There are several things that have made me smile this week.

The Jacaranda tree outside our apartment now greets me with flourishing purple blooms when I open the curtains each morning.

The large African succulent near the field is also blooming abundantly with green florets encircling each leaf.

Another source of enjoyment has come from Christmas trees. Both the tiny one in our apartment and the large one in my classroom. The latter was decorated by the children who made paper chains and cardboard decorations covered in shiny  foil. They have had such fun shining torches on their creations and watching them sparkle. Even the cereal boxes covered (almost) in home-printed wrapping paper under the tree adds to the somewhat chaotic appearance, but the class love it and many bring their parents in to look at each little addition.

The next event I want to mention began with tragedy. A week ago the small school I work at each Monday afternoon had it’s laptops stolen, this was compounded by arson to cover up the deed. It took time to put the fire out (no 999 calls to a fire brigade here). Those that worked through the night to do this suffered from some smoke inhalation and there was smoke damage throughout the building. The photocopier, books and documents were destroyed too. As so many resources have been brought into the country from the UK piece by piece this outcome was devastating for all involved.

This week the staff came to Bingham to borrow our computer lab to access planning documents and make preparations for after the  break. Meanwhile the pupils are no doubt enjoying an extended Christmas holiday. I spoke to Andy, the director on Wednesday and he told me how much the parents have rallied round in the aftermath of this tragedy. Not only in practical matters like scrubbing classrooms but also contacting friends and acquaintances to raise money to replace lost resources. Their support for the school has been consolidated by this tragedy, even those families who have only been enrolled for a few months.

This coming week there are Christmas celebrations, the final grade 1-12 performance of ‘Joseph the Musical’ and 3 performances of the Kindergarten production ‘The Innkeeper’s Breakfast’, which lead up to our first ever ‘hot’ Christmas holiday for a week – an intriguing prospect.