Dec 23rd-29th Week 20: Happy Christmas!

 I traveled up to Serowe to my Motswana family for the holidays. Although I only lived with them for two months, I am with out a doubt a member of the family, and it felt good to be home and see my Motswana siblings. We traveled to their farm for Christmas where I spent my days relaxing under the shade, eating fresh bread, and learning how to play piggy in the middle with the children who live on the farm.

I saw my first black mamba, which is a deadly snake found in Botswana, however, as with most creatures it is only harmful when it is harassed. The black mamba leaped down from a tree branch only inches away from where one of the farm hands was standing, however, upon landing it quickly slithered away into the bush. Black mambas can grow up to seven feet tall, however this was have been a young one and was maybe half that size. According to my brother, ducks keep the snakes away so if you do not like the company of snacks just hang out near the ducks.

I feel really lucky to have spent the holidays with a family who cares about me and who I care about. It was remote in the sense that there was no cell phone coverage, no electricity, and about two hours into the bush on a sandy “road” (the road was nothing like roads I am used to). However, it was very international since I munched on Turkish delight from Turkey (my brother travels frequently for work and was only just in Turkey a few days before making the Turkish delight quite fresh!), chatted with their neighbor on the farm who used to work for the UN, and discussed international politics.

It may not have been a white Christmas as I am used to but it was definitely a Christmas well spent. I send my love to everyone Stateside, in Switzerland, and where ever else the holiday season took you.

Happy Holidays!

Dec 16th-22nd Week 19: A Narration of a Pleasant Afternoon

This time of year is called the festive season, which makes me happy and feels fitting to the mood around the village. Moshana is filling up with all the family members who work in other parts of the country but are coming home for the holidays.

Some days are long and challenging but then other days make it all worth it. It was rainy and cool the other day so I spent the morning with a cup of tea and being productive typing up a report. Then I went over to a friends house where I taught her kids some yoga, shelled peanuts and I tried to explain American Baseball and became nostalgic for a past that I don’t really have, drank coffee, and discussed Motswana dating practices. Then she showed me how to eat a “prickly pear” the fruit from the cactus, which may also be in the States but not where I am from so it was quite exciting. I then went to another friends house and on the way ran into some of my running buddies who regardless of the fact that I was not running ran at me gave me a big group hug and we then promptly ran down the middle of the road and I felt like there was some epic movie music playing in my head as the breeze caught my hair. Moments later this image was shattered by the fact that there was a combi behind us trying to get by haha but the kids still loved it. Upon arriving at my friends house I came across my two favorite three year olds who I was concerned were mistreating each other since one had a rope in his mouth and was running while the other was holding the edge of the rope. I then quickly realized that this was in fact a game between two consenting parties and was a simulation of a donkey cart, genius. My friend was plaiting her sisters hair as her seven month old son was sitting on a mat patting his belly. He was doing this in the most jolly way making himself laugh every time. I was reminded that we have so much to learn from children particularly about joy. My friend then shared dinner with me giving me a traditional vegetable that they picked from the bush and paleche, which dare I say it, I think I am starting to like. The vegetable is called tepe and to an untrained eye (aka mine) it looks like a weed. Paleche is one of the staple foods here and is a porridge made of finely ground maize meal.

Blog Week 18: Careful Oh Careful What You Wish For

The more time I spend here the more it becomes clear that I have a problem with guilt. I think this stems from my old perfectionist days and a belief that anything less then perfect is not enough. One of the things I feel guilty about is when I spend the afternoon in my house and not out in the community. This makes me feel like a bit of a slacker, particularly when I am watching American television on my laptop. I recently became hooked on the Netflix series, “House of Cards” and this last week felt a much stronger urge to watch an episode instead of making a fool of myself around the village.  I felt as if my computer was hindering my community integration. Then low and behold I was in town getting groceries and was caught in a torrential downpour. My computer was nestled in its case with an extra bag over it for protection and I thought it was safe. Until I returned home to discover that it would not turn on.

