WHEN BRUSHING YOUR TEETH IS FUN

The boys and girls of the Catholic School in Meki (Ethiopia) have been having fun recently with three simple things: a toothbrush, a little toothpaste and water. Three basic things that are nonetheless unattainable for the majority of children in Meki. After two classes on the theory of dental hygiene and the brushing of teeth, we gave toothbrushes to the students so that they could put into practice what they had learned.

It was a very hot afternoon, but in spite of that, the children went out to the courtyard running toward the fountain to use their brushes for the first time. With great joy, they removed the covers from the new brushes, approached us so that we could put toothpaste on the brushes and began, with smiles on their faces, to brush their teeth. “My teeth are bleeding a lot” told us Berekat, a frightened fourth grader. “I don’t want to do it... the bleeding is bad!” We calmed him by explaining to him, “It is normal to have bleeding gums if you’ve never brushed your teeth before. Brush carefully each day and you will see how the bleeding will soon stop. You shouldn’t worry about it; continue to brush daily in order to have strong and healthy teeth!”

Teaching fundamental knowledge and skills regarding hygiene is basic to changing bad practices and beliefs among the children. This health program, with medical attention and health education provided to the students takes place in our three schools in the Meki area, in Southern Ethiopia. We are convinced that investing in education and health is essential in the fight against poverty.

Do You Know How to Read? “un chín”

This is what an eight year old boy in the little community of La Altagracia, located in the southwest of the Dominican Republic, answered me recently. “Un chín” means “a little” and is a very typical Dominican expression. This particular little boy wanted to become a member of the new library we have started in his village. Although he hardly knew how to read, we accepted him, since it wouldn’t be long until he has learned. In the meantime, his mom and dad will read with him the books he gets out of the library.

A few weeks ago we inaugurated the Altagracia Library, that for now, consists of a big box full of children’s books, kept at the home of one of the young people of the community. It is the seventh in a chain of mini libraries that we are creating to promote reading for all ages, but especially among children in the region. We have been able to establish these libraries thanks to multiple donations, the last of them from the companies DHL and Ordesa Laboratories, and from several friends in Barcelona. The central one, that now has more than 600 members, is located in La Sagrada Familia parish in Sabana Yegua (Azua), where the project originated. Others are cabinets or closets in chapels in rural communities... and where there isn’t a chapel, the library is a book box in the home of a volunteer who looks after it, as in the case of La Altagracia.