Precioso Sangue

When one thinks of Peace Corps or a mission type trip, there is often the stereotypical image that comes to mind of a white person surrounded by African children. We got just a taste of this experience when we went to visit our organization for the practicum part of training. 

My language group: Sabrina, Anna and I, were assigned to an orphanage, Precioso Sangue, here in Namaacha run by the Austrian nuns. When we went for our first visit just a mere four weeks into training, we could just barely catch the gist of what was going on in. We met with two women, Rosa and Isilina, and they explained to us that the orphanage was only open Monday through Friday 7:30 a.m. to 15:30 p.m. My first thought was, “What about the weekends?” I thought by the term “orphanage” it meant that the kids lived there. Nope. The orphanage is just open for them to go during the day when they are not in school. Rosa and Isilina explained that they try to teach the kids what they don’t learn in school and what they do not learn at home. Precioso Sangue is a place they can go to take a bath, eat, do their homework and hang out in a safe place. There are currently 80 kids at the center. When Precioso Sangue opened in 2006, there were just 40 kids going. The kids who go to Precioso Sangue have difficult family situations. They may not have a mom or dad at home, they may be living with extended family or on the streets. Rosa said that sometimes on the weekends, she has kids at her door looking for food and a safe place. This was beyond hard to swallow at first. As we met in the office, we could hear the kids running around the grounds. It was just before lunch time. They continued to tell us about all that they are able to offer the kids and then gave us a tour of the grounds. We saw the two classrooms, the cabinet full of cups and toothbrushes, the kitchen, the bathrooms in back and the pigs in the stables behind. The pigs were slightly emaciated. They then showed us the building that “Super Adam”, a former Peace Corps Volunteer, helped to build when he extended for a third year here in Namaacha. Rosa and Isilina loved him telling us how he not only helped build a building, but also got lots of books and materials sent to the orphanage. Anna is actually staying with Adam’s old homestay family so she has heard a lot about Adam.

When we returned to Precioso Sangue a few weeks later we met with the director, Irma Marista. While she told us that she could speak English, the meeting was in Portuguese. On this trip we were supposed to take a look at all of the organization’s documents like their mission and vision statements. We quickly learned that these documents were unavailable, but she assured us that the first mission of the orphanage is to protect the criancas, the kids.  She then started to give us a long laundry list of what they really needed. She said they need more school supplies-cadernas, lapices, livros, papel, bolaches, comida, roupa, e sabon—notebooks, pencils, books, paper, cookies, food, clothes and soap. She said that food and hygiene are two of their most important priorities for all the kids.

A few weeks later we returned for our third and final visit. During this visit we were able to really interact with the kids. At first, Sabrina, Anna and I split up to observe each of the classrooms.  I went with Rosa in with some of the older kids. One girl was working on her English TPC (homework aka tarea para casa). Rosa quickly brought me over to her and told the girl that I could help her. Rosa also knows some English and is so happy every time she is able to say something to us in English. Rosa actually lives across the street from one of my friends so I have seen her a lot in between our visits to the orphanage. Every time I see her, she smiles excitedly, waves and yells, “Ca-lleeen.”  She then gives me this high-five thumb-snap handshake. The young girl was learning different types of weather and the appropriate clothing. On her homework she had finished the following sentence, “My favorite weather is sunny. When it is sunny, I like to wear rainy.” I explained to her that rainy is also a type of weather. I then explained to her different types of clothing and she decided that “a dress” would be most appropriate for her response. When we finished her homework, it was time for all the kids to take a bath.  I was a little nervous as Rosa grabbed my hand and said “vamos” and we ran off following all the kids going to take a bath. I thought maybe we were supposed to help them, but fortunately, instead she dragged me on her mission to find sabon (soap) for the kids. She then led me into the room with the younger kids where they were learning letters of the alphabet and the appropriate pronunciation. I joined in after they all stared at me for a while. Then they sang some songs in Portuguese and I tried to jump in and sing along.  After about 15 minutes, Rosa came back and dragged m  into the kitchen where the cook was making a large vat of xima. She had me stir it for a while. As I struggled with this task, they all stood and laughed commenting how it was serious exercise to mix xima. I agreed. I passed the large wooden spoon back to the cook and she continued with ease. Then we went out on the veranda and sang some more songs with the kids while they waited for lunch to be served. They were all just so happy. After about ten minutes with them, Rosa grabbed my hand and dragged me to the kitchen to serve lunch. Lunch was couvre and xima, a classic in my house. She made my professor take a picture of me as I sat behind the vat of couvre and served it to the kids. After all the older kids were served before they had to go to school, Sabrina, Anna and I tried to teach some of the younger kids some of our own Portuguese songs. “Cabeca, tronco, membros, pes sao partes basicas do corpo humano. Pega a cabeca. TA Pega a bacia. TA Mesca as maos. TA  Pega os joelhos. TA  Pega os pes. TA” And then we taught them a song about washing your hands “Lavar bem a mao direito. Lavar bem a mao esquerda. Com sabon e agua limpa. Seca com o ar.” We then tried to teach them “Head, shoulders, knees and toes” and “Simon says” in Portuguese. The kids didn’t really grasp the whole concept of “Simon says,” but I think they still had fun. Rosa and some of the other teachers led us all in some more Portuguese songs and then it was time for us to leave. Our sneak peek into life at Precioso Sangue was already over. For the final part of our practicum, we are now drafting a letter they can use to help get donations from local businesses in Namaacha and doing a SWOT analysis of their organization.

Although we have no idea what the family situations of the kids are like back home, we do know that they are definitely treated with love at the center. I saw Rosa after our visit and she was so grateful for the brief time we spent at the orphanage. Whenever I see her, she always has kids with her from the orphanage. She definitely has a passion the kids and for what she does. I hope to take even just a little bit of her passion with me to my future work in Chicumbane.