*Sorry for the
random blog postings. I will try to stick to my regular posting days (Wednesday
and Saturday), but am finding out that it may be unlikely. I am one who loves
being organized so not being able to stick to my routine has thrown me for a
loop. Bear with me while I reboot and figure out how to deal with it. I think I
will be able to post Wednesday’s with a few random postings in between. We will
see.
…
A few days ago I heard Christmas music coming from the
church and found myself thinking “What, why would they be playing Christmas
music?” Then I realized that December is upon us and Christmas is close. The
summer weather had me thrown off. I’m just so used to having it be cold and
snowing.
I have begun to work on a farming project with another monk.
We are planting ground nuts, maize, onion, tomato and surrounding it are some
banana trees. I won’t be here to harvest the crops, but it’s nice to be outside
and working in the field. I enjoy manual labor. The ground is still fairly
tough due to all the sun. The rain will help loosen and moisten the soil which
will allow us to be able to till and dig easily.
With this week being the end of the term (testing finalized
yesterday) and the beginning of a month break from school all of my students
will be heading home. My students completed my biology class Wednesday. I spent
the day marking exams which was tiring business. I completed each student’s
exam and final grade and turned them into the school. I am now finished with my
teaching in Zambia.
It was sad to leave the school because I have grown to love
the place and students. Many students have asked me to stay and continue
teaching them. One of my students, Dyness, was speaking with another teacher
and told him that “Joseph knows how to teach!” That was great news to hear. I
feel like I have done a good job because when looking through my students
grades in other classes mine were the highest. Some students did very poor in
math, civic education and other courses, but did well in mine. It makes me think
about how the other teachers explain the material and if Dyness’s comment
really does ring true.
The closing assembly was yesterday and so the teachers and I
gathered in the staff room to celebrate. It was fun. One of the teachers boiled
some water and brought muffins and tea. We all spent an hour just hanging out.
They were happy that the term was over but said that they will miss me in the
science department.
As the students were leaving, the ones who don’t live in a
nearby village boarded a large truck. No yellow school busses here. When I saw
them I quickly went into a shop and bought 4 packs of cookies and through them
onto the truck. It made me feel like I was at a Minnesota Twins game where they
shoot t-shirts into the crowd. The kids loved it and I was glad to add to the
excitement of summer vacation!
I have become close with one of my students named James.
James is a very nice kid and hard worker. I enjoy speaking with him and have
met his little brother and sisters while on my walks through the village. They
all know me by name. James has told me he plans to spend December farming his
field. I have offered to help and he was very excited to hear that I wanted to.
He said we will be starting by weeding the field. Thanks to my Dad, if there is
one thing I know it’s how to weed a yard. A yard may not be a field, but
weeding is weeding. I am looking forward to spending time with his family and
helping them grow some crops.
The people of Katibunga, surrounding villages and Zambia in
general are very kind. They are welcoming and love to talk. I have enjoyed
getting to know many of them. However, something else I have noticed is that
some can be destructive too. Just as some teenagers back home will destroy or
mess with things for fun the same happens here. This week we were working on
creating compost to fertilize the soil. We gathered grass and scraps of food
and whatnot and placed them into a hole. We then covered it with black paper so
the heat from the sun would help in creating the compost. When we went out the
next day the paper had been stolen. This is common. Also, some of the crops
(bananas, mangos, and tomatoes) are stolen from time to time. A man by the name
of Mr. Mulenga was caught stealing animals from the monastery’s farm. He has
been taken to the police in Mpika. I know a man by the name of Henry Mulenga so
I wonder if it was him, however Mulenga is a common name here. It’s sort of
like the name Johnson.
My Frisbee study group has become very popular at the school
and the kids seem to love it. I have announced that in December I will be
playing Frisbee every day. The kids have thanked me for allowing them to play
with the Frisbee more, but I should be the one thanking them. Being alone for
so long can wear on a guy. I enjoy hanging out and discussing with the students
(they are very close in age with me and speak about things other than religion
ha) and so it is nice to be able to spend a few hours playing catch with the
Frisbee.
