Description of Peace Corps Service

Jesse “Josef’ Bartels

Ukraine (October 2007 – December 2009)

After a competitive application process emphasizing professional skills, motivation, adaptability, cross-cultural understanding and medical fitness, Peace Corps invited Mr. Jesse “Josef” Bartels to serve as a TEFL Volunteer in Ukraine.

Pre-service training

On October 1^st, 2007, Mr. Bartels joined the 33^rd group of Peace Corps Volunteers to serve in Ukraine. He entered an intensive 12-week community-based training program that included 200 hours of Ukrainian language training, 150 hours of technical training in TEFL methodologies and community development, 8 weeks of classroom teaching practice and 60 hours of cross-cultural studies (history, economy, cultural norms).

While a trainee, Mr. Bartels worked with the Kivshovata pubic school to organize and conduct a teacher training on communicative language learning techniques and methodology. To reinforce language and cross-cultural learning, Mr. Bartels lived with a Ukrainian family in the town of Kivshovata, Kyiv Region, throughout the 3-month training.

Assignment

U.S. Ambassador William B. Taylor swore in Mr. Bartels as a Peace Corps Volunteer on December 20^th, 2007 in Kyiv, Ukraine. Mr. Bartels was assigned to Velyki Mosty, a town of 5000 Ukrainian and Russian speakers in Western Ukraine.

The rich plains and forests of Ukraine have witnessed almost constant struggle between competing peoples since before recorded history. Ukraine ended 750 years of foreign domination by gaining independence from the USSR in 1991. Less than 20 years later, Ukraine is behaving like any young nation. The learning curve is steep as an adolescent government attempts to remove economic controls in an effort to emulate the economic success of Western Europe. Ukrainians, however, have a mature culture and language, traced back to the Kyiv Rus. Each exploiter and occupier has strengthened Ukrainians into a people unbreakable and proud, not of their government, not of their young unsteady nation, but of whom they are, their long heritage and what their country will become as its potential is fulfilled.

Many people in Ukraine realize that a greater openness must be reached in order to achieve success in the global community. Mr. Bartels’ work as a teacher provided many opportunities to share American culture and its approaches to problem solving, authority and creativity. His work was part of a nation-wide effort in Ukraine to reorient itself toward a free and open society.

Working under the Ministry of Education, Mr. Bartels worked as a full-time English Teacher at Velyki Mosty School Lyceum, which has 88 teachers and 900 students. This school specializes in the sciences and Mr. Bartels’ work was directly supervised by the assistant principle of social sciences. He introduced American teaching methods emphasizing the communicative method to English teachers, many of whom learned English using the translation method. While teaching between 16 and 18 hours of English classes each week (TEFL), Mr. Bartels also conducted 3 pedagogical seminars and distributed informational material on communicatory methodology. Teaching 2nd-10th grades, Mr. Bartels strived to create student centered atmosphere where English was truly used as a language, to transfer information and ignite curiosity. Mr. Bartels specialized in using ‘realia’, that is to say real tasks including radio listening, website design, text message and pen pals assignments that incorporated the real life experiences of children in Velyki Mosty. He received supervision and critical feedback from the TEFL Project Lead Specialists from Peace Corps, and from the pedagogical director at the regional level. In addition to English, Mr. Bartels taught computer technology as a classroom resource to co-teachers.

As an HIV prevention educator, Mr. Bartels designed, organized and implemented an HIV prevention project which included 2 trainings of trainers and 8 peer trainings that increased youth knowledge about the biology and transmission of HIV. These peer groups in turn trained 8 other student groups which showed increased knowledge and tolerance while demonstrating a decreased propensity toward risky behavior (measured by pre and post training questionnaires). Together with his counterpart, Mr. Bartels overcame social obstacles and taboos by focusing his trainings on abstinence and faithfulness before condom use. Through the trainings, pamphlets, exercises and posters, he worked to fight against stigmas and discrimination. Mr. Bartels used a President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR) grant to bring a trainer from Kyiv in order to provide local educators with the expertise and comfort necessary to safeguard their communities.

