Freedom?

Here's some food for thought: for those of you reading this from the comfort of your home in Somewheresville U.S., how many of you have thought about what it means to live in a free country? I mean what it really means. Sure you can vote, speak your mind, read which ever books you choose, but what about the little things? I'm talking about all of those minor freedoms which often occur on a daily basis and which all too often get taken for granted.

Established 30 years ago as an independent free nation, Belize has many of the freedoms that are common among democratic societies. However, just this week, it has become apparent to me that not all things are free--at least not in the same sense as to which we view our liberties in the U.S. Take for instance, the concept of parental authority & consent. Our 3 daughters, all in primary school, came home last Monday to report that they had been given doses of medication & vitamins by nurses. Apparently hookworms are such a problem in this area that the children, all children, are medicated biannually for them. Alongside this, the kids were administered doses of vitamin A (to which I've still yet to know fully the need). There was no parental consent, no real notification that this would occur on Monday (they mentioned something at Mass about "deworming" but my husband & I had no idea that this would include mandatory medication of our children). To make matters even more uneasy for us, the medication was administered by a nurse who, while wearing the same pair of glove, placed a pill inside the mouth of every student (it's no wonder two of our girls were ill with a fever & a cough by the end of the week). Our second grader said that one boy in her class cried about swallowing the pill and the teacher then literally put her hand into his mouth and shoved the pill down his throat. I'm still surprised by this, as I cannot imagine my children getting as much as a cough drop at their school in the states without prior consent, let alone actual medication.
About half a week prior, our 12 year old daughter came home stating "the boys got blood drawn in the morning so I think the girls are getting blood drawn in the afternoon." In utter shock, I asked if she knew what this was for to which she replied, "I have no idea but all the boys left and came back some time later saying that they had blood taken." In a country whose HIV population is recorded at about 1 in 50 (though some experts believe it may be even as high as 1 in 10), and does not likely adhere to the same sanitation practices as to which we've known in the states, I was downright nervous. I told my daughter that under no circumstances may she have anyone poke a needle into her unless one of her parents is present. Fortunately, no blood was drawn from any more students that afternoon, or in the days following. Though I still have no idea why any students were subjected to a blood draw, I've made sure several times since that our children understand "no needles unless mom or dad is present." I cannot even fathom something like this happening in the U.S. without parents being first notified yet this is something that obviously occurs in other countries that are considered to be "free".

Just thinking in terms of communication, and I can quickly see that U.S. residents have certain liberties that are not present here. Take for instance free reign over the Internet. BTL (Belize Telemedia Limited), is the main Internet/phone service provider in the country and it just so happens to be owned by the government. In an attempt to keep residents paying for phone service, applications such as Skype & Google voice have been blocked on the Internet. In other words, we cannot use all Internet functions here that we wish and our ability to video communicate with family at home is blocked by the goverment--though in the realm of the world wide web, there's always a way around it.

Even the cell service here has taken a few of it's own "liberties." The government of Belize subscribes to an "eavesdropping service." In other words, they have the ability to record any text messages, voice mail, and phone calls made within the country. Now I certainly do not have any phone calls that would be considered 'worth listening to' but it still bothers me a bit to know that I do not have a choice in the matter.

So the next time you hug your kids, make a phone call, or use the Internet from inside the U.S., be very glad that you live in a country that allows you to do so freely, with few strings attached.

Halloween in PG

     Well we've officially survived our first US holiday in PG--Halloween. Granted, it's not Christmas or Thanksgiving as far as holidays go but we've always celebrated it pretty big at home in the States. Knowing that Halloween is not nearly so widely popular in the rest of the world, we had few expectations for the day. Still, we'd decided that we would celebrate it as best as we could regardless of where we live. Much to our surprise, we learned that Belize actually does celebrate Halloween, all be it somewhat new to them. I would speculate that with so many Belizeans having family or friends relocated in the US, and with such a strong influence from up north, the holiday inevitably has made it's way down here.

