Update: The Circle of Life

So I've been meaning to do an update for awhile and saying I would and then *BAM!* March is basically over. Where did it go? I have absolutely no idea, but these past 3 weeks have flown by, so it is time for an update.

Arrival back in the village after a month away was fabulous. People were a little annoyed that I had been gone a few weeks longer than I had originally said, but were forgiving. I brought my family back spoons, soap, and vegetables as gifts (I'm such a health PCV!). The biggest and most beautiful surprise was seeing how far the garden had progressed in a month. Almost everything was outplanted into these beautiful and long plots. The lettuce has already started being sold across the village and everyone seems to love it. Salad Senegalese-style is lettuce with a hot and oily-onion sauce, sometimes with chicken or fish, and bread. A far cry from a Whole Foods salad, but I may try and get a little fancy when the tomatoes in the garden turn ripe so my family can try it.
Better than that, gardening has caught on across the village. The school started selling tomato, lettuce, and cabbage seedlings and tons of families started their own gardens. It's super exciting!

Later that week, wrestling came to Marc's village and I actually went two different times because some there were some other PCVs visiting our area who do not have the pleasure of the weekly wrestling tournaments which the Sereres enjoy so much. There's some pics of it on my website...uneventful and boring for PCVs but quite the event for the Senegalese.

Sunday night, the last night of the tournament, Jaime and I got back to my hut around 1:30/2am and hurried into my hut since we were exhausted--I thought about seeing if anyone was awake, but was too exhausted. As I was laying in my bed, I heard a baby cry in the distance and told Jaime who was laying on my new cot, "a month ago, everytime I heard a baby cry, I was convinced it was Khodya giving birth..." and fell asleep. Well, the next morning I found out it WAS Khodya giving birth!!!!!!!! [She was the one who told me she was having twins and I saw the echogram, but there was only one baby...I don't know what happened and she wouldn't say anything other than she had one baby.] She had a boy (her 5th boy...7th kid), which everyone visiting promptly pointed out by saying "Khady, wo jegiro chance" or "Khady, you have no luck," meaning that the baby couldn't be named after me. That doesn't matter to me, just the fact that they are both healthy (he weighed in at 3.5kg). I had never seen a baby so recently after it was born and also had the pleasure of witnessing the first time he breastfed. [In Senegal, they don't start breastfeeding right away for various reasons, which is bad and makes it harder for the mother to recover post-delivery] My village mom wanted to give the baby this weird brown liquid she said was from the Imam, but I stopped that (well, she may have given it after I left the room...), explaining Ndeye's baby Ibou got sick and malnourished because of the water they gave him and how this baby needs to exclusively breastfeed until 6months.

Over the next few days, along with people coming by to see the baby and express my badluck, the idea came up that the baby should be named after my dad--James. Sereres (all of Senegal?) like to be silly from here on and confuse the relationship. For examp, because it was my brother's wife who gave birth (she's my sis-in-law in the village), sometimes they like to say that she is thus my wife and the baby is my father. So basically, my wife gave birth to my father. Crazy, huh? Yea... well I knew that they wouldn't actually baptize a Muslim baby James, but he will be nicknamed that--by me at the very least.

Unfortunately, I was called away to Thies and missed the baptism (I think they named him Aman Faye Diouf, but I can't really remember), which I'm sure was a fabulous fete (party). I was brought back to Thies to help with the cross-culture assessments of the Trainees (all of whom are totally fabulous!), which turned out to be good timing because the PC staff member in charge of all of that got really sick and I basically did her job in place of her all week. With the help of a few other PCVs, I led a session on Styles of Communication in Senegal (basically how people say yes as a way of saying no, etc), reviewed XCulture books, helped paint the huge map of Senegal for Site Announcements, hung out with the trainees, and just generally helped out wherever I could.

Tuesday night, another sister in the village called me to tell me that someone in our compound passed away that day (day after the baptism). Her name was Coumba and she had some type of serious mental disability, couldn't talk, was basically paralyzed, and was probably in her late 20s or early 30s. Her quality of life was probably not very high, though every day family members took care to feed and bather her, so I believe she is in a better place, but it was still a surprise. Even harder was the fact that the week before a different sister brought me into Coumba's room to show me a lesion on her hip/butt. It was red and white and slimy looking--cancerous looking or like some other super nasty type of infection, but I didn't know what it could be. They said it hurt her a lot and had just appeared the previous week. She had a few other white spots that looked like weird bed sores but not quite, between her knees and on her shoulder blades. I looked through my Where There is No Doctor Book (an amazing book filled with all of these village remedies and advice on all sorts of things--I could deliver a baby with the help of this book, if God willed it), but couldn't really find much of any advice, except clean out the wound with soap. A few days later, the ticket seller from the Health Post stopped by on his way home to check on her (she can't get to the health post, nor can they do much of anything for her), but I don't know what he said (nor is he a trained medical professional). I still wondered about it, but no one asked me about it again. I was sad to hear about it, but am personally glad to have missed a death in my compound (the funeral happens almost immediately after one passes), because even though I've been here a year, I don't know if I'm quite ready for that. They told Marc it was breast cancer, because apparently that is what her mother died of several years ago. I don't know for sure, nor do I think anyone would tell me, but from the look of that sore (I don't know if there was anything on her breast), I wouldn't be surprised if it was some type of cancer. Wow. Cancer really sucks--in Africa too.