Mr. Bartels’ after school activities included 3 academic clubs that each met for 2 hours every week. These included Health, Ecology and European Affairs. Each club created a project at the end of every school year. His ecology club concentrated on project design and management. Pupils then designed and implemented 4 community projects including trash pickups and tree plantings. Mr. Bartels facilitated a two-day tolerance training with the European Affairs club for 8^th-10^th grades. With his Health club he taught 7 lessons about tobacco, alcohol, obesity, nutrition, household chemicals and HIV/AIDS.

As a Co-Chair of the Peace Corps Ukraine Environmental Working Group, Mr. Bartels maintained, created, collected and provided information and project support throughout Ukraine. With support from the Environmental Working Group, Mr. Bartels organized and directed 2 overnight week long summer camps teaching pupils environmental awareness through a focus on local issues to help Ukrainian youth become active, informed, initiative taking leaders in their community. He was also the American volunteer director of the ‘Survivor’ camp, a sustainable ecological education project started by Peace Corps volunteers in 2005 which is now operated mainly by Ukrainian directors and staff.

Mr. Bartels’ language ability progressed quickly reaching Advanced High by July 2009. As a result of his work in school and his language ability, he was selected by Peace Corps staff to present a report to 200 University and School Directors and to the Minister of Education on the current state of English Education in Ukraine. He gave this seven minute speech in Ukrainian and received many compliments on his language ability.

Following careful needs assessment and student surveys, Mr. Bartels Created an English Resource Library. Using book donations from the USA, he established a title list of 200 books for pupils and teachers at all levels. He also created the catalog and organizational system by which checkouts will be monitored.

Pursuant to Section 5(f) of the Peace Corps Act, 22 USC 2504(f), as amended, any former Volunteer employed by the United States Government following his Peace Corps Volunteer Service is entitled to have any period of satisfactory Peace Corps service credited for purposes of retirement, seniority, reduction in force, leave, and other privileges based on length of Government service. That service shall not be credited toward completion of the probationary or trial period of any service requirement for career appointment.

This is to certify in accordance with Executive Order 11103 of April 10, 1963, that Mr. Jesse Josef Bartels served successfully as a Peace Corps Volunteer. His service ended on December 2^nd, 2009. He is therefore eligible to be appointed as a career-conditional employee in the competitive civil service on a non-competitive basis. This benefit under the Executive Order extends for a period of one year after termination of Volunteer service, except that the employing agency may extend the period for up to three years for a former Volunteer who enters military service, pursues studies at a recognized institution of higher learning, or engages in other activities that, in the view of the appointing agency, warrant extension of the period.

Then signatures and stamps

very official looking

The Last Days

Trucking to Germany with my neighbor is not going to work out. He's leaving today and I'm still doing paperwork and eye exams in the office (looking for a some phantom opacity on the crystal that may indicate the first stage of cataracts). So I got a bus ticket, this year from Lviv to Frankfurt. Oh the fun of 27 hour bus rides.

So, today and tomorrow in the office, back to my site for one day, and then on my way west. Excited for change. Sad to leave.

December and still warm in Ukraine.

And some photos from my last few months...

shedding possessions

Who would guess that it was possible to collect so much stuff over two years?

We really are like pack rats. This moving habit of mine keeps the possessions to a minimum, but even so, impressive.

I have between 8-10 days left in Ukraine, depending on which truck driver I catch a ride with. Questions of sustainability are weighing heavily but when I think of individuals whose lives I have affected and who have changed me, I recognize a mirror effect. So if I feel those changes within me, I'm sure they are within those people as well, and those changes are sustainable. 

A more open mind, flexible priorities and unlimited generosity is what I've learned to value.

I'll be interested to read my students' blogs to see if I can find any of my influence there. (where did I put that link?)

It's interesting how for me, because I'm in Ukraine, for a set amount of time, this part of my life is beginning to have clear edges, defined by location. My students experiences with me however are not contained within within any frame. Just another year at school, with some weird American guy, but still, just normal life.

Cold autumn rain.

One more essay to write and resumes to edit.

How do you end a blog?

Two weeks left!

Three weeks of quarantine combined with fall break before that and my Continuation of Service conference before that has lead to 5 weeks without school. This has given me much needed time to write essays, finish graduate school applications, and track down my less than stellar GRE scores.

Now I have one week of classes and saying goodbye, one week of packing and then it's on the train/bus to Germany and airplane back to America.

