Carrots

Carrots take a little patience... Most of the kids who have planted carrots have pulled at least one out, because they just can't wait to see how big they are underneith the ground. Darlyn, above, actually had some decent sized ones. Little Paola, pulled most of hers out when they were just a long as a finger, and as round as a nickel. She was bragging about how huge they were and was going to take them home to make juice from them in the blender.
Anyway. The other day I was talking with a lady in the community and she was asking me how old kids had to be to garden with me. I said that I prefer that they be in school. I went on to tell her how the point of the garden isn't so much that they kids have perfect plots or make money, but that they have something of their own and learn to care for it. She said, "That's not an idea that you see much here... that the kids would have something of their own. That they'd have the responsability for something of their own..." And I realize how powerful it is to entrust a child with something-- to let them know that we believe that they can do it (whatever it may be, not just gardening) and actually let them have at it. I pray that the Lord will use this garden to let the children know that we trust them and love them even when they fail and will continue to give them a new chance.

Chipo

Anyone who has ever been to Los Higos probably remembers Chipo ("cheap-o"). He looked like such a vacano the other day wearing this bandana, so I had to take a picture. As I was taking the shots, he kept wanting to pull it over his eyes. Chipo's mom used to live in La Vega, so he was being raised by his grandma, but most of the time ran loose in the community. His mom recently moved back to Los Higos and we see a little less of Chipo (less often, and less of his body, because he tends to wear clothes more often now than before).
Anyway. You might notice some owies on Chipo's face. A few weeks ago he was doing a kind of tug-a-war with another kid (Mateo), who let go of the rope and Chipo fell and somehow scraped up his face. He looked pretty rough for a few days.

bunny cages

We finally got some of the rabbit hutches finished, and they seem to be working well! It's been fun that Chiro, a 16-year-old, who isn't in the club, but loves to build, comes over most afternoons to work on the hutches.

In this photo Sara is shown with her bunnies and a neighbor kid's bunny that is also living in her hutch. We decided in the end to ask each student to put their own roof on their cage, using what they can find, so that they have to contribute something to their cage. Sara had some tin at home and found bottle caps to put under the nails on the roof to seal the nails, because we didn't have roofing nails.

I'm mostly posting this picture because I like it. This is Pancho (real name, Francisco). He's in his late 20's and is married with a newborn baby girl. He grew up in the church in Los Higos, and I see fruit in his life, but he stopped attending the church because he felt like it was too strict. He's been coming to our community Bible studies more lately and he is really good at playing the guira. Please pray for Pancho and his family-- that they'd grow in faith and that the Lord would provide him with a way to better financially support them.
Pancho doesn't have a job, but he fixes shoes out of his home and I always see him out and about helping people with whatever they're doing.

Cecilia's baby

Those of you who have been to Los Higos may have met Cecilia. She is 15 and just had her first baby yesterday, shown above. It's a boy, but they haven't given him a name, yet.
It was upsetting to everyone when Cecilia got pregnant at such a young age (she was 14 when she got pregnant), but it seems that she has a good support system and so far has made the best of it. Her husbands family is taking responsability for her and it seems that she has enterred well into their family.

Kids' Day

Last Thursday, the ag site had a program for all of the children, 12 years and younger, of Los Higos. The idea came from Carmen Luz, a young woman who wanted to make a big meal one day to feed all of the children of Los Higos. The day started out with about 80 to 90 children meeting in the community center to watch a movie. Afterwards Andre's kids club performed songs and a puppet show for the children. The event ended with them all walking across town to where the food was served (the top photo shows Andre leading them towards the food). The ladies made 4 pots of rice and beans, 2 pots of chicken, and a 5-gallon bucket of potato salad! (The photo above shows the women serving up the food).

The next day Meri told me that the people were all saying that of all the organizations that have worked in Los Higos, this is the first that has cared about children. She said no one has even done anything like this for the children of Los Higos.

juelga update

This sign is at the bottom of the road leading to Los Higos. It's is advertising the government's promise to improve the road. The top of the sign says 'Progress is coming through firm steps' and on the left of the sign is the PLD's (Dominican Liberation Party) slogan, 'It's forward that we are going'.

During the riot (about a month ago now), the rioters burnt a hole in the sign, which I think is the most appropriate thing they did. Anyway, it seems that the riot didn't make much of a difference- it doesn't appear that the government paid attention. Some of the holes in the road have been filled, but I think that the people themselves did it.