A Brand New Start to 2016

During the holidays our new Brown Owls and Brown Bear set up a table at a local mall and handed out flyers and information on lollies. As a result, our first meeting of 2016 was amazing. Fourteen new Brownies and five new Guides arrived!

Brownies playing the chocolate game

We had a chocolate meeting. First we made chocolates in molds that would remind us of the Guide Promise,

Guides using up left over chocolate

We ended the meeting by playing the chocolate game where the girls sit in a circle around the chocolate on a tray. Each girl throws the dice in turn. If she gets a six, she goes into the middle and puts on the clothes provided (oven gloves, hat and apron) and starts eating the chocolate with a knife and fork while everybody else continues to throw the dice until the next six comes along and takes her place.

Guides play the chocolate game

The following week, one Guide and one Brownie didn't return.

The Guides discussed the Guide Law and then made a beaded bookmark to remind them.

We are working towards getting all the Guides and Brownies enrolled by Thinking Day (22 Feb)

2nd Term

To finish our 3 edible novelties for a children’s party, we made racing cars out of finger biscuits and marshmallow baskets.

The Rays of Hope Guides are beginning to integrate into the Old age Home community.   They have each adopted a Granny and later in the term we will do a concert for them.
We spent a meeting highlighting the Guide Law.   This involved translating words to Zulu or Sotho, working through pictures in the handbook and short skits illustrating how Guide Laws are broken or kept.   They ranged from being kind (or not) at school to Rhino poaching.

Last Thursday we did part of the Keep Fit badge.   The Alex girls organised their own set of movements which turned out to be cheerleading type routines while Jelly Bear led us in a more professional routine at Waverley.   She has subsequently agreed to do the same with the Rays of Hope girls.

Change is in the air.   The new programme is due to start in June and the new uniform is already being stocked.
The changeover will be challenging but we will do our best to be innovative and take things one week at a time.

Camp!

For most Guides, camping is the highlight of their Guide career.   I had organised with Mandy, who runs the first Waverley Co, that we would have a district camp. She would be the QM and I would run the camp.   I have a colleague who runs the emergency care team at our school (and she also was one of my Guides when I was still with the 3rd Randburg Company) and she agreed to be the first aider then my son,  Chris would help us with security.
My prayer for the camp was that we would have nice weather and that the Guides from such diametrically opposed backgrounds would get on well together.   Rain was forecast for the weekend.
In the end, only 4 of my Guides turned up.   When the crunch came, the parents of the other 3 couldn’t come up with the money.   I had known that the sisters probably wouldn’t be able to make it but I expected 5.   My Guides came very late (predictably) but the 1st Waverley had enough so we could at least put up the tents.
It did rain on Friday night but not enough to flood the tents.   One patrol, however,was inundated by Parktown Prawns and had to be evacuated to the hall in the middle of the night.

On Saturday the girls learned first aid aimed at the first aid badge.



Our supper was planned to be cooking in patrols over open fires.   Although we had had no rain during the day it looked very threatening by about 5pm.   The girls did manage to make some great fires though.




The rain did come, however, and only one patrol managed to get their chicken casserole in foil cooked.   Along with the rain came lightening and we soon relocated the girls into the hall and the foil parcels into the oven.    By the time we had finished our indoor campfire, the lightning had receded and the rain had lessened so we were able to sleep in our tents (except for the Parktown Prawn patrol who were very skittish)
Sunday was badge testing and packing up on a beautiful hot sunny day.


The girls learned a lot.   They learned table etiquette (don’t walk on the table), working together to do duties,   campfire traditions,   How to Manya for lost property, first aid, of course, and in addition they made lots of new friends.






We all left exhausted with the Guiders vowing not to do another camp for at least a year but the Guides wanting to know when the next one would be.

Visit to the Old Age Home

Yesterday the Rays of Hope Guides visited the Itlhokomeleng Old Age Home in Alexandra. It was probably the best meeting we have had this term. I have been feeling very despondent about the Guides recently. When we voted for patrol leaders there were more votes than girls. When I tried to incentivise them by handing out mini chocolates, the store of chocolates mysteriously halved. Obviously I was failing if the girls couldn't even keep the first Guide Law, "A Guide is to be trusted." It was no use rationalising that for orphaned and abandoned girls, lying and stealing are survival skills. My enthusiasm waned but the Lord had called me to run a Guide Company and I wasn't about to give up after a term and a half. All the girls turned up for what they had decided was to be our unit good turn for the term. We had been practicing singing for two and a half weeks. All the girls wore their denims. Minenthle borrowed a white shirt from the orphanage. Those with school shoes polished them. Only two forgot their sashes and scarves. You might think that is disgraceful but for these Guides that is impressive. The driver transported us to the Old Age home through very congested Alex traffic. Mandisa and a friend, Jannet, followed by car. I didn't know what to expect or how the programme would go. I didn't know if there was any kind of hall or place where we could sing to a group. We were shown into the dining room area where many of the frailer residents were congregated watching TV. The matron came to greet us and welcome us.

The girls were a little shy at first but we began with a mime of people having a picnic and leaving all the rubbish lying around. Then a group of Girl Guides came along singing "if you see a piece of paper pick it up, pick it up." Our lead singers, Laiza and Minenthle sang beautifully and confidently and led "Siahamba" and "Shosholoza" Just as we finished our last song, supper arrived. The girls made themselves useful handing out plates of food, collecting dirty dishes and doing the kind of things I would expect Girl Guides to do. They enjoyed themself and were really helpful. Maria got to push a lady in a wheel chair back to her room after supper. I feel really proud of the Guides and I see a glimmer of hope.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcDXH-_DuUA