It´s Tuesday Feb 27th and I just got back from a weekend trip. All the trainees were individually assigned to a volunteer that has been here for at least a year to spend 3 days with them to get an idea of what life will really be like as a volunteer. It was a reality check that in 2 more months I will be out there on my own, without the other trainees living just minutes away from me, without a scheduled day of language classes and technical training. It reminded me that I am already feeling settled in with my host family in Guarambaré and I will have to be uprooted again and placed in unfamiliar surroundings. This was both terrifying and exciting.
I visited a male volunteer who has been here two years. He will be swearing out in April, when our group swears in for service. Because of Peace Corps rules about opposite sex volunteers staying together and the local culture, I had to stay with a host family about a 10 min bus ride from his house. They were a great family and seemed to be doing great. They had the nicest home I have seen thus far and only had two kids because they could not afford more and even had a car. It puzzles me why some people are able to accomplish this when others are not.
On Thursday we had a tour of The Peace Corps office and we were given a powerpoint presentation that consisted of a lot of depressing statistics.
60% of the Paraguayan population lives in poverty and and 67% of the population is under at 30, 40% of those are children. 60% of the youth live in the urban areas near the capital, which is where i will most likely be living.
The education system is not well developed. Kids are expected to sit, copy, and memorize. It´s no wonder that the average years of study for youth is 8 years. I have seen many kids selling things in the street, polishing shoes, hopping on buses to sell stuff, etc. It´s really sad to see 7 year olds do this. Many kids in the country are expected to help out on farms and dont go to school to help the family with money.
When kids aren´t in school and not working, there isn´t a lot for them to do. They do play soccer but other than that, there are no community centers for community pools, etc for them to play at. A lot of volunteers have been successful in creating summer camps where kids and can come and play games, have reading groups, make arts and crafts, etc. The alternative is to get involved in alcohol and drugs and violence which is very common. Youth suicides and intents have increased which studies interpret as a sign of hopelessness and desperation.
Some volunteers have done a lot of sex education, HIV education, general health eduation like brushing your teeth, eating good food and wearing shoes so you don´t get parasites crawling in your feet!
Parenting is definately done differently, there seems to be a lack of explaing the WHY behind the punishment which is crucial in my opinion. I am told rebellious teenagers are just seen as disrespectful instead of examined for why they are rebelling. There is a lot of child abuse and although there are counseling centers for youth, the counselors do not have degrees. The healthcare system here is less than great. Dentistas are most available but they will just pull your teeth if you have a problem since they don´t really have training either. Paraguayans use a lot of herbal medicine which works great for minor things but not things like cancer. Due to lack of education some are led to believe herbs will cure their cancer. If you have money you can get to good heath care but remember that 60% don´t have money.
There are a lot of opportunities for projects to integrate youth into their families and communities. The volunteer i visited teaches English and got some computers donated and started a computer class. He works with a local healthcare place and does a lot of speeches in schools on sex education and HIV. Other urban youth volunteers focus on things like self esteem classes, career and future planning, etc. In general, creativity, self-value, social commitment, etc are not things Paraguayans are encouraged to do.
I definately learned a lot from my visit. I was advised to immediately start visiting families when i get to my site, talk to schools, start with something simple like getting kids together to paint a world map on a wall or teach an English class. It was great to see a volunteer in action, it made me realize I can definately do the things he was doing.
I still have no idea where I will be living but I will find out in a month and I think I will be happy wherever it is.
My health is good, I do have an ear infection right now and I´m constipated but all is well. I am told my stomach will be moody the whole two years but it´s not so bad. I´d prefer the diahrea I think because whatever doesn´t stay in my ass won´t stay on my ass!! I heard volunteers crap their pants at least once in their service so maybe I will eat those words later! Thanks for reading. I am trying still to get some photos up on my flickr account so check soon!
