Sophomore Year

Sorry it's taken so long to update this...I was distracted by traveling and lack of internet. Knowing that you can't update is a great deterrent- that and I had writers block. I did manage to write an article for the Sabaar (PC Senegal's Newsletter) in the month I haven't posted. I wrote an entertaining article (in my opinion) that was deemed front page worthy! I haven't had a front page article since....ever (in my defense, I wrote for the sports section in high school, which meant back page). I have to admit, my quality of writing has probably regressed to that of my high school self (you be the judge). Now onto what I've been doing since Ramadan...

New volunteers

After Ramadan, I was in Kolda to meet the newbies. The 8 of them came down for demyst, which is surreal because it wasn't that long ago that I was in their position. Last post, I mentioned that I've been in country for seven months, so that means that I've been in Kolda for five. Throughout demyst, I hoped that the newbies wouldn't ask me any questions pertaining to anything regarding Kolda because I probably wouldn't be able to answer them. It was really cool to meet them and to chat with them. I was occupied with cooking for 30 people for most of the day, so I'll have to wait to really chat with them, but I'm excited to welcome them to Kolda. So...cooking for 30 people is a difficult task. I had a team of sous chefs helping me chop veggies and mince garlic, but I was exhausted by the end of the day (although I managed to rally for the dance party). I made spring rolls and fried rice again, which isn't difficult, but the combination of 30 people and cooking in Senegal is. Anyways, I can't wait for them to install in a month!

Neem lotion takes over Kolda

I was back in village for exactly two days before the Kolda neem lotion tourney began. Organized by Geoff, a volunteer in Kounkane, the tourney would travel from lummo to lummo singing the praises of neem lotion. What is neem lotion? It is one part water & neem leaves, one part soap, and a smidgen of oil. The chemicals found in neem leaves wards off mosquitoes, which means less people being bitten and lower incidence of malaria (theoretically). I personally don't do neem lotion causeries in my own village because the cost is too high for people- they don't even buy oil to cook with.
I went to three of the lummos and taught people about neem lotion. The sachets of lotion sold faster than we could make them. I think that people bought them because we were toubabs, selling something at lummo. Neem lotion is a great product in theory, but not sustainable. After making neem lotion at my lummo, people in my village and the surrounding villages wanted me to come teach them how to make it- Yay! I told them that they needed to buy the supplies and I would come. Alas, I haven't gone to anyone's village to teach them how to make neem lotion.

The Little Things

I admire PCVs who work on large scale projects and I have one planned for the future, but I realize that it's the little things that work in my village. I like the idea of neem lotion and bigger causeries, but in a village of 150, the personal connection gets the point across better. I've talked to numerous pregnant women about prenatal care, nursing women about proper weening techniques, and everyone about wound care. When I see people in my village practicing techniques that I've taught them, a part of me jumps up and down with joy. This is what will last in the long run- ideally, the information will be passed on from wife to wife, from mother to daughter, and maybe spread from village to village.

Story... Before I left for IST, my neighbor came to me with a swollen hand, clearly infected. When I asked him where the cut was, he claimed that there was none and that his hand happened to swell overnight. I told him that he should go to the health post to get it treated or he could loose his hand (knowing that he wasn't going to go). So, I taught him to soak his hand in warm water and to slowly remove the pus. Then to keep it clean with a makeshift band-aid made of moringa leaves and cloth. I did it for him the first time, just to show him how to do it, then the next day, he shows up to my hut asking for moringa leaves. I proceeded to leave for IST and left him to fend for his own hand. Upon returning to village, I asked him how his hand was and if he went to the heath post. He responded with "no, I didn't go to the health post, but I did what you taught me and look, my hand is all better!". Even though I would've preferred that he had gone to the health post, it was awesome to hear that he used what I taught him. In the end, he now knows how to handle swollen appendages and he will be able to teach his children how to care for such injuries. Small victories.

Girlfriend!

I mentioned before how I had difficultly making a girlfriend in village because they marry young and have two kids by the time they're 22 (my age). It's hard for me to relate to the women my age because I'm not married and not a mother. As a result, my girlfriend in village is 16 (and recently engaged). We chat and hang out and gossip about various people in our village and the surrounding villages. I know that she is a true friend when she noticed that I had trimmed my hair! It's so nice to have someone to hang out with and to be girly with. I forget the age difference because she has a similar mindset as me, despite the fact that she is now engaged.

Adventures in Joal

At the beginning of the month, we had our Health/Environmental Education (EE) summit in Joal. I went up early to Dakar to eat a variety of cuisines and to see my friends. We then took a mini vacation to Popengine to recharge by the beach. Then, it was off to summit. The day before summit began, I was dreading it because I was expecting a format similar to PST and IST. It turned out to be more discussion based and talking with the second year volunteers. I received a lot of information and am now prepared to tackle issues in ville. Yay!

Hopefully I will post again sooner rather than later, but as you know, internet isn't always reliable! Thanks for reading!!

--Peace Out!