Adventures in Between a Working World

I THINK THIS IS ACTUALLY AN EDITING EXERCISE,,,,, a sort of where is Waldo type of thing, But this is HOW MANY GRAMMATICAL MISTAKES AND POORLY FORMED SENTENCES CAN YOU DISCOVER.....good luck in your mission.

As in all places, it is so easy to become so immersed in day to day that you can overlook other wonderful realities. I am in Africa. Yes, yes, I am, every once in a while it reoccurs to me. Unfortunately I am using only a few words of swahili a day and have discovered the places that I can get away with such ignorance.

Each morning I wander up the hill to school and make it within a minute or so of the bell. I teach until just after 1 in the afternoon and then I may teach some more, or run the stilt, theater club or have meetings or just organize. I have slowed down considerably on my quest to master Kiswahili. I just don't know if I can do it all. My teaching is amazingly rewarding. For the first time in a long time I feel very good, not sometimes good, but probably about to make some huge mistake that will bring the walls crashing in, no I feel strong and useful in my work. I am also appreciated for my expertise. It is nice. I still take care to not overstep or say too much, but in my little classroom. It is great. There is such obvious growth since I arrived. The kids even notice and are appreciating it, they say things like, 'i used my brain and thought.' Which might seem obvious, but when I arrived they did not seem to be needing to use much of their own creative minds, lots of worksheets and spoon fed directions. So I threw them for a huge loop for a while, no one understood a word of the demands and questions that I was asking, but this is changing. Why even my 27 year old assistant is beginning to be able to follow my directives.

I continue learning to be very alone and at peace. Would I turn down a best friend, adventurous type companion. Well, absolutely blankety blank not, so come on over. But since my reality does not include this, I am living a contented and fine life. For the most part, even though I am becoming a bit reclusive. I love my bug net, I love the movies that are hidden in a bag under my bed, I wish I loved reading my wonderful books, I love the warm shower and the fact that I wash my few articles of clothing each night as I crouch in the water of what could be a shower if I turned the handle. Having never recovered from my first night, sunburnt being blasted by the force of a powerful, but uneven shower head, I have resorted to not using the shower at all, just a faucet for me. I dearly hope no one ever accidently opens the door to seem me in such a crazy and compromised position.

The small social pleasures make me smile. Today was outstanding. Good teaching, a visit with Ruby, who has taken me on as her adult project. We read together, she has severe dyslexia and I hope to help her gain strength and confidence and she wants to learn to stilt. Her mom is a crazy Dutch woman who never is short on laughter. Ruby is the only futbol player that actually to listen to advice and changed her play during our weekend tournament. So I like her.

Then sitting with the 3 sisters from the only restaurant in town, outside school, just chatting An Indian family, the 4 year old is only a bit tougher and cuter than the 8 year old. They are tyrants, intense and delightful. They move from giving the most outrageous and precocious orders to bursting into the sweetest laughter. And then their 12 year old sister, the quiet one, but also super strong. Comments like, "miss sue, what are you thinking, why dont you just....do this or that....." I like all of them a lot too. And tonight as I was nearing home, they were wandering down the hill to buy street corn and walk with their uncle. They yelled and ran towards me and then bought me a 1/4 of an ear of corn and we walked together for the next ten minutes. Simple. Delightful and simple experience. Made me smile. A lot.

The best, absolute best was jumping into Mama Chones car and visiting her house a few miles away. The walk home was also great. But her home, her company, laughing with her and her husband. Sitting on the HUGE ROCK in their backyard, quite like the photo I added. Visiting their screaming pigs and chickens, eating the white bland, paste typical of Tanzania with a handful of beans and some green leafy veggie. I though I was going around a corner or two and then walking to the market and home. No it was the afternoon and a full scale visit. Wonderful. Absolutely wonderful.

Yes, simple, good company. It feels good. She is they type of person that you meet and you think, 'yes, the world is full of goodness.' She is almost 60 and teaches with us, also plays futbol with the mom's group. She is a riot, as tough as nails, with a smile wider than a canyon. She runs right through anyone in the way and somehow even if you end up on the ground, you feel as though you've been hugged when you catch Mama Chones eye.

Social life, did I mention my big night out? The women's, 'mother's group, dinner that I suggested and that turned into over 20 women from countries all over the world having dinner together in the only restaurant, well it turned out terrific. To be truthful it was at times a bit overwhelming. Such a large crowd, so many conversations, and the all too familiar situation of those few people that seem to have no qualms about always having their voice in the foreground of all occasions. Still great, and the dancing and beer at the local, "paradise club' was quite interesting. In the boondocks, incredible simple bar that had a live band. Dirt floorish type of place, pay for the warm beer before a waitress will go off to get it for you. I actually was never sure if she was a waitress or someone trying to get money from me. Lucky for us, Mia speaks fluently. So five of us spent an hour or two into the wee hours here. Funny, to see these mostly blond, middle age women jump up to dance at the first song. Great spunk.

The most fun was returning after everyone else to see all of them on the edge of their seat in hysterics at witnessing 'me being groped on the dance floor.' What started out as some man gyrating in front of me, backing me up to the stage, in all its innocence, when he moved his hands to my hips and worked at moving us in unison, well I tired of the song and returned to my 'friends.' They were in hysterics,,,,,,,,,giggling, laughing, roaring,,,,,,,I had no idea that they could even see, the floor was so crowded. At this point, all I could do was ,,,stutter, sputter and joke,,,ok, so this is the kind of friends you all are. ' This sent them into even greater laughter. Later one of the band members grabbed me from the stage and did some more gyrating for me, quite a thrill for me as you can imagine.

Oh yes and I played real futbol. Well almost real futbol, i at least got a workout. Terrifying to run out on the field at this muslim school. All the women have their heads covered and I had just donned a kids, bright red, slightly too small soccer uniform.Yikes. When I ran on the field, the screaming was outrageous. I almost ran off again. Yhhheeeeeayyyeeeeeeeeeeeeee yaaay yeeeeee, I don't know if this is coming across but, it is a screaming that I have heard represented in movies before by large groups of women in Muslim countries. It is somewhat chilling. So I was a good deal nervous for much of the game.

Then my team as with all the teams at our school, is not good. No matter how much I had just insisted, I had coached the previous game, how much I had asked for the older guys, my teammates to help me, nobody, nobody understands that to play defense the team needs to have people on both sides of the field. The good news is that since the team is all arab men, nobody would have ever passed to me, so combine this with their stupid defensive tactics and all I had to do was take on playing defense to get a great challenging workout. I always had 2 to 5 people to cover and often was the only one on that end of the field, so there you have it.....real futbol here in Africa. Oh, yes, I should mention the rock covered field and the sand pile a good two feet high in one corner of the field. Crazy.

Ok, there is probably more, but I think I am rambling and I know I am exhausted. Send me notes, long boring notes, I happily am missing home.

besos