Sunday, November 9, 2014

Hula hoops - simple yet profound

In the past month or so, I (Barbara) have reflected a lot on Kids Club - what we do, and why we do it.  Partly it's an end of year thing - looking back and looking forward stuff.  Most of it, though, has been my response to things that have happened.
  
We are working with a reduced core team of volunteers. We have had life groups from Edge Church volunteer at our last two SuperSaturday KidsClubs.  One Wednesday we had visitors from Germany who were spending time at The Father's House Christian Fellowship.  There's been an increase in crime, violence and the presence of gangs in Fisantekraal.  And we've been asked a few times about ways to support the work in Fisantekraal - including what things we need that could be donated.  The questions, comments and conversations that came with these events got me thinking - reflecting. 

We've been running weekly and monthly Kids Clubs in Fisante since 2012. Over that time we have met and interacted with a lot of boys and girls. Somebody in our team will learn or already know the name of every child that walks through the door. That is the first gift we give.  Over the years I have seen how great this gift is.  I believe it’s one of the reasons kids keep coming back. It’s one of the reasons we keep the child to adult ratio as low as possible.  It’s a gift that anyone can give.

As the kids play they look for acknowledgement, affirmation – they want to be seen, heard and accepted.  They look for this from one of us and draw us into a conversation of sorts.  If we've already formed small groups then the small group leaders are the focus. If not, if it’s “free play”, then children choose which adult to target. I believe there is a lot going on in these conversations which often begin with “look at me…”, though I suspect “do I matter?”, “do I belong?”, “can I trust you?” is what is really being said. How we as adults respond, how we participate in these child led conversations, is more important than we sometimes realise.  

Each boy or girl that comes to Kids Club is an individual with a story and a context.  Sometimes kids tell us that story, sometimes not.  Whether they do or don’t, whether the story is sad or difficult or not it is important to the child. It is important to God. And so it is important to us. By participating in these conversations we are beginning to create a space for each child to make sense of his or her story and context. I believe that God is always active in these conversations but more so when we invite Him to be so.  It is easy for me to forget this, for me to not be conscious of it in the busy-ness of running Kids Clubs.  It is something I have been reminded of as I have reflected this past month.  

Something else I have realised – again – during this reflection, is the importance and effectiveness of the hula hoop in our work.  I have yet to meet a child who is not interested in playing with one. Whether they roll them along the ground or around their waists, arms, legs or necks – depending on their skill and confidence, or skip through them, or do something else with them the hoop always begins one of these “conversations”.  The delight I see in the eyes of the child as I watch in response to his or her, “look Aunty Barbara” is priceless. Simple, yet profound!  The ‘try, try again until I get it’ attitude of the child, whatever the particular it is, is building his or her resilience. And, as I (we adults) participate in this conversation - which, by now I’m sure you realise, has very little to do with words - trust is building between us.  As I (we) ask, “What else can you do with it?”, or when I show how inept I am with the hula hoop– and I really am! -  I add to this process.  Simple, yet profound!
There are many aspects to what we do week by week and multiple reasons why we do what we do. 

Perhaps over time I will unpack other aspects but for now I will leave you to ponder the hula hoop too.