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The start of the winter…

Now we are enjoying our summer holidays, winter has started in Namibia. Winter still means 20 degrees Celsius during daytime, however during the nights, the temperature can easily drop below 0 degrees. The Siama girls then need to cover themselves up really warm during the night, as our house does not have heating. We were very happy that a sponsor came and offered to pay for new blankets and mattresses. De ladies are spending their nights comfortably again….

Also some Dutch visitors, who came by at Siama in Omaruru a couple of weeks ago, offered spontaneously some money. Heike decided to buy a foosball table, so the girls have something new to play with as you can see on the picture. The European Soccer Championship was followed in Namibia in their very own way….!

A day in the life

In our previous newsletter, we promised you to describe a day in the life of our Siama girls. Every day starts at 5.30. Very early and it is still dark in Namibia. The girls wash themselves, brush their teeth and then get dressed in their school uniform (a grey skirt, a white blouse, sometimes covered with a navy sweater). Each of them makes their own bed and puts away their nightgown. A schedule is made weekly, so each girl is clear what her duty is during the week. Some make the table, others clean the tables, or do the dishes.

After everybody has prepared herself, breakfast is served. In the morning the girls eat bread, which is quite luxurious (poor people eat 3x a day milli-porridge = porridge made of cornflower, which is cheap but very nourishing). All girls make a sandwich for the break at school and then everything disappears in their schoolbag. A bag which is sometimes too big, that you wonder where to bag is going with the child…..

Around 6.30 Apollonia drives the girls to school with the Siama van. The 5 bigger girls go to school by bike. High school is also closer by to Siama than the Omaruru Primary School. For the youngest the distance is simply too far away and it is not responsible to send them to school by either foot or bike.

When Apollonia returns, she does the dishes, sweeps the rooms and starts to prepare the hot meal during lunchtime (this is after school time).

At 12.30 Apollonia picks up the children from school, and at 1.30 the eldest girls have also returned from High school. The change immediately in their normal clothes, as their school uniform needs to remain clean and it is expensive. The 3 tables are made and each girl waits behind her chair until everybody has arrived for lunch. Before lunch a prayer is said and everybody sits down. Heike and Apollonia have made sure there is a lot of variation in lunch. Every day a different vegetable is served (usually from our own garden), rice, pasta and 3x a week there is meat of fish (depending what is the special sale of the week).

The eldest girl at the table serves the other girls. It is unbelievable how calm this is happening. Nobody is pushing, screaming but everybody awaits their turn.

When the ladies are done for lunch, two girls clean the tables (depending on the weekly schedule), two girls start doing the dishes and clean everything. After lunch everybody is free to do whatever they want to do. Play outside, read a book, cycle on the plot, sing along with the hits on the radio, whatever they like.

From 3 to 4 is study hour. Nearly everybody has homework which needs to be done. Heike and Apollonia supervise and help the children with their studies, and give some attention to those who need that. If the girls are finished in time, they can do an educational game on the computer or help another with their homework. If they are not finished by 4 with their studies, they have to continue….

After study hour, they are allowed to do what they want. Making music, singing, or talk (about boys) for hours. Also some of them need to help in the vegetable garden, assist Apollonia with the laundrey, etc. They are not always happy to do so, but what needs to be done, needs to be done!

At 6 o’clock it is shower time. They love it and we have enough warm water as we have sonar panels on the roof. The girls clean the showers afterwards and at 7 o’clock everybody is dressed for the night and have their last meal of the day (the milli-porridge). At 8 o’clock all the girls are going to bed, after they have brushed their teeth, curled their hair and have put their creams on their faces (they are girls after all). Also the bigger ones are going to bed. Although not everybody will sleep immediately, Apollonia feels that they will get enough rest. At 9 o’clock the house needs to be quiet, because everybody has to get up early again.

As you can tell, the girls have a quite hectic day programme. We have a deep respect for Apollonia who manages 17 girls aged 8 to 15.

Fashion contest

Two of our Siama girls, Alisha and Georgene, won a fashion contest at school, as you can see from the picture. Don’t you think they look beautiful?

Wrong birthday

Another news fact. For years we celebrated the birthday of Malento on November 2^nd. Malento was born in 1996, so we were told. Recently we received a copy of her birth certificate….. Malento was born on May 31, 1995….. Well, this is Africa!

That’s it for now. We wish everybody a nice summer holiday and inform you in the next newsletter.

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