Olive Gardens Retreat

There are five lessons you can learn from a pencil.

Lesson Number 1:  Everything you do will leave a mark.
Lesson Number 2:  You can always correct the mistakes you make.
Lesson Number 3:  What is important is inside you.
Lesson Number 4:  In your life you will go through painful sharpenings which will make you a better pencil.
Lesson Number 5:  To be the best pencil you can be you must allow yourself to be held and guided by the hands that hold you.

Hello, all.  My name is Abby (Teacha Abby as the students here call me).  I just graduated from Jamestown College at the beginning of May with a degree in Elementary Education.  I'm one of the young adults on the trip that is working in the Chogoria Complex Primary School for the duration of our time here in Chogoria.  The above lessons that can be related to a pencil were discussed today in our retreat.  I just thought it was neat and wanted to share it :)

Today we went with members of the Chogoria Complex school committee (school board) and staff to a retreat in Meru.  The retreat is held annually and is a time when members of the school committee and staff get together to disucss issues and news involving the school.

This year the retreat was held at Olive Gardens.  Olive Gardens was a beautiful place to hold the retreat.  We emptied the bus at the entrance and walked through some beautiful scenery back to our meeting place.  There were swings.  The teachers, the support staff, and some members of the committee were swinging.  Some of the girls on the trip were pushing them and swinging as well.  Everyone was enjoying the beautiful day, the wonderful place, and the new relationships.

The retreat consisted of worship, songs, dance, and many speakers.  The retreat was meant to teach, inspire, inform, and unite the teachers, support staff, and school committee members of Chogoria Complex.

Rose was the first to speak and talked a lot about the importance of everyone's role in the school.  She really stressed that in order for the school to work and run smoothly everyone had to be united.  The audience was in agreement.  We also heard from a teacher who teaches at the Girls' Primary Boarding School on the Complex.  She also spoke of unity and had many words of wisdom.  As a teacher myself, I took a lot away from what she was saying, but even the non-teachers at the retreat could get a lot out of it.  True to teacher form I did take a hand-out titled "Remarkable Teachers", my new words to live by.  Janice, the class 2 teacher at Chogoria Complex Primary School, is the one that made the pencil analogy.  Be inspired.. 

David Mbae, the Chairman of the Chogoria Complex Primary School, also spoke.  He talked a lot about the partnership forming between the Chogoria Complex and Jamestown College.  I was so happy as I was listening to him talk about the partnership because I am a part of that, we are a part of that, and many people to come will get to be a part of it.  They already have many ideas about what they want to see in the future.  They want to continue bringing teachers to Chogoria and they want to eventually get some of the Chogoria teachers to Jamestown.  The main point of the partnership is to have a constant exchange of ideas.

After the retreat ended, we took some group photos, made a couple stops in Meru, and headed home for the night.

More updates to come from the teachers!