Last Sunday after church, Len took the kids for a walk around the property of BLB. They got to see all this new land. The kids were very excited to see what Papi Len had to show them. We started on a familiar piece of the property by walking through the playground and then all of our children stood in the guard shack that over looks the property. They were all looking out over BLB and over Grand Goave to the bay. Len explained to them that they have to work hard in school so that they can be the future of Haiti. They can be the ones to change Haiti and make it a better place for themselves and their children. I could tell by looking around at the group that many of them were taking this to heart and thinking about what they can do to play their part in the continued development of their country.
Len then brought them around to see all the plants that have been growing and told them that this is what provides them food and nourishes them. Many were able to identify the trees and their fruits. The open area of dirt created much confusion for many of the children. They closed their eyes and envisioned a soccer field and garden areas with the potential for farm animals some day in the future. Many of them were excited to know they would get to help with these processes and learn how to farm and take care of animals so they could then do it on their own someday. The joy and excitement that these children display when they are hopeful for work in the future is unlike that of any I've seen from any child in the United States. Sure we dream about what it is that we might be when we grow up and desire for something more, but it's different. These kids see hope in work and know that they will be able to learn and have a job that will provide for them. These are just some of the long-term roles that Be Like Brit will play in these 48, eventually 66, children's lives.
This week has been very busy, as Gama was still away and Jon left for vacation. I knew that it would be busy essentially taking on the role of 2 other people in addition to my own responsibilities. I can now say that I have a much better understanding of what it is like to walk in the shoes of these two co-workers of mine. On that note, we were very happy last night when Gama returned! He came back with Bernie, Brit's brother. It is great to see them and the children were very happy as well. Both Gama and Bernie jumped right in and joined the kids for dinner this evening. It's always great to see how excited the children get to see visitors and this was even more special today as they have not seen either of these members of their family for a long time.
There are some new routines that have started on a daily basis with the kids at BLB. We want to promote positivity and good behavior in all of our children. In order to do this, we have set in place a reward system for positive behaviors. Each time a child is setting a good example for others and behaving extremely well or is caught being good by helping another child or a caregiver, we give them a star on a chart that has been put on the wall. Once they reach 5 stars, they receive a reward, in the form of a lollipop or extra time to play ABCmouse. The children are eager to earn stars and this has become an easy way to remind the children that they need to behave. We have also been doing a sort of nightly reflection. Every night after dinner, we move onto the courtyard and sit in the shape of a circle. During this family time, we ask that each child stand and share something that made them happy that day. Through this, we are promoting self-confidence and positive thinking. We are also teaching our children to be respectful to others and be a good audience as we set the expectation for all to be listened to and shown proper respect when speaking. The children as well as our staff have been very happy with this new routine. I find this to be one part of my day that makes me take some time to remind myself why I'm here and that these are the children of our future.
There are many things in Haiti about which I am still learning. While I have learned quite a bit in my 6 weeks here, there is much more to learn. One of my lessons this past week was that there are some things in Haiti that will never cease to amaze me. On Thursday afternoon when we arrived for our daily swimming at the beach, I noticed a lot of white things in the water. I investigated further with our staff to see if they knew what it was. They assured me it was the markers for the fishermen to find their cages later on. As I sat on the shore watching our kids swim, amazed by how far they have come in 6 weeks, I realized that trash kept washing ashore. I looked up and realized that all of the white spots that I saw out in the distance earlier was actually small pieces of trash: Styrofoam plates, empty bottles, bags, forks, you name it. The thing that got me was not the evidence of the trash, but the fact that it didn't even seem to faze the kids as they were swimming. They kept swimming right along side these pieces of Styrofoam. I realized that this was my teaching moment. After discussion with a few members of the staff we had the kids come out of the water a few minutes early and cleaned up the section of the beach that we had used for swimming that day. They were all happy to take part in such an activity, especially after we discussed the reason for doing such a thing. The issue of trash is one of the ways that the level of poverty is so evident in Haiti. We are all a part of this problem as we create trash daily through usage of materials. However, we are also going to be part of this solution. We now have knowledge of a local center for recycling and through this we, at B Like Brit, will teach our kids to search for the answers and be a part of them. Our kids and the habits we create within them can change this problem. Our kids can make a difference, be it ever so small as a candy wrapper on the beach. Our kids will make this world a better place.
As always thank you for your support of Be Like Brit in Haiti. We hope you see the FAITH, HOPE and LOVE that we have for Haiti!!!