The first step was figuring out costumes. We have the advantage of having warm weather and not being so limited in clothing (i.e. long sleeves, pants). However, we are very limited on resources here. There are a few costumes available (think maybe 10 or so total available for sale) and a few masks as well but that's pretty much it in the way of store bought costumes. For one son, we put together a robot costume from items available here and our 10 year old wore a "Wonder Woman" type costume that I roughly cut and hand stitched together. And for our youngest daughter, we scoured the internet until we found an idea that she liked--Cleopatra. I printed out a couple of pictures from online, purchased some fabric and ribbon, and took my idea to a seamstress in town. The best part is that for just $7.50 US she was able to sew an entire costume, with no pattern from just a few basic measurements and a picture. I don't believe any seamstress in town has ever worked from a pattern, yet for a few dollars, they can put together some amazing pieces of clothing. It just goes to show you how resourceful they can be.

Halloween is celebrated here but as mentioned before, because it is so new, it isn't to the extent or quite in the same manner as it is celebrated in the U.S. The night before, they handed out bags of candy to children in Central Park--most of the candy here consists of lollipops and other hard candy, almost no chocolate :-(. Halloween day proved to be very fun for our kids in school. Our son's preschool class all came dressed up--those that did not have a costume were able to rent one from the teacher for a small fee. Then they, nearly 40 kids, all loaded up into the back of a trailer that was decorated like a float for Halloween. Parents, myself included, loaded up into the back of the truck pulling the trailer, and we proceeded to drive around town, honking the horn, stopping at businesses and trick or treating along the way. We did this for over 2 hours (imagine 40 preschoolers gone for 2 hours and not a single child needing to use the restroom). It was so much fun, if only our son had a more 'sit down friendly' costume. Our daughters' school celebrated as well. They had a bike raffle, haunted house, special barbecue lunch, and costume contest. While not nearly as many kids dressed up as they do in the States, we were pleasantly surprised at all the children who did. Our daughter even won 'Prettiest Costume' with her Cleopatra costume.

Preschool class trick or treating at local business

Decorated trailer for trick or treating

As the evening arrived, we really didn't know what to expect since so many neighbors seemed to give us a different idea. Of course since I am a foodie at heart and I believe every celebration should be accompanied fun meal, I spent the evening preparing food--jack o lantern quesadillas, mummy cupcakes, witch finger cookies, bloody zombie punch, snake shaped calzone, and some good dips. If it weren't for the fact that our small propane tank ran out of gas just as I was starting to cook the tortillas and calzone (thus leading Andy on a frantic search to fill a propane tank after business hours), the meal prep went great. After he returned with gas, I finished cooking the meal, while he took our 4 youngest kids and the two neighbor girls out to enjoy the evening. There was even a house down the street who put together a haunted house, complete with frights and screams, for just 50 cents admission. We got some trick or treaters (though not a lot), some of whom were in costume and others who were not. Since Belize lacks the safety paranoia that is often present in the States, I was able to have homemade witch finger cookies bagged up and give them out as treats, without any troubles. The kids all really seemed to like those.

Over all, Halloween here exceeded our expectations but certainly didn't live up to the hype it is in the U.S. Still, we had fun and certainly made the best of it. Now if only they celebrated Dia de los Muertos down here like their border neighbor, Mexico does....

Over the river and through the woods and into the classroom we go...

Well, I (Andy) have been wanting to articulate some of my experience and am finally sitting down to do so. I am working very closely with Mr. Joseph Cayatano, the local manager (think superintendent of schools) as we travel to schools, observe teachers, tour facilities and attend staff meetings. There are thirty schools in the Toledo district under the care of Catholic management and our goal is to visit every school at least once per term. This translates into travelling anywhere between 2-4 hours every Tuesday and Thursday during the week. The roads are rough, unpaved, rocky and sometimes flooded. One trip to the village of San Benito Poite required us to wade through 2 flooded creeks to be sure that the truck could safely cross the swelled creeks. Although the terrain is similar what one might see in a commercial for a Ford F-350 Super Duty truck, our vehicles pale in comparison. In Joe's own words, "We have two trucks available. The first is okay, and the second, well, it will get you there." The ride on these days is rough but it helps to think of it more like a rough massage through some of the most beautiful county I have ever seen. Tall mountains, large green plants, and rushing rivers remind me that this is God's country, still very hidden and isolated from the rest of the world.

