busy week. kids are pushing at school to get done....in between wishing it were already over and being generally grumpy. They are becoming rather needy lately. Do this for me, do that, make the time go quicker and help me get better grades..without me really having to do much. Sounds like kids everywhere doesn't it? D'Jinu took a math test and failed...and James kidded him about it. This is so unlike James, who has had his own set of struggles in school. The difference is that James works hard and D'Jinu couldn't care less. And that D'Jinu has been teasing James for awhile now about various things. So James got a chance to get back and couldn't resist. As I was telling D'Jinu about his grade (I wasn't going to pass him anyway, caught him looking at the book for answers during the test) James turned around and said "Oh, D'Jinu failed a test?!" I discourage this stuff between the kids, but I knew the history between them. So as I looked at James and said "James, stop that!", I was smiling, and he was smiling back. :) Kids are kids everywhere, just some local differences.
speaking of local differences, throwing rocks at each other is a pretty regular occurrence here. Henson is about 9 and regular size, Jean Phillip is about 14 and very tall, and Jean Phillip tortues Henson whenever he gets the chance. Apparently Henson has taken to defending himself with rocks. More than once, I find out, Henson has picked up a rock as he gets off the truck after school (Gary delivers some of the kids home who are smaller or come from distances) and fired it into the truck trying to hit JP. Well, he hit Tara right above the eye yesterday. Tara came in to tell about it with witnesses, and Tara's mom (a worker) was there too. Gary was busy with other business so it fell to me. JP got scolded about leaving Henson alone and Henson got a swat. He shed a tear or two, then ran out to play again during break. When I asked him what would have happened if he had hit Tara in the eye, he dropped his own eyes and said "something bad", so he knows he is wrong. The kids throw rocks at each other on the street all the time, and they are smiling about it, it is accepted play....until someone gets hurt.
I was workin with Myberson yesterday and a loud ruckus was forming in Daniel's room that just kept getting louder and louder. I looked at Myberson, he looked at me. I waited a few seconds and it got worse, at which time I rolled my eyes and picked up the paddle and headed for Daniels room, while Myberson was smiling and trying not to laugh. Well, apparently a lizard had dropped off the window sill and dropped right onto one of the girls, so the screeching and such was well founded. Daniel was chasing the lizard around with his stick and had it by the door when I walked in. I caught it by the tail, and hauled it outside to be tossed into the street. It really was kind of funny, the girls, were screeching and the boys were trying to catch it themselves....somethings just don't change do they?
Monday I will apparently, pending a change in mind by Gary, be driving the kids home. It has taken a while for me to get used to the traffic here, but I am ok with it now, and I know the route fairly well, so Gary get's a break for a short while. Last year one of the visiting staff took the driving over, and one of the local workers said it was a miracle he hadn't killed dozens of people. So Gary has been a bit more careful about giving out that duty. I now will be driving a truck filled with kids into streets filled with cars, trucks, motorcycles, bikes, people, wheel barrows and street carts, pigs, goats, sheep, chickens and dogs who all think there is no one else on the road but them. Maybe I need to rethink this......
The weather is warmer, humid and cloudy with occasional showers...precursor to rainy season. When the rain comes it is welcome as it cuts down the ever present dust. The fear is obviously when it becomes a 2 or 3 day tropical rain with flooding. There is much work going on to repair from last year, but there just isn't the money structure or equipment to facilitate all that is needed in between rainy seasons. There are so many roads and bridges that could go with bad flooding this year. We pray it will just be a normal season, which will be bad enough.
Still no word on the elections as far as who won. word is that the government will honor the count despite the low turnout. new elections will be help in about a year and a half, I believe, for the whole government again and Lavalas will certainly have themselves straightened out by then and will field a full slate of candidates. I want to say that may be a turning point here, but I can't. Things just go on as things go on, I am learning. Sometimes better than others, sometimes more violent, but people still go on living as best they can. as long as the UN is here to quell an outright coup it probably will be ok.... probably.
all for now. some things happen that I just forget about day to day, it has all become normal to see.....everything that happens here. I wonder how I will do at home again, actually following traffic rules. :( OH, good news for those who had followed this before. My truck is my truck again!!!!!! or, it is my son's truck. couldn't put it in my name with me not being there to sign stuff, so Luke put it into his own name and got insurance on it. so the old red truck will ramble again. I am grateful that the person we took it back from did the right thing. It could have turned into a court thing, but he recognized that the right thing to do was just to sign the title over and did so w/o dispute. Thank you J.
Djebenis tout moun
Bondye benis ou
No comments:
Post a Comment