JOMA!

Above is a picture of me with my students and their certificates from the conference that they attended
I think that I have mentioned before that I have been working with a theater group at the school through a Peace Corps program called JOMA. The weekend before last I had an opportunity to take 8 of the kids from the group to a weekend conference a few hours away. They get everything provided for them (transportation, food, lodging) which is great because most of these kids have little to no money to be able to travel like that. I was so excited to go and the weekend was a blast!!!

There were about 62 kids representing 8 different schools in Maputo and Gaza province there. The weekend was full of sessions educating the students on topics like domestic violence, STDs, HIV/AIDS, puberty, pregnancy, self-esteem, and leadership. The kids were so dynamic in the sessions. I was surprised that even while talking about some of the less comfortable health topics, students always had something to say. There were also two Mozambican health workers there to test people for HIV. The majority of the kids elected to get tested and it was a nice opportunity for them to do the test in a safe place. Many people here are afraid to get tested in their own towns because confidentiality here isn't what it is in the US and people think that everyone in their community will know their status if it comes out positive. Some travel to other health centers farther away, but most don't have the money to do that.

At night we held activities like musical chairs or dances or other team building exercises. The kids all made fast friends with each other and it was a really positive environment for them. So many students here love to perform! Whether it was dance, song, poems, theater, or jokes, every student had something to share and on the last night we held a talent show where each group presented something and a group of the girls put on a beauty pageant (with judges and everything).

I'm pretty sure the kids barely slept all weekend. I know for sure that the first night a group of kids woke up at 4am to play soccer before breakfast and the second night they woke up at midnight to play for a while. The volunteers there (including myself) also barely slept and tried to keep things moving smoothly all weekend.

The women who worked in the kitchen preparing food did the hardest work of the weekend. The first night they cooked 27 chickens for all of us. That includes killing them by hand, plucking them, gutting them, butchering, and finally cooking them. It's hard work! The last night they also cooked two goats for us (and also had to kill, skin, and butcher them personally...it's just how it works here!). The food all weekend was delicious and I had a great time. I also think it inspired the kids in my group to keep up the hard work so that they can have other similar opportunities!