| | we spent much of our time in south africa at 2 orphan daycare centers - 'lula care center' and 'k2'
these kids (ages 1-6) have lost both parents (mostly through aids/hiv), and are cared for by either a grandparent or older sibling at home
on tuesday and wednesday half the team went to k2
there are 3 small classroom buildings (each about the size of a small house) for the 35-40 kids who come each day
in the courtyard at k2, sits this rock plaque, commemorating the opening of k2 in 2005
the "k" in k2 stands for khayalethu, meaning "our home"
when we arrived, class was in session so we had a chance to observe
note - just about all south africans speak at least 2 languages, their own native regional/tribe's language, and english
at this early age, these kids can speak swazii and are just starting to learn english
we were probably a bit of a distraction
these kids were too interested in checking us out, so they weren't paying much attention to the teacher
neither was this handsome little guy
in one of the classroom buildings, there is a small kitchen where snacks and lunch are prepared
on the lot adjacent to k2, the masoyi building team is currently working on a new project
when completed, all 3 k2 classrooms will move into this new building
the existing 3 classrooms will then be used as the new office/hq for masoyi home based care
simon and temba take some measurements of the roof
i spent the better part of tues/wed doing construction work paired with happy (that's his name)
tuesday we were up on the roof measuring and placing these cinderbricks into position
these cinderbricks are no joke, they weigh about 25lbs each!
wednesday we covered over the cinderbrick walls with cement
construction is hard work, so i was glad when tea time rolled around 
black/white, rich/poor, young/old, the country stops and breaks for tea time
one of the kids supervises eugene's tea pouring
(see the steam? even these kids drink it piping hot)
kids enjoying their rooibos tea and fried dough snack
i think juliet enjoyed her cup of rooibos tea
having had his fill, tea inspector calvin roams the tables, he likes what he sees
the construction guys having their tea
psam chats with simon, the team lead for the masoyi construction crew
psam first met simon when he came with the 2005 team
now that he returned, he was able to continue building on many of the relationships within the masoyi community
lauren, linda, and juliet lead the kids in some praise songs
duck duck goose, linda gets chased down
goose noah chases after his tagger
games inspector calvin surveys the scene, he likes what he sees here too
with psam playing the guitar we introduced a bouncy ball, for a few rounds of 'hot potato'
whoever was stuck with the ball when the music stopped, had to dance in the middle
usually there is an element of embarassement of having to perform for a crowd
not so with these kids .....wow, could they could dance!
even as young as they are, they each had a distinct style and a few signature moves of their own
this kid used his hands in cobra-like fashion to the delight of the crowd
these kids stole the show!
man, it was so much fun watching them dance!
not sure what she said, but linda has these kids running for their lives
in the afternoon, after the local elementary schools let out, a busload of older kids arrive at k2 for a meal
they too are oprhans, and for most of them the food they receive at school is the only food they receive for the day
back to work, simon and temba on the roof
cinderbricks are heavy stuff, eugene and psam measure and evaluate the quality of each brick
some time next year, God willing, all this wood, scaffolding, and dust will
be replaced by a bunch of smiling faces and dancing feet
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| | Posted 8/10/2007 1:06 AM - 22 Views - 8 eProps - 4 comments
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