of Amelia and another one down

Allow me to introduce you to Amelia. She has grown so much in her four months here and now runs around with a big smile on her face where once sadness held firm. Amelia has mastered the tight leg grip and whenever you pick her up, she holds on for good. It's like prying mussels of rock to get her off sometimes :) But she's definitely a cutie pie and is more than willing to give you kisses any time you ask for them!

Amelia is about two years old and is in the same room as Gabriella and Natalie. She is one of the five that we picked up down south early last November and Elliot got the privilege of naming her. Amelia's father had two wives (I know I've told this story but for those who are just joining the blog and haven't read the earlier ones I'm repeating), one with a son and the other with two daughters. The father refused to feed or clothe Amelia's mother, Amelia, or little Dolly and instead gave everything to the mother with a son. Thus Amelia's mother had to go work in the field to make enough to survive but she couldn't do it with two small girls. Watching her give up her two daughters was one of the most heartbreaking experiences I've ever laid witness to.

For awhile she was reclusive, always looking for her sister Dolly and screaming when they weren't together. Amelia really has come a long way and is now becoming a energetic, yet extremely mischevious, little girl. lol We are working on hitting right now... She's prone to slapping your face and laughing afterwards... Like I said, we're working on that right now. lol

Today... What did I do today...? Sunday right? I slept in as much as I possibly could and then ran downstairs for breakfast. I convinced Josiah to share some of his bounty with me so I ate baby food for breakfast. lol Not kidding! Josiah found this incredibly delicious gruel in Dhaka and has been making some every day since. I stole a bite once and now I'm hooked. It's sooo yummy. Baby food: apple and corn flavoured.

After that I ran to class and reviewed the joys of words from Dick and Jane. For an hour. I really shouldn't be a teacher. It's settled. I've learned a lot of patience from the whole experience but teaching "go, go, go" really doesn't fuel my engines...

After class I decided it was time to clean. The bugs have been extra bad lately and have found ways to walk through our walls and settle by the the lights. Hence, we have clouds and clouds of bugs everywhere. Well, had! lol It would have been much simpler to just vacuum everything in one swipe but such amenities are not available to me here. Nonetheless, I did a thorough clean sweep of all bodies and cob webs around my window and even swept all the dust bunnies from beneath my bed. It was extremely satisfying...

Later in the afternoon, I geared up for my last art day with the kids. I can't believe it. Instead of having a ton of firsts, I'm starting to check of my list of lasts. I pulled out one of the more difficult projects, water colours, and had the kids decorate paper to later be used at bookmarks for their textbooks. I say difficult because trying to manage 25kids with containers of dirty water and sloppy paint containers.. It's tough. But we made it through in fine fashion and had many of beautiful pieces of art to show for it.

Wow, my last day of art with the kids. You know why? Because in EXACTLY one week, I'm going to be in Dhaka, showing my dad a slice of the craziness I've lived in the past [almost] six months. One week. I know I know I know I keep repeating but it hasn't hit me yet.

Ryan left today for Dhaka. He doesn't fly out until Wednesday but he had some business to get to before leaving. It's so surreal. First Elliot left, then Roger, then Jim (both American board members for Bangla Hope), and now Ryan. Then me. Another one down, just a couple left... I can't believe my SM year is going to be done in 12days. Yeah, that's IT. Then it's back to the grind, back to biochem, Rosario, and the dorm. Whoop whoop... I know it's awful to say, but I feel like everything will pale in comparison to my life these last five months.

Stop thinking about it Jehanna... You've still got 12 wonderful days here. Make the most of them!
ami tomake bhalobashi