Yesterday I was supposed to head to Chinsali to renew my
visa. Chinsali is about an hour and a half to two hours away so the drive was
planned for the morning. Unfortunately, a water pipe broke and the driver, Br.
Simeon, had to stay and fix it. Therefore, I ended up staying back too. Now
that it is the weekend the immigration office is closed so I hope to go on
Monday. I need to go soon so everything can be processed in time.
Lately, there have been some problems with people coming in
to the clinic, receiving medication and then failing to pay for it. I could
have told you this was going to be a problem from the start, but I was
instructed to distribute medicine and just charge the amount the patient owed
to their bill. However, most people never come back to pay their bill. This has
led to a loss of money. So now we are unable to administer any medication
without payment first.
In my biology class we have entered the health and disease
unit. The students seem to enjoy learning about this topic because they have a
ton of questions each class period. I am happy to teach them about it as well
because there is a huge lack in health education in countries such as Zambia.
This is also why diseases such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, hepatitis and tuberculosis
are prevalent in this part of the world. Education will lead to healthier
people, stronger communities, developed societies and longer life expectancy.
It is amazing to see what they do and don’t know. I taught
them about the importance of washing their hands, brushing their teeth, bathing,
and practicing safe sex. All of which they seemed surprised to learn. Of
course, they have heard these things, but it wasn’t something they felt they
must follow. They didn’t know things such as we should brush our teeth twice a
day, coughing into your arm was better than just openly coughing, washing your
hands after using the bathroom can eliminate the spread of germs and disease
and that STD meant Sexually Transmitted Disease. Being that these kids are
around the age of 20 and most are sexually active they did know that condoms
are a good way to practice safe sex, but they thought that by using one would
eliminate the chances of contracting HIV completely. Does it help? Yes, but one
can still contract the disease. I almost felt bad in breaking this news to
them. I also spoke about how keeping clean, washing our bodies with soap and
living in a clean area was important to staying healthy.
I am happy to teach them about these things, though, because
I know it is extremely useful information that will help them live better,
healthier and longer lives.
As you know, I enjoy taking long walks with my free time.
These walks allow the villagers to see me and speak with me (even though the
conversations are fairly short). Yet, when they see me you’d think I was Brad
Pitt or some major celebrity. Especially the kids, they tend to marvel at my
white skin and red hair. The kids usually scream “How are you?” and I respond
“Fine” which is the custom compared to saying “Good.” Then they quickly run to
their parents and tell them that that spoke with the white man. It’s funny and
a bit cute. Imagine how small their world is. A small interaction with me is the
highlight of their day…or the week! Crazy, huh?
I recently bought some fabric from one of the shops and then
went to the tailor which sits near the school and had them make me a shirt. I
know have an official Zambian shirt which is fun. It’s very simple and plain,
but it is a shirt nonetheless. I like it and when I wear it the villagers seem
to approve. It’s nice to have something like this here. It makes me a little
bit more a part of the community.
As I was walking the other day I was listening to some
music. As I was listening I thought to myself how happy I was that my
headphones hadn’t broken yet. Headphones tend to break extremely easy (at least
for me). Either a wire frays or something goes wrong and one earbud always goes
out. Well, as my luck goes, I was in the middle of thinking about how I was
amazed that these headphones had made it so long and I kid you not right there
and then my right earbud died. I laughed at how crazy the timing was. Oh well.
I will just have to do without headphones for a while.
I better be off to dinner soon. When I was young (and still
today) my Dad would always tell us to eat a bowl of cereal if there was nothing
cooked. I used to be bummed by this, but now I would gladly chow down on any
and all cereal. It’s the little things. Living in Africa makes you appreciate
everything (and I mean everything). I am not one to complain about food and I
will take what they give me, but eating the same thing day in and day out can
and does get old. The African way of life, though.
I hope the cool fall weather back in Minnesota is treating
you kindly. I am sure it is.
Thanks for reading!
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