On a lighter note, the day after (this past Wednesday), the new trainees received their site placements--yay! The greater Kaolack region is receiving 4 newbies: Chris, Stephanie, Mary, and Jessie.I'm now back in Kaolack and headed to the village (via evil Passi) tomorrow morning. I have to talk to Jaime about her chicken project which I get to inherit once she COSes (which I wish she wouldn't do!). This week, Mary and Chris are coming to visit Marc and Jaime to see their future sites, so I'm sure I will spend some time with them, amidst gardening and checking on the progress of hole digging in the village. Next weekend, le 4 d'Avril, is Senegal's Independence Day, which I will be celebrating at site (the kids march, it should be a site!) and then the next day I will be welcoming a study abroad student (American student studying for the year in Dakar) to my site for a week. It will be a challenge sharing my hut for a week, esp since I've come to value my private time in the village so much, but everyone else I know who has hosted says it's a great experience. Basically I will drag her around as I do random things around the village and get a chance to have new eyes experience my village and life in Senegal.

Pictures are updated on my Picasa website, so go check them out! Also, as for mail...for some reason it's taking forever and a day for anything to reach my box in Foundiougne. Please don't stop trying, but just have patience. I know I'm doing my best, eagerly awaiting lots of mail people have told me about (and a pair of replacement flipflops still coming from Chacos). Love you and miss you all!

If you are looking for the adventure of a lifetime...

Senegal might just be it!

I meant to mention it in my mass email, but if you are looking for an exciting and fabulous trip, you should think about Senegal. It's not a trip for the faint of heart or a relaxing vacation, but it will be an experience. Think about it. Let me know, I'll be here another year... :)

One Year Down

and one year (and a month or two) to go!

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(The below is taken from a mass update email I just sent, so don't worry about reading it again, but I just wanted to put it up...)
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Hey Everyone!!!! [Please be warned that this is a long email...but it's a once-a year thing]

Well, I'm not at the official One Year in Senegal, but will be there on Friday, March 13. Yes, Friday is the one year mark when myself and 38 other young Americans landed in Dakar, after two days Staging in Philly, a full day of flights, and God-only-knows how many months or years of application and preparation for the life in the Peace Corps. Since I will most likely be in my village on Friday, I thought I would send the one year email a few days early. I am quite shocked that the year mark has hit, and I know several others who came in with me are as well. One year is three times as long as I spent in Brussels and six times as long as I lived in Paris, yet in many ways they are even still more familiar to me than Senegal. Maybe not, but it's definitely been and will continue to be a much longer journey.

So what has this year held for me? Really, what has it not? (Marriage proposals have been plentiful, but none accepted, so no worries!) It has probably been the hardest and most challenging year of my life, but one where I learned way more than I ever have over a 12 month period and I thought it would be interesting to reflect on this year based on the things that I have learned--knowing full well that I still have SO MUCH to learn about life in Senegal and my work. I've learned a lot about Senegal, health, development, culture, education, myself, my friends, and more--too much to even begin to put into words. I know when I come back in April/May 2010, it will take me awhile to process through it all, but here's a start.

