More Godly Play

Arpillera Bible cover made by Lima ladies (see Feb '10 post about arpilleras)

Jesus said to them, “Let the children come to me, do not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of God.” Mk 10:14

The other week’s  Noah’s Ark lesson went well and the children loved the ark, the people and the animals. They suggested that I should add a condor, some dolphins and snakes. They liked the part in the story where the dove came back with a twig even though we used a red flower because Lucas had picked one earlier and gave it to me before class.  The children’s work included rainbows, of course, and a play-doh ark and dolphin.

Yes, I promise not to put play-doh into the ark.

The father-son woodworker duo came up with  a good whale and boat this past week. I’ll use one of the earlier people figures for Jonah and create Nineveh, land and a plant from found objects. I also picked up the heart shaped box with the blocks ready for the 10 commandments. To prepare for that lesson, The Ten Best Ways, I will sand the commandment blocks, glue on the words, and paint the lid red. Someone wisely suggested gluing the commandments in English on one side, and Spanish on the other.

Whale, boat, and box filled with the Ten Best Ways

Today’s challenge was finding sandpaper in the neighborhood. I asked at the craft store for “papel con arena” and they finally understood what I needed through my hand motions and demonstration that it smoothed wood. Or had I said con avena (with oatmeal)? Sandpaper is called papel de lija or lijar. The verb to sand is lijar. No visual or auditory connection to  la arena. The store did not have it, but they knew of a hardware store around the corner that did, so a young employee took me across the street and down the block to the front of a rather run-down house. I stepped back as he rang the bell and the door opened. It was dark inside and messy, but once inside, I saw a  counter with a man working behind it and lots of hardware store type things hanging on the walls and filling the shelves: tools, bottles, old rags and boxes. My efficient escort asked for lija and the man brought it out to the counter. We asked for a rough and a smoother piece and after paying 3 soles ($1) we headed out the door. The transaction was quick, efficient, and yes, I could shop there again. I do not have to be una maestra, a professional, or use a secret knock.

The quest for sand to use in the desert box continues. The previous Sunday I used a ten pound bag of white rice to fill a large tray to evoke the dangerous desert traveled by so many of the Old Testament characters. We talked about Abraham and Sarah traveling from Ur, along the Euphrates to Haran and then eventually to Hebron. Blue yarn, blocks of wood for the cities and small rocks for the altars set the scene for The Great Family.  The children loved running their hands through the many grains of rice and insisted on burying Sarah and Abraham in it when they died.

Creating with play doh

Because Monday is Valentine’s Day, I am going to do The Ten Best Ways lesson this week and tie in valentines cards for a work option. The cathedral sexton has offered to go to the beach and bring back a large sack of sand to fill my desert box. We will work with it this week if it is clean and dry enough and continue to use it for the next few lessons, including next week’s Exodus.  My next big challenge is creating  the Ark of the Covenant, the Tent and the Temple. As I read about these and prepare, I think of that delightful Indiana Jones movie, Raiders of the Lost Ark.

The girls like to work together.

When Lent begins in March, I will be away traveling, so others will be doing the Sunday School lessons with their own materials for a few weeks.  I look forward to returning at the end of the month and picking up with the Godly Play Lenten lessons and then Easter. I have contracted with a local artist who is in the ordination process here in the diocese to create the pictures of Jesus’ life and also a painting of the Last Supper. I am thrilled that Marco can create these, and my hope is that it will be a joy for him to do so. I was fortunate that my former church in Mentor, Ohio, uses Godly Play and the rector, the Rev. Kelly Kirby, sent me photos of each picture that her mother had created for this series of lessons. I see what a community venture Godly Play can be! Perhaps this is better than having the funds to order the whole package created and delivered! I am thankful for a generous donation from a supporter to help fund these Peruvian artisans and my own attempts at being “crafty.”

Pictures from Sunday, February 13, 2011, and earlier lessons:

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