Saturday 15 October 2011

Christmas


I absolutely love my work here. I love working with the children. I love getting to know them, helping them and they always make me smile. I enjoy the variety of each day and supporting the teachers with some ideas when working with the children. I love that it is warm here and that I can wear a t shirt, even in the evening and wear flip flops, even in October. I love being able to swim most days, outside under the star-filled sky. I love that I can share a smile with people that I meet and pass. Despite all of this, it doesn’t mean that life is easy.  It is hard work but knowing that I have a reason for being here makes this year a whole lot easier.
I received a very exciting parcel in the post today –it felt like Christmas! The day was finished off with an English roast dinner, which also felt like Christmas! In school we are practising the Christmas play, in OCTOBER! It feels strange to be talking about Christmas when it is so warm here. I love Christmas, but I normaly feel more Christmasy in December, when it is cold! I wonder what Christmas will be like not with family in cold England?

LF

12.10.11
It gets me every time I see the children in LF. I just can’t imagine what life is like for them. I find the sessions that I work with them really frustrating as I feel I can’t do a very good job. I have children walking in and out the whole afternoon, older children “helping me” and I just find it hard work. I can help these children a little bit by practising their skills of listening and attention but I will never be able to help out of the life they live. They may go to school but due to limited options of school due to financial situations, these kids have to share a classroom with some 50-ish children. What are their options for their life?
I visit for 2-3 hours a week and know that I only make such a miniscule difference in these children’s lives but despite this, I don’t want to stop going. I need to do something.

Internet

13 10 11
No internet:
Today I had a big long list of things to do. I had been storing up my jobs to do when I had the time to sit quietly on my own on the internet. I don’t have the internet everyday, just a few times a week.
So I woke up early to begin my organised list of things to do, which mostly including using the internet… people to Skype, to email, things to look up, cards to send, etc etc. Upon turning on my computer I found that the internet wasn’t working. You would not believe my frustration. I felt like all of the things on my list couldn’t be done. I felt that my time would be wasted. I wondered if it was really irrational to be so cross at the internet not working!? Am I of a generation that can not function without the internet? Was it just my issue that I had to deal with; to not be so organised that I can not adjust my plans accordingly or not make so rigid plans and be more spontaneous?
It actually turned out a good morning to make more speech Therapy resources and print them out, despite my initial frustrations.

Coping

There have been so many challenges for me since being in Ecuador, but many that I have been able to cope with. I have had my clothes go mouldy in this humid climate, adapted to delivering Speech Therapy in a small, dark, concrete room with stray dogs coming in and out, working in another language and living in a different culture. However, one thing I can not cope with is cockroaches. Once it gets dark they are everywhere...literaly. There are huge ones outside that you practically trip over when you walk down the path, and slightly smaller ones in the kitchen, everywhere. I have no idea why God created them!

Thursday 6 October 2011

Swimming 3

Weds 6th Oct:
Today I really appreciated my swimming lesson. It was a strange evening as the mist had come down really low, hovering just above the water. I enjoyed the time to myself this evening. I could only hear my breathing and the sounds of the water. I just love being in the water. It was nice to switch off from the noise and busy-ness of today.  Although it has been a good day, I definitely needed the time out from people and to have a bit of my own personal space.
It was a typical afternoon in Laura Flores; working in the small, hot, dark concrete room, not knowing which children would turn up. As usual I have older children “helping” me and today there was a 2 year old joining in too. One girl in my group has made fantastic progress and I am so proud of her! She is now able to sit and maintain attention to a task whereas before she would just grab all the items in the activities. I still struggle working with another girl who just can’t wait her turn in the games/activities, and who constantly grabs/snatches/throws the toys. It is so hard to teach her to wait; to wait for her turn to have a go with the toys. In a way I can identify with her. I sometimes find it hard to wait. I have been thinking a lot of my friends and family this week and I have to wait to see them in April. This week, April has felt a long way off, however, at the same time I am so pleased to be here, privileged to be working with these children and I am excited to see how much more I will experience in my time here and what I will learn.
Hebrews 6 v 15
“And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.”

Swimming 2:

I really enjoy my swimming lessons. I don’t know why. Perhaps it is just some time-out time. I have to completely switch off and just concentrate on what stroke I am swimming and counting the lengths. I have been reminded of so many things when I’m at the pool. I like it when I get to swim in the farthest lane as it reminds me of something specific. This lane has a floodlight at the end of it. When you start off the water is fairly dark, because my lessons are in the evening. As you get further towards the other end it is really light. You don’t notice at the time that it is getting lighter, until you are in the brightest end and realise how dark the other end really was. It reminds me of a time that I went through when I felt like it was really dark - a time when it felt like I couldn’t see any light. Life seemed to be really difficult and it was quite a low time. I didn’t realise how dark it was until I came out the other side and seemed to live back in the light.
I thank God that he brought me out of that dark time.