I was not a happy camper. Although earlier in the day I felt that my computer use was hindering me, when it would not turn on, I felt like my right arm had been chopped off. Peace Corps days of yore involved some training in the States a flight to your new country where a staff member handed you car keys and the name of your counterpart as well as the name of your village and did not communicate with the volunteer until they left the country(this is according to a returned Peace Corps Volunteer, who is back again for round two in Botswana). However, this has shifted dramatically and now as PCVs we are expected to be reachable 24/7 through our phones, promptly respond to emails and submit reports on a regular basis. Not only does my computer serve my mental health, it also is a big part of my job.

After a few calls to my IT savvy friends, I went on my favorite run/walk in the bush. This particular path has seen my leaps of joy at realizing I live in a beautiful place, my despair at children’s hunger and realizing I am only one person, as well as most recently my frustrations over the computer situation. This path never fails to have a calming and grounding effect on me.

However, luck lucky me a day and a half later my computer turned on again, and now I never want to turn it off again. My computer has reminded me not to take anything for granted.

Week 17: A Random Smattering of Thoughts from this Week

I would like to personally thank fans, rugs, cheese, and broccoli. This may seem like a bizarre list but all of these things have improved my quality of life immensely. Buying a fan seemed like a complicated frivolous purchase until this week. After an epic combi ride and various people’s assistance my fan and I have made it safely home and despite some touch and go moments we are both in one piece (as is everyone else who was on the combi).

Things I do not think about anymore, how many people can fit in a combi and where will everyone sit, my lap as my own personal space, holding other people’s babies, and upon people’s realization that I am the youngest suddenly being commanded to serve all those older then me (I really must start lying about my age). Something that does still bother me is people’s assumption that I am incomplete because I do not “have a man” and their attempts to remedy the situation.

Koko (knock Knock in Setswana). Who is at my door and why? It is so late! I then open the door to my land lady handing me the phone saying Kgosi. After a brief chat with the Kgosi and a proper greeting to my land lady, I retire back inside my house to realize it is in fact just after 8pm, not quite the late night call I thought it was.

Thwak! That would be the point when the sole of my shoe makes contact with my wall and hopefully my newest bug roommate. I do not frequently kill the bugs in my home, however, there are a few I have no tolerance for and always seem to go about their extermination with a little too much umph. As a result I have three clearly defined shoe prints in various points through out my home… oops!

Week 16: Gnocchi for Dinner

The Peace Corps places a huge emphasis on community integration. The first three months at site we are not supposed to leave our villages and our main task is to gain the trust and respect of those around us by living in the same manner. This was one of the main draws for me to peace corps, before I left the states, community was a buzz word for me and I had a whole slew of romanticized images of what “community” meant, looked like, and how it made people feel. Combined with my people pleasing tendencies, I jumped into my new home whole-heartedly with both feet. I was no longer Dawn, but Lesego fela (only). After six weeks, I miss Dawn and I have come to the realization that I really don’t like full cream milk. I have been a vegetarian for over six years and although I was not vegan I never liked milk and only drank soy milk. Since I arrived in Moshana, I have eaten intestines, sheep, and other unidentified meats as well as drank the ever present full cream milk. I found soy milk in select stores but felt ridiculous buying it, after all drinking expensive soy milk was not “living in the same manner as my new community.” This weekend I realized that living with out water, in a rural village, where I cannot even use the pit latrine without saying hello to someone that I think I am allowed some small comforts and can still consider myself true to the peace corps mission. Usually I have some version of rice and beans for dinner, today I ate gnocchi with whole made cinnamon butternut squash chips and gave Lesego a rest while Dawn watched an American TV show, needless to say it was a quality evening.

Other Lesego highlights of the week include singing and dancing in a world AIDS day march which I am fairly certain made it on national television, alas I do not have a TV to confirm this fact. Celebrating Thanksgiving by eating Megwinya (Fatcakes) and when I tried to explain that it was an American Holiday I was met with the response “We are cleaning.” This conversation was all in Setswana and I was quite proud I understood what she said, but can only assume that something was lost in my Setswana explanation of the holiday.  

