Three Months in Malawi (September 4, 2009)

So... I have hit the three month mark (which I have discovered is actually ¼ of a year). It does not seem like I have lived here that long, but then again the night of packing with my amazing friends seems like ages ago. It's hard to tell when I lived a life that had television and regular access to internet. Sono (now), here is an update from my month all alone in Usisya.

My life moves as a snails pace as I try each day to do something other than lay in my hammock and read (I have already made it through 12 books). I make sure that I leave my house at least once a day to walk the village or go for a swim at the lake (about a 15. min bike ride down the hill). I have, in usual Bonnie fashion, tried to get into everything I can as to keep busy and productive. Thus far I have started working more with Temwa on the permaculture project and while everything is moving along slowly I have found a lot of interest in crop diversification from many people in the community. We have community members who will lead fruit tree planting, and are currently selecting schools for teaching locations on how to care for gardens. Also, there is no market in Usisya (an uncommon thing for villages here). So I have been speaking with people who do have some surplus of vegetables and local shops to work on developing our own little market day. Currently people just walk around yelling the name of whatever product they are carrying on their head with the hope that someone will hear them and want to purchase it. Little by little (Pachoko pachoko) people will start to eat something other than cassava and sima..

I have also begun teaching at the local secondary school. On Tuesday and Thursday mornings I go to teach form one lifeskills. It is difficult for the fact that many of the students do not know English very well- so I have to use Chitumbuka whenever I know the words. Also, there is not much drive to do work here, as I frequently hear teachers complaining that no one has turned in assignments. This is a point I don't understand because they have to pay to go to school, and thus should value it a bit more. Now I am working on a role model project and encouraging students to report on people like Mandela and Gandhi so that they can have people to aspire to. However, with noone being willing to put in the work of researching anyone at the local library (one wall of books that has a good bit of historical information thanks to an encyclopedia set) I has posed as a problem. How do you give a student the drive to learn?

I have also been working with Under 5 and VCT (volunteer counseling and testing for HIV) clinics at the health center "chipatala". These are always interesting as I am able to see the health side to the community. On Wednesdays women come into to have their children weighed- get immunized- and sing songs about health. A lot of the girls are younger than I am which is very upsetting to see (I am working on a club now for students to keep busy on holiday instead of getting bored, pregnant, and dropping out as many tend to do). Also, seeing the women and youth at the VCT clinics is hard to take at times. Most of the people with HIV have never lived a promiscuous life, but have fallen victim to an unfaithful husband or unprotected sex due to peer pressures. I met a ten year old just the other day who is stage three HIV, life is hard.

Story of the month: We had a government official visit recently, which caused a two day dance competition in his honor. On the second day I was caught by a couple of friends chat before heading to the Gule. We hung out drinking warm drinks at the local house turned into a bar and talked about plans for changing Usisy. So then we went to the gule and my friend decided that I needed to dance, he spoke to a few people, and next thing I knew I was keeping step to a drum with women in Chitenji (s) while my village watched. I was told that I did very well and for the next two days I was stopped by many people saying how much they liked seeing me dance. And, according to the teachers at the school I was even featured on Malawian TV as they did a piece on the event (the man who was recording with a small personal camcorder was a very nice guy I met- but when I see him next I will bother him for putting me on TV).

Well… life is well and I am trying to do some good things for my little quiet community. There are good and bad days, and times when I want nothing more than to be back in the states having coffee with Sarah and Chrissy or chilling by the river with Jessie, Philip, and Erik. But, in good time I will return to all that. Just know that I think of you all often and miss you greatly. I am happy and meeting some amazing people.

PEACE,

Ps. They are closing the rest houses... so send mail to the Lilongwe address for now.