Casa Hogar: A Place For Girls



 

Here I tried to have them sit for a picture. This was my first day.

This particular Tuesday as I was walking to volunteer I decided to walk down the street where I live and walk through the Tuesday outdoor market. There are vegetables and fruit for sale a bit cheaper than in the grocery stores. I bought my girls a bunch of bananas. See, I found out early on that two year old girls don't care if I spent time working on a scheduled lesson or planned a game to go with that lesson, they were going to make their own way to play...until I learned to bring food for them. They sit and listen to a story much better if their mouths and fists are full of cookies. After I bought my fruit for them, which some weeks are little cookies or crackers, I walked down the cobblestone street to the hogar. An hogar (pronounced oh-gar) from what I understand is a place for care of children who's parents cannot afford for them to be home. While the parents work during the week they send their babies to an hogar to care for them and get them to school instead of leaving them home alone or bringing them to work with them. This one is a girl's home. When Doug volunteered in Argentina, he worked with a boy's home. My girls here stay all week. The boys in Santiago Del Estero where Doug volunteered were not allowed to leave. These girls then go home on the weekends to their families. I have 3-5 little ones. Ranging from 2-4 years old. When we first moved here my intent was to volunteer at an orphanage so I could hold babies and be more of a nurse type volunteer. Never did I think I would be an English teacher. We walked to an orphanage in Coyoacan and asked if they would take me as a volunteer but they said if I was staying less than a year they would not accept me. They wanted continuity with their very young orphans. And I respected that. They pointed us in the direction of a Catholic church where across the street there was an hogar. They said it was an orphanage. But I later found it not to be so. I was disappointed at first but then I quickly realized that these little ones needed just as much love, and I had love to give. We knocked on the tall clunky orange door with an over sized knocker. A nun came to the door and we asked for information about volunteering. She invited us in and walked through the vaulted ceiling entry way to the courtyard and into a room to get a woman named Sofia. Sofia came walking to us, still standing at the entrance and I then asked the questions (in Spanish) that Doug and I had been practicing for blocks. I told her that I wanted something to do while my daughter was in school between 8 and 2:30 and wondered if they would allow me to volunteer. She said that the problem was that most of their girls were in school at that time. But she had 3-5 two year olds that could use some caring for. Sofia said, "Do you speak English? We need an English teacher for the littlest ones, can you do that?" I replied, "Yes, of course." She then questioned, "Where are you from?" When I told her, "From the United States." She hmmm-ed, "That's good enough." Ha! Apparently England was her first choice. Lol. She asked for a copy of my passport and a reference letter from someone. Luckily a coworker of Doug said she'd write one for me. And it was very thoughtful and kind of her to do so. Even though when I brought my 'credentials' with me to give to Sofia she didn't even look at them, just asked what days I'd like to come. YAY! So I started the next Monday and when I got there all of the girls had the day off of school or something because it was a see of black haired beauties all interested in the light haired giant woman who was there. Sofia called the littles over and they all respectfully came and kissed me one by one on my cheek. I was their Maestra (teacher), that's how I was introduced and that's how they were (AT TWO!) expected to honor and respect me! Wow. I fell in love with them all but in particular (as I've written in the past) with Lupita. She is feisty and naughty. She requires a lot of attention and love. But she does it in a way that draws me to her. Sofia gave us a table in the courtyard and I tried to talk with just the littles but the big girls were too excited to leave us to it so they chose this opportunity to share how much English they knew. They also asked me a million questions in Spanish that sometimes I couldn't understand. They just talked so fast. I got through a book and an a game. But my wonderful color coded, perfectly organized plan for the day was just thrown out the window and then we played and ran and giggled. Now, I show up a couple times a week, chose an overview of a lesson plan and we play. I've spoken a ton of Spanish with them and they actually understand me. I teach them to wash their hands and be nice to each other. On Tuesday Nati kicked Fernanda in the chin uppercut style and I made them sit there while pantomiming why kicking is bad (because I didn't know it in spanish) and after a couple of minutes Nati apologized. :) They are my girls. It's fun, it's exhausting but it's a great out for me and taking care of 3 crazy two year olds just might be training me for adoption. I may end up with a baby or 2 kids. So I'm just happy to have the opportunity to make these girls feel loved and give them some much needed attention.


This was last week. With my regular 3. They laugh so hard at me! :)

I would ask for prayer as all of my littles have severe colds

or infections and they are still struggling with nits/lice.

They seem to have new infections each week and even though

they are happy and fun while I'm there they are so sick.

 I think this is why I keep getting sick.

So please pray that they can get better.