Hello all!
I think I've got it! I found an internet cafe that is somewhat fast and allows you to use flash drives! Now it's catch up time...
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
A bad cold, the end of lent, and thank the Lord...A Break!
Sunday, March 29, 2009
I can’t believe it, I’ve been here for two and a half months and I have had three colds. Would anyone ever think that you would catch a cold in Africa? I sure didn’t. The first two times that I caught a cold weren’t bad but the one that I’ve been fighting the last week has been probably one of the worst colds I’ve ever had. I think because the change in seasons and the drastic change in temperature from day to evening it’s caught me off guard and I sometimes don’t think to put a sweater on until I’m already cold. I have even started to realize the change is temperature. When I first got here, since I was still new and the weather I had come from in Canada was very very cold, even the cold weather here didn’t seem so cold. But now, I really feel it. This week I spent most of my week in bed. I hadn’t been feeling very good from the week before and on last Sunday I had a fever and it just went downhill from there. I tried to fight through it but on Wednesday I woke up to get ready for mass and school and I felt like a truck had hit me. So I stayed home from school and honestly I slept the entire day. I got up for about an hour to have a little bit to eat but the rest of the day I spent in bed. As well as the majority of Thursday and Saturday. Honestly, I’m known for being able to sleep- whenever or where ever but I can say I’ve never slept that much, ever. I was so exhausted and my throat and chest hurt. But what I will say is that thank the Lord for fresh oranges, lemons, and papayas.
One thing I love about being here is that there are tons of fresh fruit to eat. Sr. Cecile had a bunch of oranges taken down from some of the trees so that I could make some orange juice as well as fresh lemonade to get enough vitamin C and since papayas are packed with vitamins she gave me a whole one to eat. I will say that today, since I’ve eaten so much fruit over the past few days my throat has felt so much better. I got up Friday, still not feeling well but I managed to get up and ready for mass and school. Thank the Lord that we only had half a day because I don’t think I would’ve made it through the entire day of classes. I spent the afternoon taking a bit of a nap and then I got up to walk to the church for 4:30. There was a gentleman who was travelling around the Gambia showing “The Passion of the Christ” to any parishes that wanted to watch before Easter. So some of the girls and I walked to the church and when we got to the hall there were only a few people. It was still light out and the man had set the hall up with a projector that was pointed toward a white sheet on the wall, so it was kind of difficult to watch. The reflection of the sun from the windows made it really hard to see the words at the bottom of the screen. There were old wooden benches that we all sat on and as the movie played there were more and more people that came to watch. We had to stop it half way through to go for Stations of the cross but after they resumed the movie. I had been thinking that I wished the movie would’ve been around because I enjoy watching it just before Easter so I’m glad that we had the opportunity to see it. Seeing our Lord Jesus go through his passion and death really makes it real to me. It’s one thing to read about it but it’s another thing to see it replayed before your eyes. I think the parts that really get me are the ones where you see Jesus with Mary and how they interact with one another. To know how human Mary and Jesus were and that she loved Him with an incredible motherly love. I can’t even imagine what it was like for her to see her son go through such a horrible experience. Can you imagine? It’s not like the Angel Gabriel came to Mary and said, “Hail Mary, Full of Grace. The Lord is with You now I’m going to tell you the whole story about what is going to happen to you if you agree to do the Lord’s will.” No…Angel Gabriel didn’t say that. Mary, when Gabriel appeared before her only said, “the Lord has found favor with your and in your womb you will conceive and bare a son that you shall call Jesus.” And based on little information, Mary - THROUGH FAITH- says, “Yes.” She wasn’t revealed the entire story about what would happen to Jesus, she went on faith knowing that the Lord would never abandon her. But what would our reaction be? Mine for sure would be….”Ok Lord, are you sure it’s supposed to happen this way? I thought you said you were going to give me a son, and now you’re going to take him away?” My reaction would be a doubtful one I’m sure. But that is why we can have such confidence in the Lord’s grace through Mary because even though she was human, the Lord worked through her to show us what perfect obedience looks like. She trusted the entire time and even when it must have been most difficult, she still trusted. I’m definitely glad that we got to watch it because it got me ready for Holy Week. After Stations of the Cross, I couldn’t stay for the rest of the movie since I had to go and stop at the super market and buy something for supper, but I went in to give Sr the keys to the truck and the place was packed! I couldn’t belelive it! And by then, it was getting dark so you could see the picture really well. I wished that I could’ve seen the rest, since it was a such a unique experience, sitting in this old church hall, watching a projector on the side of the wall. I’m sure everyone else was glad to watch it.
Yesterday, the sisters had their monthly retreat in Banjul and I was planning on going but I woke up still not feeling very well so I stayed home and slept for most of the day. I don’t know what it was, but a mix with the flu and over exhaustion seemed to me to be the root of it all. I sure haven’t been feeling good. I hope I will feel better this coming week.
Today, I woke up with full intentions of going out to the villages with Sr. Cecile and Sr. Suzanne, so I got ready and was having breakfast when they said that it might be better if I stayed home and took the morning easy. I thought it was probably a good idea since it seems to be a bit cooler in the mornings in the villages and I didn’t want to take any chances of getting sick again since I still am not over this one yet. Some days – expecially days where you are sick and have to stay in bed – all you can do it think and since I couldn’t really do much all I thought about was how I felt like I came all this way to help but it seems that I’m being helped more than doing the actual helping. So I am anxious to get better so I don’t feel so useless.
So I stayed and ate breakfast with the other sisters and got ready for mass. Since Sister Cecile and Sr. Suzanne take the truck to the villages we either go early enough to walk to church or else we take transport. Today I walked with John (who is one of the boys who comes to water the flowers on the weekends). I was also accompanied by Francis who I met up with half way to the church.
In the afternoon I was up for a walk so when everyone went for their siesta (afternoon nap) I ventured out not really having a destination but just walking. On my way toward the supermarket I met up with Omar, a friend that lives just a few minutes from our house. Over the past little while I’ve gotten to know Omar because I will see him walking home from his shop at the market and we will walk back home together since we don’t live far from one another. I’ve learnt a lot about him and it turns out that he has a brother who in the UK that still does some business in the Gambia. The house that Omar lives in is actually built buy Omar but it’s his brother’s place because he puts up the money for all the building. His brother sends the money and Omar does what he likes to the house. Today, when I met up with Omar, he invited me to his compound to see how the building was coming along. I can honestly say it is one of the nicest houses I’ve seen in the Gambia so far. The house is a pastel pink color and has a roof top that isn’t finished but has a great view of the Brikama highway. The floors inside are all tiled and what I like most about it, is that it’s clean! It seems that most of the houses or compounds that I have seen are so messy and they don’t really care to take good care of them but Omar does a great job at keeping the place clean. He has a HUGE mango tree in the middle of the yard and he’s planted some shrubs and flowers along the compound wall that will make really great shade when they grow taller. I didn’t stay long, but I was glad that I finally got to see the fruits of his hard work. One thing I like about Omar is that he seems to have a great work ethic, which is very different from how the rest of the men around here work. One thing I can say for sure is that the women in the Gambia work about 99% harder than the men around here, and I think it comes partly from their social culture and partly from their religious culture (since the country is almost entirely Muslim). But Omar owns his own little shoe shop in the market and in his spare time he builds his brother’s house. It’s really nice to see someone so hard working. After I left I went to see NdayFatou and Papis and I spent a good part of the afternoon with Nday. When I got the their little shop Nday invited me to their house so we went and just sat and talked playing with the kids. At one point she got up and said, “I have something for you.” She went to a tiny table that she had and took the plastic flowers that were in a basket and said. “here, I got these at the market for you.” I was shocked that she even wanted to get me something. At the same time I felt bad even agreeing that I would take them because it is clear that they don’t have much and the flowers add a little bit of color to the room. I said to her, “No, Nday…I can’t take those! You should keep them!” After I said it I wasn’t sure I should’ve, knowing that the hospitality of any Gambian is to give the little that they have and if you refuse they consider it somewhat of an insult. She didn’t really seem to say anything but she sat down and we kept talking. At one point she put her knees to her chest (since she was sitting on the floor) and said to me as she shook her head and started to cry, “Jennifer….you really like me, you really like me.” I didn’t know what she meant by it but as I sat there looking at her I realized that what she felt was honor that I would come and spend time with her and her family, knowing that not any Toobob would just stop in for a visit. I just enjoy spending time with her because we can just sit and talk and laugh at the funny things that Mancy and Babocar do. Usually Mancy is getting into some sort of trouble and Babocar is just running around doing his own thing. I stayed for a good part of the afternoon and then I came home. It was good to get out of the house for a bit to just walk because I haven’t been able to do much of that for the past week.
There have been a few people who have asked how they can help out and being here now for over three months, there are MANY things that I can see can use our help from Canada. I can definetly see how hard the life here is for many people since the development of the country is taking some time. Yes, here it seems to move fast but compared to how fast things happen in Canada to me it seems slow. I’m not sure if I mentioned, but at the school a few months ago they began to put up the new administration building, where there will be an office, kitchen, resource room, library, and computer room. I think from what I’ve heard the men are ahead of schedule but it’s so funny because I think out of all the time I’ve seen them working, I’ve only seen one machine and that was a cement mixer that still had to be cranked by hand. Other than that, everything is done by manual labor. It took two weeks to dig a bore hole for the septic tanks and I just kept thinking about how if it was in Canada, it would’ve been dug in a matter of hours. The men worked hard picking the ground with picks and shoveling the dirty until it was deep enough. Since the foundation has been done the walls (which are made of cement bricks) have been going up pretty fast. They say that the school should be done by the time school opens in September. I know that the sisters are one day hoping to have another two classroom buildings built as well as a high school and then I think they are hoping to have their convent on the property. Every time I call home and talk to my dad I always say, “Dad, you have to come here and see how they work! They do it all by hand!” I know that it is obviously a big undertaking to fund a whole building but there have been organizations who have donated the money for the previous buildings and since people are asking, I’m writing about what there is a need for. Honestly, being here and seeing the WONDERFUL things the sisters do, I can appreciate what the sisters do here. I know many of you don’t know what it’s like here but the education system in the Gambia is very, very poor. Many students will go through 12 grades of school and not know very much English or they won’t know the material that they should coming out of high school. But I can say that at the schools that the sisters run, well Anne Marie Rivier for sure, other community members or teachers from schools say how well the students who are only in grade 1, 2 or 3 can speak English. The sisters’ schools that are run are well known for giving a good education and like I said, the students come out speaking English better than any other school in Brikama. So I can assure you that any money donated for putting up part of the school buildings will be put to great use and honestly, it will help this country develop in a huge way because the young children are the future of the development of the country. If the children are not educated they cannot do much for this country and I see how unbelievably valuable one child’s education is.
