The past few weeks have been very busy and the start of a few new things for me. I have been spending a couple days a week in the basic school at Mount Friendship (MF). I love these little 3-5 year olds! In Jamaica, the students all wear uniforms according to what school they attend, and it makes them 100% adorable. There are two teachers in the basic school, Mr. Anderson for the younger ones and Miss Green for the older ones. I help out the teachers with whatever they may need, especially with students that are having difficulty with a lesson. The students at the school are very diverse in their abilities to read and write. It is easy for the students to fall behind when the teachers don’t have someone to help them with the students. This has become very evident to me during my short time at the school, so I try to help by working with those students to understand and complete an assignment.
I have already started some health teaching in the basic school! I decided to concentrate on the importance of hand washing as my first topic. So, I asked the basic schoolteachers to have them line up at the sink outside to wash their hands before snack time and lunch. I taught them this cute song, which they have become completely obsessed with! It is to the tune of Frere Jaques:
Tops and bottoms, tops and bottoms,
In between, in between,
All around your hands, all around your hands,
Makes them clean, makes them clean!
Although I had to start hiding the soap during class time, I am very happy that they enjoy the song and now love to wash their hands. I think some kids are starting to go to the bathroom just so we can wash our hands together after and sing the song. I also have them say, “Bye Germs!” when they’re done washing. It’s so cute! I will eventually do teaching about hand washing in the primary school as well. Can you tell I’m a little excited?
After school, I typically walk some kids home and make some home visits. Some of my regulars are Mr. Brooks in Mt. James (just a short walk from Mt. Friendship), Ms. Doris, and Ms. Hylton. Walking from one house to the other, can take about 2 hours after I stop and talk to people I see on the way. I am getting to know more and more people in the area each week. It’s so enjoyable and I can’t tell you how much I love it.
I started helping at another clinic in New Kingston called, “Our Lady of the Poor.” My paperwork is nowhere near done going through the Ministry of Health here, so there is limited nursing things I can do at this clinic for the time being. The head RN there is hilarious, nice, and takes great care of me there. I think I’m the only other RN there, but I haven’t met everyone yet, so I’m not sure. This past week, there was a group of students from Miami who are in LPN (Licensed Practical Nurse) school. They had to come to Jamaica and do 2 weeks of clinical time because their program is mainly based in Jamaica. So for the majority of my time there this week, I assisted them in their learning about various things and helped them feel more comfortable with some nursing tasks. They were immigrants from Cuba and their life stories were incredible.
Other than my time at the clinics and in Mt. Friendship, we have experience our first “9 night” here. My fellow volunteer Sarah had a death in her mission of Devon Pen. Their process after death here is much more of a celebration of that person’s life than in the States. “9 nights,” happens on the 9th night after that person’s death and the day before the funeral. The family of the deceased holds a giant party that starts around 7 and goes until the early morning. There is tons of food, music, dancing, games, and just sitting around talking on a 9 night from my experience. It was a great way to celebrate that person’s life and the fact that he or she is no longer suffering and with God in a better place. Considering how many people come to a “9 night” and the expectations put on the family to provide food for everyone, I can only imagine how difficult it must be on a poor family. Honestly, I see a lot of poor families in the missions and I don’t understand how a family can always uphold this expectation. Hopefully, it is because of the kindness of family and friends that this can happen.
I have already started some health teaching in the basic school! I decided to concentrate on the importance of hand washing as my first topic. So, I asked the basic schoolteachers to have them line up at the sink outside to wash their hands before snack time and lunch. I taught them this cute song, which they have become completely obsessed with! It is to the tune of Frere Jaques:
Tops and bottoms, tops and bottoms,
In between, in between,
All around your hands, all around your hands,
Makes them clean, makes them clean!
Although I had to start hiding the soap during class time, I am very happy that they enjoy the song and now love to wash their hands. I think some kids are starting to go to the bathroom just so we can wash our hands together after and sing the song. I also have them say, “Bye Germs!” when they’re done washing. It’s so cute! I will eventually do teaching about hand washing in the primary school as well. Can you tell I’m a little excited?
After school, I typically walk some kids home and make some home visits. Some of my regulars are Mr. Brooks in Mt. James (just a short walk from Mt. Friendship), Ms. Doris, and Ms. Hylton. Walking from one house to the other, can take about 2 hours after I stop and talk to people I see on the way. I am getting to know more and more people in the area each week. It’s so enjoyable and I can’t tell you how much I love it.
I started helping at another clinic in New Kingston called, “Our Lady of the Poor.” My paperwork is nowhere near done going through the Ministry of Health here, so there is limited nursing things I can do at this clinic for the time being. The head RN there is hilarious, nice, and takes great care of me there. I think I’m the only other RN there, but I haven’t met everyone yet, so I’m not sure. This past week, there was a group of students from Miami who are in LPN (Licensed Practical Nurse) school. They had to come to Jamaica and do 2 weeks of clinical time because their program is mainly based in Jamaica. So for the majority of my time there this week, I assisted them in their learning about various things and helped them feel more comfortable with some nursing tasks. They were immigrants from Cuba and their life stories were incredible.
Other than my time at the clinics and in Mt. Friendship, we have experience our first “9 night” here. My fellow volunteer Sarah had a death in her mission of Devon Pen. Their process after death here is much more of a celebration of that person’s life than in the States. “9 nights,” happens on the 9th night after that person’s death and the day before the funeral. The family of the deceased holds a giant party that starts around 7 and goes until the early morning. There is tons of food, music, dancing, games, and just sitting around talking on a 9 night from my experience. It was a great way to celebrate that person’s life and the fact that he or she is no longer suffering and with God in a better place. Considering how many people come to a “9 night” and the expectations put on the family to provide food for everyone, I can only imagine how difficult it must be on a poor family. Honestly, I see a lot of poor families in the missions and I don’t understand how a family can always uphold this expectation. Hopefully, it is because of the kindness of family and friends that this can happen.
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