As we arrive at schools, we are welcomed by the principal and given a quick update on the news of the day, whether it be the construction of a latrine, the status of the school's feeding program, or relations with the village community. While Joe stays with the principal to review attendance logs and staff registers, I take to the classrooms. This is the part that I love, being able to observe classrooms in action. I try my best to "sneak in" without disturbing the class. It is not easy since the students are well trained to stand and provide the usual choral greeting, "good afternoon Sir". It is especially difficult to be in cognito in the younger grades as these students stare at the unique looking stranger.

Within a few minutes, the class resumes its regular pace and I get to to be a fly on the wall. I take this time to view the room, the layout of the desks, and various charts and signs that the teacher has posted around the room. No pre-made commercially available alphabet charts, safety posters or motivational signs here. Every character, rules poster, and academic sign has been painstakingly drawn and colored by the teacher and each has at least a few years of use under it's belt.   There is a very long and specific list of essential charts that the government requires to be present in each and every classroom including national symbols, alphabet in both English and Spanish, and manners protocol.

 After familiarizing myself with the physical setting, I start to observe the teacher's interaction with the students, his/her classroom management and lesson delivery. During this time, I try to record at least 2-3 good points to offer some praise and reinforcement. As a teacher, I always liked it when an observer recognized the positive aspects of my teaching. The more difficult task is to mention the not so positive aspects in a supportive manner. I have been trying to phrase my criticism in the form of open questions. "How will you redirect the student in the back who has been distracting those around him?" "What strategies have you found to be successful when it comes to getting the class's attention?" "How will you assess if the students understand the lesson's objectives?" My goal is to gently bring these issues to light and offer some reflective direction.  Oftentimes, the teacher and I have had the opportunity to discuss these observations face to face during a break time.  This has been a most interesting lesson in tactfulness and relationship building as I am expected to observe and offer suggestions, while trying to be more of a coach than a critical voice. I feel that my suggestions have been well received, which is something that I'm always worried about. I certainly do not want to offend anyone and no teacher wants someone to walk into their room and point out faults.  One of the more unfortunate realities that one teacher commented on is that young Belizean teachers find it difficult to admit the areas that need improvement.  On the other hand, there certainly is some very good and effective teaching going on here.

Typically, our staff meetings do not include a meal such as
 this.  Today, the staff was celebrating a farewell
 baby shower for their Vice Principal.

One of the things that I like to point out when we hold staff meetings is that, in my experience, most practical professional learning comes from colleagues, not from degree programs or workshops. I try to encourage these younger teachers to seek help from those veteran staff they work with.  Near the end of our stay, Joe and I spend some time with the staff (numbering anywhere from 3-12 teachers) discussing these best practices.  I am always very pleased with the dialogue that emerges from these sessions.  It has proven to me that teachers can be their own best resource and, if they are given the time to reflect and share, they can certainly learn a lot from one another.  Good teaching is the same no matter where you are. It comes down to dedicated individuals who are willing to do what they can in the best interests of their students.  I hope to share more of these experiences, but will have to wait for future posts to do so.

Independence!

