The End of Term One

After a bumpy 14 weeks, Term 1 is over. The 7 weeks after the Half Term holiday have been some of the most challenging of my life, needing all of us at Bolera Palms to work together and continue to support each other.

On Sunday 20th November, I received some incredibly saddening news. A kind, beautiful girl named Sifaat, passed away in the night, at the age of 7. Sifaat was utterly loved by all of us in Standard 2 and in all of Bolera Palms School. As her teacher, I watched a quiet, timid girl, flourish and grow into a confident and hard working pupil, who would always put her best effort into everything she did, and always did it with a smile. I was completely shocked by her death, she showed no symptoms

in class and was always engaged, still, the cause has not been confirmed. It showed me how fragile and precious life is, that a girl as young as Sifaat can be taken away so suddenly, and without an explanation or known reason. The day after the news, myself and a few children from my class, attended the funeral. It was an honour to meet the family and be there with them on such a hard day. For me, being in the position of the responsible adult and having to look after the children who came from my class, was another massive challenge. Completely heartbroken by Sifaat's death, I had to stay strong and be as supportive as I could to the children. Going to your friends funeral at the age of 7 is something no one should have to experience, and one of the hardest things about it was that some of the children did not understand what had happened. When back in class, we made cards expressing our love for Sifaat, and later gave them to the family. Sifaat will be heavily missed by everyone who knew her, and I will always hold an important place for her in my heart.

In the same month, however, there was new life in Bolera village. Around 5 children were born in November, all of them healthy and born to loving families. I have had the pleasure of meeting baby Elijah, a relation to a Standard 3 pupil, and baby Tacondwa, brother to a Standard 5 pupil. It felt amazing to hold them at only a week old, they were tiny, just starting their life. I find it fascinating how different their lives will be compared to what we think of as normal in the UK. Born in a mud hut into one of the poorest villages in Malawi, without any of the 'luxuries' we receive as children in the western world. Some assume that this lack of material goods results in a miserable life, however, the children and people of Malawi are some of the happiest and grateful I have ever met. Children are loved and cared for by their family, just as they are everywhere else in the world, and it shows that you truly don't need all the 'stuff' we consider important to lead a happy life. As the saying goes... 'All you need is love'. Being in such a poor country and observing how people live really does prove that.

Not only was I able to meet and hold some of the new babies born this term, but I was actually given the honour of naming one. One day whilst I was in the village, I went to the home of a small family I had not met before. The mother, Crissy, had a 4-year-old son called Issa, and in her arms, she held a tiny newborn girl, just 4 days old. She handed me her precious child, and after some time, asked for a name. I couldn't quite believe I had been asked but told the mother I would be absolutely honoured to. I decided to name the baby girl after someone incredibly important to me, a lady who has always supported me in everything I do and has been a massive influence in my life, my grandmother. As I sat in a 37 degree heat under a straw roof, I looked down to the beautiful new baby, Dorothy. The mother was delighted with the name, as was my grandmother! Since then, I have been back to visit Dorothy many times, she is a healthy and happy baby, and loves to be cuddled.

The end of term was signified by a prize giving event with all parents and guardians invited. Each class performed something they had learnt in lessons, there was a hand out of certificates and my dance club and the choir performed. It was a fantastic show and I was extremely proud of both my class and my dance club.

We have also all had to say a very sad goodbye this term to one of our housemates, and my roommate, Steph. We all miss her tremendously and send her all the love in the world.

I am now on my Christmas holidays, and wow what an adventure I have had so far. I'd like to thank my amazing family for sending me a Christmas parcel, filled with tinsel, baubles and mince pies, making it feel much more like Christmas so far away from home. I will be updating you all on my travels in my next blog post shortly, so keep an eye out for that. I wish you all a happy, happy Christmas, where ever you are in the world and thank you for taking the time to read this.

Sending love from Malawi, Lydia.

#SendingLoveFromMalawi #LydiaHogg #ProjectTrust #Travel