It is Not All Laughing Children and Happy Endings

A Better World, a local Red Deer humanitarian group I work with, is supporting rural Bolivia in a number of ways. One of the things they provide is a health fund administered by Marg and Jake Hoogland who live and work deep in the jungle--literally at the end of the road. There are very limited medical facilities within 3 or 4 hours' drive of the farms in their area. Many of the homesteaders have never been to Santa Cruz (the nearest big city), and they would not have the funds or contacts necessary to obtain medical help even if they were able to get there. The rural health fund and Marg and Jake work together to fill these gaps.

Earlier this year, Marg contacted me about a little boy in their community who was not responding to treatments and slowly going down hill. Ten-year-old Jhonny was smart and a real leader in his family and at school. He was all boy: climbing trees, running fast, and coercing his sibling into trying to keep up. Jhonny was such a fixture in the community that when he did not show up at a local function, Marg became concerned. She found him at home, bedridden, dehydrated, and suffering with bad headaches. The family had taken him to the small local clinic again very recently, and there he was given milk of magnesia.

Jhonny's House

Marg suggested that Jhonny be the first case for the ABW rural health fund. I agreed, and the Hooglands dropped what they were doing and took Jhonny and his mother to the children’s hospital in Santa Cruz. It was to be a six week stay for Jhonny, his mother (8 months pregnant), and Marg. You see, Jhonny had a large brain tumor. Doctors determined that it was operable if there was money to cover the bills. If surgery was not performed soon, there was no question that this tumor would be fatal--probably soon. Marg and I discussed the impact of draining the entire health fund for one little boy instead of helping 20 or 25 people in the community. That these kinds of judgment calls have to be made in a country like Bolivia is the tragic reality. My cousin’s youngest son had an operable brain tumor, but at no point did anyone say, “Should we spend the money or just let him die?”

Marg and Jhonny in the Childrens' Hospital

This was a no brainer for me! Spend the money and give the kid a chance! Jhonny ended up having 6 surgeries in 6 weeks and contracted chickenpox to boot! The total hospital bill was around $5,000. I flew to Bolivia in August to start arrangements to take a group of Olds College students in May 09. On my first day in Bolivia Marg and Jake took me to see Jhonny in the hospital. They were hiring someone to be with Jhonny at night as Marg and Jake were coming with me to help plan the Olds College trip. Jhonny had his bandages off for the first time and was looking thin, but responsive. He was squeezing a tube of toothpaste, and his eyes would flutter open. He responded to touch on his feet, and the doctors were very hopeful about his condition.

Jhonny's mom Erselia and Marg

We left the hospital to get some food and talk about the busy week to come. Marg received a call to return to the hospital. Turns out the Jhonnys heart stopped, and he died. Six operations and chicken pock were just too much for his little body. Death in a tropical country leads to its own set of problems. We returned to the hospital to have the body released. This meant paying the bill in full, and getting the forms to transport Jhonnys body. A coffin would be about 600 B ($95.00 Can) and Jhonnys mother said she just couldn’t afford that, so we would just wrap him in a blanket and put him in the back of the truck…. Not if I can help it, I thought. It turns out there are all night coffin stores near the hospital, so off Jake and I went.After a long terrifying drive in the middle of the night, we lay Jhonny in his coffin on the alter of the local church for a day of service before the burial. Jake and I went to his house to get a little sleep before to burial. 51 hours had past since I had seen a bed, and that one had been in Canada. 51 hours that remolded who I am, and clarified why I try. Jhonnys mother was very upset that we spent all this money, and Jhonny died anyway. She felt badly and was concerned that we wasted all that money. She was devastated by Jhonnys passing, but was worried we would think we wasted the money. Wasted the money??? That somehow she had let the donors down, because Jhonny died???

