Hurricane Matthew and September Celebrations

Hello all!

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

"I hope you are doing well back home in the States. Now that school at St. Benedict’s and music ministry is picking up, I have been coming to a greater realization that I am really making a life for myself here in PG for the next two years. Although I have been to other countries before, I went with quite a different mentality because I was there short term. It is really exciting to realize that I will be here long enough to form real relationships with Belizeans and fully integrate myself into the community; however, this also means I am away from all of you for the next two years. With that being said, I really miss all of you guys and think of you often.

On a different note, the past couple of weeks have been awesome. September was the perfect start to my time here in Belize because the entire month is filled with holidays and different festivities. There have been so many days off that I don’t think we have had a full week of school yet! The major holidays include St. George’s Caye Day, which commemorates the British victory over the Spanish in 1776, and Independence Day, which celebrates Belize’s independence from the British on September 21, 1981 (note that this country is just a few years older than I am). Independence Day is probably the biggest day out of the whole year for Belizeans. There are tons of festivities leading up to the big day, many of which are centered around the schools and children, which was great for me at St. Benedict’s. The entire week before Independence Day was filled with events for all the schools in Toledo District, starting with a literacy fair day, a talent show night in PG’s central park, and a Children’s Rally which ended with a parade with all the kids in Toledo. All of these events were centered around Independence Day and infused with a great sense of Belizean patriotism. Independence Day itself was on a Tuesday this year, and festivities began the day before. On Monday afternoon, people started barbequing and partying all around PG. My favorite part of the whole night was ringing in Belize’s independence at midnight with an official raising of the flag, a 21-gun salute, and fireworks off the pier right in front of our house!! Literally all of PG and many people from the villages came to the midnight ceremony in Central Park. The next day, we woke up and watched the Independence Day parade in the morning. Afterwards, most people in town headed to PG’s central park to enjoy music, BBQ chicken (Belizeans LOVE their barbequed chicken, beans and rice), and just hanging out and celebrating. What a great day.

Sadly, Independence Day also marked the end of the September Celebrations so I thought life would begin to settle down and we would finally begin to have a bit more regular work schedule. And then came Hurricane Matthew. Last Thursday, we received the news that Hurricane Matthew was heading straight for Belize. Normally, Belize is a bit more protected from hurricanes because they usually hit Honduras and Guatemala and bypass Belize. However, it looked like Hurricane Matthew would likely hit Belize, and so Thursday afternoon all of PG began to prepare. Every school in Toledo called off school, and people started stocking up on canned food and boarding up their houses. In the end, Jeremy, Matt, Kathleen and I ended up being asked by our in country coordinator, Father Jeff, to drive up to Belize City. We ended up packing up our house in a mad rush, trying to leave PG before the storm hit. It was a bit eerie packing up and leaving our house, because we were not quite sure what kind of shape our house would be in when we returned. I love our house, but most Belizeans joke about it because it is one of the oldest houses in PG and looks as though it might fall apart, and it is also right on the seafront. In the end, we spent a lovely weekend away with the JVs up in Belize City, and Hurricane Matthew turned out to simply be a tropical storm. Apparently, it just rained a lot in PG and our house was fine.

Now that October is here, I think I can safely say that we are well on our way to the beginning of the school year and likely will not have too many more interruptions with classes for a while. At St. Benedict’s, I am continuing to work with the Reading Intervention Program. As for music ministry, the new keyboard arrived the other day! When I first arrived, there was no keyboard, and so the Jesuits agreed to buy a new one for the church. It is awesome to be able to have a keyboard to play on again.
Well, that’s it for now. I’ll try to write a bit more about St. Benedict’s and music ministry next time. For now though, know that I am thinking about you all and missing you!

Peace,

Al"
 

Submitted by Allison Schommer, Lay Missioner, Jesuit Volunteer Corps