Unexpected Good Signs

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

This is a classroom/storage room in the primary school.

Kids watching a class on malaria.

Boys preparing a dance show.