What am I doing here?

 January 27, 2022

A lot of you asked me before I left in September what I would be doing for the mission during my time here. I have been here nearly five months now and I would answer that question today much the same way as I did back then, "I'm not really sure . . . "

That is not to say that I am idle. Once school started, I began spending my days there, filling three different roles. Primarily (only because I spend most of my time there), I am an assistant to the kindergarten teacher. Personally, I think that I help very little: I pass out papers, take things to the office to get photocopies, and sometimes keep the youngest children (kindergarten is open to ages 3-5) busy and quiet while the older ones are working on a lesson. I am also an extra grown-up, so the teacher feels free to meet with the director or other teachers while I am there and leaves me in charge. This is not a great idea, because my disciplining skills are in terrible shape (although they're getting better--I'll have to talk about that soon), and I don't really like it, but I guess it's a help. Sometimes I feel as if I am a distraction. The kids like to come and hang on me or my chair when there is downtime, and disputes can arise. 

I love this picture. There is a book on the table. These kids are looking at the pictures and talking about it.

My second role is an observer of French classes in the middle school. I think that Hammer and Dela were hoping that I could actually do some teaching there so that they could save money on a teacher. However, as the middle school director pointed out, I have not had the training in the approved methodology and curriculum. He was delighted, however, to permit me to observe French classes, and got the French instructor to write out his schedule for me. The teacher determined the best days/times for me to observe, and now I attend 7th grade French on Monday afternoons and Wednesday mornings, 8th grade French on Wednesday mornings, and 9th grade on Monday afternoons. Since they see me twice during the week, the 7th graders seem to me to be the most interested in me. When the teacher is out of the classroom, they will either have me listen to them read the weekly text, try to teach me Ewe, or ask me questions about my life. But, most of the times in these classes, I watch the lesson. It is very interesting to see French taught not as a foreign language (although it is not the first language of any of the students), but as an in-depth study of the first language.

I would hate having to write out the entire lesson on the blackboard!

The third role is assisting Dela with the English classes in the elementary school. That has fallen to third place because of the illness and death of her mother. We have cancelled the classes when she has gone to Ghana. I tried one day to teach without her and it was a nightmare. It was a Friday, the day for the first- and second-graders. The older elementary kids had gathered some palm branches and were making brooms, I think. At any rate, there was a lot of activity outside, so I had class in the classroom (Dela and I usually teach them outside). Then, because the new brooms (or whatever) were being placed in the 1st grade classroom, they decided that I would combine the two classes. That meant a full hour in a small room with 40-45 children. There were even some kindergartners in the group, because five of them had forgotten/ignored the information that there was no kindergarten class that day. The children were noisy and unruly; I made it through all of the review material in about 40 minutes. I was ready to let them go, but the 2nd teacher responded, "Oh, non, Madame! It is not time." So I had to muddle through for another 20 minutes. I told Dela that I would not do that again.

None of those activities seems to be a particular ministry. Hammer has mentioned starting a women's ministry in Vo Asso, but his ideas would definitely require that I have help because of the language barrier. I had hoped that, after my move, I would be able to minister to the children in my street. They all play in front of my house. But I find a bit of a language barrier. They know a little French from school, but I'm not sure it is enough for Bible stories and songs.

So here are the specific "ministry" activities that I have accomplished in the last five months: taught the kindergartners and the 7th graders "Stand Up and Shout It!" in French; taught the 3rd-6th graders the first two lines of "Stand Up and Shout It!" in English. Asked my neighbor lady where she went to church and invited her to attend our church. Asked the same lady on another occasion if there were things I could pray for and told her I would pray that God bless her.

My prayer is that I am planting seeds (or watering, or pulling weeds, etc.) in general with my smiles and waves  (which I give out quite freely. Too freely, in fact. One morning, a man that I waved to on my way to school followed me there and asked for my phone number so that we could talk, and I could go to Lomé to meet his family and he could go to the States to meet mine!), and by all the hugs and smiles I give to the children. I will try to be content with that until God shows me something more specific.