Well, it happened...

The Incident -

Well, we all knew the day would come. I'm just ashamed it was so soon! I finally got caught peeing in the garden. Now, before you go judging me, all you non-garden-pee-ers out there, I want to paint you a picture (no, not that picture!) Our school is out in the bush! Plus, the pit latrine toilets are not my favorite thing in the world. Finally, I need to check on the garden anyway. So...it only made sense in my mind. Now, just to be clear, I go well away from produce, etc... I know many of you will condemn me as of reading this. That's a risk I'm willing to take.

I was down there as usual when all of a sudden some students came walking around the corner of the building. What in the world! Why are they out of class? As it would happen, they were bringing me some papers. What are the odds? Anyway, as anyone who has tried to stop early in this particular situation, you know it's very difficult. Well, I did, somewhat. Anyway, to spare you the gory details...I think I'll be heading to the pit latrine in the future!

Whitney Arrives

Whitney, the new office manager arrived last night. I think she was pretty tired. I had made her some spaghetti and just as I was getting ready to dine with she and Lisa, I was called to help take kids home to their bomas. So, I guess I'll get to know her later! She'll be living in the same house as Lisa and I for the next year working as the office manager.

The Sporting Fiasco

We have had a series of sporting events here. They are REALLY disorganized. The latest timetable said, in effect, we need your kids here to play an undefined game at an undefined game in the next three days. So, it's been a lot of chasing around and waiting...especially for Lisa. As I write, she awoke around 6 AM today (after getting to sleep at midnight last night) and is still not home at 7 PM because of the schedule of things today. I'll be glad when things are finished with that!

Projects

Part of what I love about being here are the projects we work on. I love trying things in the garden. I would love to have a plastic greenhouse, beehives, irrigation, goats and dairy cattle and aquaculture by the time I leave. Right now I'm working on using plastic sheeting to capture rainwater for irrigation (failed twice so far...hoping to rally soon). Also, I'm trying to filter grey water from the kitchen through sand to use on the fruit trees. Also... a work in project. It's fun to try these things that you read about. For the most part I fail...but it's fun to try!

What kind of animal would you be?

Tonight we were walking up the hill to our house - Quinn, Whitney, two students and I. I saw some chickens eating some termites off of a tree...kind of cool. So, I commented that I wouldn't mind being a chicken if I had to be an animal (again, all of you who were judging me about the garden incident just back off!). I asked the group if they could be an animal what animal would they be. Quinn and Whitney said a zebra and a unicorn. One student said he would be a sheep because in the Bible the sheep are the innocent ones. The other student said he would be a lion because they are obviously big and strong. This kid is about 5 foot 4 inches and weighs about 110 lbs! He walked along in silence for a while. Then he commented that when he was done with school he was going to grow out his hair and whiskers and have a mane. How could you not love that!

The Hurricane Lantern and the Laser Printer

I knew working in Tanzania would yield a clash of ideologies. I knew enough to realize the area that we were coming to was labeled as an extremely poor area in an extremely poor country in Africa. One thing, however, that has been rather surprising is the chasm of how things are expressed between those who do not have and those who, at least from outward appearances, have.

There is no doubt we are in the "have" group. On my plastic table in our living room is a hurricane lantern. It's there because we have regular power outages. Most of the electricity provided to Tanzania is driven from hydroelectric generators. Due to many reasons such as shifting weather patterns the power gets cut. To be honest we've become so used to it that on Friday when we celebrated Quinn's birthday we sat with the lights off even though electricity was available! What sort of strange psychology is that? The power outages are frustrating for business owners. However, many manage by purchasing generators or just stocking up on candles. Of course our students aren't terribly bothered because most live in homes without electricity. The hurricane lamp reminds me of how quickly I can be sent back to a time without electricity. Then, my lesson planning (done by my ancient laptop), my e-mailing (done by Lisa's newer but recently broken laptop), my reading (done by electric light), and my DVD viewing (again, previously done on Lisa's computer...but difficult now with a broken screen...the West Wing just isn't quite the same with a split down the middle of Sam's head!) all gets taken back to the, shall we say, dark ages.