Another thing, I have so many children come up to me on the street say, “please…will you sponsor me for school?” One thing I’m always amazed at is how the basic income for a family doesn’t cover the cost of living never mind trying to put your children through school. Many families have many many children (since many people are Muslim and have more than one wife) so they need assistance to put their children through school. We have many Muslim children who come to our school and as different as their values and the way they live are, I can assure you that they will come out of school having learnt MANY Christian principles without having realized it. So, school fees are another thing that if you would like to help, your money will be put to great use. For our school – Anne Marie Rivier – since it’s a private school, it is a bit more expensive but like I said, the education that a child comes out with is significantly higher than in other schools. For the whole year, it costs about $4,000 dallasis which converts to around $200. Nday Fatou approached me one day and asked how much it would be to send her oldest son to our school since she realized that he was learning nothing in the school that he is currently in. I have a hard time telling her how much it costs since I know that their family could never afford the cost of it. And it’s hard because I know how drastic their family’s life would change if they had one educated child. We are currently only up to grade 3 but next year the kids will move up to grade 4 so the classes will slowly move up to eventually all the way through high school.
As for another school, one of our teachers’ – Anna and her husband started a school in their home when their youngest son, Renautus was young. They originally started it by hiring a teacher for him to prepare him for nursery school and since some of the neighborhood kids that couldn’t afford school weren’t going to school, Anna and her husband invited them to attend for free. After the year was over and Renatus entered formal nursery school, Anna thought that it would still be good to give the kids who began learning the opportunity to continue with a bit of education so they kept the classes going. It has now grown into a nursery school and day care and they have a full time teacher as well as 2 part time teachers. Although the have started requiring fees but the fees are very low. Each nursery student pays 650 dallasis ($around $30 Canadian dollars) per year and a day care child would pay 4oo dallasis (around $20 Canadian dollars) per year. The full time teacher gets paid 1,000 dallasis ($50 Canadian dollars) per month. The other two part time teachers get paid 500 dallasis (about $25 Canadian dollars) per month. When she told me what the salaries were I couldn’t believe how little a good salary is around here. The school is located not far from our house in Brikama and it is called “Renatus International Preparatory Day Care and Nursery”. They named it after their son who they originally started having classes for. The school is open from September to July. Anna is just looking for some support, whether it’s a little bit or alot. Any little support can help because both her and her husband are teachers and I can assure you that teachers don’t make very much money. They also have three boys, so any little bit will help. She said that even if the teachers salaries could be paid for the year it would help out SO much. So I did the math and just for all three teachers salaries for the entire year would equal to around $1,100 Canadian dollars….for an entire year. I seriously still can’t believe that’s the amount. I don’t know how many students they have but when I look at the amount that a student pays for the entire year, it’s amazing to think of how little it actually is. And remember, the fact that a child is getting an education is must more important than the cost. An education for a child around here can completely change the entire family’s financial position. It’s really amazing to see first hand.
The church in Kembojeh where we have our youth group and we do weekly scripture studies has more than a leaky roof….half of the roof is off of the building. I can’t even imagine what it’s like during the rainy season. I guess when the rains come, so does the wind and last year half of the roof blew off so they have been stuck with sitting under only half of their church for mass. I can assure you that they don’t have a collection that would be big enough to accumulate enough money to repair it because they even have a hard time finding the money to buy a simple altar cloth (which would be around 75 dallasis – maybe). Since Kembojeh is a village, you have hard working families that don’t make much money. I would guess that an average Sunday collection might….MIGHT be between 10 – 20 dallasis (which is equivalent to 50 cents - 1 Canadian dollar.) I don’t think the roof would take much to repair, but like I said the congregation can’t really afford it.
I was talking with Sr. Cecile about the repairs and she was saying to me that if she had more time, she would spend it in the villages doing more for the Catholic churches in each community. I sympathize with her. It’s one thing to be a part of Brikama, Serrekunda, or Banjul because you can get almost anything you need. There is running water in most places and electricity. But in the villages, most people have it hard. Most families have to walk to the well or tap to get water for their use at home and some places don’t have electricity. The villages are very poor. It’s sad to see, but I will be honest…most days I enjoy spending my time there since there is a sense that life’s purpose is more than material things. One thing Sr. said was that if she could she would love to help the churches out and help them to have the initiative to work toward getting altar clothes, a crucifix, candle holders, a station of the cross, benches and hymn books if their church doesn’t have them. Doesn’t that sound SO small? I know…I think about our church in Duck Lake or some of the churches I;ve been to back home and think how small those things are. But to a church community here, to have mass hymn books or benches or a station of the cross is a prized possession. We really are blessed to have the things we have at home. Has the thought ever crossed your mind that you would ever be without a crucifix in your church? I hadn’t. But now I realize how important those things are to remind us of our faith and how I need to be grateful that we have them.
Anyway, this is just a list that I’ve made since there are many people reading and many people who are asking in what ways they can help. Please, don’t feel obligated to send money, but just pray about how you can maybe help. It may be through prayer, and it may be financially. Like I’ve said before, in the intelligent words of Mother Teresa, “All money is God’s money, it’s just how He chooses to give it to us, is the mystery.” If any of you are planning to give money just email me and I will let you know how to get it here. One thing about giving to somewhere you know someone is that the entire sum of the money gets to where it needs to and you know where your money is going.
I hope all is well and I will talk to all of you very soon!
Much Love,
In Jesus and Mary,
Jennifer
I can’t believe it, I’ve been here for two and a half months and I have had three colds. Would anyone ever think that you would catch a cold in Africa? I sure didn’t. The first two times that I caught a cold weren’t bad but the one that I’ve been fighting the last week has been probably one of the worst colds I’ve ever had. I think because the change in seasons and the drastic change in temperature from day to evening it’s caught me off guard and I sometimes don’t think to put a sweater on until I’m already cold. I have even started to realize the change is temperature. When I first got here, since I was still new and the weather I had come from in Canada was very very cold, even the cold weather here didn’t seem so cold. But now, I really feel it. This week I spent most of my week in bed. I hadn’t been feeling very good from the week before and on last Sunday I had a fever and it just went downhill from there. I tried to fight through it but on Wednesday I woke up to get ready for mass and school and I felt like a truck had hit me. So I stayed home from school and honestly I slept the entire day. I got up for about an hour to have a little bit to eat but the rest of the day I spent in bed. As well as the majority of Thursday and Saturday. Honestly, I’m known for being able to sleep- whenever or where ever but I can say I’ve never slept that much, ever. I was so exhausted and my throat and chest hurt. But what I will say is that thank the Lord for fresh oranges, lemons, and papayas.
One thing I love about being here is that there are tons of fresh fruit to eat. Sr. Cecile had a bunch of oranges taken down from some of the trees so that I could make some orange juice as well as fresh lemonade to get enough vitamin C and since papayas are packed with vitamins she gave me a whole one to eat. I will say that today, since I’ve eaten so much fruit over the past few days my throat has felt so much better. I got up Friday, still not feeling well but I managed to get up and ready for mass and school. Thank the Lord that we only had half a day because I don’t think I would’ve made it through the entire day of classes. I spent the afternoon taking a bit of a nap and then I got up to walk to the church for 4:30. There was a gentleman who was travelling around the Gambia showing “The Passion of the Christ” to any parishes that wanted to watch before Easter. So some of the girls and I walked to the church and when we got to the hall there were only a few people. It was still light out and the man had set the hall up with a projector that was pointed toward a white sheet on the wall, so it was kind of difficult to watch. The reflection of the sun from the windows made it really hard to see the words at the bottom of the screen. There were old wooden benches that we all sat on and as the movie played there were more and more people that came to watch. We had to stop it half way through to go for Stations of the cross but after they resumed the movie. I had been thinking that I wished the movie would’ve been around because I enjoy watching it just before Easter so I’m glad that we had the opportunity to see it. Seeing our Lord Jesus go through his passion and death really makes it real to me. It’s one thing to read about it but it’s another thing to see it replayed before your eyes. I think the parts that really get me are the ones where you see Jesus with Mary and how they interact with one another. To know how human Mary and Jesus were and that she loved Him with an incredible motherly love. I can’t even imagine what it was like for her to see her son go through such a horrible experience. Can you imagine? It’s not like the Angel Gabriel came to Mary and said, “Hail Mary, Full of Grace. The Lord is with You now I’m going to tell you the whole story about what is going to happen to you if you agree to do the Lord’s will.” No…Angel Gabriel didn’t say that. Mary, when Gabriel appeared before her only said, “the Lord has found favor with your and in your womb you will conceive and bare a son that you shall call Jesus.” And based on little information, Mary - THROUGH FAITH- says, “Yes.” She wasn’t revealed the entire story about what would happen to Jesus, she went on faith knowing that the Lord would never abandon her. But what would our reaction be? Mine for sure would be….”Ok Lord, are you sure it’s supposed to happen this way? I thought you said you were going to give me a son, and now you’re going to take him away?” My reaction would be a doubtful one I’m sure. But that is why we can have such confidence in the Lord’s grace through Mary because even though she was human, the Lord worked through her to show us what perfect obedience looks like. She trusted the entire time and even when it must have been most difficult, she still trusted. I’m definitely glad that we got to watch it because it got me ready for Holy Week. After Stations of the Cross, I couldn’t stay for the rest of the movie since I had to go and stop at the super market and buy something for supper, but I went in to give Sr the keys to the truck and the place was packed! I couldn’t belelive it! And by then, it was getting dark so you could see the picture really well. I wished that I could’ve seen the rest, since it was a such a unique experience, sitting in this old church hall, watching a projector on the side of the wall. I’m sure everyone else was glad to watch it.
Yesterday, the sisters had their monthly retreat in Banjul and I was planning on going but I woke up still not feeling very well so I stayed home and slept for most of the day. I don’t know what it was, but a mix with the flu and over exhaustion seemed to me to be the root of it all. I sure haven’t been feeling good. I hope I will feel better this coming week.
Today, I woke up with full intentions of going out to the villages with Sr. Cecile and Sr. Suzanne, so I got ready and was having breakfast when they said that it might be better if I stayed home and took the morning easy. I thought it was probably a good idea since it seems to be a bit cooler in the mornings in the villages and I didn’t want to take any chances of getting sick again since I still am not over this one yet. Some days – expecially days where you are sick and have to stay in bed – all you can do it think and since I couldn’t really do much all I thought about was how I felt like I came all this way to help but it seems that I’m being helped more than doing the actual helping. So I am anxious to get better so I don’t feel so useless.
