Staff Blog
It is no secret that there was an earthquake in the Philippines on Tuesday. There has been a lot of information shared over facebook, some of it an hour by hour update on our experience. Many people have spoken about the fear, the pain and the sadness they, or others they know, experienced.
I did not comment much about it then, but would like to say more now.
It is a very unnerving feeling to have every surface you are touching rumble and move beneath and around you. There is nothing to grab onto, there is nothing that can steady you. Also, the power shut off at the exact time the quaking began, so there is that shock to the senses. And then there is the noise. There is the rumble of the movement of the earth, some have described it like if a construction site were right outside your home. Then there is the noise of your fragile possessions crashing to the ground and breaking or the stones of your house falling from above. Scary. And it seems to go on for so long. Maybe because from the moment the shaking starts to when it stops you are unceasingly praying for it to end. And then after the shaking stops, you begin to hear the shouts and cries of the people and the dogs. In my neighborhood, the dogs had much to say.
You are really shaky yourself and you feel kind of weak, it takes a while to get your bearings. I had heard from Sandy---she, Marlys and Jenny were okay. I tried to reach Mitch, but there was no answer. I then went outside to check on some of my neighbors---everyone in my compound was safe, Shari and Marcel too, which was wonderful!
I returned home to some disarray and with the strong desire to get up to the shelter. My television had fallen from its stand and laid in pieces, a vase had met a similar demise. I left them as is, moved any other breakable items to a safer place and headed out, unsure what state I would find things in as I drove.
People were everywhere in the streets, there was an accident at the base of the road the shelter is on, so people and vehicles filled the space. I actually saw one of our house fathers there on his motorcycle. He couldn't hear my shouting over the din of everything else. I found out later that his wife, one of our house mothers, was out shopping with some of our older girls when the earthquake happened and he was going to locate them. Terrifying.
I made it up the road easily and quickly. The construction site next to our land even seemed to have made it through the quake alright. I honked once outside our gate, the door opened and I pulled into safety. I immediately saw Mitch's van and saw him walking around---all of us were safe and accounted for.
I was anxious to see how all of the kids were doing, so my heart was racing, but there was also just an overwhelming peace. I could see the kids outside on the grounds, gathered together, many of them crying. They ran and hugged me tightly. I didn't have enough body to go around. I moved around through the groups, checking them, checking for injuries, checking for tears, checking that they were okay. All of our house parents were also safe and accounted for. The house mother and the three girls who had been shopping during the quake had made it back safely---the girls were crying and one of them had lost her slippers in the panic---but they were back!
I stood in the middle of the yard and looked around and the buildings, the windows, the plants, the ground---everything looked as it had the day before---seemingly untouched by the 7.2 magnitude quake that had struck 20 minutes earlier. Praise the Lord!
I have said this many times in my 2+ years at CSC, but since I first stepped foot inside the gate I have felt God's hand on this land, on this ministry, on these kids, on these workers, on us. He always provides, He always protects, He always sustains.
The aftershocks continued the rest of the day, some feeling almost as strong as the earthquake, though they lasted less time. We kept the kids outside for the morning until everything could be checked, but they napped inside in the afternoon. For quite some time that day, every time an aftershock was felt the kids would run to the middle of the playground.
We had no power, so the generator ran all day, a noisy machine, but something we were grateful for. We lost water for a period of time in the afternoon as the continuous running of the generator overwhelmed the water pump. But that problem was solved quickly once it was understood. The nurseries were moved to the living rooms in the homes and all of the children slept downstairs for that night. The aftershocks continued through the night, the next day and the next and I am pretty sure I have felt some yet this morning.
While it remains a bit unnerving and you feel somewhat on edge---yesterday when I heard a loud rumbling noise, I looked for the nearest sturdy object to dive under should the shaking start, and it was really just a low-flying plane---there is no need to fear. God is good, ALL THE TIME! All the time, GOD IS GOOD!
Bible Time
"The Bible in the memory is better than the Bible in the book case." -Spurgeon
Every week students at Cebu Children of Hope School memorize Scriptures assigned by the Bible Time Coordinators. Then we meet once a month for a whole school gathering to share the verses that the students' memorize and answer the Bible Trivia questions.
Memorizing verses in a group encourages our students and holds them accountable to really do it. It is always a joy to see their excitement in saying the verses independently or with the group. The teachers play a vital role in challenging them and coaching them, making sure they have the right words. For the entire month of October they memorized Psalms 119:20-27, learning two verses each week.
Our goal is for our students to keep God's Word in their hearts and for them recall the Scriptures they have memorized, claiming God's promises. As they go through life's challenges and joys our hope is for them to learn to praise God and thank Him for His great plans. They have been through a lot before coming to Children's Shelter of Cebu. Who knows what they have been through while they are here with us and will be going through when they move on to the next chapter of their lives. It is always comforting to know that God never leaves us nor forsake us.
Join us in memorizing Scriptures and let God's Word encourage you and remind you of how great is our God. Life is an adventure with a lot of choices to make. If we are deeply rooted in His word nothing should move us away from His will.
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A Fishing We Go!
Teaching preschool learners is different from any other grade level at Cebu Children of Hope School (CCHS). There is a big difference from higher-level classrooms where you'll find profound discussions and group work to preschool's less serious, learning through play environment.
