Language, Nesting and Whats and Whys

Transmitted from Michele through inconsistent Internet connections

October 16

Language. I'm not only learning SiSwazi -I'm also learning Swazi English. I'm not sure if that means British English as well. The pronunciation  and emphasis on syllables are different, the words meanings differ, and the idioms are not the same. Of course, many are obvious - the softer a for example. But other things are a bit more subtle. I often hear, "You must..." I know what is meant, that they are simply giving directions. But it's hard not to attach the subtext of American bias, as in: Who are you to tell me what I must do? And I hear, 'If ever you...' which sounds - what? discordant, I think, to my ear. Distracting, anyhow.

It's kind of fun to notice the different word, too. Pegs, not clothes pins, plaits, not braids, mattress is a sponge.

October 18

Nesting. I guess it takes a lot of forms. For me, It's food. I'm reverting back to hippie days, it seems. I'm making my own yogurt, and am thinking about turning it into some kind of soft cheese by straining it. I've made a sourdough starter, and I've been making my own bread. (No, Mary and Paul, I'm not grinding my own flour <big grin>). Seems really normal to me, until I see the incredulity on others' faces when I nonchalantly mention it and offer them a taste. It's not hard and getting good bread here is hard. On the other hand, bread is the 'go to' food here. Needless to say, my challah (well, Judi's challah) is a HUGE hit.

I'm gathering feathers to make a dream catcher and am working on a couple of mats made from plastic bags. I've bought a number of lihiyas (2 meter lengths of fabric in beautiful patterns) and have been draping them everywhere - over tables, boxes, windows (I'm working on hemming some for curtains) and even me (they wrap around and cover jeans and/or torso to make me more modest or to keep me warm). Think I may also cut one up for a scarf (I'll get my sisi to show me how to wrap it). I've even slept in one. I'll get dressed and get someone to take a pic for this blog. You folks will laugh - it's fun!

Funny what we do to bring home with us. I'd not have thought these things would bring so much comfort, but they do. Challenge: What would your comfort activities would be?

November 4

November! Are you serious? Tempus fugit...

At the training center for 10 days with all the other G11 volunteers, getting so much information I feel saturated. It's almost as though if I try to retain much more, it will all overflow and sink into the clay earth. Perhaps then G12 (the next group of volunteers) will be able to benefit from it by osmosis? Okay, okay, but I do feel as though my absorption rate is waning, though the importance of the information is not.

For Halloween we planned to drink, eat candy and watch a scary movie. Then the power went out so we opted for a panoramic view of the spectacular light show. The whole sky was alight with lightning strikes and lit up clouds. We watched the lights go out on a hill across the valley, and some of us saw a bolt hit the ground and start a fire. Somehow it's different here - maybe because we can see for such long distances - but Nature's power awes us. Later we heard that there was a great deal of damage to our training villages - some latrines were destroyed and many structures lost their roofs. What was to us a great visual show and a bit of inconvenience when the power went out was a major destructive event for others. Life. Inscrutable.

All the rain cleared the air, and the land is greening with water and Spring. The world looks washed clean, even the clouds waft around the mountain tops and look soft.

Tonight was clear, and Mark has a star map, but even though we lay on the road, still warm from the sun, we were unable to recognize any of the constellations. Not enough knowledge and too much ambient light.

November 5, 2013

Last night we had a campfire, byob, and someone brought marshmallows to toast. As I appreciatively accepted a stick and sweet, then held it over the fire, just so, I realized that here was another one of those givens: we all knew just what to do to get the perfectly toasted marshmallow. What a great thing to share with my host family for an after dinner over the cook fire coals treat.

Of course, roasting marshmallows was almost expected, worthy only of Thank You! as sharpened sticks and sweets were passed around. The theme of the night was a discussion about why we are here - framed roughly around defining our own  philosophies of international development. Interesting stuff, for sure. Designed, I think, to help us articulate our reasons for joining the PC so that when we hit bottom or reach the ends of our ropes we can remember the big picture, the why behind the what.

So I leave you with yet another challenge: What's the Why behind your What? And, having articulated it, are you happy with it? Does it still fit? I hope some of you will share your reflections, either here or in personal emails. As for me, back to class...