Week 105: “Runnin Runnin…”

I believe that is a Black Eyed Peas song I was trying to sing there…

Back in June I was going through a rough time and felt that I needed to set some long-term goals to keep me energized and purposeful. Running to my shopping village, Kanye, became that goal. Kanye is only 10 kilometers from my home and this weekend I was able to make the trek. It was incredibly satisfying to be walking around Kanye knowing that nothing but my feet and the air in my lungs took me there. Admittedly running along a highway that Semis use was rather less enjoyable than running in the bush, where I usually run, which reminded me that its about the journey not the end result. Although it was great to not have to wait for a combi to take me to Kanye, I can recall many more pleasant runs after work in June and July than this one. Regardless of how the final run felt, it did the trick, two months have gone by and I am in a drastically different headspace. I am happy to have two more months with the people I care about here and grateful that I did not leave in June as I had considered. My knees may be telling me to ease off the running and so my next goal is to reread Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina, as I did when I first arrived.

Week 104: Meeting the New Trainees

This week 76 new Peace Corps trainees arrived in Botswana. When I close my service (COS) on October 14^th they will be swearing in as new volunteers. I had the privilege of meeting these folks at the airport where there were more smiling faces than I expected after such a flight. I then stayed with the group as they spent their first night with their new home stay families (who they will live with until they move to their sites’) fielding questions about how to navigate different religious views and the names for the different types of bread.

The energy and enthusiasm of this group was contagious. I feel content with my past two years and what I have and have not been able to accomplish and was delighted to share this with the new group. The timing was excellent, as I know that at other points in my service I may not have had as many nice things to say. As much as I enjoyed the energy I was reminded that adjusting back to the faster pace of life in the States will no doubt be a challenge. However, I am confident that just as I adapted two years ago, I can do it again and in fact I am excited to.

Week 103: Red Lipstick and Water

Water is essential to life, however the access to and quantity of water that one has can vary. When I was away at my conference something happened to a pipe that brought water to a third of the village. Since this happened I have continued to hone in on my ability to wash my body, essential clothing items, and my hair all with the same liter of water. Even though my house does not have running water, there is a standpipe 10 yards from my front door that only my landlady and I use. However, since the trouble with the pipe my landlady and I now travel further to a neighbor’s house to get our water.

Recently a package came for me that contained red lipstick and as it was a Saturday where I had no plans I decided to try on the lipstick. Immediately following this my landlady knocks on my door with two wheelbarrows saying its time for us to collect water. So there I went following my landlady as we traipsed through the village with our buckets and my red lipstick. I left simultaneously absurd and like there is no better reason to celebrate with a little red lipstick then getting water.