Today was a day of firsts, a day of continued progress, and a day of questions asked, wondered, and answered. Today was another rain day but the rain came in during breakfast and had moved on before we even left for the home. The theme of the day was the Olympics, so we started the morning announcements and camp circle with a discussion of the Olympics and the singing of the US and Bahamian national anthems. Since the weather was pretty good (still hot, still humid) today, we added the PE station back in. Life skills was moved to an all-camper session at the end of the day.
As with day one, the children were divided into groups and worked through the various stations. We have started learning a lot more about the campers: some are more disruptive in a group setting but fine and able to listen in a 1:1 setting, some are more patient with their peers than others, etc. This allowed us to manage parts of the day much better than yesterday. Groups were largely arranged by age as well, which probably helped certain activities target each group better.
In the all-camper session toward the end of the day, the children were introduced to several signs in American Sign Language. There isn’t a lot online about the sign language used in the Bahamas (though ASL is taught at some of the business schools) so that has become a question for tomorrow (with its historic ties to the UK, is there a BSL influence in sign as used in the Bahamas, or has the proximity to the US given ASL prominence here?). Deaf communities worldwide often have dialects that vary as greatly as spoken language.
Before leaving the home we were given the opportunity to speak with the director of GBCH and ask the questions that had occurred to us about the children, the home itself, and social services on the island. While specific details about specific children were off limits due to laws that protect them, we were able to get a much better sense for how children come to be in the home, how staff work with them, what services are available to them, contact with family, and how children leave the home (placement, aging out and transition into the community, etc.).
In the evening we were invited to the home of one of FONA’s long-term local supporters and a friend of Jenny’s, supported by two of her co-workers. The food and hospitality were amazing. Conversation and music gave way to dancing and while not everyone danced, everyone was drawn into the rhythm. We appreciated the hospitality and left stuffed and exhausted, wondering what tomorrow will bring.
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