So I stayed and ate breakfast with the other sisters and got ready for mass. Since Sister Cecile and Sr. Suzanne take the truck to the villages we either go early enough to walk to church or else we take transport. Today I walked with John (who is one of the boys who comes to water the flowers on the weekends). I was also accompanied by Francis who I met up with half way to the church.
In the afternoon I was up for a walk so when everyone went for their siesta (afternoon nap) I ventured out not really having a destination but just walking. On my way toward the supermarket I met up with Omar, a friend that lives just a few minutes from our house. Over the past little while I’ve gotten to know Omar because I will see him walking home from his shop at the market and we will walk back home together since we don’t live far from one another. I’ve learnt a lot about him and it turns out that he has a brother who in the UK that still does some business in the Gambia. The house that Omar lives in is actually built buy Omar but it’s his brother’s place because he puts up the money for all the building. His brother sends the money and Omar does what he likes to the house. Today, when I met up with Omar, he invited me to his compound to see how the building was coming along. I can honestly say it is one of the nicest houses I’ve seen in the Gambia so far. The house is a pastel pink color and has a roof top that isn’t finished but has a great view of the Brikama highway. The floors inside are all tiled and what I like most about it, is that it’s clean! It seems that most of the houses or compounds that I have seen are so messy and they don’t really care to take good care of them but Omar does a great job at keeping the place clean. He has a HUGE mango tree in the middle of the yard and he’s planted some shrubs and flowers along the compound wall that will make really great shade when they grow taller. I didn’t stay long, but I was glad that I finally got to see the fruits of his hard work. One thing I like about Omar is that he seems to have a great work ethic, which is very different from how the rest of the men around here work. One thing I can say for sure is that the women in the Gambia work about 99% harder than the men around here, and I think it comes partly from their social culture and partly from their religious culture (since the country is almost entirely Muslim). But Omar owns his own little shoe shop in the market and in his spare time he builds his brother’s house. It’s really nice to see someone so hard working. After I left I went to see NdayFatou and Papis and I spent a good part of the afternoon with Nday. When I got the their little shop Nday invited me to their house so we went and just sat and talked playing with the kids. At one point she got up and said, “I have something for you.” She went to a tiny table that she had and took the plastic flowers that were in a basket and said. “here, I got these at the market for you.” I was shocked that she even wanted to get me something. At the same time I felt bad even agreeing that I would take them because it is clear that they don’t have much and the flowers add a little bit of color to the room. I said to her, “No, Nday…I can’t take those! You should keep them!” After I said it I wasn’t sure I should’ve, knowing that the hospitality of any Gambian is to give the little that they have and if you refuse they consider it somewhat of an insult. She didn’t really seem to say anything but she sat down and we kept talking. At one point she put her knees to her chest (since she was sitting on the floor) and said to me as she shook her head and started to cry, “Jennifer….you really like me, you really like me.” I didn’t know what she meant by it but as I sat there looking at her I realized that what she felt was honor that I would come and spend time with her and her family, knowing that not any Toobob would just stop in for a visit. I just enjoy spending time with her because we can just sit and talk and laugh at the funny things that Mancy and Babocar do. Usually Mancy is getting into some sort of trouble and Babocar is just running around doing his own thing. I stayed for a good part of the afternoon and then I came home. It was good to get out of the house for a bit to just walk because I haven’t been able to do much of that for the past week.
There have been a few people who have asked how they can help out and being here now for over three months, there are MANY things that I can see can use our help from Canada. I can definetly see how hard the life here is for many people since the development of the country is taking some time. Yes, here it seems to move fast but compared to how fast things happen in Canada to me it seems slow. I’m not sure if I mentioned, but at the school a few months ago they began to put up the new administration building, where there will be an office, kitchen, resource room, library, and computer room. I think from what I’ve heard the men are ahead of schedule but it’s so funny because I think out of all the time I’ve seen them working, I’ve only seen one machine and that was a cement mixer that still had to be cranked by hand. Other than that, everything is done by manual labor. It took two weeks to dig a bore hole for the septic tanks and I just kept thinking about how if it was in Canada, it would’ve been dug in a matter of hours. The men worked hard picking the ground with picks and shoveling the dirty until it was deep enough. Since the foundation has been done the walls (which are made of cement bricks) have been going up pretty fast. They say that the school should be done by the time school opens in September. I know that the sisters are one day hoping to have another two classroom buildings built as well as a high school and then I think they are hoping to have their convent on the property. Every time I call home and talk to my dad I always say, “Dad, you have to come here and see how they work! They do it all by hand!” I know that it is obviously a big undertaking to fund a whole building but there have been organizations who have donated the money for the previous buildings and since people are asking, I’m writing about what there is a need for. Honestly, being here and seeing the WONDERFUL things the sisters do, I can appreciate what the sisters do here. I know many of you don’t know what it’s like here but the education system in the Gambia is very, very poor. Many students will go through 12 grades of school and not know very much English or they won’t know the material that they should coming out of high school. But I can say that at the schools that the sisters run, well Anne Marie Rivier for sure, other community members or teachers from schools say how well the students who are only in grade 1, 2 or 3 can speak English. The sisters’ schools that are run are well known for giving a good education and like I said, the students come out speaking English better than any other school in Brikama. So I can assure you that any money donated for putting up part of the school buildings will be put to great use and honestly, it will help this country develop in a huge way because the young children are the future of the development of the country. If the children are not educated they cannot do much for this country and I see how unbelievably valuable one child’s education is.
Another thing, I have so many children come up to me on the street say, “please…will you sponsor me for school?” One thing I’m always amazed at is how the basic income for a family doesn’t cover the cost of living never mind trying to put your children through school. Many families have many many children (since many people are Muslim and have more than one wife) so they need assistance to put their children through school. We have many Muslim children who come to our school and as different as their values and the way they live are, I can assure you that they will come out of school having learnt MANY Christian principles without having realized it. So, school fees are another thing that if you would like to help, your money will be put to great use. For our school – Anne Marie Rivier – since it’s a private school, it is a bit more expensive but like I said, the education that a child comes out with is significantly higher than in other schools. For the whole year, it costs about $4,000 dallasis which converts to around $200. Nday Fatou approached me one day and asked how much it would be to send her oldest son to our school since she realized that he was learning nothing in the school that he is currently in. I have a hard time telling her how much it costs since I know that their family could never afford the cost of it. And it’s hard because I know how drastic their family’s life would change if they had one educated child. We are currently only up to grade 3 but next year the kids will move up to grade 4 so the classes will slowly move up to eventually all the way through high school.
As for another school, one of our teachers’ – Anna and her husband started a school in their home when their youngest son, Renautus was young. They originally started it by hiring a teacher for him to prepare him for nursery school and since some of the neighborhood kids that couldn’t afford school weren’t going to school, Anna and her husband invited them to attend for free. After the year was over and Renatus entered formal nursery school, Anna thought that it would still be good to give the kids who began learning the opportunity to continue with a bit of education so they kept the classes going. It has now grown into a nursery school and day care and they have a full time teacher as well as 2 part time teachers. Although the have started requiring fees but the fees are very low. Each nursery student pays 650 dallasis ($around $30 Canadian dollars) per year and a day care child would pay 4oo dallasis (around $20 Canadian dollars) per year. The full time teacher gets paid 1,000 dallasis ($50 Canadian dollars) per month. The other two part time teachers get paid 500 dallasis (about $25 Canadian dollars) per month. When she told me what the salaries were I couldn’t believe how little a good salary is around here. The school is located not far from our house in Brikama and it is called “Renatus International Preparatory Day Care and Nursery”. They named it after their son who they originally started having classes for. The school is open from September to July. Anna is just looking for some support, whether it’s a little bit or alot. Any little support can help because both her and her husband are teachers and I can assure you that teachers don’t make very much money. They also have three boys, so any little bit will help. She said that even if the teachers salaries could be paid for the year it would help out SO much. So I did the math and just for all three teachers salaries for the entire year would equal to around $1,100 Canadian dollars….for an entire year. I seriously still can’t believe that’s the amount. I don’t know how many students they have but when I look at the amount that a student pays for the entire year, it’s amazing to think of how little it actually is. And remember, the fact that a child is getting an education is must more important than the cost. An education for a child around here can completely change the entire family’s financial position. It’s really amazing to see first hand.
The church in Kembojeh where we have our youth group and we do weekly scripture studies has more than a leaky roof….half of the roof is off of the building. I can’t even imagine what it’s like during the rainy season. I guess when the rains come, so does the wind and last year half of the roof blew off so they have been stuck with sitting under only half of their church for mass. I can assure you that they don’t have a collection that would be big enough to accumulate enough money to repair it because they even have a hard time finding the money to buy a simple altar cloth (which would be around 75 dallasis – maybe). Since Kembojeh is a village, you have hard working families that don’t make much money. I would guess that an average Sunday collection might….MIGHT be between 10 – 20 dallasis (which is equivalent to 50 cents - 1 Canadian dollar.) I don’t think the roof would take much to repair, but like I said the congregation can’t really afford it.
I was talking with Sr. Cecile about the repairs and she was saying to me that if she had more time, she would spend it in the villages doing more for the Catholic churches in each community. I sympathize with her. It’s one thing to be a part of Brikama, Serrekunda, or Banjul because you can get almost anything you need. There is running water in most places and electricity. But in the villages, most people have it hard. Most families have to walk to the well or tap to get water for their use at home and some places don’t have electricity. The villages are very poor. It’s sad to see, but I will be honest…most days I enjoy spending my time there since there is a sense that life’s purpose is more than material things. One thing Sr. said was that if she could she would love to help the churches out and help them to have the initiative to work toward getting altar clothes, a crucifix, candle holders, a station of the cross, benches and hymn books if their church doesn’t have them. Doesn’t that sound SO small? I know…I think about our church in Duck Lake or some of the churches I;ve been to back home and think how small those things are. But to a church community here, to have mass hymn books or benches or a station of the cross is a prized possession. We really are blessed to have the things we have at home. Has the thought ever crossed your mind that you would ever be without a crucifix in your church? I hadn’t. But now I realize how important those things are to remind us of our faith and how I need to be grateful that we have them.
Anyway, this is just a list that I’ve made since there are many people reading and many people who are asking in what ways they can help. Please, don’t feel obligated to send money, but just pray about how you can maybe help. It may be through prayer, and it may be financially. Like I’ve said before, in the intelligent words of Mother Teresa, “All money is God’s money, it’s just how He chooses to give it to us, is the mystery.” If any of you are planning to give money just email me and I will let you know how to get it here. One thing about giving to somewhere you know someone is that the entire sum of the money gets to where it needs to and you know where your money is going.
I hope all is well and I will talk to all of you very soon!