Of course many mixed feelings, but overall ready for a change, and really anxious to get back to some academics.

Have some other blog entries saved on my computer, but I always forget to put them onto my flash drive.

It's been raining for weeks, and will rain into the foreseen future.

Really wish I had time to apply for a few more jobs, but school first. I'll get all these applications off on December 1st, and then focus on finding employment from now until school starts.

Carrot cake smells like it's ready, so I'm off to the kitchen...

Reflection

What can I conclude at the end of my Peace Corps service?

Well I’ll attach my official description of service soon, but until then, let me say a few things in response to
“how was it?”

For the surest answer, read earlier entries in this blog. But of course all experiences are changed by analysis’s hindsight. As for my thoughts now, they are poorly seasoned and relatively bland.

I would do it all over again, of course very differently. I’ve learned more about myself then anyone learned about English, me or America.

I made positive changes, after I was relatively fluent in Ukrainian and only where I had strong and close community support. I only wish that language was the largest obstacle.

I have many new friends.

This reflection is still premature.
It needs more seasoning.

Time and Opportunity

Algerian font matches

out of proportion feelings

time running out

running running out

Violined OUt

calm inner self

transition

opportunity time

Breath

Make lists

accomplish tasks

all will be done in thy

time is plenty

but still

it’s gotta all come out

Rant

old clothes ragtime

new clothes giveaway

few clothes bringaway

red clothes run

Campstove sell

sleeping bag roll

music stand donate

notebook gift

trophy soccer jersey

duct tape

books

But all that doesn’t even compare to the time and energy I need to say goodbye

not for a time

a few months

see u on facebook

but years, maybe forever, and you don’t even have email

I doubt you can afford to pay international postage

Fortitude seems unfair

I was accepted, trusted and part of their town

now I just go?

"all my hopes for you to settle down here for good

bring your parents too!

it’s just as I suspected

Despite all his words

America must be nicer

look at him an all his opportunities

he’ll make a decent living with half the sweat I do

24 and he can still mess around as if he were 17

hasn’t even started his career yet"

And then there’s the newlyweds on the bus

Ivan says he had a great English teacher in his village school

She’s dead now, Гірник graveyard

Ivan has worked 500meters underground

four years down

twenty one to go

mine #9

electrical engineer

$300/month

coal

three months married

Natalia wants to get pregnant

he says she just doesn’t understand

the financial pressure

of having a kid

they’ve been talking about that new factory for six years

I have no choice

the mine or drugs

a hard life or no life

I can’t believe you are here

I don’t care about the election

Проти Всі!

Take my number

call me

you are a good person

May God Give You Happiness

Goodbye

That sure puts my silliness in perspective

How lucky I am

Life is just shining down on me

a gift of time and opportunities

thank you

but why me?

October 7th

‘If only’s never get you anywhere

but…

no, I won’t dwell

stinky excuses

soccer is frustrating

because I don’t practice

because my Achilles is not healthy

because I haven’t taken 3 months off to cross train

because I don’t have access to cross-training facilities

one more game

wow, how stinky these excuses are

after all, what equipment do I need to do yoga?

short-timers disease

the beginning of

the new

failure to make due

looking farther than

my horizons

2 months to a swimming pool

Cleanup project this weekend a great success!

70 kids, teachers, and politicians

2 tons of trash

350kg of glass bottles

6 anti-littering signs

but most importantly

I did much less work than last time

which means

the kids are getting it

how to organize

delegate and support each other

empowerment through youth led development

small project design and management

next up

getting the movie theatre up and running

through some sort of club

keep going

I’m good at pushing through

but it’s going to be a shock

when one day

baby roots ripped up

put back in the 2003 hole

grow now?

too many leaves

pages of experiences

torn tubers

can I make the project design and management club

self-sustaining?

if not, what was the point?

people still litter

cut down trees

forget how HIV transmits

or neglect to inform their teenagers how to use a condom

Ha!

that old dream

immortality

as if one person could change the world

but oh they can

but not without proper commitment and preparation

both of which I will

in the end

fail to demonstrate here

back to school I go

for preparation

and commitment

will make a home

without the escape backdoor

back to where?

