Have a two year old orphan girl named Sarah trace your hands continually for fifteen minutes and try not to let the exprience break your heart. Play tic-tac-toe with five year old twins whose mother is incapable of taking care of them and try not to cry. Listen to a young man tell you about how in his religion he prays five times a day and that it is Allah who provides. Do these things and try to live a normal life afterwards. If you are human you will find yourself incapable; reducded to tears and left contemplating at night. I started my volunteering at Jamiyah Children's Home...what we would call an orphanage. Children start at the age of 2 and go up to 18--with some children residing in the home for over eight years. This is their home and they share it with about 50 other children and many helpers that come in go. Mike and I share this site and I know it has effected both of us in the same way. We are both moved by the exprience and the children. A pink eye epidemic has broken out at the home and so we have been unable to return...breaking our promise to the children that we would return the next day, Mike pinky swore them of our return. Is a child expected to understand something like that? It breaks my heart to break promises to them...i owe them five hundred games of tic-tac-toe.
Yesterday we went to the island of Sentosa. It was beautiful--palm trees and buddhist monks completed the perfect picture. Hot dogs were twelve Singaporean dollars reminding us that it was indeed a resort area. Most of the pictures were taken on Mike's camera and he cannot currently get them off onto a computer however I have a few to post. 
Singapore is wonderful. It works great as a multi cultural community. I do not feel tied down or limited by the set of rules, but see them as a means of preserving this small island as a perfect location for those who call it home. Everyone is so different--there are so many different languages spoken and traditions practiced, however there is common ground among each unique individual. English ties the island together as a common language for all to communicate in even if their speaking of it is not so strong. As an American I do feel a bit set apart from the rest of the inhabitants. Most residents are of some kind of Asian descent and for those who share a caucasion background--they are either Austrailian or European. I suppose Singapore is not much of a hot spot yet for us Americans. Perhaps they hide its secret beauty from us because they do not want our values spilled upon them. Probably not the case. Singapore still seems to be a very materialistic society. Shopping is one of the passtimes of residents (perhaps because June is Singaporean Sale Month?) and I have never seen so many HUGE shopping centers in my life! I feel overwhelmed by them and prefer to stick to simple markets (though nothing is every tooo simple in Singapore) to do my shopping...though i haven't bought anything yet other than food. I'd rather spend my time at the beach! Today though I plan to go down to the ginormous Salvation Army beside us; the donation bin there is overflowing every night and go to the nature reserve in my backyard....
Mom, your e-mail address has been over quota and I have been unable to e-mail you...I tried sending one to your hotmail address.
Love, Jess
Alright--more later, I'm exhausted.
I too have been happy with what I am finding in this island nation.
More details later hopefully!
