Proyectos Lindos (Pretty Projects)

If there is one thing that all PC Paraguay volunteers can agree on it’s that all Paraguayans want to do a project that sounds “lindo” (pretty). Por ejemplo:

-          Reading books to the class = not so lindo

-          Painting murals in front of the school = Soooo lindo

So, what to do, what to do…? Obviously teaching the value of books is important, but if I ever want to get to the point of convincing my school to do a big project with books, I must do something lindo first.

For my first very lindo project, I have decided to collaborate with another Encarnación volunteer (Jessica) to paint murals in celebration of “El Día de la Juventud” (The Day of the Youth). My school (Dr. Francia) and another school, which I plan to begin working at in the near future, have both expressed interest in participating. We are also planning on asking another school in the area and perhaps the youth group of the Baptist Church (yes, there is a Baptist Church in Encarnación). I would have liked to have painted a mural with the girls at the orphanage, but the orphanage director insisted that they didn’t have a “lindo” place to paint one. I was and still am disappointed about that because the orphanage has the most space of all of the potentially interested organizations to paint a mural.

Where to begin??

 Jessica and I have met a few times in order to go over the details of the project. We have identified the whos, whats, whens, wheres and hows of the project. Check it out:

Who: Any school or organization in Encarnación that has youth from the ages of 13 – 18.

What: Each organization will choose a theme (friendship, environment, values, etc.) and then ask its jovenes (youth) to draw potential designs for a mural. The leaders of the organization will then choose a few of the drawings to use. In addition to painting murals, the project will also promote teamwork, creativity, civic service (making your community beautiful), responsibility, self-esteem and pride in one’s work, school, community and self.

When: Late August – September 2011

Where: Schools, organizations, youth groups

How: Schools and organizations will provide ladders, buckets, cloths, paint brushes and paint thinner. We are in the process of writing a “pedido” (request) to City Hall for the money to buy the paint, which is the most expensive supply.  After checking around on prices, I discovered that paint brushes and paint thinner are very inexpensive, and I am assuming that the majority of the organizations already have ladders and buckets.

I drew up the letter for the City Hall this week, and we plan to meet with the principals of the schools and whoever else late next week to get their signatures showing their involvement. Then the letter will be off to City Hall and hopefully, APPROVED! Fingers crossed!

Updates and New Perspectives.

When I meet new people they never fail to ask me the infamous question “Why did you join the Peace Corps?” And in all honesty, I do not blame them for asking. I think that each PC volunteer joins for different reasons. Maybe at first many of us have a few common goals such as helping people, giving back, seeking adventure and/or breaking-out of the norm, but after a few months in, I believe that the answer to the question changes. Clearly you join because of one reason, but you decide to stay based on so many others. So, why did I join the Peace Corps?

I joined the Peace Corps because

-          Volunteering has always been a part of my life.

-          I have always enjoyed traveling.

-          I find foreign languages intriguing.

-          Helping others is one of the best feelings in the world.

Now that that is clear, let us move on to the next hanging question…Once PC volunteers actually arrive in their assigned country, and they may discover that their job is not at all glamorous, life will be lonely at times, difficulties will be more frequent than expected, etc., por qué se continuan a trabajar para el Cuerpo de Paz (why do they continue to work for the Peace Corps)? I cannot answer for anyone else but myself. Why am I still a Peace Corps volunteer?

I am still a Peace Corps volunteer because

-          I am a problem-solver. I believe that I have always had a knack for identifying problems and leading the way to finding a solution. PC volunteers encounter problematic situations everyday which they might be asked to help solucionar (to solve). I find this part of the job very rewarding. Most people my age in Paraguay are in a different stage of their lives. They are either in college or they are raising a family. Most are not already professionals in their fields of study at age 23, so if I want respect I must demand it. When I bring a solution to the table, I can feel the respect and admiration of my peers.

-          I want to help open the minds of others. Whenever I see an opportunity to throw in a lesson on negative stereotypes, taking care of the world, working towards your dreams, sharing and helping others, etc. I. Do. It. You do not have to wait for a formal classroom lecture to teach others life lessons. As soon as I see something happen, i.e. a student throws his/her trash on the ground, I jump right in not to give a lecture, but to help he/she discover a new outlook on the current situation.   

-          I like seeing my students ENJOY school. When I walk into the classrooms the students get excited. They all know that for the next 40 minutes or so that they will not have to copy from the board.

Next a few updates.

We are currently on “winter break” here until the end of next week. Interestingly enough, the actual cold weather has seemed to disappear and in its place we are experiencing warm, pleasant days. Trust me, I am not complaining. When you live in a concrete block building, you cannot wait for the days of primavera (spring). Sadly, it is rumored that the cold weather will resurface, but I am going to keep my fingers crossed that it doesn’t.

So, no classes for two weeks, but I am still relatively busy going to the orphanage, making materials, planning for future projects and visiting my newest workplace Color de Esperanza. For the purposes of this blog, I will refer to Color de Esperanza as CE. CE is an organization that was created with the help of the city hall to keep children off the streets of Encarnación. The organization is housed in a small building with two classrooms, bathrooms, kitchen and office. Color de Esperanza is similar to a “comedor”, which is a place where children can go eat for free; however, unlike a “comedor”, it has other services as well. In addition to eating, children can also bathe, wash their clothing and participate in classroom activities.

Seems like a pretty good organization right? Yes, it is; however, the children are a handful. Before going to CE, I had spoken to another PC volunteer that had previously worked there giving charlas (talks) on health and playing with the children. She told me that she stopped going because of the lack of respect from both the adults and the children at the program. I try to not let other volunteers’ experiences shape my attitude, but I definitely know to what she was referring.

Let me give a few examples from today’s session as CE:

-          Almost of the children cheated in the game we played together even though I asked them over and over not too.

-          There were multiple boxing matches between children.

-          No one wanted to share.

Now that I have had a few minutes to reflect, I have been able to draw a few conclusions from today.

1.       I do not work at the school of these children, so they did not know me prior to today. It is harder for them to see me as their teacher because they do not see me in a formal classroom setting.

2.       These children have extremely rough home lives. If no one is monitoring whether or not they are eating or bathing, then I guess I can understand why they are a little rough around the edges.

3.       They do not have any of the games that I brought and/or any game at all, so naturally “sharing” is not the first thing that comes to mind.

Entonces, what do I plan to do?

1.       I am going to set rules in place and enforce them. Although I mentioned today that those who didn’t behave well would not play with the group in the future, I do not believe that anyone took me seriously.

2.       I may seek out the school that the children of CE attend to see if I can get some face time there. The girls at the orphanage behave so well because I teach in their classes. They see me as their authority figure and friend.  

3.       Try, try and try again.

And now the phrase that can be used in almost all contexts: Vamos a ver…verdad?