September is the month of independence for Belizeans and they make no buts about it, it is a celebration worthy of month long festivities. Starting at the end of August one can find houses, cars, windows and shops adorned with the Belizean flag. I would have to say that I've never seen a display of patriotism to the extent that the Belizeans go. This year is extra special as it is the 30th year anniversary of Belize's independence. To give you an idea as to how young this country is their founding father, George Cadle Price (the equivalent to our George Washington), just passed away a few weeks ago.
The month starts off with a Carnival type parade and a queen pageant in Belize City. However, with fewer than 6000 residents, the town of Punta Gorda does surprisingly well with their own Independence celebrations. Earlier in the month the country celebrated the Battle of St. George's Caye which was a decisive battle between the British and the Spaniards over the country of Belize (the British won out). There was a presentation of the pageant queen along with a fireman's parade followed by a demonstration from the Belize Defense Force (BDF) This was followed by a party in Central Park, complete with music, dancing, and a dj. That was just the beginning.
As the month ensued so did the celebrations. The government organizes what they call the Children's Rally. The idea is to give the children their own opportunity to celebrate their country and to display their patriotism. Many classes head to the local civic center during school hours to participate. Representatives from all of the schools in the surrounding Punta Gorda area then gathered together and paraded around the streets, waving flags, beating drums and carrying school banners. Preschools, such as our son's, had government appointed buses that were decorated and participated in the parade as well--shouting "hip hip hooray" along the route. As the parade wrapped up and the kids headed home (who can have school after that right?) the government paid for to each child to be sent home with a treat or goody bag of treats and a juice bottle. We went on the bus with our son's preschool, our two oldest daughters walked with their school and our youngest daughter watched the parade from her classroom as it went by. It was really a great experience to see so many children all supporting their country in such a public way.
On September 21, Belizeans celebrate their independence--the day when they were officially no longer a British colony. The celebrations here tend to be more communal than familial and they begin on Sep. 20 (Independence Eve). The majority of festivities took place at Central Park and included a bounce house (yay for my kids), beer, food, political speakers, music and dj. There was also some amazing authentic garifuna music that was performed by a group from one of Toledo district's only garifuna villages, Barranco (see youtube link for some video footage). They make heavy use of drums, rattles, and tortoise shells as instruments. At 11:45 p.m. the BDF marched into Central Park and did a 21 gun salute. After that was the countdown to midnight. As the clock struck midnight fireworks were set off at the pier a few blocks away. We were extremely impressed as they were as good as any suburban US city's fireworks. The festivities went until 2 a.m. but that was just too late for this young family, we left by 12:30 a.m.
The next morning, Independence Day, began with a large rally and another 21 gun salute (the BDF sure like their guns). This was followed up with a large parade that had representatives from nearly every school and organization in the area. Andy was very happy to see a troop of Boy Scouts marching in the parade all decked out in uniform. As the parade wrapped up, there was more music, food, and festivities in the park but because of the long night and hot weather, we just didn't last too long. Later that afternoon was a bike race in which participants had to bike around the town's main streets 12 times. Some of the participants came decked in proper biking gear and multiple speed bikes while others wore street clothes and flip flops and rode their basic 1 speed bikes. We didn't get to see who finished but I believe there was a $250 prize for first place.
The month has wrapped up with a memorial service for George Cadle Price, the founding father, first prime minister and leader of People's United Party. The kids were off school and there was a special mass and procession to Central Park for an ecumenical service. Simultaneously, there was a funeral mass in Belmopan (the capital city) followed by a burial in Belize City. We do not have a TV signal nor do we get a good radio signal but riding around town, it was very apparent how well Mr. Price was loved and revered. Nearly every house in town had either a tv or a radio tuned to the solemn, all day service.

Celebrating Belize's independence has been a real treat for us. Not only was it a great time but it was wonderful to see so many people come together for a common purpose.

It's Out of My Control

When we moved here I decided to start a personal journal, a new concept for me. Granted, I haven't exactly made regular journal entries but when I do, I often find it to be an uplifting experience. One of the main reasons is that when I get back to the States, I don't want to reread a journal full of complaints, and negativity. Therefore, I tend to work to steer my writings into a more positive direction. And when I do, I find that often God opens me up to a particular lesson or awareness that I might not have otherwise realized (I'd encourage you give it a try as well). Today's journal entry was a good realization for me and so I thought I'd share the gist of it with you.

As I was in the middle of writing today, we were stricken with another power outage. Only this time, upon investigation, we realized that it was not a blackout but rather, the electric co. had shut off the power to our apartment. Apparently, the landlord had gotten the bill and failed to share it with us, resulting in a non-payment and subsequent shut off (just 10 days after the bill was due mind you). We immediately paid the bill but were told that it'd be all day before power would be restored.

The irony of this is that I was in the middle of journaling about how living here has been a real lesson in patience. Things break, all the time. Things get fixed, very slowly or not at all. Appointments get scheduled, circumstances sometimes result in reschedules. Grocery lists get made, items are regularly missing from the store shelves. It's easy to view these all as bad things but living here has taught me that with the bad, comes a lot of good as well. "Belizean time," as we like to call it, forces me to spend a lot less time being angry and feeling stressed--it just is no way to live. It really does force a person to slow down and not be in such a hurry all the time. The result, I believe, is a lot let stress in our lives. In spite of the struggles that many Belizeans face (whether they know it or not) I tend to see them as living far less stressful lives than their American counterparts.