I'm surrounded by a lack of technology in many respects. Farmers farm here with a mouldboard plow pulled behind a set of cattle. Sometimes they can hire a tractor (typically a Massey Furgeson). Most people walk wherever they go due to lack of transport. If they do ride, it's in a crowded share ride such as a dalla dalla (small bus) or boda boda (reckless motorcycle). People get water from a reservoir. I thought it was just for livestock until some of my students said that was what they drank too (which yet again underlines my belief that any of our kids on their worst day is way tougher than me!). Food is cooked over charcoal or wood. Yep, this is truly hurricane lamp country...if you are fortunate enough to have a hurricane lamp in the first place or fuel to make it work.

Now, right next to that hurricane lamp is our printer. It's fairly new. It's constantly out of ink, but works fine for the most part. It also scans and makes photo copies. I can attach at least two of our three computers (and sometimes four or five computers if Quinn is visiting from the other volunteer house) and print in no time. Our school is equipped with solar power that runs, on occasion, one of three LCD projectors we have at the school. Recently, a partner of IEFT donated 15 laptops - nice ones too - not some reject stuff. I saw our kids flocking around it in the library the other day teaching each other how to use Microsoft Word. Further, EVERYONE here has a cell phone (and NOONE has any credit. EVER!). It's a very strange site indeed to see a Maasai man or woman walking along in their traditional garb, holding a spear or walking stick in one hand, and talking or texting from a cell phone in the other! When I go in to church, the church is decked out with swanky speakers, a mixing board and wireless microphones. Recently there is a trend to listen to your music, whether from an I-Pod or some knock off. The rule, it seems, is that you have to walk along with one ear-bud in place and the other dangling down around your neck. I think that's so you have one free ear in case someone "flashes you" on their cell phone (which means they call and then immediately hang up so you have to call them back and waste your credit and not theirs!).

Drake University and some team from Mexico came here to play an American Football game. Lisa contacted them and a few of the administration and players wanted to come visit the school. They left Arusha late so they arrived at the school after all of the students had gone home. Someone must have thought there to be great danger at Orkeeswa because the first car (of three) was filled with a dozen armed police. The second was a fancy new car of a government official of some kind. The third was a 35 passenger bus filled with around 10 athletic administrators. Of course, the presence of all the armed police made everyone more than just a little uneasy (including the villagers who immediately started calling our security guy...from their cell phones...to find out what was going on...thank you small town!) But, eventually everoyne calmed a bit and the touring of our guests resumed. They had digital cameras, video cameras and I-phones to capture the moment. They were courteous and genuinely interested in the work we were doing out at the school. Some of our students were there and I couldn't help but wonder - what must our student's think of these people who need an armed guard to accompany them. I also couldn't help but wonder about our guests - what must they think of Tanzania that they need to be escorted by such a patrol. They left after about an hour. On their way out they passed a small church with plank board siding painted with used oil to keep the termites away. Nearby there was a couple of young boys with sticks herding their cattle (a constant site around here).

There is no doubt I have become used to my new world conveniences. I love being able to type my blog from a new computer and instantly broadcast it to the world. I loved taking a group of students last week to Skype with students from America. But, I can't forget that here it's also the land of the hurricane lantern. And I think that's a big part of why I like it.

We put the ZZZ's into Zanzibar!

This will be the most boring blog post yet.

Which is AWESOME!

We went to Zanzibar this past week in search of some rest and that is exactly what we found, in abundance (Oh, the sweet abundance of it!)

We landed in Stone Town on Sunday, went on a spice tour (wow, who knew we could spend four hours talking about spices, the use of spices, the medicinal use of spices and also the history of spice). I was very happy to head on up north to the beach at that point.

Then we found Kendwa. Sweet, wonderful Kendwa. With her unassuming ways, her restful bandas and her lazy, lazy days.

We slept, we ate, we...well actually that's about it!