“wont you go back”

they’ll ask

back to my white skinned American male advantaged

rung on the opportunity ladder

No man

“I wont go”

because I don’t want to

I can’t

I’ve witnessed too much

and I refuse to take my wrongful place

in the unjust system

on a rotten ladder

to that false red “developed” fruit

progress and better quality of life

Open your eyes

I try

so many truths competing

left center right

economics a force for good?

the power of greed harnessed?

at least the system acknowledges selfishness

but why are environmentalists so single minded?

I hate the leftist exaggerations

that corporations are evil, as if they are giant monsters

and not merely the combined greed of thousands

no, combined good intention, to work and provide for her family

normal and natural on an individual basis

but when combined, capable of truly externalizing the social costs of exploitation

the investment in guns, oil, gold and metals

so distant from the people who have a stock

willing or not

Can’t you see that the richest countries are also the cleanest?

It is only when people have basic comforts

then they worry about picking up trash

what do you care

at your computer

Minimizing pollution

being less bad

than that guy in the hummer

what have you done today to eliminate poverty?

get on the phone already

with your senator congressmen state politician folks

but better yet

I don’t know

take a sign and stand by the road on your lunch break?

organize a flash mob outside REI?

too much intention

not enough action

Your country is doing things

do you know what they are?

what are my brothers doing in Afghanistan?

why can’t they be planting trees, building schools and teaching kids English slang?

why are they crawling through caves and hunting men?

Autumn Leaves Falling on Winter Hopes of Spring

two years and no trust in student centered learning

no chance to take a class through the joys of communicating with a foreign language

two years and trusted only to play with them

"We're giving you younger students this semester because we feel that you don't focus on grammar enough to prepare our students for their standardized tests"

Ok, well if you don't feel that using language is at all useful for grammar, then fine, just do drills and fill in the blank exercises all day.

It's ok, still get to see some of my favorite 8th, 9th, and 10th class, even if it is done on the dl

Good thing teaching English is only one third of my work right now. The other thirds are with my Ecology club, which has become a Project Design and Management club, and with my Healthy Lifestyles club, which is focusing on abstinence from drugs and sex now.

My mind is spending more and more time on the other side of the Atlantic

dreaming of being back in an academic setting

getting some more skills so that the next time I have a wonderful opportunity to live and work as a agent for change

I have a blog?

News?

School started Sept 1st.

Closing one grant

seeing if there is any way I can get some funding to get computers and internet in the town library

doing one more cleanup

possibly starting a recycling pickup point

yeah, nice and busy

playing soccer after missing every game this summer by being at 4 different summer camps on the 4 sides of Ukraine

spent more time in my tent than I did in any bed

mornings are already getting cooler and darker

then the time change hits which makes it dark by the time I get home from school

yeah, time to move south

Crazy summer

camps coming out my ears

ears of corn

pears smashing themselves

sweetness juicy

bees love pear juice

too many 

  plums to eat

  apples to dry

  peppers to pickle

  tomatoes to trickle

  potatoes to dig, sort, dry, store, clean, peel, and eat

homemade 

  ketchup

  salsa

  condensed milk

  tomato sauce

  corn cakes

Harvest Time

Elo visits to climb highest mountain

cell phone works only for me

bucket showers in the pig house

Grad School application time

MPH in global health or rural medicine

eventually leading to MD?

First want to work with more projects like the ones I've done here

except to be actually qualified and know in advance how to facilitate successful community health projects

then perhaps I'll continue my education expanding from the preventative side to the diagnostic+treatment side

Lots to think about and learn and do.

On the train

All the way across the country in any direction takes more than 24 hours.

Have a nice layover in Kyiv, finally got into the WWII museum.

Finished with Survivor Camp in the Carpathians, fun to teach first aid and live in a tent, poop in a hole, wash in the river, with sand

 

now off to an ecology camp

wishing i had a bit more time at home now that i know theoretically how to get my town recycling plastic and paper

there's a company in Lviv that will send a truck out to pick up materials and pay by the kilogram

but I won't be in town long enough to get this project off the ground until late August

 

reading harry potter in ukrainian

still

each page takes a long time

although it is all understandable

words are still read at the letter level

not the whole word recognition thing

 

ok, I bet that rice is done

cooking in the pc office is fun

and saves a whole lot of money

because kyiv prices are like nyc prices

 

amazing news from home

congratulations all of you

 

 

Chasing the ball

There's so much I've failed to report in this blog. Living life and not writing about it. But here goes a quick sum up since the last report on the break I took to climb Mt. Hoverla.