One of the lessons we had in Science was all about magnets. At our first meeting I explained to them how magnets work with the help of a flip-chart and an educational video. After, I showed them some magnets and how they attract objects that have metal.
The following day it was the time to apply what we had learned from the previous day. I gave them a checklist of objects. Together we found out if the objects were magnetic or nonmagnetic. The learners had fun doing the activity because they found out that not all objects are magnetic. Eureka!
To culminate the lesson we incorporated play into learning. The students went fishing! Yes, you read it right, "f i s h i n g." As what O. Fred Donaldson said, "Children learn as they play. More importantly, in play, children learn how to learn."
"Are you ready to go fishing?" I asked my preschoolers after we had a quick review about how magnets work and what they did yesterday.
"Yehey! We will go outside!" said one of the learners.
"Are we going to the Safari?" another learner asked.
I told them that we don't need to go outside just to do a fishing activity. "We will bring the fishing activity in the classroom!" I said and the learners giggled with excitement.
How was it done? Simple. I made an improvised fishing rod with the use of a ruler, yarn, and a magnet as a hook. And with the fish, I printed a fish template in different colors and attached a paper clip to the mouth. The science curriculum in CCHS helped me a lot in initiating the activity since it gives suggestions on how to enhance and apply the lesson in different learning areas.
At the end of the activity, Learner D caught 12 fish, Learner J and A each got 8 fish, and Learner L hooked 6 fish.
Who would have thought that learning about magnets could be amusing and insightful!
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Illness at CSC
In the past month 54 kids have been treated for respiratory 
illness. Yesterday was the first day in several weeks that we didn't need to go to the doctor, and four kids were ecstatic to finally go home after being in the infirmary here at the Shelter. The infirmary has six spacious rooms where children are monitored by our medical staff and cared for by our child care workers 24 hours a day when they are ill. There are 12 kids still isolated so we hope to send them back to the houses in a couple of days.
Thankfully, Shenly and Wilmar were discharged from the hospital and are recuperating at home, but Wilmar misses having air conditioning and his own TV!
The hospitals are full and masses are sick with the same type of illness, so we are praising God for miraculous healing, as we have never had so many sick kids at one time.
On October 3 Sam's mother gave birth in a taxi so was rushed to Cebu City Hospital, which is temporarily housed at the City Fire Department. He was exposed to many dangers in the first hours of his life. Since the mother was unable to care for her baby we took him and admitted him to the hospital we use called Cebu Doctors Hospital, where he is fighting a severe infection. Thankfully, he is drinking well, and has gained a bit of weight.
Without hesitation we bought 77 pillows yesterday for $300, knowing that our 
supporters would be thrilled to know that each of the kids has a brand new clean pillow. The kids are excited to see the huge mound of pillows piled up in the Duterte house just waiting to be passed out after school today.
Thank you so much for your concern and prayers for everyone at CSC.
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Countless Adventures
Every month and every week there are lots of great things happening at our school, the Cebu Children of Hope School. One of these great things, the Reading Challenge, has been ongoing this month. This year's theme is a quote from the author, Mary Pope Osborne, which states that "reading is a passport to countless adventures."
For this month-long activity the teachers from each grade creatively planned a goal for their students to reach as part of the Reading Challenge. All the students took the challenge seriously while at the same time still enjoyed reading. The thrilling activity lasted for almost five weeks! The most awaited part for the students was on October 11th when we had the Reading Challenge Culminating Activity. During this event the teachers announced the names of the students who reached their class goals as well as the winner from each class. The gathering was very exciting! All the students were celebrated for their hard work and encouraged to continue on "countless adventures" through reading more books. Everyone received a snack as their reward and the winner from each class also received a new book. Those students who reached their class goals got to stay after school to watch a movie.
We are blessed to have a wonderful library at CCHS, something that most schools in Cebu don't have. So many people have donated to our library through the years and our kids have greatly benefited from these excellent books. The Reading Challenge excited our students to continue to check out books every Wednesday so they can have more adventures and learn new things through a book.
Our students at CCHS love reading and it is very apparent. We, their teachers, are so proud of them and are excited for the new adventures they will go on this year!
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Cleaning and Healing
One day I was kind of overwhelmed from thinking about some of the misbehavior issues I was dealing with in my classroom. When I walked outside I found a glass bottle that was full of dirt. An idea came to my mind. I thought about how the dirt-filled bottle related to the students in my class. I realized that the bottle would not be clean if the dirt stayed inside. The same is true with my students. When they misbehave it's like they're releasing the dirt inside their hearts and minds which came from bad experiences in their childhood. After they release this, they are easier to talk with and are willing to accept help. The students misbehaved because they didn't know how to release their hurt in a more healthy way.
As a trauma-informed Christian teacher, it is important for me to guide my students in helpful ways to release their "messiness" which can hinder their development as a whole, God-created person. When we clean a filthy glass bottle we let the dirt out of it so we can refill it with clean water. My students need help in processing through and releasing the messy things that have happened to them. Their misbehavior gives me a picture of the hurt they feel inside. I always pray to God for wisdom and strength so I can help my students and I know God has a purpose for me in working with these great kids.
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