Then we migrated to Jambiani...another beach...only to repeat the therapy.

Check out the pictures on Lisa's Facebook page. I know I will be to relive the...mmmm.

Drama, Drama, Drama....

Last week of a thirteen week term! I should have known there would have been some grand finale's. Here are a few...

Monday-Wednesday not to bad. Did the Insanity workout video that Scott, Lisa's brother sent. I literally thought I was going to drown in my own sweat!

Then Thursday hit!

I sent a student to our local clinic because she was complaining of headaches and chest pain...not uncommon for this time of year. In the mean time, I was getting ready for our new woodworking club (which is always fun...but a mess when I'm involved!), teaching and doing other stuff at the school. I had had a lot of coffee on Thursday, but when I saw Ben drinking some in the afternoon, I thought I needed another cup. Oh, what a bad idea! You know that "twitchy" feeling you get when you have too much coffee...well I was there.

Just as we were about to begin clubs, we had an unexpected visitor show up, handing out gifts, but throwing off the flow of things a bit. No sweat, I've become used to interruptions.

Then, as clubs were ending, I had the typical 54 students around me. "Teacher can I have some seeds for my garden." My saying, "Oh, yeah....I forgot about that...". "Teacher may I keep this thing we just made?" "You betcha" (which I am always convinced really gets lost in translation). "Teacher, teacher, teacher....." It's fun for reals. That "buzz" is part of what I like about teaching here. Or was that the last cup of coffee....

Anyway, in the midst of all the end of day stuff, one student said..."Teacher, you're needed outside. A student is passed out there." Crap.

So, I ran out and sure enough there was a student down with a few others around. We loaded the student up, took her to the local clinic and then on to the district hospital. This is when I got really angry.

This was my first experience with the Monduli District Hospital. Let me just be succinct in saying I would not feel comfortable going there for many procedures. What really struck me, though, was the ARROGANCE I perceived from the staff. We spent more time talking about who was the "big man" amongst all of us who accompanied our student than we did trying to fix the problem! I got yelled at to get out of the way...but only after they discovered I was "only teacher." "I am not!" I thought about saying. "I'm the chief medical officer at Orkeeswa...." Oh shut up, Seth! One more ego in this mix isn't going to solve anything!

Friday was the last day. Last days are hard for teachers. They makes teachers all over the world want to drink. I did enjoy our end of school party...we had a whistling contest and even gave away two of our very own chicken eggs as a prize to the top whistler amongst the teachers. Personally, I thought the maintainence guy should have won, but you know what they say about art, and all that... We even heard there were elephants near the school. One student came up to me and said "Teacher, I almost had to say goodbye to my parents. I walked between two elephants on the way to school today." You gotta love that! Anyway, we survived and were celebrating after school with the teachers and other folks. That's when we got the call. That student was still sick and needed to be seen to know if we needed to go to a different doctor. So, in the car I go...bouncing through the bush. The student lived WAY out there. We loaded the student in the Land Rover and off we went to Arusha. After some blood work and a couple more IV bags (man, I ought to start taking some of those IV bags instead of coffee...) the student was good to go. Unfortunately since it was 12:30 AM, I wasn't. Plus, I realized I had lost my wallet in the mix.

Finally, we dropped off the student and returned home about 2 AM this morning. I still havn't found my wallet and thank the stars above noone was attacked by elephants. Lisa had made some chocolate chip cookies...so I ate them by myself at 2:30 this morning with some tea. Don't get me wrong... I love this stuff! But, sweet, sweet beaches of Zanzibar, I hear you calling my name next week!

I Would Take It All Away

I would take it all away.

The mud. The mud that our students walk through every day to get to school. The mud that binds to their shoes and clothes and instantly covers everything. The mud the mamas must wash out of the kitchen and classrooms every day. The mud that coats the Land Rover and threatens to pull us off the road at a moment's notice. I would take away the mud.

The hunger. If there is no food at home, kids don't eat. I am naïve enough to think that most of our students eat at home. I know that some don't. I know that until morning breakfast, they don't have much, if anything in their bellies. I would take away the hunger.