Week 15: Apparently there are a few leaks in my house...

Its late afternoon on Thursday, I just came back from my run and I notice my land lady is home. I figured I would pop in tell her my plan for tomorrow and see if we were still visiting her friend today. She is showing another friend wedding pictures so we all start looking together, I am excited that I recognize people from the village. Then there is a deafening roar of rain and hail. The roof is tin which exaggerates the already raging storm and the house is not quite finished so we are getting pelted with hail stones through the cracks. Realizing I left my windows open, I sprint over to my place only to discover that it is irrelevant that my windows were open because my house appears to be in no way water proof. My initial reaction was to move my belongings to higher ground until I realized that my bed was saturated and the only safe place may be the fridge. You can bet I put everything in the fridge that would fit (and seemed vaguely appropriate to find in a fridge). Then I realized all I could do was laugh. Botswana is in a drought so really the rain was a gift and I decided that singing and dancing with my mop was a capital way to handle the situation. As soon as the rain let up my land lady came by to see how I faired and discovered the flood, naturally she immediately took the mop from me and set to work. I think my house is the cleanest it has been since I got here thanks to the deep cleaning provided by the rain, there is no dirt/dust in sight for once. My fridge is back to its usual contents and this was the final straw to get me to wash my sheets.

The storm was a good reminder to not get to attached to any plans or possessions. There is never a guarentee how the evening will go and what will be left. Also my landlady is the best and had the holes patched the next day!

Other discoveries of this week include childrens and young adult books. I have found the best way to deal with a frustrating conversation before tea break is to sneak away to the library where it is possible to discover books from childhood like Sarah, Plain and Tall. At 58 pages it is the perfect tea break treat and even provided me with some wisdom. For those who are not familiar with the novel, it is about a father and his two kids who live in rural USA in the late 1800s. The mother died in childbirth wuth the second child and now many years later the father puts an advertisement in the papers for a new wife. Sarah from Main responds and although everyone gets along swimmingly the kids are afraid she will leave because she misses the sea. Sarah in all her wisdom responds that she will always miss the sea but she is happy here with her new family and she would miss them if she left. This rang true for me as I miss home and I think I always will when I am away but if I never leave home there is so much of life I will miss and when it is time for me to leave Botswana I am sure I will miss my life here as well. Emotions are complex. 

Fun fact did you know that donkeys make noise? I might be the last person to realize this, but it caught me by surprise this week. Unfortunately the donkeys have not been inclined to discuss their affinity for parfaits vs. onions however they do like to occasionally make a noise that reminds me of a train whistle that is on the fritz. I can assure you I was quite alarmed the first time I heard it and it took me awhile to realize where and what the noise was coming from.

Week 14: Lesegggggggggggggooooooooo, Welcome to Africa

I like to run to keep myself centered, have a little alone time, and enjoy the beautiful scenery. This also happens to be the kids favorite thing “Ya a gyma?” I have learned to appreciate this and no longer anticipate alone time. I now envision myself as imparting healthy habits which will build a foundation for good life choices. Now that may be a stretch but besides my alone time being compromised I cannot think of a downside to the kids running with me. There was one day this week where I felt like I could get away with taking a new route and have a little time to myself. I turned off the main road and started dodging low hanging branches enjoying a moment to myself when my thoughts were interurrupted by 13 children screaming my name “Lesegggggggggggggoooooooooooo” and running at full speed towards me. It started with three or four and kept multiplying as everyone heard the news, Lesego is approaching. The humor of the situation was not lost on me and by the time the kids met up with me they had already succeeded at melting my heart, how could I be angry with so many happy faces that were excited to see me, impossible.

My other favorite tidbit of this week involved a sun soaked kgotla meeting. The kgotla is a stone walled structure with no roof and thus as one is sitting in the kgotla you are exposed to the sun. After a warm meeting I stepped outside and was exchanging my cardigan for a lighter scarf and my new friend was walking past and all he said was “Welcome to Africa.” This cracked me up and I could not help but agree cardigans are not a great idea in Africa.