INTERNSHIP: Work at the school has been absolutely amazing. There have definitely been more than a few days where I've been frustrated...with myself, with the resources available (or not available), with my co-workers, etc. But overall, the experience has been incredible and I wouldn't choose anything different if I could start all over. The kids in my classes are generally pretty entertaining and sometimes make it a challenge, but it always keeps me on my toes and ready for anything. I think my favorite part is that I've gotten to know so many different people of different ages, and I learn just as much from them on a daily basis as I am teaching. The students in the 6ieme A, B, and C have all really improved and are certainly moving along. I'm always amazed at how fast they can soak up new information and it's quite rewarding to see them using their new language skills out of the classroom. :) Some of them have taken a liking to throwing in random English words into Wolof conversations... which definitely throws me off balance as I'm so used to speaking to Senegalese people in a Frolof combo (Wolof and French). It's been such a joy and I'm growing a bit sad about leaving in a few short weeks. Saying goodbye will be bitter sweet and I feel so lucky to have gotten to know these fantastic and extraordinary kids.
KEDOUGOU!: Over spring break, Lauren, Emma, Mark (Emma's boyfriend who came to visit her from the States) and I decided to make a trip to the Southwestern corner of Senegal. Kedougou is famous for its beautiful mountainous terrain and the few hidden waterfalls in the jungley forests. We had no set schedule for our excursion and no real reservations or anything, but everything seemed to work its way out. Senegalese Teranga (hospitality) continued to prevail and I was simply amazed at the sheer generosity of strangers. Upon our arrival to Tamba, a family member of a friend of Emma (whom none of us had ever met) had set up mattresses on the floor of her home for us to recover from the treacherous journey and was busy preparing to go to the market to cook us a meal as we humbly drifted through the front door of her home. It was absolutely glorious. I was so tired after the LONG and tiring bus ride (during which the old old man –probably 65+ - sitting next to me proposed, and our bus got a flat tire causing us to transfer onto another bus in the middle of the night), and this woman was a complete savior. Without knowing anything about us, aside from the fact that we knew her husband's coworker, she thoughtlessly welcomed us into her home and then continued to care for us. Gratitude doesn't even begin to cover that type of generosity.
One of her husband's friends came over in the afternoon who used to work at the camp we were planning to stay at that night, so he called his friend and told us that we would be coming and set everything up within 10 minutes of knowing us.
Things like this continued to happen throughout the rest of our journey and all things fell smoothly into place. Vacations planned with the "fly by the seat of your pants" theory really seem to work well in this country. :)
Over the course of 5 days we hit up 5 villages surrounding Kedougou, hiked to and swam in a waterfall, climbed a mountain, saw the oldest and most sacred baobab tree in Senegal, ate lunch with a random family, hitch-hiked a ride in the back of a pick up truck, communicated through Wolof, French, English, and Spanish, and met many new people. It was an extremely successful journey and I'm so content that we had the chance to make it happen.
FOSCO: Schools all over the country of Senegal celebrated something called FOSCO over the last 2 weeks. The Keur Samba Gueye community was scheduled to celebrate it the weekend of the 19th, but there was a death of one of the community members, so it was therefore postponed to the weekend thereafter. FOSCO (as far as I could understand) was a 3 day event celebrating the importance of education. All of the students waited with anticipation for the days of FOSCO to arrive. Everyone in the community was involved with all of the activities! There were grand dances, plays, meals prepared in mass, health education on HIV/AIDS, free blood typing, a teachers vs. students soccer game, and lots and lots of loud music.
The English club (composed of the older students), of which I am a supervisor, decided to write and perform a play in English. They wrote the entire thing by themselves and I was SO PROUD of them! There are some very talented actors in Keur Samba Gueye (one of them being my little brother Moustapha) and made me laugh on countless occasions. They organized rehearsals and did everything practically on their own. It was absolutely awesome and the community seemed impressed as well. They also did skits in Wolof and French which were comedies that caused everyone to double up in laughter.
The opening ceremony of this event was beautiful. Practically the entire community showed up in their formal wear. One of the students made a speech thanking me specifically for being a part of the experience and helping them with English club, my father (Papa Sow, the principal of the high school) also made a few comments similar to those made by the student, at which point I asked for the parole. As I stood in front of this community of beautiful people, I got extremely choked up (of course…who would’ve guessed) and started to tear up as I thanked them all for welcoming me into their village and for becoming my family for the past 4 months. I made the speech in Wolof, and at the end I couldn’t even say what I had planned because the words got all tangled behind the knot in my throat. More than a few tears were shed and it was another one of those “beautiful moments” I keep mentioning in these blogs. As I went to sit down, people were shaking my hand and patting me on the back. (I would have loved to give them all hugs, but that’s not exactly normal here so…I sadly resisted.)
The strangest thing happened to me the other week. It was my younger brother’s birthday (Moustapha) and I hadn’t known about it. So, quickly thinking of a makeshift gift, I rushed into my room and unzipped the outer zipper of my packpack. Shoving my hand deep into the outside pocket, I searched about for a few American coins. I felt around for the coins and pulled them out, and as I stared at them in the palm of my hand, I realized that they looked completely foreign to me. Weird, huh? Something so normal to me 7 ½ months ago now seems foreign. At that moment it hit me: maybe going back home isn’t going to be as easy as I originally assumed.
It’s amazing how fast we can adjust. How fast we can adapt. I never thought that I could feel at home in a place so far from home. Not just far geographically, but distant in terms of language and culture as well.
Suddenly these coins (a quarter, dime, nickel, and penny) represented something much larger than the American monetary system; they were symbols of home- things familiar, solid, accountable. These coins haven’t changed at all since I’ve left, but I realized that I am not the same person now as when I boarded that plane at the Washington Dulles Airport on August 28th, 2010. I had absolutely no idea what was coming. And now here I am on the last leg of this journey. I will board that plane back to the States, again not knowing exactly what’s coming next. I graduate in December and I don’t really have any solid plans after that. And you know what? I’m ok with that. I see it as the biggest opportunity. Not to be cliché, but I feel like the world is in the palm of my hand!
This isn’t the end of an adventure, this is just the beginning. Everything I knew about the world has shifted. My previous views have been challenged in every way possible and have expanded into something more beautiful, more intense, and more complicated than I ever thought possible.
These next few weeks will fly by and before I know it, I’ll be waking up in the morning with a pillow under my head to the sounds of pots and pans clanging in the kitchen (mom making French toast…*hint* *hint* ;) ). Then I’ll swing my legs out of bed and feel my toes in carpet where I will then make my way through the living room and over to the bathroom (inside the house) with a faucet and sink to brush my teeth and a shower in which to bathe… not to mention a TOILET that flushes and is sure to have a roll of T.P. situated nearby.
All of these simple little things that I will take in over the course of about 10 minutes will be experienced through a new looking glass. Everything that was the same before is now different. The way in which I see things is different. I’m different. What a blessing to have been able to truly “find” myself. And who knew it could happen in a sea of people a completely different shade of grey?
This is the last blog to come from Senegal. There will, however, be more to come in the future if you’re interested in keeping up with these thoughts of mine. I’m sure to travel again. In some ways, I feel that it’s just a part of my life path.
Thanks for following along and being a part of this grand adventure with me, and I’m so so SO excited to see you all when I get home.
Peace,
Ndella Sow