The stress. Everything is geared toward these high stakes tests. If they don't pass these tests, they don't continue this education. End of story. The kids know this better than anyone. Add on the realities of life too. Relationships. Family. Work. All of it adds up. Our kids handle it pretty well, but I know stress is a constant companion. I would take away the stress.

The sickness. As the medical guy, I look at some weird stuff. It's escalated since the rains began. Waterborne illness. Infections. Coughs. No problem if you can get in right away and see a doctor and then get the proper medications, right? No problem… if it were possible to not walk in the mud every day. But of course…it's not. I take it hard when they are sick. I don't like it. I'm guessing they aren't that fond if it either. Still, some things I say "I just don't know what to do about that…" I would take away the sickness.

The hard life. Sometimes I look around and see these struggles and it does make me sad. I don't like to see my students walking in the rain. I don't like to see my students having to grow up so fast. I would take away this hard life.

I would take it all away.

But I don't get to make that call.

We had an all school show and tell about the clubs students participate in. Each group stood up and shared a bit about their club. Everyone was in a good mood, respectful toward their fellow students and teachers. Afterward, each student received a lollipop from their club advisor. Unfortunately, during the event one girl got sick and I was trying to attend to her. I gave out as many of my lollies to my woodworking club folks before looking after the sick girl, but I managed to miss one of my club members. I was busy with the sick girl and had quite a few "helpers" standing around which seemed to add to the chaos of the situation. I was feeling a bit stressed by everything. In the midst of things, my club member found me and quietly tapped me on the shoulder and said "teacher, I didn't get my lolly. Could I have one." It wasn't one of those snotty "I didn't get…blah, blah" retorts you might get from a teenager. Nor was it demanding. It was a simple request for something that was hers. And it was so innocent that it caught me off guard.

Maybe God gives us mud so we can learn perseverance. Maybe we get sick so we can care for one another. Maybe what I see as a "hard life" is just developing the character of someone in ways I am too limited to understand.

Or, maybe it's just mud.

 

Oh Heck, I’m Up to My Neck…in MUD!

The rain has finally come to Monduli! It was about 3 weeks later than normal and obviously affected life all around!

The Dust

Rain did come to this area over one month ago. It was a good downpour. Unfortunately, it didn't last. It did encourage people to plant their maize – mostly used for their own consumption. The plants shot up with the moisture. Then, they immediately started to wither under the sun. Just as soon as the rain started, it stopped. Dust returned everywhere. Talks turned to the widespread drought that covered the area two years ago. The sky would cloud up and then produce nothing. We even planted the entire school garden, only to have nothing germinate except lots of weeds. The implication, the one that no one really spoke of, was that people would starve. In the States if a crop fails maybe prices increase a bit in the grocery store. Here, when most of the crops go directly to feed your family, if they fail, the consequences are far more grave.

The Sub-Saharan Depression

Whether it was because of the lack of rain or just the grind of school, there was a heavy cloud hanging over our house. We volunteers were grouchy toward each other. The students, while almost always courteous, had a bit of an edge to them. The work just wasn't fun. It was work. It was virtually impossible to find a reprieve. We were tired out, fed up, and generally frustrated. I can't help but think that a fair amount of that influence came from the lack of rain and the emotional effects it carried. Thankfully, we remained civil toward each other. I think we all sort of understood that this wasn't normal. And, in the words of that famous person Anonymous, we knew that "this too shall pass."

The Rain

Finally the rains came! Last week, with a torrent, they came. Buckets and buckets fell from the sky. The change in the air was obvious. The students were quite literally jubilant! Even Form 3, who usually growls at anyone who tries to be the least bit cheerful with them responded. "Good morning Form 3!" Lisa would say. They cheerfully responded with, "Good morning, Teacher!" What the…. That never happens! The rains just create a hum in the air. I can remember at home in Wyoming this same thing would happen. When people are so closely connected to their surroundings, major changes like this have an obvious effect. Maji ni uhai – Water is Life!