Much Love,
In Jesus and Mary,
Jennifer
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Alleluia...He has risen!
Hi everyone!
I know that it's again been a long time since I've written and I appologize. My family said that everyone has been asking why I haven't updated but it's been hard to get to an internet cafe when I have some time and mot places don't allow the use of memory cards. But please stay tuned because I have ALOT to say about what my Easter was like and everything else that has been going on. I miss everyone and even though I'm trying to relish every second that I have here, I'm anxious to put my feet on Canadian soil again. :) There's definetly no place like home.
Talk to you all soon!
Jen
I know that it's again been a long time since I've written and I appologize. My family said that everyone has been asking why I haven't updated but it's been hard to get to an internet cafe when I have some time and mot places don't allow the use of memory cards. But please stay tuned because I have ALOT to say about what my Easter was like and everything else that has been going on. I miss everyone and even though I'm trying to relish every second that I have here, I'm anxious to put my feet on Canadian soil again. :) There's definetly no place like home.
Talk to you all soon!
Jen
Monday, March 30, 2009
"Jennifa, My stranger"...
Sunday, March 22, 2009
The past three weeks have been a whirl wind and I can’t believe it’s almost April! I’m realizing how fast the time is going to fly and I’m already sad thinking that I’m going to be leaving in less than 4 months. It must been getting pretty warm back home and I’m sure there are slight signs of spring coming. I talked to my mom and dad this week and they said that the last few weeks have still been very cold but the last week has warmed up a bit. I couldn’t believe when they said it was still -30! Well even if the weather still is cold I sure hope everyone is doing well and excited for spring to get there.
Right now we are in the middle of exam week. We began exams on Friday and we go until Wednesday of this coming week. After exams we have a two week break. Easter is in the middle of the break so it’s kinda nice to have the time off. The kids have been trying to study and I’ve been working really hard to get the kids prepared. It’s interesting to think, since as an adult you don’t really think that you had to “learn” to take a test. I’m realizing that yes, even taking a test is a learning process. I thought that during exam week, it would be a bit more relaxing where I wasn’t as active in the class and I could focus on getting my exams marked. I’ll say this right now….I was very wrong. I think it’s the complete opposite actually. Since my kids can’t read, they can’t read instructions and since most of them have trouble with just sitting in their desks and listening in the first place, I can’t only explain the instructions once. I have a wide range in my class because some of the kids are very very intelligent and can pretty much move on to grade two – IF they could just sit and concentrate and then I have some kids who can’t speak English or don’t know they’re alphabet. It’s interesting come exam week, that’s all I’ll say.
One thing is for sure, that when I take my camera out at the school almost every child wants his or her own picture. Its hilarious to see the extent that the kids will go to just get their picture taken. I’ve been in the middle of a screaming circle of kids that were trying to jump on my back to get their picture taken and every time I get a kick out of it. I have tried to take a lot of video because it’s hard to get what the kids are actually like through just a picture. And, boy when the kids see the play back of themselves they go crazy. It’s really funny.
On the 9th of March (I think that’s the actual date) is “commonwealth day” and since the Gambia is part of the common wealth they always have a celebration at school. I have heard of commonwealth day before but I can’t honestly say that we ever celebrated it in Canada. But Paul and Armando were heading the whole day’s events and they had a little play that they were organizing. They had the kids chosen to each be a president, vice president, queen, etc of each county that was in the commonwealth and so they would each come out with their “first lady” and make speeches. It was so cute because all of the boys dresses up in suits and the girls dressed in their nicest dresses. Then the big hit at the end was that the president of the Gambia – Yaya Jammeh and his wife were coming out. The great thing about it was that he looked just like how Yaya Jammeh dresses! It was really cute! My camera battery had died that day but there was a photographer who was there, so I bought a few pictures from him and I was fortunate enough to get one with “Yaya Jammeh”. The speeches were great and the kids liked that they had a day off of studies. The rest of the kids who weren’t involved in the play were supposed to dress up in their native tribes dress. From what I’ve learnt, each tribe has different woven fabrics and ways they dress to distinguish from each other. The girls came in their woven wraps and they all had their hair plaited (which was one plait down the center of the head and three on each side) and they had candies (which they call minties) and shells tied in it. Most of the boys didn’t dress in the traditional dress. They all brought their own lunches and at lunch time, since it’s tradition to always invite everyone to eat – even if you only have a little bit, all the kids were inviting all the teachers to come and eat with them. I tried various different foods that day and it was all very good.
One question a lot of people have been asking me from home is if I have lost much weight. Haha…I wish that was the case. To my surprise, Gambian’s cook with a lot of oil. I would say that the majority of every meal is cooked in oil. So, I actually haven’t lost much weight. I really enjoy African meals so if anything I think I’ve stayed close to the same weight as when I left. I’ve been trying to make sure I get a run in every day or two and even though it’s not the same as going to the gym every day I think I will probably come back a bit lighter than when I left, but not much. I thought it was hilarious because just a few days ago, Lucina said to me when I walked outside, “Ha…Jennifa’s skinny now.’ And my reply to her was, “Was I ever fat?!” She laughed and said, “yes, when you got here you were fat.” Haha…I just laughed knowing that the girls here are so thin and most of them have never learnt to work out that when I came and since I’ve always been athletic and never had a problem putting on muscle size, to them I looked fat. If there’s one thing I can say about the word “fat’ it’s that the people here don’t have any discretion about telling anyone if they are fat. To me, since in America to tell someone they are fat, it is such an insult that when I hear it it’s like nails on a chalk board. But they are only just telling the size of the person, not to insult anyone. I had to get that through my head the first few times I heard it. Speaking of being active, like I said I’ve been trying to go for a run every day or two but recently I’ve been playing a lot of football. I have a friend who plays on a division 1 football team and when I first met him he was injured so he was just recovering by playing with some of the younger players by the college. One day he invited me to come out and play and even though I had been playing with some of the younger kids, I was a bit nervous as to what everyone was going to say since I was the only girl playing. I didn’t actually play that long that day because they were almost through when I arrived but at the end the score was tied so of course they had to have a shootout. I think they just like to see who can score and goal keep well. Anyway…they all took their turns trying to score on the keeper and then they all wanted to see if I could score. Of course, being the only girl on the field and all the guys eyes staring back seeing if I was good enough to score really made me a bit nervous. After I kicked they all started laughing and I thought they were all laughing at me because I couldn’t understand them. So I asked my friend Musa what they were saying, and as he was laughing he said, “They said, you kick harder than this guy,” as he pointed to one of his teammates. I began to laugh thinking that they had been laughing at my American skills. Every time I go out to the field they’re always asking me if I want to play. I have always loved soccer but this has given me a good opportunity to play it a bit more, and I’m enjoying every minute of it.
On the 14th of March the young sisters had a vocational retreat for all sisters, priests and aspirants (young people who would like to become religious), and anyone else who wanted to join in. The sisters asked if I had wanted to go and sit in on the retreat and to see the place. The retreat was held in Lamin, a village about 20 minutes north of Brikama. What I didn’t realize was that Lamin had a junior seminary and college. We got there and mass was being said by the Bishop at St. Peter’s church which is just off of the highway and just inside the grounds of St. Peter’s. The church is huge! It’s the biggest one I’ve seen since I ve been here and it’s really beautiful. After mass we went to the junior seminary to start the retreat and there were actually quite a few people who had come to attend so we had to move from a room inside to underneath the mango trees. I thought it was really neat, we ended up sitting under the trees all afternoon for the retreat. The junior seminary is for young men who think they have a call to the priesthood. They stay in the seminary and go to the secondary school which is on the same campus. During the lunch hour Sr. Bernadette, Sr. Biban and I went to look around at the campus. It was really beautiful. When you first come onto the campus you see St. Peters’s church on your right hand side. Just behind the church, which as you’re walking down the driveway is on your right hand side. Right behind the church is a huge football field and then a bit further there is a basketball court. There are trees that line the whole field and actually the whole drive way. On your left hand side is the seminary and once you get to the middle of the campus you have a huge courtyard with trees and actual grass (which you rarely see anywhere here – at least in the dry season). The school begins where the courtyard begins and wow, it’s really quite big! I’m pretty sure it’s a technical school, so there are a lot of classrooms for computers, woodworking, electricity, etc. It’s really quite neat to see.
The retreat was really good and we spent the afternoon getting to know everyone and a bit about how some of the religious became religious. It was inspiring to see some of the young people and I was inspired most by one young kid. The funny thing, was that he couldn’t speak English very well so when he went to share he didn’t speak a word of English. While I was listening to him talk there was just something about him that was inspiring and I realized that when someone beholds “Christ” living and being within themselves, that Christ just draws you to that person, not to draw you to the PERSON but to draw you closer to CHRIST himself. This young kid, even though I couldn’t understand at all what he was saying knew that Christ lived in him and Christ just poured from his being. I found out later by Sr. Josaphine that this young kid had always wanted to become a priest and when he told his family his father wouldn’t allow it. He actually kicked him out of the house because he didn’t support his idea that he wanted to become a priest. So, an uncle helped him to get to the seminary so that he could start his journey. It was amazing to hear it after I had had my little realization because to see someone so young and so sure of who Christ is and knew that he wanted to become a priest, it was just inspiring to see how Christ uses him in just being himself. Like I said…I didn’t understand a word he spoke but yet when he spoke it was like Christ was speaking to my own heart. Just the realization that our Lord desires to do something great in my life too, as He does all of us. When I finally realize my own weakness, that I can do nothing without Christ, then Christ within me can fully shine through and He can do the work without my pride and selfishness getting in the way.
After the retreat we headed home and we had taken a taxis to get there so we took a taxi home. I’m definitely getting a bit more used to taking taxis and as uncomfortable as it was for me in the first place to be the only white person in a crammed vehicle, I’ve come to the realization that I’m the only white person most places so if I’m in a rush to get somewhere, I just hop on in and take the ride and don’t mind all the stares. I’m not sure if I have mentioned it but I have started driving here. Did I mention that yet? If so…I’m very sorry for the repetition. I think all of you know how scared I was of driving when I first got here because of the amount of people and the random animals that like to cross the road when your travelling Mac speeds. But one day when we were travelling back from selling eggs, Sr Sue asked if I wanted to drive. I will admit that the fear slowly has been fading because I’m getting used to how things run around here but it was a bit dark and I was hesitant to drive. But, I tried to look at the bright side of the situation and I thought, “well…we may as well start with it being dark then maybe I’ll figure it’s easy in the day time.” And it wasn’t bad. I have to say that the amount that people are beeping their horns – just to let you know that they’re coming, or at animals or even people sometimes on bikes, I don’t’ know that I will get used to using it that often. Seeing that anyone beeping their horn at home seem to be upset drivers. So, Sr. Sue had to reach over to the steering wheel a few times to just let people know we were behind them. I’ll have to get the hang of that one. We arrive home safe and sound and since that day, I’ve been driving a lot. The sisters enjoy it since most of them don’t like driving, and I actually have come to enjoy it. I’m not sure what I’m going to do when I have to go home and not have pot holes or animals or people to swerve around! Then again, I remind myself that I come from Saskatchewan….we’re known for our bad roads. Haha… but yes, the only thing I wish I had done before I left was taken a crash course on automobile repairs from Rene before I came here since the truck likes to break down often.
