I know it hasn’t been long since my last blog, but every
time I have internet access I feel like I’m obligated to post something! I’m
writing to you from the campus of an organization called Vusumnotfo, about 20
minutes from my village. It is primarily a training program for Swaziland’s
preschool teachers, and is run by an American woman who served here in the
Peace Corps in the 1980s and decided to never move back home! Not only does she
have the best wifi connection in the country up here, but there’s several
adorable dogs, home cooked meals fresh from the gardens, and a lot of cool
projects she lets PCVs help her out with.
In my last blog I shared our plans for going to House on
Fire. It was incredible! I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but it ended up
being a really fun night. The whole place was packed with people from all over
the world, since it really is the only place to go out dancing in Swaziland. And
we danced!!! The building is painted in every bright color inside, has a huge
arena-style seating area with a dance floor and stage at the bottom, and there
is an American ex-pat who runs a gourmet pizza kitchen out of the place! As a
music venue, it is second only to the Gorge in eastern Washington on my list of
favorites. We will definitely be going back sometime soon.
This past week I have been busy inputting the survey data
from my high school students into the computer. It was a really short, simple
survey but I did get some interesting information out of it. I received 376
responses from Forms 1-5 (American grades 8-12). I was interested in seeing the
percentage of students who are OVCs (orphaned and vulnerable children), which
is defined as not having one or both parents, or living with parents who are
otherwise incapable of taking care of them. My results show that at my high
school, over 35% of students have lost one parent, and 8.5% are double orphaned
(both parents have died). The students are living with 5-6 siblings, on
average. That means there are over 900 OVCs living in my community-just
connected to the students at this high school. Thinking about things like this
can be really overwhelming, especially as you get to know students individually
and hear their stories. I can’t imagine growing up in a society where AIDS had
devastated so many families, and made child-headed households a common
occurrence.
On a happier note, Friday was Mayiwane High School’s Speech
and Prize-Giving day! The school year here follows the calendar year, and the
Form 5’s start their final exams this week (the other students don’t finish
school until November-December) so this event is an end-of-year celebration. I
think I only heard one speech given by a student…It was more of a talent show.
There were choirs and rappers and dancers and traditional cultural
performances. It was definitely one of the best days I’ve had in my community
so far! When I showed up early to help prepare for the event, several huge
tents were already put up around the school yard with chairs underneath for the
guests. I was directed to the kitchen to help cook! There was chicken and cow
slaughtering and butchering happening all around me, but I stuck to peeling potatoes
and chopping onions. Swaziland has really strict gender roles, so it was only
women in the kitchen…but interestingly enough, just like in America, the men
ran the grill. There was a big group of guys huddled around the braai all
morning, supervising the grilling of the beef.
At around 11am,
hundreds of people showed up to watch (and get the free food that was served
afterwards), including several important members of local leadership and this
region’s Member of Parliament. Public schools here are built by the government
and teacher salaries are paid by the government, but all other funds come from
the community and the school fees the students pay. I think this event is a way
of thanking the community for their donations and asking for continued support,
hence the free food. Anyway, there were three hours of entertainment by the
students…and of course, I forgot my camera. Below are some pictures of the
festivities I was able to take on my phone.
After the performances, the Head Teacher announced winners
of all the prizes. Last month, the teachers met and decided on a student who
had excelled in each subject, for each Form (so there was a Science prize for 1
,2 ,3, 4, and 5, etc). This was my favorite part. When a students’ name was
called, all their classmates cheered, and you could tell the winners were
trying to hold back on showing how excited they were. If the winner’s Make was
in the crowd, she would run into the middle of the stage area and be there to
greet her son or daughter with a big hug after they received their gift, and
then dance her way back to her seat! They were so proud! It was so much fun to
watch.
My phone charger quit working this week so I had to go to
Manzini on Saturday to borrow one from a friend. It actually worked out nicely
as a day to escape the pressures of village life for a few hours. I love the
sense of community I feel in Mayiwane, and I love hearing people greet me by my
Swazi name when I’m walking down the road, but it is exhausting knowing that
you are always being watched and talked about, and never being completely
certain that you are doing everything the “right” way. So anyway, while in
Manzini I was able to enjoy and iced coffee with REAL espresso, get my
Halloween costume sorted out, pick up some things for my hut, and then of
course…I hit the craft market. This place is dangerous. I should never be
allowed to go here. I want to buy everything, and by the time these two years
are over, I’ll probably be close to accomplishing that. A few of the vendors
already know me by name, ask about the happenings of my life, and always have
something new to show me. If you come visit, you’ll see what I mean. Bring an
empty suitcase! While in the city I also ran into a girl from my training
village, Sihhohhweni. She told me everyone is doing well and that Inkhosatana,
my family’s little puppy, is now knee-high! I cannot wait to go visit them in
December and spoil that dog!
I spent Sunday with a few high school girls walking around
the community. Part of the report I am working on for Peace Corps is going to
include a map of my village, so we were working on that. After about three
hours of walking, I decided we all needed a treat. Last week, we picked some
“raspberries” from a tree and I put them in my freezer, and on Sunday afternoon
we baked a pie! I was so happy it turned out well! No one here had ever even
heard of pie, so it was a treat for everyone who got a piece. My family is
always cooking for me and going out of their way to make me comfortable, and my
baking seems to be something they enjoy, (the banana bread I made last weekend
was talked about nonstop until I gave Make the recipe!) so I’ll probably be
doing a lot of it to share with them!
This is the biggest tree in my village, and community
meetings often take place in its shade.
Winnie and I, after our long walk. She is one of my best
friends in the community.
Now that I’ve been here for a few months, and I’ve settled
into my site, I think the reality of the amount of time I’ve committed to serve
has finally set in. Living in a new country and seeing a new part of the world,
learning a language and culture, meeting people and doing exciting work…none of
that is a sacrifice. Joining the Peace Corps isn’t “service” in terms of the work
I’m doing, it is service in that it is really hard to be away from home. There
are moments when I doubt my decision to come here, and this lifestyle is
definitely isolating, but then I get an email from my best friend or a picture
message of my puppy or the neighborhood kids invite me to their dance party,
and everything is okay again. I can’t tell you how much your messages of
encouragement and support mean to me! Everyone at home, the people that I miss
like crazy and I wish I could be sharing these experiences with… They’re the
reason I question if it is worth being here, but they’re also why I stay. I am
so incredibly fortunate for the amazing people in my life who keep me going!
Ngiyabonga kakhulu, bonkhosi!
And now, some more harsh realities of Swaziland:
When you get on a khumbi, you can do your very best to
select the most pleasant seat available, but as soon as the old man with
pungent body odor gets on at the stop after yours, the next two hours of your
life are going to be miserable.
When the community tap has run dry and your choices are to
go to the next one, and then haul your full water jugs 20 minutes uphill…or to
not do laundry…you’re going to be wearing some dirty t-shirts for a while.
Explaining American holiday traditions for Halloween and
Christmas make you sound like a crazy person. “A tree!? In the house?! Why!?”
Whenever you see a man in public with his back turned to
you, he is peeing. And you’re lucky that his back is turned.