Our cow died, by our, I mean Maria's, the grandma I live with. While I was out hiking in the Carpathians, she, the cow came back home from the pasture and decided to eat 40liters of unprocessed wheat grain. This left no room in her stomach and she swelled up as the grain absorbed water. The town doctor/vet was called, but nothing could be done without surgery. So after Maria's third sleepless night talking to and massaging the cow, they called the butcher and sold the milk cow for meat. They saved some of their investment, but the price for meat is not nearly as high as the price for a working milk cow that was only 9 years old. But the price didn't matter to Maria. For her it was like loosing a limb. She had milked this cow three times a day for 8 years!

During the fight to save the cow, Maria's son's wife disappeared for a few days. This left a house with three kids and no parents, since Maria's son was on one of his transport runs to Poland. This puts a lot of pressure on Maria to run two houses at once, and is forcing Ira, the oldest sister, who I teach in 8^th grade, to grow up faster than a kid should.

I guess I haven't written much about my living situation since I moved in February, but that's because everything has been working out fine. We had turkeys, but we ate them. We have 9 chickens and one rooster. 14 chicks hatched yesterday morning. The house is surrounded by a small yard which despite its limited size has fruit trees, potatoes, tomatoes, beans, peppers, poppies, morning glories, strawberries, onions, garlic, and parsley. Almost every inch has something growing on it. Not only is there a garden around the house, but she has two other fields 5mx10m and 5mX5m which have cucumbers, corn, more potatoes, more beans, carrots, and squash. I helped with some of the farming, particularly turning the soil and breaking dirt clumps, replanting tomatoes and trimming strawberries. I really wish I could help more, but I spend most days in school, and often on the weekend I like to get out of the village on Saturday and then Sunday is not a proper day to work on.

Maria wanted to buy two piglets to fatten over the summer, but never found the black ones she wanted, and thinks it's too late now.

April Showers extended for May

Today after class I rushed to Lviv to meet some friends and go to the last professional football game of the year. It was a derby between FC Lviv and FC Karpati which the former had to win to stay in the top league. A relegation match. So, as Ukrainian professional soccer compares poorly with the MLS, it was not a pretty game.

 

Before the game started we had an adventure trying to get cheaper tickets. My friends waited for me to finish a long transaction at the bank (last part of my grant) and by the time we arrived at the stadium, they were only selling more expensive tickets, not due to lack of seats, but according to a profitable supply and demand calculation. Walking around to the other side of the stadium to check with the other ticket counters (they don't use computers and can't see what the other locations have sold), we encountered a group of boys who had found a hole in the fence and were paying the police officer who guarded this hole a price much cheaper than any remaining tickets. Deciding that as Peace Corps volunteers, it was a bad idea to support corruption, we went back to the first ticket office and paid the higher price.

What happened on those mountains?

Oh yeah, forgot to finish that story about the high ridge line in the Ukrainian Carpathians. We (Jim and I) started hiking at 1630 after hitching with a rafting outfit and then paying the driver another 50 грівень to take us the last 7km to the trail head(we forgot to bargain, but since the first 9km were free, it's ok). Then we bought lots of bread and cookies and started walking up the hill. We took bets on when the first snow would be visible. Jim is recovering from a high ankle sprain and I have tendinitis in my achilles so we sort of hobbled up the hills, past the cheese cabin (unfortunately too early for the sheep to be up in the mountains, so no cheese yet), past tree line, across snow slides and over boulders until the old top of the hills opened up (so old that not much sharpness remains) into a beautiful flower covered tundra.