This week I received a few packages from my friend Josh. Do you remember I said that he and my friend Wendy had decided to donate volleyball and footballs? Well…all I can say is that when the Lord gives, He gives abundantly. We received 6 new volleyballs and 5 new footballs. I wish I would’ve had my camera out when we gave the kids the balls because they went CRAZY! It was probably the most rewarding and funny moment I’ve seen with these kids so far. I hadn’t even given the balls and the response that we got was honestly priceless. They were saying “Thank you friend of Jennifa, Thank you Jennifa!” It was so priceless.
About two weeks ago, I was on my way to the bank after mass when I saw a friend, NdayFatou (who is my friend Musa’s sister) and she was on the way to the hospital to bring her son because he was sick. Since the bank and the hospital are on the same street we walked together and when we reached the bank I realized it was closed for another hour, so she asked me to go with her to the hospital. I didn’t mind at all. So off we went, through the market to the hospital and I was kind of shocked at what I saw, but I kind of expected it too. There were tons of people waiting to get in to see the doctor and I think because NdayFatou knew a few people she just said a few things in the local language and we went around the waiting room to another area of the hospital. It didn’t take long and the nurse had done what he needed to do and we were out of there. The whole time I just stood in the door way and watched. I’ll be honestly that it looked better than I thought it would but it still didn’t look like the type of hospital I was used to. Definitely not as organized but you can tell that it’s developing. On our way out the Pharmacy was closed so we thought that we would go and check if the bank was open and if not we would go to the market so she could get the things she needs to buy for lunch. The bank wasn’t open, so off we were into the market. I’ve learnt a little bit more about the Brikama market and from what I see there are “areas” just like in a supermarket. Ok…just bare with me, I’ve used my imagination on this one – just so that I can maybe try to grasp more about the market. So from what I see, there is an area where you get tourist things, an area for clothes, and the area we went to today is where you buy the local grown food. I like to call this area “the produce isle”. You can get anything you need for cooking. One thing is for sure, I stick out like a sore thumb. I just look like a tourist and I hate that. I can’t talk to anyone since they’re all ladies who don’t speak much English, so I just follow along and smile. But Nday was good about telling me what to say when people greeted me and I appreciated that she cared enough to help me out. One thing I realized after we left the market was Nday (as well as most women) do this everyday. They get up early in the morning to get the things they need to cook, since most don’t have a fridge or freezer or sometimes its because they may only be able to afford what they can eat for that day. I’m not exactly sure what the case is for Nday and her family but I would guess it’s closer to not being able to afford much for each day. I met Nday because, like I said her brother Musa, introduced me to her and her family. She is married to a musician – who, funny enough used to always stop me on the street to chat. I’m finding that this definitely is a small world and the Lord is bring people into my life that are significantly intertwined. It’s really crazy. Every day that I walk to the supermarket or to church I stop by their little store to just say hi and sometimes to chat and I honestly look forward to it every time. I don’t always get to see Nday because she is sometimes at home cooking but most times she’s there cooking fish to sell. But her husband’s name is Pupiss (I think I spelled it right) and he is a local Brikama musician who apparently is very good. I hear about him on the street and I just find it funny that Lord placed this family in my life. I know that even though he is a musician, he doesn’t make a lot of money and I know that they have a very hard time making ends meet. They have three children, two boys ( I can’t remember the oldest one’s name but the youngest is Babocar) and one girl (Mancy). On our way back, after we had made it to the Pharmacy and the bank, we walked to their little shop and Nday invited me to their home to visit. Like I said, when someone invites you to their home, it’s an honor and they like to show you what is theirs. I was glad to go and see. I am continually reminded of what an extravagant life I live at home, and I am honestly grateful for coming from where I have come from. When I saw their home, it was a small room that didn’t have much with another room that had a bed and the few things that they owned. It wasn’t much. I didn’t say much but I knew she was so proud of the things that they had. These are the times you wish you could just hand over money to someone to give them a little better situation than what they are in. Like I said, I’m so grateful for what I have and where I have come from and I can say that when I left Canada I thought I would come back with a realization that I don’t need all the things that I have, but I can’t really say that is the case. What I will say is this…I APPRECIATE the things I have at home more and more every day. I appreciate the fact that I can buy clothes and food and what ever I need or want and that I don’t have to go by day to day struggling and wondering if my kids are going to be fed or if I will be able to pay my children’s school fees. I wasn’t able to stay long but I know that she was grateful that I stopped and I don’t think I will ever forget her hospitality. Since that day, Nday now calls me, “Jennifa, my stranger.” I think that as surprised as I was to have her come into my life, she is just as surprised to have me in hers. I know that over the next months her and her family will make a great impact on my life. Even to this day every time they see me coming on the street, Mancy runs straight to me yelling, “toobob, Jennifa. Toobob, Jennifa” the whole way. Also, since I went with her to the hospital that day to take Babocar, she now calls him, “Babocar, your son.” I’m grateful for these people being in my life, and I’m realizing that Mother Teresa really is right when she says, “do small things with great love.” The people here appreciate even the smallest thing that you do for them.
I had gotten home that same day and since Sr. Josaphine had the nursery school independence day march, I walked out to SSP (which is a huge football field on the edge of Brikama) where they were holding the festivities. It was quite the walk but I really enjoyed myself. I always go out that way on my way to Kembojeh but usually I’m in a rush and never get to see anything that is on the way. So I really enjoyed having the opportunity to walk and take in the sights. When I got there the kids were just starting the march and the scouts were the first to start marching. It was adorable because all the kids were so young and looked like little soldiers all marching in a line. They all wore their school uniforms and the teachers marched right beside all of them. I think there were also sponsors who marched because I honestly haven’t seen so many white people in Brikama at one time! Most of the sponsors had dressed in traditional dress just like the other teachers. It was really nice to see! It was really hot out and I can’t imagine the kids standing out there for much longer than they did. After the march, Sr. Josaphine and all the kids loaded the bus and went to make lunch. I decided to go back to the house to do a for things like wash my clothes and clean my room up a bit but by the time I ended up getting home, since I had seen so many people I knew on my way, I only ended up getting the cleaning my room part done before I had to go back and then go on my way to Kembojeh for the evening. I had actually met up with a friend who wanted to join me in Kembojeh so we walked to SSP and then we were on our way to Kembojeh. We were going to get a taxi and we started walking and realized that we were not very far from Kembojeh so we just kept walking. I was really shocked at how close it was from Brikama and most of the walk was done on our way out to SSP. I’m glad that I actually walked because it makes me appreciate driving there most of the days that I go.
Well I’m sure this is long enough but I guess I had to make up for three weeks of not writing! I hope that everyone at home is well, I miss everyone a lot! Please pray pray pray for me as well as the Sisters and Brikama. I’m praying for all of you!
Much Love, In Jesus and Mary,
Jen
The past three weeks have been a whirl wind and I can’t believe it’s almost April! I’m realizing how fast the time is going to fly and I’m already sad thinking that I’m going to be leaving in less than 4 months. It must been getting pretty warm back home and I’m sure there are slight signs of spring coming. I talked to my mom and dad this week and they said that the last few weeks have still been very cold but the last week has warmed up a bit. I couldn’t believe when they said it was still -30! Well even if the weather still is cold I sure hope everyone is doing well and excited for spring to get there.
Right now we are in the middle of exam week. We began exams on Friday and we go until Wednesday of this coming week. After exams we have a two week break. Easter is in the middle of the break so it’s kinda nice to have the time off. The kids have been trying to study and I’ve been working really hard to get the kids prepared. It’s interesting to think, since as an adult you don’t really think that you had to “learn” to take a test. I’m realizing that yes, even taking a test is a learning process. I thought that during exam week, it would be a bit more relaxing where I wasn’t as active in the class and I could focus on getting my exams marked. I’ll say this right now….I was very wrong. I think it’s the complete opposite actually. Since my kids can’t read, they can’t read instructions and since most of them have trouble with just sitting in their desks and listening in the first place, I can’t only explain the instructions once. I have a wide range in my class because some of the kids are very very intelligent and can pretty much move on to grade two – IF they could just sit and concentrate and then I have some kids who can’t speak English or don’t know they’re alphabet. It’s interesting come exam week, that’s all I’ll say.
One thing is for sure, that when I take my camera out at the school almost every child wants his or her own picture. Its hilarious to see the extent that the kids will go to just get their picture taken. I’ve been in the middle of a screaming circle of kids that were trying to jump on my back to get their picture taken and every time I get a kick out of it. I have tried to take a lot of video because it’s hard to get what the kids are actually like through just a picture. And, boy when the kids see the play back of themselves they go crazy. It’s really funny.
On the 9th of March (I think that’s the actual date) is “commonwealth day” and since the Gambia is part of the common wealth they always have a celebration at school. I have heard of commonwealth day before but I can’t honestly say that we ever celebrated it in Canada. But Paul and Armando were heading the whole day’s events and they had a little play that they were organizing. They had the kids chosen to each be a president, vice president, queen, etc of each county that was in the commonwealth and so they would each come out with their “first lady” and make speeches. It was so cute because all of the boys dresses up in suits and the girls dressed in their nicest dresses. Then the big hit at the end was that the president of the Gambia – Yaya Jammeh and his wife were coming out. The great thing about it was that he looked just like how Yaya Jammeh dresses! It was really cute! My camera battery had died that day but there was a photographer who was there, so I bought a few pictures from him and I was fortunate enough to get one with “Yaya Jammeh”. The speeches were great and the kids liked that they had a day off of studies. The rest of the kids who weren’t involved in the play were supposed to dress up in their native tribes dress. From what I’ve learnt, each tribe has different woven fabrics and ways they dress to distinguish from each other. The girls came in their woven wraps and they all had their hair plaited (which was one plait down the center of the head and three on each side) and they had candies (which they call minties) and shells tied in it. Most of the boys didn’t dress in the traditional dress. They all brought their own lunches and at lunch time, since it’s tradition to always invite everyone to eat – even if you only have a little bit, all the kids were inviting all the teachers to come and eat with them. I tried various different foods that day and it was all very good.
