Location

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The Aftermath

Well Readers, I'm not settling in as I should. They tell me I am having 'culture shock'. Probably true, but I don't think it's the brand they mean! I feel a major funk coming on.

I am aiming to go back to Dominica for 3 weeks in September. I'm hoping to develop a little business venture with no capital.

Sister Clare

The Cluny Convent, right across the street from the school, Portsmouth, Dominica

The Convent garden

Jav, the Convent dog

Sister Clare dispensing candy

Sister Clare and grade one in her office

Sister Clare is a St. Joseph of Cluny Sister. She has been at St. John's Catholic School for 7 years, and has taught and administrated mission schools all over the world. She is loved by all the children, by the staff and by the many volunteers who have come to St. John's.

Peter update

Peter spent every minute with me that he could. Just before I left I took him down to Indian River to meet Phillip. I wanted Peter to have someone he could go to if he needed to. If for nothing else but for a break. I hope Phillip can employ him from time to time picking up sea glass from the Indian River beach.

I'm Freezing

Well, I'm back. I am trying not to obess on D'ca. I can see it all so clearly; I can see my friends, I can see the Indian River men, Purple Turtle Beach, the houses along the way, I can hear the roosters crowing, and the music. I have to think of a way to stay there for longer and twice a year. It's this end that is the problem, not the Dominican end. And of course , money. But there must be a way.

The trip home was long, but no problems. I met a man on the plane who is some how involved in a resort project in Rosalie Bay, which is on the Atlantic side. He said he'd keep in touch and put me in touch with the woman who is financing the project. See rosaliebayresort.com. I'm not counting on anything, but I'll take all the contacts I can. Plus there is Phillip's unique souvenir booth at Indian River.

The snow is mostly gone, the sun is shinning and it is above freezing. It is all too perfect here, clean, functioning, healthy, quiet, straight, stable, and predictable. No people calling out to each other, no people honking their car horns at each other in greeting, no people standing around chatting...NO PEOPLE...no challenge...no one to talk to, to dance with, sit on the beach with, share with - it's painful.

School Supplies

If you are ever called to donate school supplies for developing countries, Dominica especially, here are some suggestions:

St. John's Catholic School has about 300 students and 12 to 15 teachers grades K to 6. They have a decent library and their computers are good and well used. What isn't there are very basic classroom items. There is only one rusty pencil sharpener in the school. There are no garbage pails in any of the classrooms, and only one bin for all the candy wrappers, juice boxes etc. There are no paints or art supplies. Chalk is hard come by.

My suggestion is to make up teacher kits rather than student kits. These could include:
sharpies, glue sticks, index cards, elastic bands, erasers, motivational stickers, scissors, coated paper clips, page covers, scotch tape, construction paper, balls of string, file folders, labels, Dominica uses imperial measurements, the teachers are using home made card board yard sticks to teach measurement. I think a subscription to a professional magazine might be useful. Some of the teachers are studying and taking their degree on line.

Never send anything that needs batteries. Batteries are in short supply and when available are ridiculously expensive. Never send anything that needs replacement parts, like staplers. The staples are non existant.

The school has nice recorders, but no music. They have been well used in the past, but only when there is a teacher who can teach the recorder.
The school needs atlases and globes.
The children play basket ball without a basket

Student kits

The girls love Dora! Supplies of the usual things young students like would always be welcome: Coloured pencils, copy books, erasers, rulers, etc.

Remember that these are Caribbean children, so "Dick and Jane" is irrelevant. In fact the Caribbean has developed some really good readers and social studies materials.

An Emotional Day

When I was here in 2007 I spent a lot of time with a boy named Peter. I had understood that he had returned to Guyana with his family so I didn't look for him this time. Today he came into the classroom going to see the other teacher when we looked at each other and recognition dawned. He yelled, "Mees, Mees, it's you, it's you" and rushed into my arms. We just stood there in a major hug for a long time. You can imagine how I felt.

Then this afternoon another former student came by my apartment. He is now in high school. He said he was passing St. John and saw me painting the wall and wanted to know if I remembered him. He was one of the kids who helped paint last time.

This morning on the way to school, I passed a little girl filling her water buckets at the tap at the end of the street. A great big black man with a huge stalking tiger on his tee shirt yelled at her, "Hurry up, girl, you only have 5 sedconds left." A mature lady was also passing by, and she stopped and berated him, "Help the child, you can't expect a little child to carry that load - you take two." The two of us grandmothers stood there looking up at him. He stood there looking down at us. He blinked first, but just turn his back on us and walked away to the other corner where his buddies were standing. The little girl tottered off up the street with her buckets of water.

Quite an emotional day. So I went and had a huge coconut ice cream cone!

Exactly a week left. It really is nuts that just when I get settled, organized, and get to know the shop keepers, street vendors, neighbours, children, et al that I have to leave.