Carrying Jhonny to the graveyard

I have replayed this over and over in my mind since returning to Canada. This was an operable, benign tumor in the head of a 10 year old boy. How could we not give this boy a chance? If this was your son, would you say, “sorry, too much money” and let him die? No, of course not. This family did not have the money (about 2 years wages for them) and I am not a big believer in throwing cash at problems, but this is the perfect example of where money is all that was needed to give Jhonny a chance because we had Marg and Jake on the ground willing to help.We do not win them all, but that should not deter us from trying. You cannot win if you don’t try. I know we like to read stories about happily ever after, but there is much to be learned from the journey as well. We tried, and I would try again given the same circumstance. The rural Bolivia fund is now empty, and I would like to double it for next year. Please consider supporting this activity, we are very lucky to have Marg and Jake on the ground to administer this fund. I don’t think you could get better bang for your buck anywhere else.I bring Jhonny to class with me every day now. He lives on in my mind, reminding me of how lucky I am to be raising my family in Canada. And he reminds me that even in Canada we have a long way to go. Fifty years from now we will look back at how primitive Canada was, much like I look at how primitive parts of Bolivia are today. The changes will happen because of Education. The student I help shape today will be the innovators and change agents of tomorrow. My students will make a difference in this world, and I am happy to be a small part of that. I hope that Jhonny will be part of the last generation that sees such a large gap between peoples of this earth. For more information on Jhonny or the Hooglands see http://www.hooglandsinbolivia.blogspot.com/

To donate, follow the link below, and please specify Rural Bolivia,Thanks! http://www.a-better-world.ca/

How to Create the Common Cold

If you want to study the common cold, you have to be able to produce it. Here is a sure-fire recipe:
First, collect seemingly empty incubation units, preferably from all over the country. Bring those incubation units together and pack them into confined boxes. For best results, continually mix incubation units between boxes. Often this in itself is enough to produce excellent results in about two weeks. To speed the process or to create new strains, however, try these helpful hints:

• ensure that incubation units run for a minimum of 18 hours each day.
  
• combine all incubation units into one large box and agitate.
  
• add loud music, causing the units to vibrate and collide with each other. If you want spectacular results, also add a little alcohol to the mix.
  

Wait 7-10 days, and voila! Your incubation units will produce copious quantities of the common cold for you.
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We are starting the third week of classes, and the sickness level rises exponentially at this point in the year. I, too, have fallen victim this year--something I often avoid. Olds College has it better than some institutions, partly because we don’t have classes of 500 and partly because students often are with the same group of people all day. After many years behind the teachers desk, I have become reasonably good at differentiating between stomach flu and the 24 oz flu (sorry, I mean the 500ml flu), between eyes red from allergies and those red from sleep deprivation.

College is more than learning how to learn. For many of our students, this is their first time away from home. Some of our students become of age during their first year here. So while I am trying to get them to be thrilled and excited about CAD or GPS or soils and such, I know I am in competition with topics like dating, exploring entertainment opportunities, or, as I viewed on YouTube, Olds College hallway tray surfing! I make it my personal goal to be more entertaining than hallway tray surfing, but I know I will never be able to compete with dating.

I walk the thin line of ensuring that students realize the connection between action and consequence while still providing a positive learning environment. I will get nowhere if I take a dictatorial approach, but I am not doing them any favors if I do not set high expectations for them to meet. Instead of saying, “Don’t come to my class hung over!” I prefer, “You don’t look so good; you feeling ok? There is no puking on my keyboards you know! Puking on my keyboards is bad for your mark. How is that balance between personal life and professional life going for you?”

I need to create a learning environment in the face of colds, distraction, hallway tray surfing (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ythe2cCtiMc ) and life. So far I think I am doing OK.

How I Spent My Summer Holidays

Last May, I travelled to Bolivia to help out at a couple of orphanages. While I was there, I fell in love. I really didn’t mean to, but the country stole my heart. Though I have been in the backwaters of every continent except Antartica, Bolivia grabbed my attention like no other place I've ever been. It is a beautiful country with the promise of a bright future. There is potential in Bolivia: land, water, and sunshine. Throw in a little knowledge, some hard work, and a bit of political stability, and you have the ingredients for success.