One question a lot of people have been asking me from home is if I have lost much weight. Haha…I wish that was the case. To my surprise, Gambian’s cook with a lot of oil. I would say that the majority of every meal is cooked in oil. So, I actually haven’t lost much weight. I really enjoy African meals so if anything I think I’ve stayed close to the same weight as when I left. I’ve been trying to make sure I get a run in every day or two and even though it’s not the same as going to the gym every day I think I will probably come back a bit lighter than when I left, but not much. I thought it was hilarious because just a few days ago, Lucina said to me when I walked outside, “Ha…Jennifa’s skinny now.’ And my reply to her was, “Was I ever fat?!” She laughed and said, “yes, when you got here you were fat.” Haha…I just laughed knowing that the girls here are so thin and most of them have never learnt to work out that when I came and since I’ve always been athletic and never had a problem putting on muscle size, to them I looked fat. If there’s one thing I can say about the word “fat’ it’s that the people here don’t have any discretion about telling anyone if they are fat. To me, since in America to tell someone they are fat, it is such an insult that when I hear it it’s like nails on a chalk board. But they are only just telling the size of the person, not to insult anyone. I had to get that through my head the first few times I heard it. Speaking of being active, like I said I’ve been trying to go for a run every day or two but recently I’ve been playing a lot of football. I have a friend who plays on a division 1 football team and when I first met him he was injured so he was just recovering by playing with some of the younger players by the college. One day he invited me to come out and play and even though I had been playing with some of the younger kids, I was a bit nervous as to what everyone was going to say since I was the only girl playing. I didn’t actually play that long that day because they were almost through when I arrived but at the end the score was tied so of course they had to have a shootout. I think they just like to see who can score and goal keep well. Anyway…they all took their turns trying to score on the keeper and then they all wanted to see if I could score. Of course, being the only girl on the field and all the guys eyes staring back seeing if I was good enough to score really made me a bit nervous. After I kicked they all started laughing and I thought they were all laughing at me because I couldn’t understand them. So I asked my friend Musa what they were saying, and as he was laughing he said, “They said, you kick harder than this guy,” as he pointed to one of his teammates. I began to laugh thinking that they had been laughing at my American skills. Every time I go out to the field they’re always asking me if I want to play. I have always loved soccer but this has given me a good opportunity to play it a bit more, and I’m enjoying every minute of it.
On the 14th of March the young sisters had a vocational retreat for all sisters, priests and aspirants (young people who would like to become religious), and anyone else who wanted to join in. The sisters asked if I had wanted to go and sit in on the retreat and to see the place. The retreat was held in Lamin, a village about 20 minutes north of Brikama. What I didn’t realize was that Lamin had a junior seminary and college. We got there and mass was being said by the Bishop at St. Peter’s church which is just off of the highway and just inside the grounds of St. Peter’s. The church is huge! It’s the biggest one I’ve seen since I ve been here and it’s really beautiful. After mass we went to the junior seminary to start the retreat and there were actually quite a few people who had come to attend so we had to move from a room inside to underneath the mango trees. I thought it was really neat, we ended up sitting under the trees all afternoon for the retreat. The junior seminary is for young men who think they have a call to the priesthood. They stay in the seminary and go to the secondary school which is on the same campus. During the lunch hour Sr. Bernadette, Sr. Biban and I went to look around at the campus. It was really beautiful. When you first come onto the campus you see St. Peters’s church on your right hand side. Just behind the church, which as you’re walking down the driveway is on your right hand side. Right behind the church is a huge football field and then a bit further there is a basketball court. There are trees that line the whole field and actually the whole drive way. On your left hand side is the seminary and once you get to the middle of the campus you have a huge courtyard with trees and actual grass (which you rarely see anywhere here – at least in the dry season). The school begins where the courtyard begins and wow, it’s really quite big! I’m pretty sure it’s a technical school, so there are a lot of classrooms for computers, woodworking, electricity, etc. It’s really quite neat to see.
The retreat was really good and we spent the afternoon getting to know everyone and a bit about how some of the religious became religious. It was inspiring to see some of the young people and I was inspired most by one young kid. The funny thing, was that he couldn’t speak English very well so when he went to share he didn’t speak a word of English. While I was listening to him talk there was just something about him that was inspiring and I realized that when someone beholds “Christ” living and being within themselves, that Christ just draws you to that person, not to draw you to the PERSON but to draw you closer to CHRIST himself. This young kid, even though I couldn’t understand at all what he was saying knew that Christ lived in him and Christ just poured from his being. I found out later by Sr. Josaphine that this young kid had always wanted to become a priest and when he told his family his father wouldn’t allow it. He actually kicked him out of the house because he didn’t support his idea that he wanted to become a priest. So, an uncle helped him to get to the seminary so that he could start his journey. It was amazing to hear it after I had had my little realization because to see someone so young and so sure of who Christ is and knew that he wanted to become a priest, it was just inspiring to see how Christ uses him in just being himself. Like I said…I didn’t understand a word he spoke but yet when he spoke it was like Christ was speaking to my own heart. Just the realization that our Lord desires to do something great in my life too, as He does all of us. When I finally realize my own weakness, that I can do nothing without Christ, then Christ within me can fully shine through and He can do the work without my pride and selfishness getting in the way.
After the retreat we headed home and we had taken a taxis to get there so we took a taxi home. I’m definitely getting a bit more used to taking taxis and as uncomfortable as it was for me in the first place to be the only white person in a crammed vehicle, I’ve come to the realization that I’m the only white person most places so if I’m in a rush to get somewhere, I just hop on in and take the ride and don’t mind all the stares. I’m not sure if I have mentioned it but I have started driving here. Did I mention that yet? If so…I’m very sorry for the repetition. I think all of you know how scared I was of driving when I first got here because of the amount of people and the random animals that like to cross the road when your travelling Mac speeds. But one day when we were travelling back from selling eggs, Sr Sue asked if I wanted to drive. I will admit that the fear slowly has been fading because I’m getting used to how things run around here but it was a bit dark and I was hesitant to drive. But, I tried to look at the bright side of the situation and I thought, “well…we may as well start with it being dark then maybe I’ll figure it’s easy in the day time.” And it wasn’t bad. I have to say that the amount that people are beeping their horns – just to let you know that they’re coming, or at animals or even people sometimes on bikes, I don’t’ know that I will get used to using it that often. Seeing that anyone beeping their horn at home seem to be upset drivers. So, Sr. Sue had to reach over to the steering wheel a few times to just let people know we were behind them. I’ll have to get the hang of that one. We arrive home safe and sound and since that day, I’ve been driving a lot. The sisters enjoy it since most of them don’t like driving, and I actually have come to enjoy it. I’m not sure what I’m going to do when I have to go home and not have pot holes or animals or people to swerve around! Then again, I remind myself that I come from Saskatchewan….we’re known for our bad roads. Haha… but yes, the only thing I wish I had done before I left was taken a crash course on automobile repairs from Rene before I came here since the truck likes to break down often.
This week I received a few packages from my friend Josh. Do you remember I said that he and my friend Wendy had decided to donate volleyball and footballs? Well…all I can say is that when the Lord gives, He gives abundantly. We received 6 new volleyballs and 5 new footballs. I wish I would’ve had my camera out when we gave the kids the balls because they went CRAZY! It was probably the most rewarding and funny moment I’ve seen with these kids so far. I hadn’t even given the balls and the response that we got was honestly priceless. They were saying “Thank you friend of Jennifa, Thank you Jennifa!” It was so priceless.
About two weeks ago, I was on my way to the bank after mass when I saw a friend, NdayFatou (who is my friend Musa’s sister) and she was on the way to the hospital to bring her son because he was sick. Since the bank and the hospital are on the same street we walked together and when we reached the bank I realized it was closed for another hour, so she asked me to go with her to the hospital. I didn’t mind at all. So off we went, through the market to the hospital and I was kind of shocked at what I saw, but I kind of expected it too. There were tons of people waiting to get in to see the doctor and I think because NdayFatou knew a few people she just said a few things in the local language and we went around the waiting room to another area of the hospital. It didn’t take long and the nurse had done what he needed to do and we were out of there. The whole time I just stood in the door way and watched. I’ll be honestly that it looked better than I thought it would but it still didn’t look like the type of hospital I was used to. Definitely not as organized but you can tell that it’s developing. On our way out the Pharmacy was closed so we thought that we would go and check if the bank was open and if not we would go to the market so she could get the things she needs to buy for lunch. The bank wasn’t open, so off we were into the market. I’ve learnt a little bit more about the Brikama market and from what I see there are “areas” just like in a supermarket. Ok…just bare with me, I’ve used my imagination on this one – just so that I can maybe try to grasp more about the market. So from what I see, there is an area where you get tourist things, an area for clothes, and the area we went to today is where you buy the local grown food. I like to call this area “the produce isle”. You can get anything you need for cooking. One thing is for sure, I stick out like a sore thumb. I just look like a tourist and I hate that. I can’t talk to anyone since they’re all ladies who don’t speak much English, so I just follow along and smile. But Nday was good about telling me what to say when people greeted me and I appreciated that she cared enough to help me out. One thing I realized after we left the market was Nday (as well as most women) do this everyday. They get up early in the morning to get the things they need to cook, since most don’t have a fridge or freezer or sometimes its because they may only be able to afford what they can eat for that day. I’m not exactly sure what the case is for Nday and her family but I would guess it’s closer to not being able to afford much for each day. I met Nday because, like I said her brother Musa, introduced me to her and her family. She is married to a musician – who, funny enough used to always stop me on the street to chat. I’m finding that this definitely is a small world and the Lord is bring people into my life that are significantly intertwined. It’s really crazy. Every day that I walk to the supermarket or to church I stop by their little store to just say hi and sometimes to chat and I honestly look forward to it every time. I don’t always get to see Nday because she is sometimes at home cooking but most times she’s there cooking fish to sell. But her husband’s name is Pupiss (I think I spelled it right) and he is a local Brikama musician who apparently is very good. I hear about him on the street and I just find it funny that Lord placed this family in my life. I know that even though he is a musician, he doesn’t make a lot of money and I know that they have a very hard time making ends meet. They have three children, two boys ( I can’t remember the oldest one’s name but the youngest is Babocar) and one girl (Mancy). On our way back, after we had made it to the Pharmacy and the bank, we walked to their little shop and Nday invited me to their home to visit. Like I said, when someone invites you to their home, it’s an honor and they like to show you what is theirs. I was glad to go and see. I am continually reminded of what an extravagant life I live at home, and I am honestly grateful for coming from where I have come from. When I saw their home, it was a small room that didn’t have much with another room that had a bed and the few things that they owned. It wasn’t much. I didn’t say much but I knew she was so proud of the things that they had. These are the times you wish you could just hand over money to someone to give them a little better situation than what they are in. Like I said, I’m so grateful for what I have and where I have come from and I can say that when I left Canada I thought I would come back with a realization that I don’t need all the things that I have, but I can’t really say that is the case. What I will say is this…I APPRECIATE the things I have at home more and more every day. I appreciate the fact that I can buy clothes and food and what ever I need or want and that I don’t have to go by day to day struggling and wondering if my kids are going to be fed or if I will be able to pay my children’s school fees. I wasn’t able to stay long but I know that she was grateful that I stopped and I don’t think I will ever forget her hospitality. Since that day, Nday now calls me, “Jennifa, my stranger.” I think that as surprised as I was to have her come into my life, she is just as surprised to have me in hers. I know that over the next months her and her family will make a great impact on my life. Even to this day every time they see me coming on the street, Mancy runs straight to me yelling, “toobob, Jennifa. Toobob, Jennifa” the whole way. Also, since I went with her to the hospital that day to take Babocar, she now calls him, “Babocar, your son.” I’m grateful for these people being in my life, and I’m realizing that Mother Teresa really is right when she says, “do small things with great love.” The people here appreciate even the smallest thing that you do for them.