The Mud

An obvious side effect of the rain is mud. How shall I describe the mud? You know those Betty Crocker tubs of frosting? Picture something like "Dark Fudge" or something like that. You know that same creamy, smooth texture and dark black/brown color? Well, picture the road being covered in that and trying to navigate a Land Rover through it. That's what is created when it rains here. We spun off the road on Friday. Everyone piled out (I say piled because we usually stack 10 extra bodies on the Land Rover). Even the principal ripped off his suit coat and went to digging. We went off the road right next to a family's boma (house). I was sure at any moment we would tip over and crash through their mud wall! Finally after much digging and being covered in mud, literally, we got unstuck. Students standing around were laughing. But then, they had to walk home through it. The road turns into a river of rushing muddy water crashing down from the hills above. The going becomes slow. Easy trips into the school become a battle every morning and night. Ah the fun!

The Disease

Right along with the water comes the disease. If you are constantly wet and sleeping in and near mud, chances are good you'll get sick. This has happened around here for sure. I've seen quite a few cases of water-borne disease, malaria and of course the ongoing battle of parasites. I don't know what you do about it either. Even Lisa is sick now; hacking up a lung. I think our epically long walk yesterday didn't help.

The Epic Walk (followed by the epic blisters!)

Yesterday we walked to the end of the Earth. Its name is Lendikenya. Unfortunately, because of the mud, we decided to wear the rubber, calf-high boots. We were following a student to her boma and she didn't seem to be having any problems. Lisa and I on the other hand were in full sweat mode! By the time we arrived, we had walked nearly 6 miles there and I was covered in sweat. But, it's always worth it! Her dad is a farmer and her mother a primary school teacher. They were happy to have us there and even killed a chicken for us to eat. We had a great conversation, as translated through our student. Lisa told them about her father, Jeff, who is a farmer. They decided Jeff needed to come visit them if he ever came to Tanzania! Finally, after filling our stomachs with tea, makande (corn and beans cooked together) and chicken, we began our return journey. Thankfully Ben was able to meet us about 2/3 of the way into the trip. I'm pretty sure we wouldn't have made it all the way home! Right now, I have a blister about the size of a quarter on one foot. Lisa has one that looks like a small marble on her foot. But, ha ha ha Seth, this is how most people get around here. My tender-footed ways wouldn't last very long without the aid of a car and some serious foot crème!

The Healer - Baba Loliondo

There is a faith healer that EVERYONE is going to near Loliondo. He makes a drink, blesses it, and people are cured. The five things it cures are tuberculosis, AIDS, cancer, diabetes and ulcers. People are flocking up this rough, long, dusty (well now muddy) treacherous road by the thousands. Once they arrive, the queue is so long, a few die just waiting for the dawa (medicine). He charges 500 shillings per person for overhead costs. Transport services are charging hundreds of thousands of shillings to get you there. Don't tell people that you don't believe in it, either. This is grounds for a healthy debate and eventual ridicule from the obvious polarizing effect such an emotionally charged issue can create. Also, don't go to the knock-off healer in Moshi. His dawa doesn't work.

A Cocktail of Events from here in Monduli

Kilimanjaro 1/2 Marathon

We spent last weekend in Moshi taking students to compete in the Kilimanjaro Half Marathon and 5-K fun run. We had eight boys, Lisa and Ben compete in the half and six girls plus Peter compete in the 5-K fun run. I was too busy drinking Coke and eating cashew nuts to be bothered with running! It was fun to take kids on their first overnight trip. We slept in classrooms at International School Moshi the night before the race. We also ate an enormous dinner in their cafeteria. I say enormous because it was a buffet and those Maasai boys can put away the food! It does make you wonder where it all goes because they are so skinny! We did have one boy finish with a time of 1:20 in the half...pretty darn fast. Maybe it was the food...