I visited a male volunteer who has been here two years. He will be swearing out in April, when our group swears in for service. Because of Peace Corps rules about opposite sex volunteers staying together and the local culture, I had to stay with a host family about a 10 min bus ride from his house. They were a great family and seemed to be doing great. They had the nicest home I have seen thus far and only had two kids because they could not afford more and even had a car. It puzzles me why some people are able to accomplish this when others are not.
On Thursday we had a tour of The Peace Corps office and we were given a powerpoint presentation that consisted of a lot of depressing statistics.
60% of the Paraguayan population lives in poverty and and 67% of the population is under at 30, 40% of those are children. 60% of the youth live in the urban areas near the capital, which is where i will most likely be living.
The education system is not well developed. Kids are expected to sit, copy, and memorize. It´s no wonder that the average years of study for youth is 8 years. I have seen many kids selling things in the street, polishing shoes, hopping on buses to sell stuff, etc. It´s really sad to see 7 year olds do this. Many kids in the country are expected to help out on farms and dont go to school to help the family with money.
When kids aren´t in school and not working, there isn´t a lot for them to do. They do play soccer but other than that, there are no community centers for community pools, etc for them to play at. A lot of volunteers have been successful in creating summer camps where kids and can come and play games, have reading groups, make arts and crafts, etc. The alternative is to get involved in alcohol and drugs and violence which is very common. Youth suicides and intents have increased which studies interpret as a sign of hopelessness and desperation.
Some volunteers have done a lot of sex education, HIV education, general health eduation like brushing your teeth, eating good food and wearing shoes so you don´t get parasites crawling in your feet!
Parenting is definately done differently, there seems to be a lack of explaing the WHY behind the punishment which is crucial in my opinion. I am told rebellious teenagers are just seen as disrespectful instead of examined for why they are rebelling. There is a lot of child abuse and although there are counseling centers for youth, the counselors do not have degrees. The healthcare system here is less than great. Dentistas are most available but they will just pull your teeth if you have a problem since they don´t really have training either. Paraguayans use a lot of herbal medicine which works great for minor things but not things like cancer. Due to lack of education some are led to believe herbs will cure their cancer. If you have money you can get to good heath care but remember that 60% don´t have money.
There are a lot of opportunities for projects to integrate youth into their families and communities. The volunteer i visited teaches English and got some computers donated and started a computer class. He works with a local healthcare place and does a lot of speeches in schools on sex education and HIV. Other urban youth volunteers focus on things like self esteem classes, career and future planning, etc. In general, creativity, self-value, social commitment, etc are not things Paraguayans are encouraged to do.
I definately learned a lot from my visit. I was advised to immediately start visiting families when i get to my site, talk to schools, start with something simple like getting kids together to paint a world map on a wall or teach an English class. It was great to see a volunteer in action, it made me realize I can definately do the things he was doing.
I still have no idea where I will be living but I will find out in a month and I think I will be happy wherever it is.
My health is good, I do have an ear infection right now and I´m constipated but all is well. I am told my stomach will be moody the whole two years but it´s not so bad. I´d prefer the diahrea I think because whatever doesn´t stay in my ass won´t stay on my ass!! I heard volunteers crap their pants at least once in their service so maybe I will eat those words later! Thanks for reading. I am trying still to get some photos up on my flickr account so check soon!
4 comments:
I'm glad you figured out how to add photos to your blog. I like hearing what you are doing. It looks like you've already adjusted to life in Pataguay!
I love seeing the photos too. I wish you had time to blog every day because I think your experiences are so interesting. I hope you are keeping a journal or a diary so you can remember everything.
The poverty seems overwhelming and depressing. I'm so proud of you for being there to make a difference in these people's lives.
Anne (G)
I´m sorry for being clueless but who is tessenei? Thank you for the comments and for being an enthusiastic reader!
Hi Jill,
My blogger name is tessenei. My real name is Anne (Mueller) Green - your mom's friend since about 1970.
I really am enjoying your blog and I'm so glad you are keeping one.
anne
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