I had gotten home that same day and since Sr. Josaphine had the nursery school independence day march, I walked out to SSP (which is a huge football field on the edge of Brikama) where they were holding the festivities. It was quite the walk but I really enjoyed myself. I always go out that way on my way to Kembojeh but usually I’m in a rush and never get to see anything that is on the way. So I really enjoyed having the opportunity to walk and take in the sights. When I got there the kids were just starting the march and the scouts were the first to start marching. It was adorable because all the kids were so young and looked like little soldiers all marching in a line. They all wore their school uniforms and the teachers marched right beside all of them. I think there were also sponsors who marched because I honestly haven’t seen so many white people in Brikama at one time! Most of the sponsors had dressed in traditional dress just like the other teachers. It was really nice to see! It was really hot out and I can’t imagine the kids standing out there for much longer than they did. After the march, Sr. Josaphine and all the kids loaded the bus and went to make lunch. I decided to go back to the house to do a for things like wash my clothes and clean my room up a bit but by the time I ended up getting home, since I had seen so many people I knew on my way, I only ended up getting the cleaning my room part done before I had to go back and then go on my way to Kembojeh for the evening. I had actually met up with a friend who wanted to join me in Kembojeh so we walked to SSP and then we were on our way to Kembojeh. We were going to get a taxi and we started walking and realized that we were not very far from Kembojeh so we just kept walking. I was really shocked at how close it was from Brikama and most of the walk was done on our way out to SSP. I’m glad that I actually walked because it makes me appreciate driving there most of the days that I go.
Well I’m sure this is long enough but I guess I had to make up for three weeks of not writing! I hope that everyone at home is well, I miss everyone a lot! Please pray pray pray for me as well as the Sisters and Brikama. I’m praying for all of you!
Much Love, In Jesus and Mary,
Jen
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Kartung...of all places.
March 1, 2009
Once again, this week has been full and not one ounce of a lack of anything to do. This week, having Ash Wednesday and the beginning of another Holy Season has added to the “busy-ness” in this household. The Ash Wednesday service here was held in the evening at 6:00pm. What I was overwhelmed with was the amount of people who came. Seriously, this is no joke but the entire church was full and Sr. Cecile said that the majority of the parking lot/courtyard was full. I’ve never seen an Ash Wednesday mass full like that. Sr. Odile and I were sitting next to one another and the time the middle of mass came around we were almost on top of one another because people kept coming in and trying to fit themselves into the pews. I felt so claustrophobic and it was hot in the church by the end of mass. And the thing was that not everyone was there. All the kids in Anne Marie and Presentation weren’t there since we had a service at school for them earlier in the day. So imagine if all of those kids came too, I can’t even imagine….
Thursday evenings during lent there is a Holy Hour at the church. After school I ate some lunch and then took some time to do a few things before I walked to the church for Adoration. When I first got there there were only a few people but slowly throughout the hour, many people came. I’m realizing more and more about myself through the Eucharist here. There is a peace in my heart when I’m face to face with our Lord in the Eucharist and I enjoy sitting in silence, contemplating the Lord’s Love. I am excited for lent. It has always been my favorite time of year, especially in our Liturgical calendar because – for me – I understand more about Jesus through His cross and resurrection. Dying to oneself and rising anew with Christ…
This past weekend has been so wonderful. I can honestly say that I thought it was going to be really difficult but it turned out to be one of my favorite weekends so far, for many reasons. Initially I thought, “oh good, I’m going to relax this weekend. Some of the girls have an interhouse, I’ll wash my clothes, workout a bit, maybe take in a football game and meet with some friends.” It sounded like a great weekend to me, and on Wednesday Sr. Josaphine asked me to go to Kartung – a villiage 30 minutes south of Brikama for a football tournament that her group of 100 Junior Anne Marie Rivier kids were taking part in. My initial thought was that I was hesitant to go, mostly because I had an idea of what a relaxing weekend would be like. And then I got to thinking, “it will be fun, a new experience, and I’m not here for myself – I’m here to volunteer my time for these kids and for the sisters.” And on Thursday morning I said to the Lord, “well if the issue comes up again, I will tell her that I’ll come and help.” And, of course, it came up many times throughout the day and every time I thought about it, I just thought how much I just wanted my “relaxing weekend”. So by Thursday night I had decided to go. My voice was saying that I would go and help but my mind and heart were saying something very different. I guess I was thinking that I wanted a break from the loud group of young kids and I was going to be going straight from the classroom of screaming kids, to a bus full of screaming kids. Lord….give me patience. The one thing that was giving me comfort was knowing that I would be spending some time with Sr. Josaphine. Out of all of the sisters, I have not yet spent much time with Sr. Josaphine because she is the head mistress of Presentation nursery school which is in Brikama. I have wanted to get to know her better, since I thinking out of all of the sisters, Sr. Jos and I are the most similar. She is also the youngest. So the only thing that was giving me comfort was knowing that I would have the opportunity to get to know Sr. Josaphine a little bit better over the weekend.
Of course, just as he does – Satan takes full advantage of every situation. I wasn’t necessarily excited to go and just as we were leaving to come home from the school to get ready to pack up our things and get on the bus, I started to get a really bad head ache. I thought that maybe some food, and a nap might help a bit but neither of them did. I woke up after having ate lunch and taken a nap with an even worse head ache and I just kept thinking that I wanted to stay home. Just as I got up, I started to pack my things since I hadn’t yet packed and then Sr. Sue asked me if I would run an errand for her. I didn’t mind although I was a bit hesitant since I hadn’t packed yet and we were leaving in less than an hour. On my way while running the errand I kept saying, “Lord, are you sure you want me to go…”I” don’t even want to go, I have a head ache, I haven’t packed and I think I’m going to be late.” And earlier in the morning I stubbed my toe really bad to where I almost thought I broke it. I honestly am not saying this because I want sympathy ( I’m actually quite embarrassed to mention all of these stupid little things) but I just want to mention it to explain how Satan used even the tiniest thing to try to distract me from the Lord’s purpose in bringing me here…ultimately, to give of my time for the sisters and the kids in any way I can help. I’m not here to help myself – I’m here to help others. And as all of this played out on Friday it was to the point where I was making up excuses as to why I shouldn’t go. And…why not go?! I think about it now and I laugh. Why would I not want to go and have a new experience?! I think I was just looking forward to being comfortable this weekend and not having much to do and of course, with experiencing something new, sometimes comes a bit of change whether habit or environment. I know that the Lord was –yes, giving me the option to sit here over the weekend and have time for myself but he was also giving me the opportunity to go and have a completely different experience as well. I realized when I was at the bank, running the errand for Sister that the Lord was giving me the choice to make. And, as the perfect gentleman that the Lord is, He would bless either choice I’m sure. So, as I loaded the bus to go, there was a sense of peace that followed and I knew that there was a definite plan that the Lord had for me to go on this trip, I just wasn’t sure why.
We arrived at the church because we had to pick up all the kids and when we pulled up, it was like mass ciaos. The kids are all trying to get on the bus and fit their luggage on and honestly, it’s quite hilarious to sit back and watch. When we got to the church, I saw a friend Vincent who I realized would be making the trip as well. I was glad to see a familiar face and to know that he would be helping out with the kids too. As we left, the bus was packed full with food, luggage, kids and all of a sudden all the kids started singing. And they sang songs the entire ride there, clapping and laughing and smiling. It was a really fun environment and I was glad to have witnessed it.
We arrive in Kartung just as the sun was setting so we didn’t have much time to get unpacked and the kids into their classrooms. And…another thing, Kartung is just by the ocean so it’s SO cold at night. I had shorts and a tank top on and I was anxious to get to my bag to put a sweater on. As the kids were getting situated in their classrooms, I went to check to see what everyone was doing. I realized then that all of the girls were in one room. They had laid out mats (thin mats) and all they were covering up with was their wraps (Milan). I just thought, “oh thank you Lord, for giving me a bed and blanket!” I was so grateful that we were staying in a house and not in that classroom. I’ve shared my fair bit of classroom sleeping on the floor and I was very glad to see a bed at the end of the day. But let me tell you, the kids were so excited to be there and they were all so excited to be sharing time with all of their friends that nothing phased any of them. We went over to Father Jaqcue’s house where all of the cooking was done (just across the street from the school) and we fed all the kids. It was dark by then and after they all ate, they headed to bed. Sr. Josaphine and I and another sister, Sr. Elizabeth (who is part of another order but knows Sr. Josaphine really well) all shared one room which had two beds. I was glad to be a part of their little group and we had lots of laughs over the last few days/nights we all spent together. By the end of the day, my head ache was still there but I hoped that by the morning it would be gone, and it was. We were actually able to sleep in a bit before mass, and after mass we started breakfast (which was bread and tea) and then we all started on lunch. The more and more I’m here, I realize that the majority of how time is spent here is spent cooking. It took all afternoon to make the lunch meal which we ate at around 3:30pm. It was fun though, I really enjoy helping out and learning how African cooking is made. And usually it’s made for a lot of people so the more hands to help the better. I think there were 6 or 7 of us cooking and cutting and we all laughed and had a good time. Vincent is hilarious and I always kill myself laughing at him moreso because he isn’t trying to be funny and he just says what’s on his mind. Throughout the time we were cooking I went to get the kids ready for their game so I brought the balls over so they could play a little bit and while I was over at the school, I realized I had a little friend following me. He couldn’t have been more than 3 years old, but he was walking – barefoot with his matching little orange and green pair of shorts and t-shirt. I had picked him up once to say hello and I then later realized that he was following me the entire day. He didn’t understand a word of English and I had to ask someone to translate to ask him his name. His name was “Zoe” ( I think that’s how you spell it?!) and I can honestly say that I don’t think I heard him say one word the entire time I saw him. He was so quiet and so darn cute.