As I walk around the village I have begun to meet with some
families. It can be somewhat difficult going to speak with them because I am
walking right into their homes and where they cook and live. I feel like I am
intruding. However, they don’t seem to mind and they enjoy meeting with the
unzungu (Swahili for ‘white man’). One thing I have found out is that many of
the people struggle to stay occupied and busy. They have lots of work to do,
but also have lots of time to do it. There is an extreme lack of jobs (the
monastery is the only ‘company’ that hires in the surrounding area) and once
you’re done with school there isn’t much to do except work in the fields. I
have not given the markers and paper away yet so as I meet with some of the
families I see what they have and how many kids. I recently met a family with 4
girls. I am sure they would love some markers and paper to draw. I know this
isn’t much, but I am sure it would spice up their day a bit. I plan on giving
them some supplies soon.
Another thing I have noticed is malnutrition. When living in
America it can be very difficult to imagine malnutrition and understand what it
looks like which is why many tend to forget the fact that people due suffer and
die from it each day. Americans suffer from the opposite of malnutrition.
Obesity and the many diseases (heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, etc.)
that are contributed to the over consumption of unhealthy and fast foods has
become an epidemic. In 2004, one-fourth of all vegetables eaten in the United
States were French fries (yikes, I also wouldn’t be surprised if this
percentage has increased).
Malnutrition and the lack of food in areas such as Africa
lead to shorter life-spans as well as differences in appearance. I have noticed
some kids who look no older than 15 who are actually in their mid-20’s. On the
flip side, I have noticed some older men and women who are in their late 40’s
who look as if they are in their 60’s or 70’s. This is hard to see and is very sad. It makes you think
about your consumption patterns and the way you live your life.
Recently, a priest from Germany arrived in Katibunga. Father
Robert will be staying for a short time to get a better idea of the monastery
and area in which it is located. As I was speaking with him he mentioned that
many people think American’s are scared to go abroad so the ones that do are
the very best. I thought that was funny. I told him my last name, which is very
German, and he thought it was great.
Father Robert has been to Tanzania and knows five languages
with one being Swahili. He said that it is a difficult language and one that
will be hard to pick up in 6 months (in many phrases the noun comes first in
Swahili. Rather than “I have no more biscuits,” you’d say “Biscuits I have no
more.” – so it differs from English a bit). I told him that I thought it might
be. I suppose the transition will have its challenges, but I am also happy that
I will get to see two countries rather than just spending my entire time in
one.
The electricity in Zambia is very weak right now and so the
government has begun to load-shed again. In past posts I mentioned
load-shedding. To remind you it is when they shut the power off to certain
parts of the country. Last week, a few days, the eastern part has had no power.
Imagine the eastern United States having no power. Yeah, crazy to think about.
 |
| Cramped truck full of people heading to Mpika. It's a rough ride, trust me! I counted 30+ people. |
Additionally, the cell tower that is located in the area has
no power so cell phones and internet do not work. To make things worse is that the monastery
has not paid their internet bill for the month of December and January and will
not be. This means I will not have internet until Tanzania (where the
electricity, power and internet are even worse). Prior Nzota asked me what
load-shedding is like in the United States and I told him that it never
happens. In fact, we never lose power. He was awestruck – couldn’t believe his
ears. This marks a major difference between third world and first world
countries. Time to send up a prayer thanking God you were born in a first world
country.
As I type this I am unsure if I will be able to post it, but
I am hoping. We will see. To get internet now I have to either go into Mpika or
walk 2 miles and climb a hill (no joke) where my new mobile modem I bought
picks up a signal. I must move around until I find a signal and then sit very
still for it to connect. The hill isn’t the size of Buck Hill, but it reminds
me of it. The major difference is that I thoroughly enjoyed spending most of my
time between the ages of 10-17 snowboarding down Buck Hill, not climbing this
one to get an internet signal ha!
Happy December, everyone!
If you are one who
frequently contacts me:
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| Here's me on top of the hill trying to get an internet signal! I know, my beard is gnarly. I'll be trimming it in January so I look presentable when I go to Tanzania :) |
2. Even with the mobile modem the internet connection is
still poor (by the grace of God I am able to pull a signal from a cell tower in
Mpika). I know it won’t work most of the time so when I do use it, it will be
for more important things such as posting to this blog.
3. I will still travel into Mpika once or twice a week to
use the internet café. I have met a few minibus (minivans/trucks with too many people
squished inside) drivers who go to Mpika on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
They pass through at 5:00AM and come back to Katibunga at 1:00PM. I will hop a
ride with them for 40 kwacha round trip. The internet in Mpika is much quicker.
This is when I will respond to your Facebook messages and emails.
Thanks for reading!
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