Back again!

As tried and true teachers, Abby and I believe in teaching kids responsibility. So on Saturday we told the kids that if they wanted to come up to house #1 (where we’ve been staying) they had to help clean the school. They came, and together we conquered that mess!! These kids were incredible. They needed no prompting and jumped right in sweeping, washing windows, mopping the floor, organizing toys, sharpening pencils, and even washing dusty legos (ok, I made them do this)! It has really made a difference. And the kids are taking more and more ownership over that space. Sande seems to be the natural leader of the kids and he has taken charge over that school. The other day I passed out marbles for the kids to play with and was adamant that I needed 60 back before we could leave for dinner. When I went outside to collect them, Sande met me with a written report of who had turned in their marbles and how many each kid returned. Good to know we can count on him to keep order 

I’ve gotten to teach more this week since Abby’s been feeling a little under the weather. I cannot even lie. I am NOT an elementary school teacher. But no one was hurt, and I think we all walked away learning something (me: stick with high school). Monday we did estimates, the kids actually had a lot of fun. And yesterday was a science lesson on how Jiffy Pop works. On Monday we also played English Bingo with the staff. HILARIOUS!! They are a fun loving bunch. Claudine and I were wearing matching laesos (long fabric wrap skirts) one day and she paraded us around, her as Miss America and me as Miss Rwanda. I know, right? Pretty great.

I am preparing to leave. Tomorrow I head to the airport. It’s hard wrapping up an experience like this. It’s not my first time at New Hope Homes, but it’s always hard to leave these kids. They, each of them, are so strong in their own right. They have hard stories and a lot of obstacles to still overcome. It’s pretty meaningful to know that these kids have a web of support that spans around the world.

Sarah