The Few

“The Few”

The easy roads are crowded,And the level roads are jammed;The pleasant little riversWith the drifting folks are crammed.But off yonder where it’s rocky,Where you get a better view,You will find the ranks are thinningAnd the travelers are few.

 Where the going’s smooth and pleasantYou will always find the throng,For the man, more’s the pity, Seem to like to drift along.But the steeps that call for courage,And the task that’s hard to do,In the end result in glory
For the never-wavering few

-Edgar A Guest

Albert Einstein during the war years said, "Times such as ours breed defeat and despair.  But there remain, nevertheless, some few among us who believe, who meet and overcome even the greatest challenges of this time.  If we want to avoid defeat, we must know the truth and be courageous enough to act upon it, and we need not despair."

POEM OF THE DAY: Do Something...

POEM OF THE DAY:
Do Something...
Do something today to bring gladness
To someone whose pleasures are few
Do something to drive off sadness--
Or cause someone’s dream to come true.
Find time for a neighborly greeting
And time to delight an old friend;
Remember,-- the years are fleeting
And life’s latest day will soon end.
Do something to-day that to-morrow
Will prove to be really worthwhile;
Help someone to conquer sorrow
And greet the new dawn with a smile.
For only through kindness and giving
Of service and friendship and cheer,
We learn the pure joy of giving
And find Heaven’s happiness here.
It is not the load that breaks you down, it is the way you carry it!

San Pedro High - One of 29 Countrywide

Belize has 29 high schools countrywide. Currently San Pedro High is the only high school on the island of Ambergris Caye.  

San Pedro High is open to local San Pedranos as well as Belizean students from all over the country whose parents come to San Pedro to work mostly on tourism or construction.

Founded in 1971, San Pedro High began the provision for educational opportunities to the local community. Before San Pedro High was established, only 2 students from the island attended high school on the mainland.  San Pedro High was started with 30 students of which 9 students graduated in the first graduating class. Current enrollment is about 200 with an average graduating class of 30.

The school year begins late August and runs for 36 weeks. Students attend 40 minute classes with 8 periods each day, 5 times a week. Extra curricular activities are available such as band, music, choir, yearbook, newspaper, drama, and environmental club.

San Pedro High mostly focuses on training students to work in business. Students who wish to specialize in other areas, move on to a tertiary level of education (known in Belize as sixth form or junior college). During the evening hours, San Pedro High offers adults computer and beginning Spanish classes.

As a private Anglican based school that is partly government funded, San Pedro High has continued to operate for many years within the community of San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize. 

Our Blogs

Being an on going effort, we at Living Tree Academy have decided to change our blog format. Initially, we decided to set up one blog and discuss the daily events along with all activity. Well, after only a brief month of blogging, the amount of material that is being worked on was just to abundant for one site.

So now, you will get daily updates from Belize on this "Updates" blog. On the
LTA Blogs site, there will be varying categories for discussion. Some of these
areas of discussion are:

Staff  House Menu
Biblical Curriculum
Building (Construction)
Purchasing Land
Political / Governmental Affairs
Academic Curriculum
Student Record Keeping
Student Application and Acceptance
Finances
Organic Gardening
Lesson in Living


http://www.livingtreeacademy.org/lta_blogs.html

There will be others added as time goes on.

Once again, all of this information is being documented to help others that might pass this way. (Are inspired to take on a similar project to help young people.)

I think you will enjoy the following poem:

The Bridge Builder
An old man, going a lone highway,
Came, at the evening, cold and gray,
To a chasm, vast, and deep, and wide,
Through which was flowing a sullen tide.

The old man crossed in the twilight dim;
The sullen stream had no fear for him;
But he turned, when safe on the other side,
And built a bridge to span the tide.

"Old man," said a fellow pilgrim, near,
"You are wasting strength with building here;
Your journey will end with the ending day;
You never again will pass this way;
You've crossed the chasm, deep and wide-
Why build you this bridge at the evening tide?"

The builder lifted his old gray head:
"Good friend, in the path I have come," he said,
"There followeth after me today,
A youth, whose feet must pass this way.

This chasm, that has been naught to me,
To that fair-haired youth may a pitfall be.
He, too, must cross in the twilight dim;
Good friend, I am building this bridge for him."

Author Will Allen Dromgoole

Trip Report - October 2009 by Rev. Pat Malone

In the month of October, I joined other members of the Board of Director’s and special guests on a trip throughout various regions of the country of Belize, in order to further the mission of Living Tree Academy.  The following is a brief review of key activities and accomplishments that resulted from that trip.

Activities

We traveled to the cities and villages of Dangriga, Placencia, Belmopan, San Ignacio, San Pedro, and San Mateo and their surrounding regions.   The exploration of these locales enabled us to assess the educational needs of these various regions with a view toward determining the future location for LTA’s operations and facilities.

During our travels we had the opportunity to tour numerous elementary schools including Holy Cross, New Horizons, Island Academy, and an additional private school in the region of Ambergris Caye, as well as a preschool in Placencia.

