Documentary on the Amazon

Often, when I am planning my lessons, I listen to American TV shows through a website called Hulu. I just listened to/watched a really good documentary on the tribes of the Amazon. Although the beginning was the typical history of all the explorers that tried to find the lost cities, the last 10 minutes were the best. The devastating effects from the rapid deforestation in the Amazon are too great to even really be counted. A football field is lot every 10 seconds to unsustainable agricultural fields. Not only does this have dire consequences for the surrounding biodiveristy, but it also threatens to erase remote Amazon tribes from existence. When fields that cannot possibly be sustained due to such low soil quality replace the forests, farmers are forced to use fertilizers and chemicals. These chemicals then seep into the rivers where they change the balance of that delicate ecosystem and poison the fish. Less fish means less food for these tribes that have learned to coexist with nature for thousands of years. This is one of those things where you wish you could stop it, but unless all the loggers, large agricultural producers, and governments felt the same way, you are pretty much helpless. Click here if you want to watch the documentary.

This a picture from our honeymoon to the Peruvian Amazon. You can't possibly capture the beauty of the Amazon in pictures.

A Nice Surprise!

After I finished my lesson with the little kids, Liljana told me I got some letters in the mail. I was only expecting something from my mom, so I wasn't sure what to expect. Four of my grandma's friends sent me birthday cards! That was so sweet of them to send me cards all the way over here in Serbia! Thank you so much Fran, Gloria, Patti, and Sharon!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to my mom and all the other mother's reading this!


How could you not love a face this precious!

Chuch in Jabuka

This morning, Liljana took me to a church service at the Methodist Church in Jabuka instead of going to the morning prayer service here in Padina. Jabuka is about a half an hour away in the direction of Belgrade. The church services in Padina are very traditional and use slower hymns. The average age of the congregation here is probably around 65. The church in Jabuka is bigger and with all the children, the average age is probably around 35. Because the majority of the congregation comes from Roma/gypsy decent, their music was much more lively and fun. It was a really enjoyable service. I was just surprised that there were probably about 20 people there under the age of 20. Except for Easter, kids and youth never seem to come to Church in Padina. Gotta go. Time for the second church service here in Padina.

5 Weeks Down, 5 More Weeks to Go!

Wow! I can't believe I am half way through with my time here in Serbia! I wish I could say that class attendance was as high as it was in the beginning, but it's not. Class attendance is actually my biggest frustration right now. I used to have about 6 young kids, now I am down to one. About 6 older kids used to come, now only 2-3 come each class. My teen class has gone from a high of 10-12 down to 4 regulars with sometimes a fifth if I am lucky.

This is just really frustrating because I really thought I would be teaching more kids. I know kids are unpredictable and you can't expect them to attend an English class three times a week in addition to school, but you think there would be more than a handful of kids in this town that want English lessons. It's just hard knowing that I had to quit my job to come here and have such small classes.

Luckily, the teens are really great to work with and really want to learn. I especially love the adults - they are making this trip totally worth it. I don't know what I would do if it wasn't for them. The adult classes are also really small, but they are just such a joy to work with.

I have talked to Liljana about the small class size. She talked to the kids to see if it would be better to have the classes on the weekends, but they said during the week is still the best. She even made the comment tonight that the adult classes seem like the only thing that is worth being here for. I suggest that we put a sign in front of the Church advertising free English classes. I don't know if that will help. I tell the kids everyday that they can bring friends and kids from school, but no one knew has come yet. Keep your fingers crossed that next week will be better! At least we know now that an English teacher is probably really only needed in the summer.

He reads . . . . . toilet paper!

The women in my second adult class make me laugh. Not just a little smile and laugh, but to the point where class has to stop so we can all regain our composure. First, there was the lady that said "Bread Pitt!" when I showed a picture of bread. Then, today in class I introduced the word "read." I asked the class for examples with read. One lady said, "He reads . . . toilet paper!" I don't have the slightest clue what made her say that, but it was hilarious. It took us a few minutes before we could get back to work. :)

Letters from Sierra Leone!

I am so excited! Tom told me this morning that I got a package of letters from Sierra Leone, West Africa. My great aunt was a Methodist missionary in Sierra Leone many years ago. Although I never met her, I feel a special connection to the schools where she served. I got to meet the headmistress, Jane, of the June Hartranft Memorial School for Girls last summer. We exchanged contact information and earlier this year, I sent a letter to the girls at the school. I told Jane that I would write to any of the girls that wanted an American penpal. I wasn't even sure if they received my letter until Tom told me I got a huge stack of about 20 letters in the mail. I cannot wait the 48 more days until I can go back and read each letter. He said they even sent pictures! I am just so touched that so many of the girls took the time to write to me. I intend on responding personally to each letter as soon as I get home. I can only dream of the day i will get to go to Sierra Leone to visit them.

Jane had sent me a CD with video clips from the school over Christmas. It was so wonderful to see some of the girls and to hear them sing. I am always so amazed by their spirits and how they can find ways to be happy despite living in a country with such a difficult past. With the recent economic crisis in the US, you may think you know what its like to have your country go through tough times. Our worst can even begin to compare to their worst. Our country has money problems. Big deal. Make cutbacks and learn to deal with it. It may be tough and hard but it cannot compare to the unimaginable terror and violence that Sierra Leone faced during their civil war. These people lived through years of a cruel and torturous civil war where amputations were a form of punishment, children were forced into rebel armies, and women and girls were raped so badly that to describe what happened to them is to hard to put into words. Despite these hardships, these beautiful little girls are able to carry on with their lives, and although the scars of the war are still visible today, their spirits remain so strong. With countries like Sierra Leone, it is important to not forget the past, but even more important to focus on how far them have come. I may be volunteering in Serbia, but my heart is in Sierra Leone.