Hallelujah

Wow, only 3 weeks left. I look back at the day we left and wonder how the trip is already halfway over. It's insane...

I never could've imagined what this trip would be like. I guess I had an idea, but man, God sure surprised me! I mean, how many 15 year olds can say that they have been a teacher. And i'm not talking about VBS volunteer teacher, either. Nope, i'm a real (temporary) teacher. Whether it's physical education, reading, bible, or craft, my students never let me have a dull moment. NEVER. Seriously! In P.E. today, I had to constantly keep an eye on the boys, because they find it extremely fun to run into the woods behind the school and climb up the trees like little monkeys. And they find it hilarious when I come at them, yelling for them to get down. They just smile and laugh at their Mzoongoo teacher. But honestly, I had to laugh too. It was quite funny. 

For those of you that have been reading my other blog posts, Isha is doing very well. Starting last Friday, I have been taking her out of class to work with her one-on-one, and she's doing great. Friday I taught her the words "at", "bat", "cat", "fat", "hat", "knat" "mat", "pat", "rat", and "sat", and then today I taught her "book", "cook", "hook", "look", shook" and "took", and she is really getting it. I'll go over how to sound out each word with her, and then I ask her to write it, and then spell it without looking. One of the things Isha struggles with, is telling different letters apart. I'll ask her to spell "Hook", and she spells "Kook." She just gets it mixed up in her head. And she also struggles with which word is which from time to time.  I ask her to spell "Cook" and she spells "Book" instead. But once I explain to her what she did wrong, and help her with it, she does great. She can spell "Shook" now, and that was one of the harder words I taught her.

Now, I know you probably find it odd that i'm teaching such simple words to a 3rd grader. But honestly, I have too. This school hasn't even been open for a full year yet, and Isha most likely has never even stepped foot in a school. It's difficult, but she's making marvelous progress. Ebenezer Christian Academy is a private school, and so the families pay lots of money to send their kids to school. If they go to a public school, which is government sponsored, the cost is a lot less. So it's rather amazing to me that so many families have been sending their children to this private school, and it truly is a God thing. This school teaches disipline, respect, and among other things... they teach them about Jesus.

The one thing that concerns me, is that I'm not going to be able to continue pulling Isha out of class forever. And that's gonna be tough. She gets distracted easily, she has trouble with big words, and she she constantly needs someone to motivate her. Yeah, I can sit beside her in class, keep her focused, motivate her, and help her with the words. But what about when we leave? There are times when there's not even a teacher in the room(because of teacher shortage)!! How in the world is she supposed to get the help she needs to learn, if they can't even have a teacher in the room at all times? Kelsey mentioned a tutor, which is a wonderful idea, but there's a very little chance of finding one, excpecially if they're going to want money(Why am I saying "if"?!) The idea of having to leave Isha with no one to help her with her struggles, is not a pleasent thought. And it frustrates me just to think about it.

Prossy asked me to be her sponsor (again) today, and It broke my heart when I had to tell her no. She asked me the same question at the beginning of the trip, as well as the question about buying her a uniform. Well, I had said no to both, because it didn't seem possible. But then, we were able to provide uniforms for ALL of the students. So I guess when that happened, she got the impression that I'd be able to be her sponsor as well. And being a sponsor is rather expensive. It is most definetly something, that I can not afford to do. So when I had to tell this sweet girl that I couldn't sponsor her, I was devestated. And i'm sure she was too!

Everyday, God surprises me. He put me here to help a little girl learn to read. He put me here to bring encouragement to a 4th grader. He put me here to be a friend to Beckah, and to the rest of the kids. And then I wonder, why would God put me HERE? A place of such poverty. A place where some children simpy can't go to school because of money. A place where a classroom doesn't always have a teacher.  A place where people are dying everyday because of disease. Why? Why me? Why here? Why bring me here if I can't help out long term? But then I realize, I'm not in control of what happens. I'm not the one who calls the shots. God is. Everyday, God reminds me that HE is in control. Everyday, he reminds me that he is always here. And everyday, he makes me say Hallelujah.