…Well that is until I tripped off the bike onto the steps, but hey I didn’t get wet.
Tuesday was the last day we have gotten to be outside at school. Turns out another reason the foundation wants to move locations is as soon as the reservoir fills the school turns into a pond. But Tuesday I was blissfully unaware of this fact.
Tuesday we went to buy plants for the garden. I really liked this. The nurseries are just on the side of the road and you pull up and wander among the plants while helped by Mama Z who was very excited about her plants. She was honestly a little intimidating and she wouldn’t have looked out of place telling a fortune. Some of the plants have grown through their bags and to get them you have to either rip them out of the ground or concede defeat and recognize that that plant is only going to move by an act of God.
The constant struggle with buying plants is containing yourself to just a few but for the school at least we were looking for vegetables and fruits. So you know your typical U.S. finds like Papaya and vague shade tree. If I could figure out how to illegally smuggle plants in and out of the U.S. I would make an absolute fortune. The snake plant for example is almost considered a weed here.
After the school business was sorted we looked for plants for Lillian. At first she picked all white plants but I talked her out of that one. My philosophy is the more colorful something is the better. Then we bought some vague greens that I got tasked with planting under the watchful eyes of Mama K. At first I planted them in clumps. She shook her head went and got Lillian and I had to replant them after carefully separating each individual green. From there I planted them too close together and again got explained that I was doing it all wrong. I would have felt a little bit like I was on a tourist excursion where you get to plant plants and milk cows and pretend you were a farmer except this food is helping to feed the students. Anyhow these plants got planted three times which I’m sure they loved, but I did get a gold star for watering them after they were planted without being asked–I’m not completely incompetent. And also to be fair I still have no idea what I was planting. I could have been planting weed and had no idea. Although I feel like the kids would have been much more laid back if that was the case.
There is something truly wonderful about kneeling in the dirt with your hands in it and planting (even if its the third try.) There’s a feeling of accomplishment in seeing your work visibly done and knowing that something is going to grow from it in a visible way. Very peaceful. The dirt was also really rich and thankfully absent of the rocks that plague us in Washington. (If you don’t know me very well I really like getting my hands dirty, and sometimes my face although that’s usually on accident.) Also side note Lillian can really wield a hoe. I’m pretty sure it would not be hard for her to just end a person if she wanted to.
After this it was recess for the kids so I went and played. I have escaped swing duty so I was helping run the Merry Go Round which basically means I am the ender of all fun. “No you cannot stand up.” “No three of you may not be on one animal.” “No you cannot cling to the center.” “No you cannot rip your friend off of the moving Merry Go Round.” I also got to play catch/soccer with Inomale and Joven and their skills are already far better than mine. The four year olds could drop kick like a pro. One of the kids came up to me during recess and noticing that my knees were dirty from kneeling brushed at them until he was satisfied and then grabbed my hand, kissed it very solemnly, and walked away. (The kids here are very helpful. As soon as they see a chore being done they immediately all jump to doing it.)
I got to teach classroom objects and then test out my drawing skills by drawing each of them for a wall hanging. It took me about 10 minutes to figure out how to draw a chair. The sewing girls were sitting watching me do this and while they said I was doing a good job I think it turned out to be a very abstract set of classroom objects.
I brought the chicken into school and the kids were very scared of it. Oseam in particular screamed and ran the other direction. Then, once they warmed up to it they would hold out their hands and the chicken would peck at them. They would scream and run away. They liked waving at the chicken as well and saying “Bye chicken,” which was freaking adorable. The kids also really enjoyed when the chicken would peck at their heads–also cute. What was less adorable was when they got comfortable with it and tried to all grab it and have their own section to hold at once. (This looked a little bit like Thunderdome)
Oseam became better friends with the chicken and now likes to high five it, kiss it on the beak, and pet it. He giggles hysterically when it pecks him which is the cutest thing ever. I didn’t bring it on Wednesday and he wasn’t satisfied that I didn’t have it somewhere until he searched me and my backpack thoroughly.