Bolivia is "homesteading" land like Canada did at the turn of the century. People are moving from the mountains to farm in the jungle. These new rural communities have great need, and great promise.

I volunteer as a "technical consultant" for a humanitarian group from Red Deer called A Better World. My title there is really just a fancy term for someone who is to be both creative and cheap. A Better World is assisting these rural Bolivian communities with three initiatives: financially supporting rural health assessments and treatment, promoting practical hands-on agricultural training, and helping to develop agricultural infrasturcture. Already, this years' health fund has been exhausted, and we are looking at increasing the funding for it next year. Two agricultural infrastructure projects are just being completed, and, by April 2009, we would like to have the first phase of the agricultural school complete.

This August I went back to Bolivia to see about setting up a tour for students and community members. It was good to see friends I met last year and to meet new people as well. It was good to see the progress on projects started earlier this year and to talk about starting construction of the new agricultural school. Being a teacher, this project really excites me! This school would be much like the apprenticeship system we have here in Canada.

I packed a lot into 12 days on the ground in Bolivia. I swam in the headwaters of the Amazon, I chewed coca leaves, I ate cuy (look it up), I walked deserted city streets during a general strike, I bought my first coffin (not a good thing; more on that in a later entry), and I cut down a banana tree in the jungle. All of these experiences shape and mold how I look at my role at Olds College, and, if nothing else, it gives me very unique examples for class: "How many people have used a GPS to tag the nearest all-night coffin store, or the top of the mountain pass to Cochibamba? Anyone? Anyone?"

My job with A Better World is to solve problems. The problem I pondered as we were working at those orphanages last May was "why are these kids here?" Supporting orphanages, though a necessary work, is really treating the symptom without addressing the underlying disease. In this case, the problem is poverty. Address that, and the need for orphanages is decreased. By providing care for immediate needs but also formulating a plan that will empower citizen--both through agriculture and education--A Better World is helping Bolivians today and into the future, and I hope to be part of it for many years to come.

For more information, check out:
www.a-better-world.ca

Or Marg and Jakes Hooglands blog on Bolivia at:
Blog page: www.hooglandsinbolivia.blogspot.com
Pictures:www.mjhoogland.myphotoalbum.com

The First Day of School!

I have had 32 "first day of school" events in my life, 20 as a student, and 12 at the front of the class. Last night was no different than any of the other 31: nervous, butterflies, and a little "what am doing!" mixed together. You might think this goes away with time, but not in my case. I confessed my feeling to a colleague a few years back. He has been teaching since the days of slate and I have the utmost of repect for him. He said to me "The day you aren't a little nervous, is the day to quit," so I don't feel so bad now.

I was in at 7:30 to get everything fired up in the brand new lab I am teaching in. Lots of great new tech stuff with unbelievable potential, if only we can find the time to learn to use it! Today the goal is just to get through the class without any smoke, fires, or complete computer failures.

The new students slowly file in; for many of them, this is the first time they have been in a college class, and I have to remind myself that they are more nervous than I am. I know from exerience that once I "hit the stage" I will be fine, but that 10 minutes before class is the worst time for me. 8 o'clock--curtain goes up, lights go down, and it is show time folks! The first ten minutes are a blur. Read the audience: who is bored? who is confused? who will be the group leaders? and most importantly, who will laugh at my bad jokes? My goals are simple: keep them awake, get everyone to engage at least once, and make sure that everyone smiles! This is a great group of students--eager, attentive and mostly interested.

My job is 3 part salesman and 1 part entertainer. I believe that I cannot teach anyone anything, but I can convince them that they will want to learn it. The sales job is getting easier every year. When I started this, half my students had never turned on a computer; this year I did not have one student who did not like computers.

Every year at Olds College I see about 300 new students personally, and this year will be no exception. The thing is that in 2 years, these students will graduate while I will continue to have a "first day of school" experience annually until they haul me out from behind my computer on a stretcher, or I don't feel nervous on the first day.