Since I've last written we've done quite a few things - I've been to a local church, been to a local project for young people with disabilities, had a horrible stomach bug (now back to normal thank goodness!) and taken the children on quite a few days out, which is always fun! It's amazing to see how they transform into different children when they leave the baby home complex. A lot of the children have been there since they are very young and don't have much experience of outside life - they only really go out when they're taken on trips which is a couple of times a month at most. Most of the children go from being loud, confident and full of energy to timid and scared of lots of fairly normal things! For example, the other day we walked down to the lake for a pre school trip with some of the big toddlers. Just as we were leaving a big lorry arrived which was pumping water out of the lake. It was quite loud and the children were terrified. One ran crying in the other direction and the one I was with pretty much jumped on me to be carried and cried her eyes out scratching me and kicking because she didn't want me to go near it!! It's so different to the local children in our village who spend the day wandering around on their own from a very young age! It's completely understandable though as the children at the baby home grow up in a completely different environment so hardly ever see things like this. Despite all this they LOVE going out on trips and always enjoy themselves!
Here in Tanzania women carry babies on their backs in pieces of cloth called kangas which are fashioned into slings. We've been wanting to go for a walk ad do this since we got here, so last weekend all the volunteers took the big babies on a walk down to the lake. We soon learnt that it is much more difficult than it looks and actually quite painful! I had the smallest baby of them all and still struggled! The Tanzanian ladies make it look so easy - it's not uncommon to see a woman with a baby on her back and another on her front, or working with a baby in a kanga! We even often see young children carrying their siblings in kangas!
Yesterday we took some of the little toddlers to Tunza Lodge which is a beach by the lake. We bought them some chips and they played on the sand and had a great time! I took a little boy who is about 22 months old. He only arrived at Forever Angels a couple of weeks before I did. When he arrived he was very malnourished and couldn't stand or walk and didn't really smile. Since I have arrived he has gone from not really walking at all, to walking with help and finally walking on his own! He has the biggest smile on his face when he is walking and is clearly so pleased with himself! If I am sat with him in the tv room in the mornings or evenings he will spend ages standing up walking away from me and then turning around and coming back with his arms outstretched and a huge smile on his face and give me a big hug when he gets back! He is incredible cute and gorgeous and I am falling completely in love with him!
I think yesterday was probably his first time out since he arrived at forever angels and when we were in the car going he was pretty scared! He had the widest eyes and I don't think he blinked once the whole way, he was just taking everything in! When we got there he clung to me and wouldn't let me put him down, but he was soon playing with all the other children in the sand and by the end he was running off and didn't want to go! I think he enjoyed his chips, although he seemed more interested in sucking on one for a while and holding it in his hand for ages before dropping it on the floor! So we gave most of his portion to some of the other children who ate theirs extremely fast and clearly enjoyed them! And all the kids loved the trip and playing in the sand!
Every couple of months forever angels does a birthday party for the children who have had birthdays in recent months or will have in upcoming months. Last Sunday we did a party for all the children who had birthdays in July and August.
We volunteers ran some activity stations and the kids spent the afternoon going around these, which they loved! Myself and another volunteer Diane did face painting which I think I am becoming fairly good at!
Last week myself and some other volunteers here went to visit a place called Tuneweza. This is an amazing project - it is for young people with disabilities from the age of 14. The teach these young people to do all sorts of crafts - card making, sewing, making jewellery, making bags/aprons, making key rings - and they also teach them life skills such as cooking. They then sell the things they've made and the money all goes back to the young people and the project. It was such a lovey place and it is so good that there is something like that here for young people with disabilities. They were all so hardworking and really friendly. The products were all beautiful and I bought quite a few things and will definitely be going back another day to get some more things! On the way to Tuneweza we tried to take a 'shortcut' and ended up halfway up the mountain behind our village...and then came to a point where there was a fence and we couldn't go any further! The locals thought it was absolutely hysterical and one kind woman took us all the way back down and got us back on the right path! The locals walk up and down there everyday- sometimes carrying water on their heads or babies on their backs - but we were scrambling up and sliding down or our bums! We definitely gave them some amusement!
The whole time I've been here I've been constantly aware of how different Tanzania is to home, but the other day something happened which really reinforced this. In Tanzania if somebody steals something and people around them find out, the person who has stolen will get beaten to death. The other day we arrived home from a trip out with the children to find that a man had broken into a house just behind the baby home. He had locked himself in there, with the woman who lived there inside. By the time we got back there were about 100 people outside the house waiting for this man to come out so they could beat him to death. There were 5 year olds with stones and a man carrying a large crowbar. It was absolutely crazy. Amy called the police and they eventually came and took the man away safely. However, if they hadn't the likelihood is that when he came out he would have been beaten to death and then his body paraded around or left on the street. It made me realise that people here must be so desperate if they have to steal knowing that that is the likely consequence, which is really sad.
A couple of weeks ago I went to a local church service with 2 other volunteers. I am not even slightly religious at home but I thought I would go along as it would be an interesting experience. The church was a large building made of concrete and filled with plastic chairs. The people at the church were so welcoming and showed us in. We arrived a bit early so until the service started there was a man singing in Swahili and a band playing along with him which was really good!
It was an international chapel so the whole service was in Swahili and English, which was good as we could understand it! There was lots of singing and dancing which was lovely and I really enjoyed! The man who was leading the service kept getting us to repeat things like 'you are in the presence of the lord' and making us turn to our neighbours as shake their hand and congratulate them on being in the presence of The Lord! So that was slightly interesting! At one point we also had to take our shoes off so that the anointment from the floor could go into us! The sermon then began and we thought it would maybe be 3 parts...2 hours into the service we were at part 8 and we had decided to get up and leave as we were working that afternoon! We got up when everyone else stood up at the start of what we thought would be a song, but it actually turned out to be a prayer so squeezing out of our row past the people praying was slightly awkward! It was definitely an interesting experience and I am glad I went.
I'm now over halfway through my time at Forever Angels! I have been here 5 weeks and have 4 weeks to go! Time is going so fast and I am already preparing myself for the emotional wreck I am going to be when I have to say goodbye to all the beautiful children and everyone here! We have booked a 4 day, 3 night safari and we go on that on August 14th so I am SO excited for that! I am like a child just going to the zoo so I'm thinking I will probably reach a new level of excitement!! Slightly nervous about sleeping in a tent in the middle of the Serengeti among the lions though!!
Here are a few more photos :)
At her 1st birthday party!
One of the volunteers tie dyed loads of baby gros!
Siân that is amazing you are doing an amazing job well done cuz xxxx
ReplyDeleteThe pictures are fab they all look so happy, we don't realise how lucky we are and my 3 certainly don't xx
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