This may come as a surprising update to all who follow this blog, but the shelter for the soup kitchen is closing in on completion. It has come along so well, in fact, that we took the morning off to visit the youngest students of Tiger Kloof.
We split off into our Baraza groups to visit the students of Kindergarten to Grade 3 (ages 5-8). I visited the kids in Kindergarten, so this report will be centred around them, but the same themes echoed throughout the visits to the other grades.
The second we arrived, the kids jumped all over us, ecstatic. Many of them were not shy to immediately grab hands and ask for hugs, and they pulled us around enthusiastically to show off their playground-which was very well equipped. Other kids were quieter, but lit up when they were approached by an older student. We were shown to their gymnastics area, where we were regaled with cartwheels and headstands, and then shown to their sand pit, where the kids handed us molds with which to decorate the sand.
However, the most precious part of our visit was the kids’ reaction to meeting people from cultures outside of their own- people who did not look like them. Many people had their hair stroked, with the kids marvelling at “how soft your hair is!” Others were asked where they were from, and in response the younger kids burst out into songs that they had heard and associated with the culture. It was heartwarming to see the abundant curiosity that is so unique to the younger ages, and funny to hear questions that came from unfiltered mouths.
When we left, we were surrounded by little people giving us hugs and chorusing goodbye. As we headed back to our rooms, we agreed that meeting the kids had been a highlight of the entire trip, and we wish that we could have spent more time with them.
As our construction has been coming to a close, some of us were asked to stay back to design educational posters that would be scanned and sized up to be put on the walls of our building. We decided that the five themes would be: numbers, the alphabet, shapes, clocks, and basic hygiene. Whilst the kids of the Huhudi community eat, they will be taught the basics of numeracy and literacy from the volunteers at the soup kitchen, as many of them do not attend school.
Furthermore, the donations we brought were collected and sorted through, and the kids now have access to a library of reading materials that contain the basics of early education. Although it doesn’t replicate being able to attend school, we hope that the books and flash cards will provide at least a fraction of the education that they deserve to receive.
This project has been fun to work on, and it is a privilege to have the opportunity and freedom to serve others. It is also a reminder that the only thing that separates us from the kids that live in the Huhudi community is luck- and as we got lucky, we have the duty and the privilege to serve others in any way possible.
by Isobel, Team Yellow