Getting dark temperature dropping nice campsite except for the boulders under the tent stove running low on fuel last three cities had no camp fuel will be easy summit in the morning up black mountain the 4th highest in Ukraine 2028m buckwheat dinner not all the way cooked spicy ketchup wash dishes later to cold to hang outside the tent sleep

sun hidden long rising late start summit by 0900
back to get the now aired out tent and sleeping bags and started on our 17km walk to the base of Hoverla the highest mountain in Ukraine which at less than 8000ft is really not very high but still cool even if the neighboring Romanian mountains are so obviously taller walking and more walking need a real hiking pack and boots completely dead nice walking sticks found on trail both of some fruity wood lost trail only once under snow lots of hikers going other direction, difficult to melt snow for water carrying ice cold nalgenes inside our jackets to melt water partly sunny so many purple crocuses dark clouds gathering some rain drops hurry to lee side but find no wind break more time before sunset tent up mountain tops shrouded in mist cold wind no camp fuel left break and sausage for dinner early to bed.

That's not rain landing on the rain fly sounds more like grasshoppers bummer its actually ice pellets nothing visible pack up and summit before breakfast snow blowing trail invisible no compass or map trying to cut back in correct direction steep icy snow face much quicker slide down on butts avoiding rock wedgies snow getting wetter lower altitude rain at freezing bushwhacking so wet breakfast needed 1000 wring out socks good thing their wool argue about whether to continue bushwhacking back in direction of trail not sure how far in that direction or follow goat path down to who knows where decided goat path because drier and easier going two hours goat sheep logging truck road and much lower later first people all day have fire invite us for tea nice to dry and warm up new friends still 10km to train station we've ended up in another oblast like crossing a state border without even knowing it walking easy flat now police checkpoint didn't register for back country camping good thing I took off my hat and addressed him in the formal and he was drunk longest 10km in a while making Jim miss his girlfriend who is leaving for Prague an interesting last few km to train station a tiny village not on our road map in fact there is no road only a train station pretty close to Romania two hours on slow 3rd class train unhappy drunk dirty men who feel no hope missed bus in яремча making Jim miss his train my fault because trusted hand signals of driver instead of just stubbornly getting on the bus I was lucky catching last bus from Oblast center north toward home Jim waiting till 0100 for next train through Kyiv almost missed stop sleep easy on flat floor so warm indoors thank you fellow volunteer for letting me crash on floor

Next day at last through Lviv and home missed three days of school trees I planted still alive projects and clubs not really active without me where is sustainability got to put so much effort into getting people to do things they don't normally do and are not paid to do all day spent proving that this is good for students school Ukraine our town but some victories small and sweet

Marching

I forgot about the marching
every class 6th grade and up must prepare a march for a competition next week
they have chants and songs and flags and different steps
obviously more important than English class
or HIV prevention activities...

May Day, Victory Day and Mothers Day

We have had at least three holidays in the last two weeks, of which I took advantage to return to the Космач festival in Kosmach. This year the organization was poor, and even though more people and bands came, there was no second stage or sound equipment for them to use. Many more Americans showed up, but somehow (good weather forecasting?) the Poles and Germans knew not to come this year. The weather was cold, dark and rainy, but the charm of the small mountain village remained (picture forthcoming).

Then I met Jim and we hiked the highest ridge line in Ukraine. The weather was great for the first two days, but the third day reminded us why we had enjoyed relative solitude. The snow blew in stinging ice pellets and the trail was all but covered in snow.

There transpired quite an adventure, most of which is described by video on my facebook page. The rest I'll have to describe later because I have to go run a competition for Euro club.

Easter is so Awesome!

Ok, so I'm rather neutral on the Christ part and all the beliefs behind this holiday, but looking at it from a purely ritualistic or traditional standpoint, it is really powerful.

So of course Lent is observed normally by not eating red meat or drinking hard alcohol (alcoholics exempt). Then there is Cave Friday, when the boulder was rolled in front of the entrance to Jesus's resting place. On all big religious holidays work is prohibited, even washing clothes and getting water.

Then Saturday was spent out on the fields turning over the soil by hand because our (my Ukrainian grandma and I) piece of land is two small to rent a horse drawn plow. Got my first sunburn of the year and actually wore through my Millionair gloves on the rough natural branch handel of my shovel. I got my soil turning technique down pat left and right handed and learned how to ensure that the chicken poop gets mixed with the soil and not only stuck to my shoes.

