march madness (peace corps belize style)

year two is flying by, and with only six months remaining in our assignment here, coy and i have been taking advantage of every opportunity we can.

last month we traveled north to corozal town with a group of nine students from chess club to compete in a district wide tournament. over fifty kids, aged 8-14, participated in five rounds of chess at the full day event. guinea grass students came home victorious, with three students awarded 4th place medals in their age bracket, each participant winning a prize for effort and determination, and nearly each one bringing home at least one win. they may have had more fun riding the bus and consuming unbelievable amounts of chips and frozen treats, but either way they are hooked on chess.

this poor woman got stuck behind way too many boys in field trip mode!

i never knew the bus could be so much fun.

group pose at the corozal bus terminal as we awaited our pick up to the tournament.

(bunny ears are universal?)

fernando works diligently to notate his chess moves.

eliazar shows off the notation from his victory!

as we neared the close of second term, i decided to embark on a final project of sorts with the reading group students. our last week together (before exam week and the two week break) the students worked hard illustrating their own copies of books to take home and practice reading. all six of them have been working diligently and showing progress, and i hoped that with their own books they would continue reading at home during our three week break. with the help of coy and elisha (our peace corps “neighbor” from a nearby village), i prepared the poster-board books with the story written and picture boxes blank. they delighted in the opportunity to draw and color with crayons. we even included a picture dictionary in the back of each book to help them decode words. during our final class together, we had a celebration to acknowledge their efforts and success. i decorated the classroom and brought treats of popcorn and watermelon, and we invited parents and teachers. it was precious. (ok, maybe i’m biased.) four out of six parents came and the students showcased their books and new reading skills. afterward, i talked about the materials we use in class and how some children need a different approach to learning. one mom really appreciated that outlook, and i got at least three “God bless you”s before she made it out the door. i hope that our celebration inspired them enough to keep trying where everyone else has insisted they’ve failed. i can’t wait to see them all again next week and share stories of their easter break adventures.

samantha, rayi, and nolberto show off their new reading skills!

beverly, yuri, and luis beam proudly.

i help beverly get through those tricky sight words.

as if our plates weren’t already full with chess and reading group glory, the world map project jumped out of nowhere and landed at my feet (www.theworldmapproject.com). i was hesitant to initiate another project this late in the game, fearing that it would fail for lack of interest and commitment like so many of my other “brilliant ideas”. and regardless of how many personal hours i’ve dedicated to the intricate delineation of borders and laborious approximation of islands, the map has become my gift to the community. teacher luby and i spent several days labeling countries, color coding, and checking for accidental omissions (sorry, luxembourg!). the following week, students from standard 4 voluntarily stayed after school and painted the majority of Europe and asia.

all the while, people passing in the street looked on at this enormous mural we were creating on the wall of the school and smiled. some complimented us, “esta bonita,” they said, or, “good work.”

a young man stopped by last week while i was putting on some finishing touches and ended up talking with me for half and hour about how important it is for children to learn about the world and what an honorable thing it is that i am doing for them.

teachers said, “wow, it looks better every day,” and,

“i didn’t know you were an artist, miss melissa.”

“neither did i,” i replied.

students swarmed us during breaks and after school to watch the magic that is painting and unravel the mystery of these lines and colors.

“donde esta belice (where is belize)?,” they would ask.

“wow, esta bien chiquitito (it’s so small)!” they exclaimed when i showed them.

we talked about the continent of africa, about what types of animals live in antarctica, and island nations like indonesia. all over the course of two weeks, and in the format of casual conversation. they asked me to show them where i come from (some didn’t even realize i was from the U.S.) and they marveled at how far away that appeared on a map. it led to more questions. “how many brothers and sisters do you have, miss?”

children enjoyed just standing and watching me paint. “miss, you can teach us how to paint?” they asked. “miss melissa can teach us creative arts class!” they exclaimed to one another.

“why are you painting this, miss?” a girl asked one day.

“for you,” i said. she looked puzzled. “for all the children at school. and for anyone in the community who wants to learn. don’t you want to learn about your world?” i asked her.

she blinked and looked straight at me. “yes, miss,” she said obediently.

shanaya and filiberto working carefully.

standard 4 student painters

don't forget antarctica!

creating the african coastline.

as a sort of preparation for the national chess olympiad coming up soon, coy and maestro arnaldo hosted the first ever guinea grass pentecostal school chess tournament last weekend. ten boys and eight girls registered to play four rounds of chess in the grueling heat, while being closely supervised by five all star peace corps volunteers (thanks greg, kevina, and Kevin! you guys were great!). everyone got in some great practice and no one went home empty handed. (big up to belize national youth chess foundation and kids to kids for providing our chess club with chess sets as well as funds to travel to tournaments in other districts and host our own camps and tournaments. we appreciate it so much!)

waiting for their fate to be announced.

the eleven year olds battle it out!

everyone goes home a winner!

vieri, fili, and jair challenge mr. coy at home.

in the midst of this full throttle peace corps volunteer work schedule, we’ve somehow managed to finally settle into a routine. it’s quite nice, actually, and includes morning yoga, gardening, and evening walks with the dog. coy’s still cooking most of the meals, but i’ve been contributing with fresh salads each night for dinner. we’ve been entertaining guests just about every week, and we love showing them around the village. there’s something about playing tour guide that helps you to appreciate everything again. this past weekend we had planned to go camping in cockscomb basin wildlife sanctuary, followed by a trip to dangriga to visit some volunteer friends. unfortunately, my body had other plans, and i came down with a harrowing case of strep throat. i’m still recovering (after 5 days) and we’ve rescheduled that visit to dangriga. perhaps it was my body’s way of forcing me to slow down. or maybe it was just another lesson in opening your eyes and appreciating what you have. a friend stopped by the first day, not realizing i was sick. i didn’t even have the energy to sit and talk with her. later that day she came back with a bottle of pedialyte and has been texting me everyday to check on me. another friend sent her daughter over with a package of tylenol and a packet of oral re hydration salts. our neighbor delivered a beautiful plate of rice and beans and stewed chicken yesterday after she saw coy doing laundry and learned that i was sick. i guess sometimes you don’t realize how much people care until you give them an opportunity to show it.