News Letter March

MOORHOUSE MOMENTS March 2009 COCHABAMBA BOLIVIA.

Only three months since the last newsletter. It seems like a lifetime. We started school Monday and Tuesday it was a new director . That was the first of four in three weeks. Each change has been with its dramas .Meetings, marches, angry scenes between parents and administration and of course confusion all associated with the change. Now the last is on maternity leave for the next few months so its an interim principal till she returns. Seven weeks down the track can we feel confident this is the last? Talking of school our older ones also began technical courses. So for seven of the children its technical training in the mornings and usual school in the afternoons. Carpenters, electricians, hairdressers, tailors, and electronics experts of the future.

Samuel who spent last year doing a men’s hairdressing course has left the coop and is off to make his way in the world. Eighteen this year and also our very first to leave in this manner. He has gone to the jungle region of Cochabamba to set up a salon. We wish him well and now we see if the Christian values we instilled over the past five years hold true.

Whilst school occupies the children’s days with homework in the mornings and classes in the afternoon they have also had a great opportunity to learn other skills. The husbandry of the animal and birds is developing a better appreciation of what keeps them alive, healthy and reproducing. They can now administer injections, know the way to give tablets, put eye drops and so on. With the land we also have vegetables, melons, animal food and fruit trees all growing. Preparing the ground, using the animal manure, watering, weeding, propping and pruning and all the other things associated with healthy plants is another skill they are learning. Rain has been a true blessing this year extending the growing season.

Gonzalo is now adept in the kitchen, making the bread, cakes, preparing daily sweets and complains that his repertoire of postres (desserts) is limited. Wants to be a chef.

We had six new children came through 2008. All have issues. Rene repeating grade two has only recently learnt to write his name. Mind you the school he came from gave him a report that showed him doing really well. Passed grade one with flying colours. Elizabeth has major problems and is unable to attend a half day at school. She invariably leaves the classroom and wanders the sports fields and is proving to be a real challenge. Milenka would refuse to enter the classroom and would throw herself onto the ground and fight to be left alone. Milenka is better now but still requiring special attention and Elizabeth we will probably have to pull out of school. We have nine year old bed-wetters and others with obvious psychological problems. Our days are full. Oh, and anybody out there want 14 teenagers? Boys and girls ring the home ,visit under various pretexts or provide escorts on the way home from school. Keeps us on our toes. If you have teenagers you know how the hormones work, the moods, the self- esteem problems and well most of us were teenagers once.

To other matters. The home has taken shape. Improvements thanks to volunteers. A bridge, a cleanup, a gazebo, extra fly screens, painting, lights fixed, leaking taps replaced and the list goes on and on. Provision of drawers, built in units for clothing and a much needed and appreciated gift of a photocopier. No more two or three hour trips to town for Delia to get school materials done. The benefits we have enjoyed this last year are beyond our imagination. Every time someone comes we appreciate the fact that for us in the home the work we do is only possible because so many others are supporting us in so many ways.

The home still has major issues with rising damp. No homes in Bolivia have damp coursing so the paint is peeling, the septic system we think might be leaking into foundations which is a major pain solved by shutting of water to a couple of toilets and we are still sorting out the electrical supply to various areas. One part of the wall fell over requiring replacement and another section shows a definite lean but yet the year has been one of consolidation and stabilization. No roof leaks, and solar hot water to name just two big improvements. After constant shifts associated with rental homes it has been good to stop for once and know that what we do has a lasting benefit. Better as its stabilizing for the children too and over the short time our impact on the community grows as we have weekly visits from the local school ( that’s more than 20) to use our resources and in the afternoons we provide materials, teachers ( well me actually)and resources to the neighborhood children. So our 30 children leave for school and up to ten more arrive for afternoon help. Homework, research, materials and the like.
Rhinder ( said as Jinder) is our nearest neighbour . He is in grade four and cant so much as add numbers to five, like 3 plus 2 at better than 50% , never mind read or write. Grade four! Not the school our children attend thankfully but a sad indictment of Bolivian education. Probably 10or 20 years behind most first world countries. A prayer is for a dedicated teacher who wants to come and work with our children helping them overcome the problems that exist within Bolivian education. Ignorance is rife. When I spoke to the director he asked where I came from. Australia. Oh that’s the land of penguins he replied flashing his knowledge. I could only smile and congratulate him on his grasp of geography.
Not so many moments this time but here is one. Elizabeth threw all my documents into the fire. We have fires in summer because its rainy season and so cold. No reason its just her touching everything as she always does., but the ‘phone plopped out of the bin where she had put them but too late for the others. Drivers license, ID card, bank cards the lot. So no bank access for weeks while I got them replaced. A challenge indeed. But we never wanted. A gift out of the blue of forty chickens. The lady prepared to bring veggies and leave payment till I could pay for them and we again proved God faithful. One moment we enjoy each day is to go to the bottom of the property and reflect. It ‘s peaceful, half an hour before the children return and we enjoy the company of the animals as we give them their afternoon food We reflect and appreciate what your contributions have given us. Gifts of time, materials, and prayers. But it’s the gift of being able to help needy children Children of Bolivia thank you. When you come you will appreciate the birds, the ever-changing mountains and the clean air and you’ll love the children. One for every taste. Internet and telephone are still a great hassle but then it’s a part of Bolivia’s charm.
I write this at La Paz airport awaiting my sister from Perth. It will be good to see her after 10 years. God bless and thank you all.