When I first joined the MYO team, I thought I had an idea what to expect, and, during these few months since arriving in Mondesa, I've realized I was far from reality in my expectations. The enthusiasm and dedication of the teachers and staff met my expectations; it was the children that blew the doors off the limitations on my thoughts. These children are the most amazing beings I have every encountered. They're loving, giving, eager to learn and so grateful… and they're children -- they laugh readily and eagerly despite obstacles that those of us in other parts of the world might find deplorable and disheartening. They love to have fun and look at everything through the eyes of a child -- many times wiser than most adults. They truly steal your heart and give back their own in return, many times over. They are the future of Namibia, and the world, and it's gratifying for us to know that we're having such an impact on their lives and we're grateful to all of you who make this possible for us to be here doing the work that we're doing.

Over the first three months, we've had a few children drop from the program -- mostly our newer fourth graders and mostly girls, although some boys have opted out of the program to play soccer. It's difficult to lose the children, as MYO is almost certainly their best chance for a better life down the road, yet sometimes the parents need the girls at home helping out or they don't understand the long term impact of the program. It's heartbreaking to let go of a girl that has shown growth and potential during these few months, but ultimately it is the parent's decision to keep the girls at home or let them remain in MYO. There is still very much a culture in some circles that young girls need only domestic skills, and we often cannot convince parent's otherwise. We can only wish them well and hope that the child has a happy life.

Alexis, Casey, and Beau are doing a terrific job teaching the children. They're enthusiastic, dedicated and extremely creative teachers, and they make learning a joy -- I can see it in the kids' faces as they soak up the knowledge. The teachers gave preliminary tests to the kids at the beginning of the term and, as this term had ended, gave new tests to the kids to see what the improvement levels were. Although the tests are not yet marked, it seems the majority of our learners have improved since they started the program in January -- a testament to the dedication and hard-work of our volunteer teachers! It will be interesting to see how their grades in school are impacted by the MYO program and structure as the year progresses. Pam is doing a fantastic job with the music program and on Thursday afternoons, the sounds of African drums fill the courtyard and reverberates through the buildings, while on Friday afternoons, the whistling melody of recorders is heard through the halls. All of this music is such a pleasant way to end the week, and the kids love the classes.

The children are the reason we are all here, and they are truly amazing children. As our oldest grow into young teenagers, they bring different challenges and perspectives and we need to stay ahead of them to make sure they get the greatest possible experience from their time at MYO. And it's something I hope I'm around to witness and participate in.

MYO Mindmasters -- MYO Chess Club

Casey De Kalb -- MYO Teacher

One of the first items that I put into my suitcase when I was leaving Australia, was my leather travel chess set. There is nothing that I love more than a game of Chess. Four months later, MYO has burst at the seams with kids battling each other with their Bishops and Queens. They 'eat' each other's Pawns and Rooks at lunch time, before school and during our Chess Club blocks.

The MYO Chess Club came alive about six weeks ago. We began handing out chess boards at lunch time to keep the kids occupied and the children took to it like candy. There were only a handful of kids who knew how to play, but this has grown to about 40 kids being able to play a decent game.

Beau began doing ‘structured' chess lessons on Thursday afternoons about three weeks ago. These lessons are not compulsory, but the response has been positive. It is nice to see the same faces return each week. The lessons have taught the students the foundations and the manners of the game. The students who attend these lessons will probably be the ones who make it to tournaments and to the top of the ladder in our Chess Club.

Beau and I decided that we would like to make Chess part of the MYO program in a formal way. We joined the Namibian Chess Federation and we registered 37 students. We have named our chess club the "MYO Mindmasters".

In response to us joining the NCF, we were graced with an amazing experience of having Grandmaster Henrik Danielson, from Iceland, come to our school on this past Tuesday afternoon. Along with Grandmaster Danielson, came former Egyptian Chess coach Omar and the current Namibian Chess Champion, Charles Eicheb. We selected sixteen of our keen chess players to be a part of the lecture. They were from all different grades. They sat mesmerized by the speakers for the whole hour and a half.

The students learnt a lot from the guest speakers and they enjoyed it just as much. It was a fantastic opportunity for them to learn from the professionals.

Next term we hope to begin entering tournaments. It will be a good opportunity for the students who aren't so good at tennis to have a chance to represent MYO in another area. Chess is a challenging game that provokes the mind and I think that is why the MYO kids love it so much. They love to be provoked and they always rise to the challenge!

Sports, Performing Arts, and Activity

TIME FLIES WHEN YOU'RE HAVING FUN!!!

Julian Dausab -- MYO Head Tennis Coach

We've come to another end of term at MYO. It's been a great term with a lot of excitement on the tennis courts.

The new grade 4's are a bundle of joy to work with. And with all the fun and excitement came a lot of hard work. We started with the basics, and I was surprised that they caught on so quickly. So far, they've learned how to do backhands and forehands, as well as volleys and a smash. There is a lot of potential in these kids, and they're really looking forward to the STI tournament coming up next term in August. As a preview to the STI tournament, they played their first MYO Tennis Tournament Week, which produced a lot of tears but at the same time good sportsmanship, good strokes, and some truly beautiful shots. And many of them show up on Saturday for more time on the courts, even though they haven't started playing games yet and are still a year away from participating in the tennis ladder.

This term, our older kids played in three Namibian Tennis Tournaments, and they did very well in all the tourneys and got great results. Paulina is really dominating the under-12 girl's age group and, in the last tournament, was the winner in both the singles and doubles. She's definitely a force to be reckoned with. As always, we get a lot of positive feedback from the other people at the tournament about our kids' behavior and playing ability. It's very heartening to hear that not only do our kids play well, they are also well mannered on the courts – no future John McEnroes here!

On Saturdays, we offer a voluntary day of tennis for any of the kids that want to show up. Mostly we play games based on a ladder system, so the kids can challenge one or two spaces above them to try to climb to the top. If the challenger wins the match, they take that spot on the ladder and the loser moves down a spot. We play the ladder with grades 5 - 7 and it is works well to motivate the kids and to promote healthy competition.

The best news is saved for last. Three girls from the MYO Tennis Team are currently representing Namibia on tour in South Africa in the Inter-Provincial Tennis Tournament. It's a great honor to be chosen for the Inter-Pros and to travel to South Africa to play as part of the Namibian National Junior Tennis Team where the kids not only represent their country and are exposed to a new country and new experiences, but they also experience a new level of competition. The girls, Frieda Mufuka (who also went last year), Mary Aribes and Paulina Shikongo will represent MYO as well as Namibia on the tour. The team will play two days of matches in Pretoria and Blumfountein and return to Namibia in early May. All the MYO kids are excited and proud to have their teammates selected. We wish Paulina, Frieda and Mary the best of luck and the most fun while they're in South Africa and will update the website with their results sometime after their return.