We also re-planted the peppers from the windowsill to outside under clear plastic supported by bent willow branches. Need to be covered bacause it's still down around freezing at sunrise (which is now at 630am). Then we took our basket of Paska Cakes (hot cross buns) hard boiled decorated eggs (different leaf shapes left white while the egg was dyed in onion skin water) meat, salt, butter and other stuff to church, had it blessed with holy water. Ok, the saturday evening blessing is the most beautiful religious ceremony I have seen. Everyone comes in their best clothes and stands in rings around the church with elaborate baskets full of amazing food. The Preacher comes with his holy water followed by a procession of medieval flag bearers (and a money collector). The sun is setting, everone is crossing themselves, candles are flickering in the breeze, and I forgot my camera again and forgot about the video function on my phone, actually forgot about everything except the pure beauty of the moment. There was some singing in the background, little children running all over the place and a sense of hope.

I slept too well Saturday night, and actually slept through church (started at 5am, so don't give me a hard time). When Maria came back from church, I went for a run and then broke Lent by eating meat and drinking wine. The whole day is spent eating and drinking. I went over to two other houses, and out to the forest. Beautiful clear sunny days, not hot, not cold, every minute of cold winter seems worth it to have this contrast.

Then of course Easter is 3 days long. 3 full days of not being allowed to work. What a tough life. Ok, forgot

previously

so the money was being collected to pay for those sheets which should have been returned to C). I felt that if they were my sheets now, I would pay the money and then maybe sell them used.

I went to the director with the money in my hand and was forced away as she became offended that i had offered my money. She said that the teachers I work with deserve a lower salary, and to make this difference they will by me sheets. I said that is wrong, and I will buy my own sheets.

The next day she (director) collected the money and now relations are definitely strained between me and her. I considered giving the money back to each teacher, figuring out what share they had paid. But instead I just gave the sheets to the owner of C) and will do something nice for the teachers later this year, coffee cookies type thing. Maybe bake them banana bread.

The director did by these sheets in the beginning, but if anyone has enough money to buy sheets for me its the director and not the teachers I work with. Well, i'm not even angry about this anymore, so I really have no motivation to write more about it.

Drama from the Top

And all over bedsheets.

My living spaces in Ukraine:
A) Host Family, bedroom, 3 months
B) Host Family, bedroom, 1 month
C) Apartment, 3 rooms, 6 months
D) Apartment, 1 room, 6 months
E) Host Grandma, bedroom, 2 months and counting

When I moved into C), I just used the old sheets that were there, not really thinking about it.

Two weeks after I moved into D), a woman knocked on the door and delivered new sheets, saying something I didn't completely understand. Not imagining what they could be for other than using, I promptly started sleeping on them.
Two weeks later, I hear that the brand new sheets were supposed to go back to the owner of C) in a trade for the sheets I already used, but now that I had used them, everything was ruined. Owner f C) just let it go and said don't worry about it.

Lets remember how the cost of my apartment which Peace Corps cannot afford is supposed to be covered by my community. It's called a community contribution and helps add value to my position because I'm not just "free". School director decided that this community contribution should collected from only the teachers with whom I work (perfectly fair in her mind, because they have less work, they get less money (how is working with me easier?)).

Room E) is cheaper and no longer requires a community contribution. Thus last week I was surprised to be asked to verify my hours with every teacher. I knew that this sort of check was in order to collect money, but why...
to be continued
Internet closing...

who did this?

Found two dumptruck worths of trash on my morning run route
in no way a safe dumping ground
just well hidden from any onlookers
a narrow part of the road through the forest
made it hard to go around with a swamp on one side and undergrowth on the other
pisses me off
makes me sad
come on Ukraine
think about the future


yesterday confronted some kid who just threw a can on the ground
he obviously hadn't even considered what he was doing
it was just habitual
he responded 'of course i'll pick it up and take my can 3 meters to the trash can'
"без петан" (without  a question)

First Goal of the Season again

and again
a cheep rebound
but i was in the right place
following the shot, even if it was out of defensive instinct
just glad i didn't put it over the bar as so often happens in from 5 meters out


Snow has turned to rain
achilles hurt too much to run this morning
did some yoga instead
but forgot when I was supposed to be breathing in and when out

got to school early
clocks still said 7:05 because the time changed yesterday
but that first hour went too fast as usual
and I still didn't have all the things done I need to print out for today when class started

Luckily 4th grade has a test, so I don't need to be there.
So I'm hunting for a printer with ink.
First HIV peer training today. I'm nervous to see if they take it seriously at all

3rd graders need recess

I want them tired out for my lesson.
As it happened today, one girl had her birthday and brought chocolate candy to share with everyone right before my lesson. Talk about sugar rush.

