. A lot of little things have happened since I’ve written but below are some memories.

During Montessori time, when kids get to choose any activities to work on, they go straight for the language/reading activities, which is wonderful and our strength (literacy-focused). BUT we want to get the kids just as excited about science, math, and social studies as well. I decided to get Cristina to work on a map today (we have big map puzzles), and I had her spin the globe and pick a continent. I told her she could travel anywhere in the world, and she told me that was a lie. I explained that I would not lie to her and that we were about to go on a trip. She chose the Asia map (the worst aka hardest!) and I told her about different countries and she really enjoyed doing it. Afterwards I asked her if she liked to travel and she told me that she did, and that tomorrow she was going to travel again. It’s nice to see that the kids find escape in their time at school, and that some of the kids still have hope about their futures.

Although our mornings are run like school, they only supplement the public school that the children receive, so the kids are not required or forced to be there (although they come willingly and are excited to be there). SO if they behave badly, we send them home (this happens with at LEAST 5 (out of 80) kids per day). This sounds harsh, but the kids have no concept of discipline (besides getting beaten) and are pretty free to roam wild outside of school, so it is really important for them to understand that the school has different rules. Near the end of the day last Thursday, one of my girls, Delana (age 11), was giving me attitude and not listening. Up until then (we had been together for two weeks) she had worked hard and I could tell that she really liked me, but I had been warned that she had an attitude so I wasn’t surprised when it surfaced. To make it clear that I would not put up with it, I told her that she had to leave (after having given her a warning). She burst into tears (keep in mind by 11 years old these kids are pretty tough) immediately and said that if she went home early her mom would beat her (for having behaved badly). The sad thing is that this is considered more responsible parenting in the batey (versus the neglect that many of the kids “receive”). I calmed her down and explained that I didn’t want that to happen to her and for that reason I would let her stay (but without giving her game time that the kids have at the end). But I explained to her that that was why it was so important to behave well, so that she wouldn’t get sent home early. This is one of the many wake-up calls I’ve had to how sensitive we have to be to these kids’ situations. It’s actually been helpful to keep in mind, because there are so many potentially frustrating situations that happen every other minute, but when I think about what the kids’ lives are like outside of their 3 hours with us, it’s hard to get mad or exasperated at them.

During sharing time, Eliana shared that her six year-old brother got drunk from drinking beer……

An older woman (Gloria Aleluya) who lives in the batey does some cleaning for the school. She only speaks Creole, and a few words in spanish. Our interactions go something like this: Me: “Gloria Aleluya!” Gloria Aleluya: “Aleluya! Aleluya!” I’m now not sure if that is her actual name, or if they just call her that because she says it all the time. Either way, she’s very cute. I really want to learn Creole, and a lot of the women have been happy to teach me a few words, so I’m hoping to pick some of the basics up by the end of this year!

Dominican men. This is a gross generalization, and I want to make it clear that we have met several very nice Dominican men, BUT many of those same nice guys do not take marriage or children seriously. Most of the unmarried men we know have kids, and many of the married men we know have been unfaithful (i.e. neighbor had an affair with another neighbor the same age as his daughter, a married friend has a son half a year older than his son with his wife, our very religious friend and her husband both have children from before they were married). This happens around the world, but it seems to be EVERYWHERE here. Anyhow, the point is that we were at the 50th birthday party for our friend’s dad, and our friend gave a toast. She said, “I want to thank everyone for coming on behalf of (she names her siblings), and any other brothers or sisters that might be out here tonight.” Everyone burst into laughter and APPLAUSE. Oh, Lord. It’s just accepted here.

Last weekend we finally got out of Santo Domingo for a break. We were invited by family friends of Leah to stay in their house in Santiago (in the North, second biggest city in the country). It was nice just to get away, and we also went to the beach for the day (the water was WARM; it was perfect!). What’s even more exciting was that the family sent their driver to pick us up and drop us off again (it’s a 2 ½ hour trip). I’m amazed at the generosity that people continue to show to us. The driver even had us over to his house for lunch. I really will never forget the generosity (time, food, patience) that the Dominicans have shown us.

On that note I cannot forget (thankfully!) how privileged I am to be here. I of course realized off the bat how privileged I have been my whole life as an American, a college graduate, etc. etc., in comparison to the people here, but I have been even more amazed by how privileged I am to be able to work where I work, for a number of reasons. One, these people really are the poorest of the poor. They are Haitians, from the poorest county in the western hemisphere, who come with hope to this country only to find they are heavily discriminated against and therefore only marginally have better opportunities to find work (I still don’t know too much about this, some may argue that they don’t have an advantage being here). So in that sense I feel privileged to get to share my time with people who really are God’s people. But what’s really crazy is that I have the privilege just to walk into their community, and that there is already a foundation laid for them to trust me and love me back. This is only possible because of one of the sisters who came here on her own fourteen years ago. When she first tried to break into the community, she dealt with plenty of mistrust and discomfort, but now when the people in the batey see us, they know that we are truly there to serve them and their children—to try to give them a better education, and give them a few hours a day filled with love, hope, and (almost equally important) a snack.

That’s all for now. I am thinking of and praying for all of you back home. Please keep our community and our kids in your prayers.