So as I began to ponder this--wonder why I don't live this way in the States--and reflect on how changes can be made in my personal life as I return to the U.S.. I feel like I finally can begin to understand it now. So much of one's life is out of our hands and living here makes that incredibly obvious. The problem is that in the States, with our modern conveniences, our 8 hr workdays, and our ability to fill up our free time with errands, activities, and subsequent obligations, we inherently come to feel that we are in control of our lives. And the more we try to control, the more stressed we feel. Now hear this: God is in control, not us. In Jeremiah 29:11 He makes that very clear. 'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.' If I just stop, step back, and choose to stop feeling the burden of everything I'm involved in then I'm giving it up to God--the one who is and should be in control and the one who wants nothing but the best for us. Choosing to put it out of my control at all times is what I've done here out of necessity but only now have I come to learn that actually it's a necessity everywhere in the world not just here. We must stop wrestling with our Savior to be in charge--we'll never win that battle anyway. I'd encourage you to try it yourself as well, in all aspects of your life. I'm sure that once you do, you too will feel liberated by the freedom that ensues. God can handle it all and if we'd just let Him do His job of loving and caring for us, then He'll remove the stress and fill us with the peace that can only come from Him. Now, I feel so good to be able to say "it's out of my control." It makes life feel like what it's actually supposed to be, and that is good.

Texas Hold 'Em Fundraiser

This fundraiser is being organized by some close friends and supporters.  Sounds like a fun event!  Please help by sharing this link with your friends.  RSVP is on the bottom of the flyer.

Tropical Rain

   When you live in the tropics you experience tropical weather, plain and simple.  We live in the tropics.  Where we live gets 160+ inches of rain each year.  That's a lot of rain.  Bear in mind that the majority of that rain falls during the rainy season (June-Nov.) and about 90% of which falls at night.
   Seeing that we've lived here now for over 2 months, we'd arguably say that we've seen our fair share of rain.
   The one comment that we most often hear from people around here is "are you tolerating those awful storms?" Andy and I never fully understood. We liked the rain, we welcomed it.  Every time it rains the air gets cooled down and the heat becomes that much more bearable.  If it had been up to us, we'd want it to rain every night.  (Though really it pretty much does.)
   Well last night, we finally understood what they've all been talking about.  Three nights in a row now we've had big storms.  The 2nd night included a power outage that had all 5 of the kids awake and unsettled.  When we lose power in this town at night it gets black and we're talking pitch-black-unable-to-see-your-hand-in-front-of-your-face-black.  When it gets that dark it's hard to move around let alone work to calm the fears of 5 frightened children.  Needless to say it was a long night that night.
   Thanks to our daughters' homemade rain gauge, we've been able to keep track of the rain here.  Over the past 3 nights we've received over 9" of rain.  Last night, we got 5" of rain--4 of which fell in about 45 minutes time.  We live on the 2nd floor but no one, and I mean no one can do much to prevent 4" of rain in 45 minutes from wreaking havoc.  Fortunately for us this was another night in which we found ourselves with a frightened child standing over our bed.  As I escorted her back to her bed that's when I realized what the rain had done. It had come up under our front door and flooded half of our living room, hallway, master bedroom and bathroom.  So at 1:30 a.m. we did what we had to do.  We cleaned up the water.  Within 30 minutes we had the water swept up enough to where we felt like we could go to bed.  Our neighbors, Peter's family, didn't fare so well.  They live on the ground floor and had probably 4 times as much water in their house as we had.  It was disheartening to watch them sweep out so much water from their house in the middle of the night.  Yet I would consider their house to be one of the more sturdy structures around.  Many houses here have openings in their walls as well as where the walls meet the roof--a lot of places for rain to come in.  I imagine that there were a lot of people up last night trying to dry out their houses.  I also imagine that a few slept through the storm and awoke to even more water to clean up this morning.  This whole town will be moving a bit slower today.  Nearly everyone will be that much more tired.
   After 2 1/2 months of living here we finally seem to get it.  Rain can certainly be a good thing but it can also create a lot of burden.  It can literally drain you of your energy and leave you feeling depleted.  As we continue to pick up the pieces of last night's storm, we certainly won't take the rain for granted.  Not any time soon anyway.