I think the system where the same group of students stays together all day creates some problems. The kids are grouped according to overall school performance, which means each English class has a wide variety of abilities. I have been against tracking in the past, but it is clear to me now that a competitive atmosphere spurs learning (to an extent) and huge skill ranges kill competition. If I was a perfect teacher, I would be able to design lessons where the stronger students help the weaker, but that would require all new class rules, different seating, etc. Even then, the weaker students need to learn how to read, even if it is a struggle, and stronger 6th graders don't seem to have the patience to wait for a weaker classmate to slowly read a passage. Group reading activities focused for these student's who don't yet read well bore the stronger students.

I propose a complete reorganization for at least the older grades, where they have their individual schedules, and may go to a high level biology class and a lower level English class. Now I see some students who I inspire to work harder on English, but they are stuck amongst students who do not want to work harder, and since I cannot simply teach my lessons to a few students, I get bogged down with motivating, exciting and disciplining and those who had some hope sit quietly at their desk, having already done all that I have asked, and stare out the window while I explain for the third time the task to a boy who is convinced that he will leave school, work in the factory, marry, have kids, hang out with his friends on the weekends and make ends meet even if he never makes enough money for a car or to pay for the tests and the bribes necessary to send his own kids to university. Plus you can buy a degree anyway. So why work in school to get good marks in order to attend a university where again they can't pick the classes they take and half the professors just read from their notes in order to get a degree which nobody believes is real?

Still snowing...

I guess I don't really need springtime. Bring it on windy snow from Poland. See if I care. You can't catch me because I'm the ginger running man.

I'll try to attach some photos from my HIV prevention training.

How do I describe my peace corps service in few enough words to fit on a resume?

Task Lists and Due Dates

I have so many things to do each day that every day has its own task list.
My goals and objectives are located in many different spheres that without a list, I would forget somthing.
Today, now that I've finished teaching and lesson planning, I'll write an application for students to apply to my ecology summer camp, then update my resume, then type my student's letters to america, then start an article for the cross cultural guide for our Ukrainian counterparts, then a paragraph about lessons learned in teaching safer sex practices in very religious western Ukraine, then well, that's probably all the time I'll have before my Ukrainian tutoring, so the other half of my list will get carried over to tomorrow. Tomorrow I must go to Lviv to get my summer camp preparations there going and copy a booklet "I want to conduct trainings" (produced by unicef and in the Russian language) for my kids, get some cool STI posters from the reproductive health center and meet with the non-profit that wants me to support their river health project in my region.

So what am I doing writing in my blog?
Procrastinating, something I've avoided recently, but feels needed on this day of neverending snow.
It has snowed quite often for the past month. I wonder when spring will come. Back to work...

HIV prevention Training of Trainers

My HIV prevention trainings of trainers on February 27^th and 28^th were successful except for one major flaw. The teachers and students who attended the training are still not ready to conduct trainings on their own. But I am working to continue their education in presentation techniques because all the teachers agreed that this sort of presentation is needed and very useful. It is very difficult for them to conduct an interactive training based on activities and discussion rather than lecture because they have never done it before. Even in university few student's are exposed to true academic discussions and I haven't heard of any doing interactive multimedia presentations. So, I will present some positive and negative points that arose during my trainings.

 

The students were very enthusiastic and open minded.	The trainer from Kyiv arrived two hours late.
The teachers were knowledgeable and willing to discuss.	One teacher said that educating kids about condoms is not part of our culture.
One boy decided he isn't ready to have sex.	One person on said that they will not always use a condom with new or casual sexual partners (post training questionnaire).
All participants showed a greater tolerance of people living with HIV and less fear now that they are sure how the virus can be transmitted.	Most people still would keep their distance from a HIV positive friend.
Everyone learned more about condoms.	Some 10th graders weren't sure what ejaculation is.
Everyone agreed that the training was really interesting and useful.	Nobody wants to conduct these type of trainings on their own despite agreement that the curiculum as it stands is not sufficient.