"I'm a STAR!"

One of the first rules of classroom management is that you should save your "loud voice. At camp, when we want to get the kid's attention, it does no good to yell. Instead of yelling, one of the leaders or I will stand up front and put our finger on our nose. The children know that once they see a leader with their finger on their nose that they need to stop what they're doing, face front, and not be the last one to do it. The last child to be quiet and have his finger on his nose has to come up front, face his classmates, and do a star jump (crouch down and then jump up and explode, yelling, "I'm a STAR!").

Most of the children in latin america are what we call penosos or bashful and for this reason, a star jump is enough motivation to get the children to quiet quickly when they see a leader with his finger on his nose. However, this week, there was a group of children who enjoyed coming up front to do the star jumps. Some would wait and purposely be the last to put their finger on their nose and others would come up front to do the star jump even if they weren't the last.

The last day of Pilot II, I think the youth leaders felt they needed a better task for the last child with his finger on his nose and they started making them do push-ups! I had been on the side taking care of something and walked over and saw little Manuel doing push-ups along side Alexis, one of the leaders for the week. This continued for the rest of the day and was actually very effective.

Loving Copan, one kid at a time.

Rigo had been giving us trouble since the first day of our pilot program. He had stuck out immediately as one of the young boys who was going to need extra attention and discipline.

After having sent him home for behavior problems on the second day of camp, he came back as the team was cleaning at the end of the day and the children had been dismissed. He reluctantly stood in the doorway of the church, first watching the youth sweep and mop, and then decided to help. The LiderJovenes, glad for the help, mopped happily alongside him.

As one leader, Aura, noticed him helping, she went and moved his name on the discipline chart from “Sent Home” to “You’re Doing Great!”, a change from the absolute bottom to the top. After cleaning, Rigo started walking away from the church. Aura gathered the LiderJovenes together to yell their thanks to him. He turned around with a smile and waved.

The other LiderJovenes dispersed and Aura remained in the doorway, watching Rigo walk away. He had a notable spring in his step that had not been there earlier, especially after being sent home. Aura turned to me with a concerned look on her face and shared, “You know? I don’t think Rigo has known much love in his life. I really think that’s what he needs more than anything else.” She paused a moment, set her jaw as if she were making a promise to show him love, and turned on her heels to gather her bag to go.

I was amazed at the sensitivity and insight that Aura showed in that moment. I was touched by her concern and care for a boy most would dismiss as disruptive and frustrating. I was impressed by her maturity and dedication to the children and community after only two days with them.

Having pilot programs is exciting as a sign of growth and stability in UrbanPromise Honduras. It’s encouraging because it means we’re moving forward. Having pilot programs is exciting because it gives us an opportunity to extend our reach into different communities and get to know the Rigos, learn of their needs, and show them much needed love, even if only a week at a time.

Independence!

Today is Honduran Independence Day. September 15th, 1821, Honduras, along with the rest of Central America, gained their independence from Spain. Subsequently, they became part of the Mexican empire for 17 years before becoming their own republic.

In Copan Ruinas, it is celebrated annually with all the school children parading through the center park with HUGE drums and marching bands. Some are dressed up in typical garb, some are in typical marching band outfits, some are simply in their school uniforms marching with their classes. The whole town comes out to see the parade. For weeks before Independence Day, drums and xylophones can be heard nightly at least until ten o'clock as the groups from the different schools perfect their beats.

For me, one of the most exciting parts of the parade is recognizing the children as they march. I found out today that it isn't Honduran custom to yell out to children and wave as they pass. In fact, we were slightly being jeered at by those standing around us. I decided not to care what the locals thought and clapped and cheered for all the kids I knew, snapping shots and making a scene like my mother did for us as children.

The picture here is of Brayan, one of the kids from Camp Hope. He's in 4th grade at Amigos, a private Christian school in town, and takes a LOT of pride in his drumming. For the past few weeks his attendance at camp has been inconsistent mostly because he's been practicing his drumming and going to team practices every afternoon. He goes all out. He's got a great sense of rhythm and as he drums you can tell that he loves it. His mother, naturally, is very proud of him as well.

Two months [to the day!]

Many apologies my dear friends who apparently DO read my blog. Suffice it to say that the past two months have been a whirlwind of summer camp, interns, short-term teams, wrap-ups, vacations, and now, shifting gears and taking off with AfterSchool Program Pilots. OH and a whole lot of wedding planning peppered in between it all. There really is no way to cover up the whole summer in one blog, so I won't. I'll focus on one part: Camp Peace.

UPH put on two bilingual vacation camps this summer, Camp Peace and Camp Joy. Camp Joy has been running since 2009 and this is the first time Camp Peace has run. I was responsible for setting up the details for both camps prior to July and directing Camp Peace once our interns and the other director, Jimmy, got here.

I had a team of 5 college-aged interns and 6 bilingual high schoolers to ran all the classes and were really the hands and feet of camp. And my job was to manage this 12-person team. Being a director is a very different experience than being a teacher or intern at a camp, mostly because I wasn't in one place consistently and I had a lot of administrative stuff to think about versus the day-to-day planning that the interns did. I learned a lot and was stretched as a leader in these two months. Being a good servant leader is not just about getting everyone to do their job and making sure people know what to do, but rather drawing the leadership out of people, seeing potential in people before they even see it and helping them realize that potential. I know this now, but that doesn't mean I'm great at it. Haha. It just means that I know part of what needs to be refined in me as a leader now. :)

It was a great summer at Camp Peace. Our team gelled really well and the kids of Camp Peace had a blast. I love my interns and miss them a lot. I love the kids of Camp Peace and miss them a lot.

BUT NOW I get to look ahead and start a new site... long-term relationships, long-term growth, long-term commitment... If I can become so attached to a group of people after only four weeks, just imagine how it will be after years!