Uphill both ways

So now I get it. We used to make fun of our parents and grandparents stories of how difficult it was for them to get to school, but they weren't kidding. I look at some of these kids here in Benin and I drive down the roads they walk on every day to get to and from school, sometimes walking 5km or over an hour to get to school and I wish we could all get together to give them a standing ovation. It's really hot outside. They go home at lunch (from noon til 3pm I think) and work (in the fields or with their mother at the fruit stand or home to do housework) and then go back to school.

Of course, there are kids here who get a ride to school in their parents Peugeot or on their motorbike. It's not rough for all, but for most...

School for the typical Canadian kid is not a priveledge, it's a huge pain in the ass. When I think of the effort my parents had to go through for me to get out of bed... forgive us for we know not what we have.

I imagine being 7 years old and walking to school, proud of the homework I finished the night before, only to get caught in the most torrential downpour during rainy season. No wonder a lot of kids decide to drop out rather than walk to school in the rain, in the mud, in the heat, surrounded by flies and mosquitoes. Uphill both ways.