Tuesday night I went to the Internet Cafe which does in fact have internet when you plug in the internet device. This left me to responding to emails and working on med school stuff. I had my first dessert since I’ve been here–a brownie–at the cafe. It was really good–not super sweet but lots of nuts and flavor. (Not as good as the Avocados are though. The avocados, I am in love with.) I started teaching the kids how to type this evening and Gianna is getting it really fast. Turns out Mavis Beacon teaches typing is a free resource now. Between every game I made the kids take a lesson–except Giovanni his hands aren’t big enough. We’ve increased the typing speed from 1 wpm to 2 wpm so we are getting somewhere.
Wednesday, after a brief visit to the classroom where I reviewed class room objects and animals I got to help in the kitchen. Mama K, I think was a little skeptical. She doesn’t speak any English so she just gestured and man handled me till I was doing the right thing. We were making Ugali and I was hoping to get an idea of how to do it (which I have but my recipe looks like–add some water and then a bunch of cornmeal.) First in making Ugali we sorted, cleaned, and chopped greens. It was somewhat comical when she poured water on the greens and then to tell me I needed to wash them started shaking her hands above them. (At least I was good at doing the dishes.) Chopping the greens I was not granted a knife and instead made handfuls of the greens for Mama K to chop. I think she thought it would be a terrible idea to give me a knife and I think she is right.
She then had to start the fire–which we were cooking over. She did this with kindling and vodka which I think is a pretty sweet way of doing it. (Don’t worry it wasn’t cherry vodka.) Then she handed me a shallot to chop watched me for a second and then took it away. In the greens there was oil, shallot, carrots, and salt-we cooked those down for a while. The kitchen space we are in isn’t very well ventilated and so the smoke just hangs out. This means I spent most of my cooking lesson crying or sticking my head out the window. Lillian came in and asked if I was okay–even if Mama K had been bullying me–which I think she was just tolerating me I wouldn’t have said anything. While we were cooking lunch it started to rain like you would not believe. It was literally dumping buckets.
Anyways more on the rain later. To finish the Ugali you add cornmeal to water and then let it thicken and then add more cornmeal and mix–which I was taken off this duty because I wasn’t putting enough force into it. Then you let it cook for some time and there you have it.
By the time this was done it had rained so much and started to flood to the extent that the four feet between the classroom and the kitchen was now a pond. They built a brick pathway for me and Lillian to get across and Mama K just put on galoshes and carried the food right over.
I taught the older class hangman and while they still can’t spell they think the hanging man is the most exciting thing on the planet. One day perhaps they will learn that guessing X, V, and Z when trying to spell a color won’t be successful.
It kept raining and by the time pick up happened the entire schoolyard was flooded. So what pick up looked like on Wednesday was disgruntled mothers and siblings holding their skirts and sloshing through the water in sandals and then piggy back riding their kid out of there. Alternatively there were fathers on motorbikes who drove right up to the steps of the school and then picked up their child and road off in style. Their maneuvering in the water was really impressive. There was one brave father who did it on a bike and he wasn’t entirely successful but kudos to him for trying.
(How did I get out? I got wet yesterday that’s how.) There was a creek on the road and kids were playing it and having the time of their lives so at least the water makes their days.
After the bus ride–where I got my own seat! And by a window! And I could see Mt Merut so basically the best bus ride I’ve thus had I started heading towards choir. (But Claire you quit choir) Well I couldn’t help myself I missed it too much and it’s really fun even though I suck. Walking down the road I met an old man in slacks and a dress coat. He started talking to me first in Swahili then in English after we got past the “How are you” step. He’s an English teacher at one of the secondary schools. He was very friendly and wanted to know all about America and what I thought of Tanzania. He had a grin on his face most of the time. One of the questions he asked was “What tribe are you from?”
Well obviously I said, “Polish.”
To which he said, “That’s a good tribe.” So yeah Poland for the win.
What really made this conversation memorable though is where we parted ways he turned to me and said, “This is where I leave you, until next time, Tuesday I think.”