While in Placencia, we met with Mr. Walter Garbut, the principal of the school in Independence that Living Tree Academy has been working with for a number of years.  This dedicated educator, who has served as a teacher and administrator for over 30 years in various schools in Belize, provided invaluable insight into the challenges and needs facing the faculty, students and families of Belize.  Mr. Garbut expressed his appreciation for the assistance LTA has provided to the school and children of Monkey River Village over the years through our various programs.  He also discussed in detail his assessment of present and future needs for our scholarship and sponsorship programs.

While in Belize we met with Mr. Marshall and Miss Grace, officials from the Ministry of Education in Dangriga; and Miss Candy Armstrong, head of the Ministry of Education on Ambergris Caye. Discussions centered on their assessments of the needs for additional schools in their respective regions and our plans to establish a school.

Accomplishments

Through the interaction with officials, educators, students, and ordinary citizens of Belize we become more aware of the unique challenges, needs and requirements involved in providing educational opportunities to the children of Belize, and better equipped to meet those criteria.

Examining various schools allowed us to learn from the experience of the teachers and administrators of those institutions.  This in turn will help us to better determine what possible assistance we may be able to offer them in the future.

Moreover, our evaluation of the facilities, resources, and curriculums utilized by the schools empowers us to most effectively design and develop the school that we intend to build.

Our exploration and review of the various regions included in this trip, as well as past visits to the country, has provided us with sufficient information to make a tentative determination of the location for LTA’s facilities.  Contingent upon approval of a majority of the Board of Directors, that location will be somewhere on Ambergris Caye.

Additionally, our travels enabled us to reconnect and maintain important contacts in many different fields throughout the country that have provided valuable assistance to our efforts in Belize.

In Christ’s love and service,
Rev. Pat Malone

Just A Thought! An American Perspective

An American businessman was at the pier of a small Belizean village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large lobsters, and a slew of red and yellow snapper. The visitor complimented the Belizean on the quality of his catch and asked how long it took to bring it in.
The Belizean replied only a little while. The American then asked why didn't he stay out longer and catch more fish and lobster?

The Belizean fisherman said, "I get up early and watch the sun rise, then I fish a little, come home and relax, play with my children, have a big lunch and take a rest with my wife. In the evening I stroll into the village where I sip cashew wine and play music and sing with my friends. I have a full and busy life."

The American scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave Belize and move to Mexico, then LA and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise."

The Belizean asked, "But how much time will all of this all take?"

To which the American replied, "15-20 years."

"What then, Gringo?"

The American laughed and said, "That's the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You would make millions of dollars."

"Millions? Then what?"

The American said, "Then you would retire. Move back to a caye in Belize, where you would get up early and watch the sun rise, then fish a little, play with your grandkids, have a big lunch and take a rest with your wife. In the evenings you could stroll to the village where you could sip cashew wine and play music and sing with your friends."

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly….Bugs in Belize

Depending on the breeze and where you are standing, you can be bitten by mosquitoes or sand flies (sand fleas) at any given time in Belize.  What’s the key to avoid these pesky insects and others?  We are still mastering this question. 

Our experience while on the cayes (islands) has been that one is less likely to be bitten than while on the mainland.  Perhaps this is because of the constant cool breeze.

We have accused the mosquitoes of liking the taste of Americans, because the Belizeans don’t seem to get bitten or notice them.  Although we tease about this, there might be some truth to the fact that our American diets of sweets are attracting the bugs.  (Puts a whole new meaning of we are what we eat.)

Another thing learned by experience is to avoid traveling (walking) at dusk and dawn.  While living in Dangriga we didn’t pay attention to the time we walked around town until a dear Belizean friend made us aware of the fact that more mosquitoes bite at dusk and dawn.  Sure enough, once we followed this idea, we were not bitten near as much.  While living in Dangriga it was a morning ritual to put on Skin-so-soft.  The worst areas were in Sittee River (although many people go diving there we have heard the sand flies are outrageous) and Hopkins.  A few of the resorts with amazing beaches provides “Off” bug spray on the outside tables for visitors.  You can see people enjoying the beach, and then start swinging and swatting at their legs without even realizing it.  One Belizean friend purchased land in the Sittee area and had to move his family back to Dangriga because of the bugs on the property. 

If you happen to take a tour or wonder off into the jungle, it is best to wear long pants and long sleeves.  Regarding bug sprays, DEET works best although you should not use it continually due to the extreme chemical potency.  Skin-so-soft works fairly well in moderate locations.

We can balance not getting bit by our diets too but we are still learning all the does and don’ts by trial and error. Naturally garlic is pungent and bananas are sweet; supposedly mosquitoes are attracted to the abundance of potassium. 

In closing, while living in Dangriga we were often eaten up by bugs in the evening since we had no air conditioning and the windows were opened.  We purchased mosquito coils (like incense) and burned them every night which helped.  One night we finally prayed to God for some relief.  The next morning dragonflies were all around the staff house.  Somewhat annoyed by their presence as we left, our dear Belizean friend once again shared some insight with us stating that dragonflies eat mosquitoes.  We never complained or were annoyed with dragonflies again!  Thank you God!

More on bugs and health in Belize: http://ambergriscaye.com/pages/town/healthy.html