School Inspection

We had a random school inspection this week. I equate it to the horsemen of the apocalypse descending on your school which is soon followed by much wailing and gnashing of the teeth. I guess this is the way Tanzania does quality control for their schools. Basically the inspectors (two of them in our case) show up unannounced and look at all of your paperwork, interview some students and watch a few teachers do their lessons. Everyone is hustling and bustling around to find all of the right forms, etc... And, at the end of the day, their score doesn't mean much. Nevertheless, it was a stressful 24 hours when they arrived.

Crazy Friday

Yesterday was just crazy. First, we had scheduled all of the student's parents to come help at the school. This is supposed to be a regular occurance and is an effort to have the school become truly a community run effort. But, yesterday many of the parents did not show. So, students were sent home to get their parents. To be clear, this meant that students had to walk home for several kilometers in the hot sun, find their parents, and bring them back to school. I was gone for part of the morning tending to a sick kid (I'll talk about that more later). When I returned, it was crazy! Students and parents were everywhere! I think the point was to send a message to the parents that we are serious about their attendance at these things. However, from a western perspective, it didn't make much sense.

Student Sickness

We have had quite a few sick students lately. Many of them are pretty serious. Some are simply because boiling water is such a difficulty. It requires finding fuel (likely wood or charcoal) and burning it. Plus, most of the time the water really doesn't make the local folks sick. But, around this time of year, for some reason, there are more bacteria in the water and people get sick. I've visited a couple student's homes now and the scene is really sad. I think I've already voiced my frustration with the sanitation and water situation here. However, lately it has taken on a whole new and very sinister head from what I have seen.

The Chicken Coop

In light of the craziness of this week, one very cool thing stands out. I asked the Form 2 (sophomores) class to take care of the chicken coop. I read off the names of the groups in class and gave a general overview of my expectations. I thought I would have to remind, cajole, yell, kick and scream for a while to get them to take care of the chickens. So, I was really surprised when one student came to me with the key to the chicken coop. I asked him why he had it. He said he went and took it from another student so he could take care of the chickens like I had asked. My jaw must have been on the floor! He not only had listened to my instructions, but he had also taken the initiative on his own to make it happen. Sometimes just some simple things like that really strike you.

Seven Year Itch (caution sensitive material below....ha ha ha!)

I have sensitive skin. Everyone who knows me knows how frequently I get poison ivy. For some reason, I have been itchy for about the past month. And not just a little bit! I don't know whether it's the dust or the unclean water I shower in or the clothes that don't really get rinsed of their suds very well... but something is getting me! And getting me from head to toe! Now, I know many of you don't want to know this. But, as an accurate and thorough blogger, I felt obliged to share ALL of my woes with you! So, there you go. Have a scratch for me.

Garden and Livestock Projects

I'm pretty excited about some of the things happening around the school. We're trying some different projects in the garden and also some possible livestock projects. In the garden we are developing a distribution plan for grey water that will go to the fruit trees. We are also using plastic drinking water bottles to irrigate other trees and bushes around the campus. In the near future we are hoping to establish a drip irrigation system throughout the rest of the garden so we're not so dependent on the unpredictable rains. There is also the very real prospect of building a barn for dairy cattle, goats and sheep. I'm hoping all of these things come to some fruition while I'm here because they sound like fun challenges.

Football and Netball Matches

In addition to teaching English, Lisa has been coordinating the athletic events. For the past two weeks we have taken the students in to Monduli (7 dalla dalla busses full) to play football and netball. Football means soccer. Netball is like basketball, but with significant differences. These festivities are a fun way to see our kids in a different dynamic. Plus, they are really good! Our boys football team won last week against the best team in the district!

American Football in Tanzania

Lisa started an American Football club. She teaches them the basics of the game. Sometimes they watch football movies. I think someone sent us the Super Bowl so I imagine that will be enjoyed soon. My hunch is this may be the only American Football being played in Tanzania, if not Africa! However, soon there will be an American football match between Iowa (Drake University) and Mexico (no idea what team there) in Arusha! These two teams are coming as part of an aid program of some sort. We are hoping to take Lisa's students there to experience what I'm sure is bound to be an interesting event.