I don’t know whether to be scared or excited, but I suppose I’m seeing this guy again Tuesday, perhaps or maybe I’m dying on Tuesday who can say.
Choir I was welcomed back to and choir director wasn’t too creepy so I’m calling that a win. I don’t think the guy who is teaching the sopranos was terribly excited to see me but the ladies were friendly. They keep trying to teach me more greetings–which there are over a hundred in Swahili. Every time I think I have them all I hear another one and then don’t have the proper response and end up unintentionally being rude. I don’t think the ladies are getting very far but they are having the time of their life which is what is important.
It rained more last night (it’s almost like it’s the rainy season) and this morning Lillian and Abel put on galoshes. I don’t have those so I was resigned to getting wet again. However, when we were approaching the school Lillian stopped a nearby motor bike man and told him to give me a ride in through what is now definitely a creek and pond.
The ground has had all night to get soggy however so he kept skidding out. He had the proper shoes on though so kept catching us and then revving up the engine to get out of the mud. So slowly but surely I got a motorcycle ride to the steps of the school through a pond. (Pretty epic entrance) Well it was until I went to climb on the stairs and kind of fell off the bike, onto the stairs thankfully.
I was supposed to go write more proposals for toilets which I am getting quite adept at but the younger class got so excited about seeing me that I just went in. I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before but everyday when the kids greet you they come and give you a hug. (It was really funny yesterday when Lillian came in and one little kid got confused jumped up and down and hugged me instead.) I helped with homework and then taught Oseam about dinosaurs using a puzzle. It took him a while to get that the yellow dinosaur was not a lion but he was very fascinated by the puzzle. He could figure out what pieces went where but not how to put them in.
At porridge time I tried to lure Oseam over by using the chicken but he’s getting to smart. As soon as he saw the cup he turned and ran away. The other kids though–as pre mentioned are both terrified and enamored with the chicken and were very happy. Saom in particular loves the chicken and the fact that my hair was in braids. She kept using them like reigns which alright.
Did you know that there are entire organizations dedicated to making sure people have toilets? I didn’t but now I’ve applied to a couple. Even better the organizations decide the best way to help people is have layers and layers of complicated websites, documentations, and surveys. “Are you sure you want toilets?” “Are you positive?” “Do you really need soap?” Okay those weren’t the questions but you get the idea.
I taught Oseam how to say “no” and “please” when he wants something as opposed to screaming and I think I was getting somewhere until he just got tired and started crying. I got another ride out of the school which was equally as slippery. “Put it in four wheel drive,” is what Abel suggested to the motorcycle man.
Today on the bus was bring the biggest thing you can think of on the bus today. There was literally a four foot tall amp brought on the bus. It made me wish that we’d taken all the plants on the bus instead of driving to school that day. “Oh sorry you can’t sit here, my tree has that spot.”
Choir tonight I had a really interesting talk with Mr. Can’t pronounce his last name but I’ve nicknamed him Mr. Myagi cause its really similar to that. He’s this old guy with awful cataracts so he’s got to be almost blind. He explained to me how I was too tense and I needed to let my heart overflow. And when I could do that I would stop and greet people and be happy because God is good all the time. That is the abbreviated version without all the Swahili intermixed that I sort of understood.
Choir director told me I looked nice but again that was the extent. We did a lot of laughing in choir tonight although I’m not entirely sure what it was always about. I got to walk back through the mud, I mean road, in the near dark which is always a fun experience and as always resulted in me washing my shoes.
Tonight I get more dancing lessons (if I don’t fall asleep first) and my computer is dead enough coming home from choir that I assume the kids already did their typing lessons. So yeah nothing too crazy. The language barrier is getting to me and I’m feeling a little lonely but I am still very happy and lucky to be here and everyday has been a new opportunity to learn about being grateful, joyful, and taking things slowly.
Song of the Post: “What a Beautiful Day” U2
Quote of the Post: “I will see you again…Tuesday!”
Comments