8:00 am:
The concept of
delivering a class on the ability of young girls to make life choices here in this small village is a concept from
Venus. It is also the unexpected theme for my Saturday morning classes with
young girls.
In two hours I will be sitting on my straw mats with 10
girls with a curriculum that is called “Choosing your Future”. I look at this book and deep inside I roll my
eyes. Honestly, in this small village, how many choices do they have? The
majority of people in my village have never ventured more than 50 kilometers
from here. Most of the parents never went past elementary school and started
having children in their teens – young teens – 13, 14, and 15.
The topic of gender equality is on the top of our list; many
Peace Corps Volunteers have organized groups of adolescents to introduce and
guide them with this concept of motivating them toward a goal in their future.
So my class will start soon and I feel a bit
stressed. These girls look up to me, and I feel like their Godmother from Venus;
the underdog leader with a pack of puppies.
Aside from the very limited resources, the culture yet has embraced the
concept of equality. The roles here are
defined, for a girl from a poor family there are very few choices.
The limits are staring me in the face; just looking in the 30% of female high school students is a huge indicator. Few
girls are given the opportunities; the vast majority of girls are streamlined into
a path without any exits. They are given
the same choices their mothers had: elementary education, marriage, and
children. They often don’t even choose their husband and in many traditional
homes here, they are one of many wives.
We have already discussed goals, and differences between themselves
and their brothers. So today I will open up the idea of communicating their
goals to their parents.
Let’s cross our fingers. I’m sure they will like the
cookies at least.
4:00 pm
The class was great! 15
girls looked at me like I was from Venus when I read this scenario of a 13 year
old that was being matched to marry by her parents (my group ranges from 9-13
years old). That was a good sign. We
practiced on what a conversation with their parents would be like, and the
cookie sealed a good morning!! The seed
is planted.
Here are some other pictures that I wanted to share:@bloggingabroad
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| This is a classroom/storage room in the primary school. |
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| Kids watching a class on malaria. |
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| Boys preparing a dance show. |
May 1st
2016, is my one year mark that my feet have touched Mozambique. I am emotionally
mixed about this; I am looking forward to returning home yet, I value being
here. Time goes by much slower here; I feel more like I’ve been here 365 days, rather than one year. So this day mixes
my feelings between celebrations and relief.