Some things (in no particular order) that I have learned include:
Two different languages (Serere and Wolof, to different degrees)
How to bargain for goods at the market, cabs, etc
How to travel in West African public transport (eek...)
Who in my life will make the effort to stay in touch (def had some surprises there)
How to garden (in the ground and in random containers), do a tree nursery, to plant trees, collect seeds
That I'm capable of more than I sometimes think I can handle
How to pull water from a well and then carry it on my head
To use a squatty toilet
That I had absolutely NO CLUE what I was doing when I signed up for Peace Corps, which was probably a good thing
To paint murals
That waking up to a rooster's crow is not enjoyable or cute
To hand wash my laundry (pull water from the well, add soap, soak clothes, agitate/scrub, squeeze out, rinse, squeeze, hang on the line, soak feet in rinse water, dump leftover water on garden) and realize the value of a washing machine
To bathe with a bucket (one big one, one little)
How to ride a charette (ish)
That I actually love raw milk with millet (and a little sugar)
How to defend my marital status in multiple languages and to know when to lie about it as well
How to read Senegalese indirect communication (they don't like to directly say no, so you need to know when they say yes but actually mean no)
How to tie a hairwrap-ish
To distinguish the sounds of the cries of 25 different children as well as baby animals
That mangoes are INCROYABLE
The value of the cold season
The importance of long-distance phone calls
The beauty of letter-writing and letter reading (though I sometimes feel like I write more than I receive)
How lucky I am to have been born in a country that values mens and womens education and rights (relatively) equally and not to suffer oppression based on my gender or ethnicity
The oral-fecal cycle and how to explain it to people, how to prevent it (hand washing with soap), and other basic health lessons
The importance of education in development and how lack of education (through strikes, the government not paying, poverty, etc) can cripple several generations of potential
The tragedy of tallibees and how it really is a human rights abuse taking kids away from their families for "religious education" only to make them beg on the streets and their begged money go into the pockets of ridiculously rich religious leaders with fancy homes, cars, and cell phones, while the kids wear rags and starve...and yet, know that helping the kids really only helps the system, so what is one to do?
To design my own clothes (then get them made!) and (horribly) patch holes in my clothes
How to pound millet and make Senegalese couscous
The true meaning of the phrase "to grow like a weed"
To laugh at myself (I think I learned this during years of mission trips, but I really value it now) and to JUST DANCE!
About breastfeeding and pre and post natal care
That the Harry Potter books are absolutely fabulous!
That no matter where I am, I still love/appreciate the value of a good cup of coffee or glass of red wine
To travel lightly, yet still be prepared and probably overpack
About all sorts of health issues like reproductive health, Malaria, hygiene and sanitation, clean water, and many other issues
To appreciate the environment (not like I didn't before, but still...)
About mangroves as an ecosystem and really understand the problem of deforestation (Senegal is quickly turning into the Sahara Desert)
That vacations are AMAZING in so many ways--esp around the holidays to see friends and family
How to rely on the kindness of strangers and non-strangers, but also know when to be aware of people trying to take advantage of you
How to sit around (and why one should ALWAYS carry a book on your person)
The necessity of a delicious and nutrient-packed meal after weeks in the village (or after Ramadan)
The amazingness of peanut butter (peanuts in general) as a nutritional substance, esp with bananas!
That care packages in the PC are 500% better than care packages in college
How amazing going to church is after not being able to for several months, even if it's in a crazy French/English/Serere mix, that I only partially understand--it still means a lot
That I am soooo thankful capital punishment is no longer allowed in schools and that beating your child is NOT acceptable in the States--that breaks my heart here
How to really be creative with cooking and with limited supplies in general
That I can no longer spell correctly in any language or hold a normal American conversation (after we get past name, job, hometown, weather, marital status, I'm at a loss for words--actually it's a problem many PCVs here have, we can only hold Senegalese style convos...)
That I still have no idea what I want to do post-PC, where I want to live, or what exactly I want to study for grad school
That I have amazingly supportive family and friends who haven't once told me that I should just get up and leave--ie quit PC, or not do it at all, and I am very blessed for having that
That as hard as it can be, this is where I need to be right now

Ok, well that list is long enough for now, but is really just the tip of the iceberg of learning experiences here in Senegal. I'm sure if I sat here long enough I could double or triple that list, at least!

Work has been picking up a lot the past few months. I am doing a mixture of stuff in the village (gardening at the school, a latrine project, getting community and school educational health sessions going, working with teachers), stuff in my nearest town slowly coming together (girls' group and English club, maybe a summer camp?), regional activities (preparing for a Girls' Leadership camp next summer, learning about the mangroves and reforesting them), and training activities for future PCVs (I've done a lot of work with the cross culture training of the newest groups of trainees, including a cross culture book, plus I'm working with a fellow PCV to write a Serere-English dictionary). There's also a ton more things that I want to do in this next year, but probably won't quite have time for (in part because things move much slower here as well). I need to make sure to find a balance between work (in and out of the village) and personal time, because just like in the States, I seem to have a hard time finding it. Either I feel like I'm sitting around too much reading in the village (for fun and work) and that I need to be doing a lot more, or I'm just constantly running around doing things (in and out of the village) and then feel exhausted and horrible because I don't have time to sit with friends and family in the village, or to visit fellow PCVs. I still haven't seen much of Senegal at all, so I want to spend time visiting fellow PCVs around the country, and see it because for such a small country, every region is sooo different, and maybe a trip to some neighboring countries. We shall see.

Because the bush isn't good enough

The below excerpt was taken from the Peace Corps website and is the description for a latrine project Marc and I are working on together (actually, he has done a large majority of the leg work but has extra money so is kindly giving it to my village for the same project). Actually, the greater Kaolack region PCVs are also working on a latrine project, which I am part of as well, in order to get latrines in every compound in my village.

Latrine Construction

This proposal requests the sum of $1,758.96 for the construction of 47 latrines in two Senegalese villages. Lacking access to basic sanitation, residents have no choice but to relieve themselves directly on the ground just outside the village proper. This increases the rates of diarrhea and other diseases in the villages. Furthermore, dangerous items are discarded carelessly due to the lack of a proper place to dispose of them, ending up in the hands of young children and babies.

In coordination with Peace Corps, the villages have developed Community Action Plans that have identified the construction of latrines as a necessary means to achieving their goal of improving village health and overall sanitation. However, they lack the means to accomplish this on their own. The communities have pledged to contribute a considerable amount of labor and materials comprising 15% of the total project cost as well as a 10% cash contribution. They need your help—please assist them in making their communities a better place to live.

On the PC website, you can actually find links to a bunch of projects in Senegal and around the world. [It's part of Peace Corps Partnership funding, that allows friends and family in the States to donate to projects we are working on as PCVs.] We already had funding, or I would have posted the link. In the future (next fall?), I may try and raise money for a well covering project to my village, but I have a lot of other projects in the mean time.