Four Weeks Deep

Four weeks in to my new life here. Wow! It is interesting to be getting to the end of August and not having to prepare to go back to college. As a Resident Assistant at Saint John’s University I always had to go back two weeks early. I believe yesterday was the day the new RA’s arrived. It is easy to miss college; yet the joys of experiencing something new are always nice. I try to focus on making my present situation just as great as my past ones (and college was pretty dang great!)

Now that the ordination is tomorrow the monastery is buzzing with people. It is actually quite strange because the monastery is usually fairly quiet, but the change of pace is good for the monks here. You can find nuns knitting and sewing, monks preparing the food, and decorations being put up. The archbishop will be here soon, three Abbots have arrived (one from Hanga which is where I will be in January), and many monks from other monasteries.

The internet has been pretty terrible lately so my lesson planning has been put on hold until it gets better (hopefully it does). However, it gives me time to learn more about the dispensary and help Chiara and Francesca give medical aid to the villagers. Chiara and Francesca will be joining Zack and I on our trip to Victoria Falls, but leaving to head back to Italy afterwards. Therefore, I have told Violet, the dispensary worker, that I would help her each Saturday. I will be teaching during the week, working in the clinic on Saturdays, and then taking some time for myself on Sundays. Thinking about being alone in the dispensary and not having Chiara and Francesca to get advice from is a little frightening, but I will manage. I have been writing down everything so I can refer back to it in order to help as many patients as I possibly can when working on Saturdays throughout the next months.

In our free time, Zack and I have begun to play the monks in volleyball. We are trying to have a game three times a week, but it sometimes doesn’t work out. However, the Americans did bring home the victory in our last match! When school starts back up I think I will join the kids in playing soccer (football). It will be a fun way to bond with the kids I am teaching and I probably could improve my soccer skills some. It’s been awhile since I have played.

When we aren’t feeling too energetic Zack and I watch a show on his computer. The one we have been watching lately is called “Band of Brothers” and man is it good! If you enjoy learning about WW2 or action packed shows then I would recommend this one. It is one of the best shows I have seen. It follows the men of Easy Company through their experiences and time in the war.

Since September is approaching we have increased our tutoring in order to get a good understanding of what some kids around the village know. We have tutored a 21 and a 29 year old, both are not in school anymore, and are still working towards their certifications (what we would call a diploma). I, of course, am not telling you this to make fun of the people here but rather to inform you that the education level is not very high. It makes me sad to see. Through talking to people we have found out that only 4 people have degrees -the Headmaster, and three teachers.

Furthermore, when reviewing problems with students we find errors in the questions that are being asked in their workbooks (if they are lucky enough to have a workbook). For example, I once was working on a question with a student that was asking about the pupil of the eye. We were discussing sense organs. The question went something like “The pupil’s pupil is dilating. What causes the dilation of the pupil?” Who words a question like this? They barely know what the pupil of the eye is and the question uses two versions of the word. One version is referring to a student and the other to the eye.

I will make sure to write my questions in a way that allows the students to understand what I am asking.

As for news from the homeland (Saint John’s Abbey) my supervisor Br. Paul has emailed us about the possibility of Fr. Nick visiting in December. I think it would be nice to have him visit and think he will be. Fr. Nick volunteered in Hanga, Tanzania when he was a part of the BVC a few years back. He will arrive here a few days before Christmas, celebrate the holidays with us, and then help in our travels from Zambia to Tanzania. Things have yet to be set in stone but I think it will be soon.

Well, Saint John’s and Saint Ben’s students are getting prepared for another great school year and some are even preparing to study abroad. Exciting times! If you are one of them – Good luck and have fun!

I usually try to add some photos to make the blog a little more entertaining, but with the internet so slow lately it takes too long. I will try again with later posts. Thanks for reading!