Too many Kids, Not Enough Parents/Time/Attention/…

One of the things, which I’ve always known but have been especially hit with this year, is that there are not enough parents around for all of my learners. Every time I have a bond with one of them, I want to give them my attention, time, motivation, and help. Sometimes this means buying a new pair of school shoes (thanks everyone at home who has helped to make this financially possible!). Sometimes this means calling them in for extra study time or one-on-one tutoring. Sometimes this means sitting on the front stoop of my house and just spending time together.

But the thing is, there’s not enough time. Just to give you an idea, here is an example of my kids’/my schedule during the week:

6:45-1:30 school

1:30-2:30 lunch

2:30-3:30 resting time

3:30-5:00 afternoon study

5:00-6:00 sports practices

7:00-8:30 evening study

9:30         lights out (for the kids… but seeing as I’m now an old grandmother my bedtime is usually not far behind!) 

 It’s awesome that we keep them busy, especially the hostel kids who have limited supervision as it is at the hostel (2 supervisors on duty at any given time, for up to 144 learners). But it becomes a problem when you’re looking for time to take the kids one at a time or in small groups!

 In terms of being a teacher, I’m lucky. I don’t have my own kids/husband/family to worry about, so I have more free time than most. I’m teaching fewer classes than my colleagues, so I have less stress with lesson planning and marking. I tend to be organized and dedicated to work, so again I have more time to give than many. But the sad fact is, and I know it is true at nearly all Namibian schools, these kids just don’t have enough support. When I was young, I remember my parents checking on my homework EVERY DAY so that it would be finished for tomorrow’s classes – and we simply can’t do that for each of 250 learners in our school! How can we give them all that they need in order to grow up into disciplined, moral, educated young people?

Either way, I’m lucky to be close to a lot of the learners and have them come to me when they need help. And I take that role as seriously as I can!

Oranjemund – it’s a “private town”

At the end of March I traveled to the small, PRIVATE (?!?) town of Oranjemund with some of my athletes. In true form, the Regional Athletics (track and field) competition was postponed twice, only to discover that “we need a track to hold the competition,” so then it was moved from our capital Keetmanshoop to Oranjemund. Although it’s only 400-500km away from Tses, it took us two days and more than 8 hours of travel on questionable roads to reach our destination.

But the view along the way was exquisite – not many people in Namibia get the chance to see the Orange River (marking the border between South Africa and Namibia), because it’s a private area. The entire area around Oranjemund (starting about 100km before it on the road leading there) is private-access. You need a permit to enter – thank goodness we were traveling with a Ministry or we would have had trouble! They gave me enough confused looks as it was – first because they thought I was a learner, then because I had a passport instead of a Namibian ID, then because they didn’t understand my accent…

The kids and I at the mouth of the Orange River

Oranjemund is private because the area is owned by a diamond company. Yep, that’s right, diamonds. There are signs everywhere stating, “Stealing diamonds hurts all of us.” Diamonds are a pretty big industry in Namibia and a huge source of national income, and it was cool to actually see where the mines are (even though I couldn’t tell you what any of those buildings are for).

Once we reached Oranjemund, the town, we realized that it is basically a little oasis! The water must cost a fortune, but every lawn is watered and has grass; the roads are well kept-up and everyone there is RICH. It was very strange. But we had a great time and met some really kind people there (one nurse who helped out one of my kids who cramped up in the COLD and misty weather asked about the school, and then proceeded to send me home with two huge trash bags of really nice clothes to distribute to the kids! Namibians helping Namibians, love it!!)

Rain in Tses

...falls... rarely.

About 1-3 times per year (at least in the 10 or so months I’m actually IN Tses to witness it), it rains.

Okay, sometimes it sprinkles or drips, but in my experience, 1-3 times per year, it RAINS hard and for more than 30 minutes. When this happens, everyone celebrates! The dams will fill up again, plants will grow, animals can eat and drink. We’re much more in tune with the water cycle here than I’m used to in the U.S.

The funny thing about living here is that, although the ground is always parched and cracked, very little water is absorbed. The rest all runs off (taking all kinds of rubbish and small plants with it) into rivers and streams. Although it’s more frequent in the North where the rainy season is really serious, it’s not that uncommon for small villages to be cut off from the rest of the country by a river which has suddenly appeared.

The Tses River after the rain… compared to the Tses River the rest of the year

Although I don’t think it was more than waist-deep, this tiny river had a strong enough current that it was actually impossible to cross! (I know… I tried.)

The Tses River, among many others, flows into the nearby Fish River, which flows into the Orange River, which flows into the ocean. The Fish doesn’t flow the whole year…but after the rains, it flows and flows and flows!

We went to visit the waterfall which is about 20km away from Tses. It’s the first time in 3 years that I have made it to the Fish while the water was still falling!

Nobody told us… don’t swim in the water. It will make you sick for days. (Totally worth it though!)

Our 25th!!

On 21 March, 2015, Namibia celebrated its 25th birthday. 

As in America, this Independence Day merits a huge celebration - but unlike in America, many Namibians remember pre-independence life and are really actively grateful for the independence they enjoy today.

Of course we celebrated the day at school!

Kids prepared for our Independence celebration at school

One class performing their dance

Traditional Namastap dance performance

Grade 10s reenact a scene from the South African freedom fighters' movement movie, "Sarafina"