the internet is back!

Well, the internet was down for a few days but its back again! Sorry for the lack of communication. I'm still having a great time here in Collique! I've been helping out with a lot of the kids classes here at OSA. They are all 5th and 6th graders and are the sweetest kids ever. I think they really get a kick out of my Spanish, and they are all full of questions for "Hermana Elisabet." Today, the girls wanted to know everything about los estados unidos...they asked if it is pretty and what kind of sports we play....so cute. And roommates - they wanted to know ALL of your names and all about you! The kids come to OSA after they get out of school around 1:00 and they are fed lunch and then go to a few more classes here. They take different classes depending on the day such as literature, science, math, psychology, bible, and sports classes. This is the OSA sports complex and the view from my room:




Yesterday, I taught the breastfeeding class to the women who have been coming to OSA regularly for the birthing classes with an OB Nurse named Maria. Maria graciously let me help teach this class. I used resources that Jessie gave me to find information about breastfeeding(since im obviously not an expert on the subject!) and prepared a powerpoint to present to the women. Jessie helped me to make sure everything was translated corretly! I was a little nervous about teaching in Spanish, but all went well! 4 women came to the class and Jessie opened with a devotional and then Maria gave an introduction to breastfeeding before I began teaching. I think the women learned a lot from the class - luckily, I was able to use Jessie and Diego (her baby) to demonstrate breastfeeding positions, how to get the baby to latch properly, and burping positions. The women in the class then demonstrated these positions with a babydoll. After I was done with the powerpoint, Maria did some relaxation techniques and ball exercises to music with the women - and I participated too :)! It was a great experience to watch Maria teach the class. I realized that without her and organizations like OSA, many of these women may not have received the same prenatal education.



This morning, I got to walk around Collique with a great man named Willy to find kids to sign up for next week's classes. A college group from Tallowood Baptist Church in Houston is coming to teach some classes and we wanted to make sure there would be kids for them! We got about 18 kids in 5th and 6th grade to sign up. I was excited by how eager the parents were to sign their kids up and I realized how big of an influence OSA has here in the community because the people already trust any program they are putting on. While walking around with Willy I got a better taste of the type of houses people live in here. A lot of the houses only have concrete or dirt floors with wood siding. We had to walk up some pretty high hills to reach some of the dwellings, so I got some great views of Collique. Everyone was so friendly to me - except the perros! You have to be very careful of all the dogs that roam the streets because people mostly have them to protect their homes. Willy also took me to see a program called WaWa Wasi. This is an government run organization that provides meals to the people in the community as well as child care for babies and toddlers. Willy asked if I wanted a picture with the babies, and before I knew it, the two ladies working gathered all the babies into one corner and took this photo, haha!

I also helped out Petry (the psychologist on staff at OSA) with his "clase de ecologia." Petry teaches this ecology class to children in the program that may have some kind of social issue or kids who are affected by problems at home. Petry believes that by using nature, exploration, and other forms of expression, the kids will grow and mature. Right now the kids are learning how to design and build their own gardens, so I helped a group paint rocks to use to decorate their gardens. I love that OSA looks at the whole person when the kids enter the program, and that they consider mental health to be just as important as everything else.

The Roses are wonderful and have been so gracious in sharing their home with me. Tomorrow we are going to do some site seeing before the Tallowood group arrives!

Buenas noches!

Elizabeth