Today Larry and I visited a school for young indigenous women who come to Antigua from all over the country to live and study for three years to become teachers and return to their villages -- some to start their own schools. During a tour through the school we entered a first year classroom and the administrator asked which girl had taken a bus from her village and then walked 6 hours to reach the school. No one would speak up until the girl was finally "outed" and even then she wouldn´t speak out loud. It´s not uncommon for girls to be taught to keep silent and not stand out in a crowd. Then we entered a third-year classroom and the administrator asked for someone to speak about her experience at the school. A very brave young woman named Martha stood and introduced herself and explained that she was not only learning academically but also was learning how to live under the same roof with others from many different cultures. We were very impressed with Martha courage and eloquence. When we left the school Martha and a classmate came running after us. Martha asked us for our email addresses -- which we most willingly shared -- and got hers and her classmate´s. We hope to stay in touch as they go off to teach as these are the kinds of girls who will make an impact in the world. Below is a photo of Martha´s class. Martha is at the far left in front.
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