(no subject)
Last night I wrote a letter to my old class although most of them are gone on to first grade the teacher I worked with and a couple of the kids are still there. And what did I receive in my inbox but pictures from the first day of school. They are so adorable.
I went to work at the salvation army today and accomplished getting the hot water turned on for the kids since it is getting cold and I cannot bear to watch their naked bodies cringe in the cold shower, also I accomplished getting them soap. If I was not there the kids would just stand under the water, I am guessing that is what most of them do monday through thursday. I also accomplished getting a little four year old clean underwear and clothes. I just want to take the kids home with me and keep them clean and spoil them. Give them a life at least where they do not have to ask and feel bad about asking for the essentials like toothbrushes, clean underwear, and soap. I am only here on Fridays and the people who are supposed to care for the kids during the week I see emerging from the corners of the room from naps into some dream world they are living in they think it is a laid back atmosphere. It is laid back but in all the wrong ways, every Friday I want to turn this place upside down but I usually get tired out mentally and physically by mid afternoon and by just being a human jungle gym and patting boys who are wailing in the corners about a fight and about the rest of their life. Most of the kids parents are drug addicts or prostitutes. The kids have a small concrete patio with no airflow because of the 20 foot plus walls to play in. Working with the boys is most tough for me to see these handsome strong boys crying their eyes out and accepting my poor Spanish and my touch. I feel inadequate yet they seem to drink up the attention no matter what weird translated thing I try to tell them for comfort. Today was not actually that tough of day the main fight starters were not there for some reason and their was boxes of books so I ended up taking the books up to the school room 'a makeshift plywood room on the roof´ and reading to some of kids and trying to translate them. I found a couple really interesting anthropology type magazines with some great stories in them so that made my day. And I started out my day with three tamales and hot chocolate that was good too.
I went to work at the salvation army today and accomplished getting the hot water turned on for the kids since it is getting cold and I cannot bear to watch their naked bodies cringe in the cold shower, also I accomplished getting them soap. If I was not there the kids would just stand under the water, I am guessing that is what most of them do monday through thursday. I also accomplished getting a little four year old clean underwear and clothes. I just want to take the kids home with me and keep them clean and spoil them. Give them a life at least where they do not have to ask and feel bad about asking for the essentials like toothbrushes, clean underwear, and soap. I am only here on Fridays and the people who are supposed to care for the kids during the week I see emerging from the corners of the room from naps into some dream world they are living in they think it is a laid back atmosphere. It is laid back but in all the wrong ways, every Friday I want to turn this place upside down but I usually get tired out mentally and physically by mid afternoon and by just being a human jungle gym and patting boys who are wailing in the corners about a fight and about the rest of their life. Most of the kids parents are drug addicts or prostitutes. The kids have a small concrete patio with no airflow because of the 20 foot plus walls to play in. Working with the boys is most tough for me to see these handsome strong boys crying their eyes out and accepting my poor Spanish and my touch. I feel inadequate yet they seem to drink up the attention no matter what weird translated thing I try to tell them for comfort. Today was not actually that tough of day the main fight starters were not there for some reason and their was boxes of books so I ended up taking the books up to the school room 'a makeshift plywood room on the roof´ and reading to some of kids and trying to translate them. I found a couple really interesting anthropology type magazines with some great stories in them so that made my day. And I started out my day with three tamales and hot chocolate that was good too.