“Egg-ucation” or “Which came first: the chicken or the egg”

Tuesday July 27, 2010-Created by Michelle

Breakfast was quieter than usual. This lively bunch was subdued. The sounds of spoons scraping bowls of oatmeal and cereal were the dominating noise of the dining room. Many have grown mildly weary from either illness or more likely seeing the hardships of these people, or from having been in classrooms without a teacher to help. But despite our weariness we are all hoping that we are making a difference, and are eager to work on our commitments in Malungeni.

Valerie, Deborah, and I went to MBange and worked in the 8th grade. We divided the class into groups of three making for more intimate discussion time. We enjoyed hearing about their dreams and what they hope to become as adults. Olga was very helpful in bridging the gap with the principal and the team, letting him know the difficulties we’ve had being the only teachers in the classrooms. I was once again invited to play in a game of netball with the kids at break- something I certainly enjoyed.

Cam and Andrew have almost completed the making of tree enclosures. They have worked very hard to achieve this huge task. Ismay reported a two thumbs up day of teaching at the school. Richard offered a more lively report and tells me first hand that this story really is true. He ends up teaching English in the 9th grade as the principal was not there. In the middle of his English lesson, a chicken walked into his classroom. Richard claims that he kept his cool, letting the chicken do its thing. It hopped onto the desk, then up to the cabinet, then jumped on the floor in front of the class were she proceeds to make a mess and strut her stuff. She then jumps back up and lands on his bag which was on the desk. A girl in the class decides that this is too much, rescues Richard and his bag by shooing the chicken out of the classroom window. So why did the chicken walk through the door?To get back into the classroom of course! She jumps on the desk and looks at the board. Richard, trying to be humorous and be good sport, pretends he is teaching the chicken English. Except! She turns her backside to him as if to say No Thanks.

Now, this all happened before lunch. After lunch, Richard moves to the 8th grade class to teach English... And guess who made another appearance? The chicken, herself! Richard is pretty certain it was the same chicken based on its features he recognized. It hoped onto the cabinet where she sat and wanted him to teach the rest of his lesson. Toward the end of class there was some commotion at the cabinet- a girl was trying to get rid of the chicken. Lo and behold! The chicken had laid an egg on top of the cabinet. A girl scooped up the egg and mentioned that this would become a meal.

Zangezila was once again hired to take parts of the team on an outing. This time to the orphanage Mzomtsha. Those that went were impressed with the accommodations and that the kids were well provided for. The team was well received by the children and wanted them to come back and play.

Valerie and I played with some kids who came to the guest house in the afternoon- not for very long though, because the smoke from a nearby field fire was overwhelming. It was good to get out and throw the ball and watch kids jump rope. It was a lovely day.
Thought of the day:

We must imagine what would happen is the situation were reversed. What would it be like if we needed assistance in our countries, in our communities or neighborhoods? What would we do Where would we turn for help?

There are two old proverbs or sayings that come to mind: “You never know a man until you have walked a mile in his shoes”. Even though we are a week and a half into our volunteer experience We are only in the process of taking single steps in the people of Malungeni’s shoes. When we finish that step, we will be happy to rejoice in the second saying: “A Journey of a thousand miles begins with but a single step”. Let us complete our step with vigor, positive energy, and positive thought.