10/07/2010

Man oh man, I’ve been a busy bee these past few weeks! The Priest at the Anglican church and I have been having some really good conversations about what this village needs and we have some really good ideas on how to address those issues. Here once a child turns about 2 they are left home alone when the parents go out to the farm, that means that they do not get fed all day long. After talking with a lot of the hospital staff I have really seen that this is a main component to why the children are underweight at the weighing days. Another big issue is education where the kids are not ready for school, think about it in America before your child goes to school they can count and say their ABCs and maybe even add a little, here is not that way. Parents are at the farm all day and when they get back they need to go get water, cook, clean and do many more chores and after all of that they aren’t about to teach their kids anything. It is not good! What is a good solution? Well start a nursery school!!!! At the church there is also a bible school where there is extra classrooms, there is a large yard, there is a kitchen!! YES we are starting a nursery school here in Milo!!! We plan on feeding the kids and also teaching some basics and just giving them a safe place to go! …. I am super excited and I really hope it all works out! Besides all of that I have been doing nothing too special…. I asked a little girl to help me build a fence for my garden and I have never felt so useless in my life! She is 12 or 13 and she was doing 97% of the work and I was just standing there useless. We first had to go borrow a panga (machete) and go out to the woods and find wood for the frame, she was climbing and yelling down commands to me, which I totally didn’t understand so she had to climb down and do everything! She then said we needed rope, me being the American I am thought about how much money that rope will cost me, she then crawled under some brush and came out with a long vine and told me that was the rope! She then peeled tree bark with her teeth and said that “bark is the strong rope”…. YEA that was how the weekend went lol … I have been thinking a lot lately about how the heck I got here! How many small choices in life led to this moment where I am sitting under a mosquito net? Those questions often lead me to think, If I was in the states, what would I be doing? Ask any Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) how dangerous that questions is! That is the first sign that you will be sad ASAP! Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE my village and I am doing some good work but man oh man I miss everyone! I got a package from dev and a letter from Erin not too long ago when I was in Njombe and my friend here Jill said “How cute you still have friends” … She went on to say how she stopped getting letters long ago but how your PC friends start to become family because truly, no one can relate to you like they can…. I hope that my PC little family stays close but man I know I will be checking scores of the Lewis basketball/volleyball/soccer/softball and of course some swimming games/meets supporting my friends the way that they are supporting me …. I spent the past 4 years making a connection to a Lewis community and my friends and family from home are my rock and no amount of malaria or giardia or even sand fleas can change that! In other words I might be thousands of miles away but everyone back home, if you need anything I will be there for you! ………… Random thing also, I talked to Courtney the other day and the roosters were doing their normal “cock-a-doodle-doing” and to tell you the truth I didn’t even notice but all of sudden she just says “Amy, is that really a rooster” lol I didn’t even know how to answers besides saying “duh, I live in a village dude”.. I then talked to Resha and I told her my little helper girl went to go get me water (seen as a childs chore) and she says “Amy you have maids?” haha these little moments make me so happy to share my experiences with people back in the states…. Oh man I love my family and friends!!! …. Please keep me in your prayers, and keep your fingers crossed for the nursery school to get started (maybe even next month)!!!!
AMY