Downtime

5 November, 2013

I can't believe it's already the beginning of November! By the time I upload this, the first week of November will have passed. In one month all of Group 38 volunteers will be sent to the capital, Windhoek, and reunited for a week of training. We have been apart from each other since the end of September, so I'm eager to hug their necks and hear about their own unique adventures so far. That's something I like about the Peace Corps...the fact that they separate us into our own individual sites, creating the most unique experience we could possibly have. I met a few Romanian volunteers for a private school at a teaching workshop a few weeks ago. They're used to living together in one area near Kongola, so when they heard I'm on on my own, they were shocked. They've been here for years but don't integrate into the community much because they're used to having each other as company. Our experiences are completely opposite. I have no other choice but to integrate, otherwise I'd be depressingly lonely...and those of you that know me know that I have to be surrounded by friends constantly. So I'm happy to say that I've made so many good friends since I've moved to Gunkwe, and my language learning is coming along nicely. 

During these first couple months we were supposed to focus on getting to know the community and also on figuring out what we will be doing come January. I have spoken with my principal and colleagues about what they would like from me and what I would like to offer. It has been agreed upon that I will be teaching English to grades 5 and 6. The Peace Corps stressed to us not to teach 5th grade English our 1st year..but my colleagues have a good point: they want me to have grade 5 again for grade 6 to hopefully provide a strong foundation of English for the next teacher to carry on in grade 7. That would give me two years with one group of students, and we will hopefully see an improvement. Also, I'm confident enough in the local language that if necessary I can use broken Silozi to help get an idea across. I spend a lot of time playing with some of the village kids and we communicate in both languages. 

Doing the math, that's only 10 periods a week. Which is not a lot at all. So I will be spending most of my time of service on secondary projects. We have all agreed that setting up a library is the first priority (after teaching of course). We have to figure out how to get the community to build us a space for a library to even exist. My father is setting up a book donation drive at his workplace and will be sending children's books to my school. If you're interested in being a part of this donation, then send me an email or Facebook message and I will give you his contact information. 

As for another secondary project, the teachers have requested that I teach them how to use a computer efficiently. So on Mondays or Wednesdays, starting in January, I will be teaching them as much as I possibly can about computers. Hopefully, we will have Internet by then. That will open up a lot of doors for us. 

Outside of the school, I really want to organize an HIV/AIDS awareness group in the community that can not only educate adults, but also help them learn how to talk to their kids about it. I found a great source shoved away in the school staff room with information on how to help parents communicate with their kids on such an awkward subject. Before I do this though I will need to find a counterpart in the village who is willing to work alongside me...that's going to take time. 

Anyway...everything listed above is just an outline of the goals I have for the rest of my service starting in January. Some things may be successful, while others may completely flop. But it's always worth a shot. My mind is at ease and I've remained peaceful since my journey has started, and I know that the tiniest impression can make lifelong changes, so even if something doesn't work out as planned, I know that somewhere I've made a difference. I can already see a change now in some of the people around me. For example, every single Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, my colleague and neighbor does yoga and other exercises with me. She's determined to engage in a healthier lifestyle, and that's a big deal here considering fitness isn't common in this country. I know that after two years of this she will stick with it and probably teach others when I'm gone. It's the little things like that worth working for. 

I've already posted some of these pictures on Facebook and on Instagram, but I'll throw a few in here for blog purposes. 

This was at Bezi Bar. We were celebrating my friend, Memory's, birthday. Ryan brought an American football and was trying to teach some of the guys how to throw it. The guy holding the ball is Kenneth, Prince's brother...Prince is Patrick's counterpart in the village Muyako. Since Katima is our shopping town, a few of us see each other every weekend. Oh yea, and later that night, I ended up going swimming in the pool in my clothes because "my song" came on...a Zambian song called Are You Single?...actually I don't even know if that's the title, but they say it over and over in the chorus lol. 

Some of the friends I've made in Katima.

Here are the village kids I play with a lot after school. They actually belong to a few of my colleagues, so they mostly leave the village on the weekends to stay in town in Katima. Dad, I took this picture and the one below for you to use on your book drive donation flier. The above one they're smiling, but the quality isn't as bright...below they look like angry kids because the sun was in their eyes. Oh, and to clear up a stereotype we have in the USA about African kids really fast...yes, you see a lot of pictures of African kids without shoes...but that doesn't mean they don't have shoes...they just choose not to wear them most of the time :)

Anyway, my next entry will probably be another random Facebook statusworthy post...because I've had a lot of those moments in my life since I wrote the latest one, and it probably isn't going to slow down. 

I'm going to bed. Nikalobala hande ni lukabonana. (I will sleep well and we'll be seeing each other).