Today I got a change to get out of the office and go out to
the field with some of Kitovu Mobile counselors. I was glad to finally be out engaging with people and take a
break from writing up my project proposal. It was one of those days that made me sit back and realized
how blessed I am to be here with these people. I visited a school with the group that handles working with
children. The official title is
“Psychosocial support to orphans and other venerable children.” The first workshop I sat in on was Nursery
to Primary 2 students. As soon as
we walked in, you could tell that the students were excited to have visitors
and even more so that they were getting a period away from their normal
classes. When the counselor
greeted them with, “How are you?” all of the students stood up and responded,
“We are fine, smart, and or-gan-izedd”. Definitely goes down as one of the
cutest things I have ever seen in my life. And I was so shocked that kids these young could even be so
well… trained? Not sure if that’s the right word, but its working! We started
the session with things they enjoy then asked them what they weren’t interested
in. Most of the students responded
with being punished for not doing chores at home. That seemed very normal to me, of course no kid likes to do his
or her chores or be punished.
However, the next answers are what threw me by surprise. Students began saying that they don’t
like when their father beats their mother or when their father comes home
drunk. They said that this makes
them run away from home and they have to find a neighbor who is willing to let
them spend the night. I was mostly
shocked that students were opening up this type of information to all of their
classmates, and then I was also shocked that right then and there adults in the
room weren’t making calls to any type of authority to have this handled! Then I
sat back, looked around, and realized where I was. This is a completely different society and culture to the
one I am used to. And possibly,
the reason these kids were so open to sharing was because it is such a normal
occurrence to them and their friends
that there is no need to hiding it.
Even writing this right now, it is hard to explain the emotions of
confusion and helplessness that I was feeling at that exact moment.
Next we went to talk with a class mixed with Primary 3 and 4
students. These were older kids so
I was interested in their answers to the same questions. We started off with their career goals
in the future. Boy, were these kids ambitious! We had future, priests, sisters,
Imam’s, carpenters, pilots, farmers, doctors, nurses, policemen, and even the
future President of the United States (2nd Obama he said)! All the kids were eagerly waving their
hands in the air so excited to share their goals with the rest of the
class. After that talk we went
into problems that they face at home.
Many of the answers were the same as the younger students, fathers
beating mothers, drunkenness, and they also added chore work. A girl spoke about how she hates having
to fetch water from the well late at night, sweep, wash clothes, and clean the
whole house because it doesn’t leave enough time for her studies. Many of the other kids agreed with her
comments. They also added that
they worry when they can’t afford school fees. These kids are so young with that feels like the weight of
the world on their shoulders. It
is apparent though that they take these hardships and turn it into
motivation. Many one else with
their situation could have given up and left school, but these children still
had goals that match the same goals as kids all over the world. They are strong, resilient, and most importantly
happy individuals who are taking advantage of their education. I feel like I learned so much from just
hearing their stories and seeing their actions after, enjoying the day and moving
forward.
At the end of the day, a 14-year-old girl passed me a note
asking to be my best friend.
Earlier she asked the counselor if I was Filipino, when the counselor
told her that I was, the girl told her that she must introduce herself. Apparently she is a HUGE fan of Filipino soap operas and loves their accents
and watching them on TV but never has met one in real life. I’m far from a Filipino soap actress
but she didn’t mind at all. She
asked for my address to send me letters for when I get back to the states! I
can’t wait to get it!
Love,
Mal
P.S. Today I met the cutest little boy that I have ever seen. That is all. (Black and white picture above)