After lunch was served, which was again in huge bowls set for 5 kids each, we went out to the football field which was just behind the school. I am continually overtaken with how beautiful things are here. But I will say, that it’s been a gradual attitude toward how I feel since when I first got here, everything was so different and there was sand everywhere. Now I’ve realized how beautiful things are, and how “African” they are. And realizing that because it’s different – it’s “African” – it wouldn’t be much of an experience if everything was like home. As we walked up to the field it was this cleared out area that obviously had been a football field for a long time. It was all sand except for the tall, stick-like weeds that were on the outer corners of the field. There were two concrete benches that were for both teams and there were “hut” houses on the one side of the field. It was so beautiful. Palm trees and fruits trees in the background and I was taken back by all the kids who showed up to watch. And of course, they were all singing and dancing. I didn’t realize this but one of the houses on the side of the field was Therese’s (one the girls in the hostel). It now explains why she loves football.
The girls played first and lost only in a shootout since the score was 0-0 at the end of the game. It was heart breaking since they played really well. The boys won by a forfeit since the score was 1-0 for Kartung and our boys scored from a penalty shot about a minute before the end of the game, one of the coaches got so mad that he wouldn’t let his team shoot in the shootout. So they forfeited the game to us. They all played so well and Sr. Josaphine was really proud of all of them. The kids loved it! There are always a ton of kids around and by the end of the game, I had two kids on my back wanting a piggy back ride. I enjoy the kids so much! It brings back a simplicity to my life that in “growing up” I’ve lost. So every opportunity I get to race or jump with them, I take it. And they love for anyone to play with them. On our way walking home, I became familiar with two little girls who had been walking around with me, but I didn’t really notice until we were walking home. One of them, Rose, asked me as she grabbed my hand, “Do you like kids?” And I said, “yes, I do. I love kids!” And her reply to that was, “well then you will be my mother. And I’m going to call you ‘my mama’”. I was so shocked, and as I grabbed her around the shoulders to give her a hug, I realized how as hard as it is going to be to leave in July – I’m going to have had made many friends, as well as been impacted by all of these young kids.
So as we were walking home I took the opportunity to race Miss Rose and some of the other girls to the end of the street. They all took off running and since they are all pretty young as I passed them they all started laughing! It was funny because everyone on the street was looking and probably thinking, “who is this white woman?!” haha…I definetly got a kick out of it and the kids love when you play with them. We got the kids fed back at Father’s house and sent them all to get ready for bed and we cleaned up and went to bed. It was a pretty relaxing evening but we were all tired from the sun and cooking earlier in the day. We woke up in time for mass at 9:00am. And as I was walking into the church I looked down and saw the little Zow following me. He was all dressed in his shorts and shirt and he grabbed my hand and followed me into the church. He sat with me the entire mass and for the most of it he sat on my lap playing with my braclet since the church was packed and the adults had to fit into the pews. I think he was quite content just sitting on my knee because he didn’t move and he didn’t say one word throughout the entire mass. One thing I was quite impressed with was that when the consecration came and when everyone knelt, so did he. He was kneeling and hanging on to the top of the pew so he wouldn’t fall in between the pew and kneeler. I was just amazed because he knew just what to do, you could tell it wasn’t because everyone else was doing it. The church was a little tiny church and it reminded me of one of the old little country churches back home. Father Jaque said mass.
After mass all the kids filed out to father’s to have breakfast, so we were all there cooking and enjoying our bread and tea/coffee. As I was eating my breakfast I saw that little Zow was sitting away from everyone just as content as could be waiting for something. So I took my bread over to him and gave him a quarter of my bread. He didn’t hesitate to take it and I didn’t mind sharing with him. As much as I enjoy his company, I thought I would take him back over to where the kids were playing so that he could enjoy the fun. On my way back, I was stopped by the referee from our game yesterday. He mentioned to me that some of the people wanted to “know me”. I just laughed because for the most of the weekend when I would walk by where these people were sitting, I would get a, “hello! How are you? Are you fine?!” And today all of them wanted me to sit and visit with them. The one thing I’m realizing, that for the most part, everyone would just like some time with you – even if it’s only 5 minutes. They just want you to sit with them to show that you care about who they are and that you’re not just some tourist passing through. I’m realizing that since I’m living here, and one of the few white people here, people are recognizing me and getting to know me a bit more. When most people see a white person it’s because they’ve come out of their hotel to just “SEE” what it’s like. And then they go on back to the hotel thinking they’ve experienced all that they’ve had to see in bush villages. I’m grateful that it’s the other way around for me. When I first arrived here, I would’ve given anything to be a tourist, but now I have grown to love the people in the small villages and here in Brikama because I’ve learnt more about the simplicity of life and what a smiling face and five minutes spent with someone can really do to a persons heart. I’ve been extremely touched by the people who have allowed me to just sit and visit. Today, as I sat down to visit with these people in Kartung, I realized more and more of this lesson. They offered me some palm wine and we all sat around asking each other questions. They definitely had a lot for me, as it seems that they had been watching me walk back and forth from the school to father’s over the weekend and they must have been wondering who I was. So they asked me about my home, family, customs, traditions, politics, economics…etc. At one point in the conversation I thanked them for inviting me over to visit with them. One gentleman mentioned something so true to me that I’m not sure I will ever be able to forget his advice. He said, “everyone has ideas of what a place is like – from books or the news, etc, but rarely do people ever find out what the place is really like because they refuse to sit with the people who experience that culture everyday and discuss what it’s really like.” I realized then, how stupid I have been. I walk and walk and walk some days and all I say is a surface “hello” when someone greets me, just trying to be polite, never to actually really mean it. And I would’ve NEVER sat down with these people if it hadn’t been for them inviting me to get to know them – even for as many “hello! How are you doing? Are you fine?!” ‘s that I would’ve gotten. How often do we do that in our lives? How often do we only give what’s on the surface and never go deep within our souls to possibly relate to one another? I’m definitely realizing that I need to be more open with people, and be a bit more inviting.
I sat with them for quite some time and as many times as I said, “ I should really go and help cook dinner,” I found myself really enjoying the time that I spent with them. I got some email addresses and phone numbers and they all invited me as their personal guest to visit them during the upcoming festival on the 26th of March.
When I left them, which was I’m sure close to an hour later, I met up with Vincent and Fatima who were just leaving to go to the beach, where everyone else was. To get to the beach you have to just go behind father’s house and cross a pretty big pasture. But…get this, there is a sacred crocodile pool in the back forest behind father’s house. I guess it’s sacred because there once appeared these crocodiles- which is rare in that area- and they couldn’t figure out how they got there. Apparently even Friday at noon they come out to hunt, so many people get to see them. We got to Kartung late on Friday so we didn’t get to see them, we only saw the pool. We walked past the field and I was amazed at what I was experiencing while I walked to the beach. The three of us were walking together and as we were getting closer to the beach –which was about a 15 minutes walk- the sand got heavier and heavier. After we left the crocodile pool the landscape was just like a pasture that we would have at home although the trees are all very different. There was one point where we got to that the sand was like walking in the Sahara desert. So fine…and thick! There came a point where there was a hill and the sand was beautiful. I took my sandals off and walked up the hill only to see the beautiful ocean waves with a hut on the beach. I was overwhelmed. I can honestly say that of any beach I’ve ever been to – tourist beach, or non tourist beach – this was the most beautiful beach I’ve ever been to. The kids were all playing in the water and as we walked down to meet them, I thanked the Lord for bringing me here – to Kartung of all places. The place I didn’t want to come to at the beginning of the weekend. We played football with some of the boys and most people took a swim. I hadn’t thrown my bathing suit on, so I just went into the water up to past my knees. I honestly love the beach and it reminds me of how huge God is – how He has complete control over the depth of the sea and He can control – what seems to be “uncontrollable” waves. I find I can just be silent and take in the surrounding when I’m at the beach. No words are necessary and I could just sit the entire day and would never get bored. I took a bit of a walk and had a young girl join me. She was asking me all sorts of questions.
We only stayed for about an hour because we had to get back to get the kids fed before we left, but I wished that we could’ve stayed longer. Vincent, Fatima and I stayed back with a few kids and enjoyed the sun a bit and then started walking back. As hard as it was to realize how different everything is here when I first got here, I have learnt to love the sand in my toes and the sun on my face. I know I’m getting more and more used to everything because I don’t find things as shocking now. When I run or walk past a donkey on the path, it doesn’t surprise me anymore.
We got back and distributed the food and after we all ate we cleaned up and packed the bus. It wasn’t as uniform as you think. The kids all want to be the first ones ON the bus and the first ones OFF. And, any school bus kid, knows that can’t happen. But it seems that these kids don’t get it, so it’s mass chaos. I tried to help, but realized my yelling and trying to organize only ended me in the middle of a group of pushy anxious kids, so I stopped. They eventually all got on the bus. HAHA…teach me to mess with the African way of doing things. .
The bus ride home was good and as we pulled up to the church to let the kids off, all the kids surrounded the bus waiting for all their things to come off. I was glad when we were heading home because I was excited for a hot shower. When we got home, I helped unpack the bus and the sisters were having a meeting with Sr. Madeline. Sr. Madeline comes to stay for a couples days during the year to visit the communities to see how things run. This weekend is her time to stay so, I greeted them and then I boiled water and took a shower. I realized then that I had gotten quite the suntan.
I’m very grateful for this weekend, I am so glad that I actually went and didn’t let all the stupid little things get in the way of the Lord speaking to my heart. I am so glad that I got to spend some time with Sr. Josephine, I really enjoy her company and she’s really funny. I love it when she is excited about something because she explains with large hand gestures and she makes the story so funny! We have some really good stories to tell and I appreciate her so much more now having gone through this weekend with her. All in all…it was a huge success.
Once again, this week has been full and not one ounce of a lack of anything to do. This week, having Ash Wednesday and the beginning of another Holy Season has added to the “busy-ness” in this household. The Ash Wednesday service here was held in the evening at 6:00pm. What I was overwhelmed with was the amount of people who came. Seriously, this is no joke but the entire church was full and Sr. Cecile said that the majority of the parking lot/courtyard was full. I’ve never seen an Ash Wednesday mass full like that. Sr. Odile and I were sitting next to one another and the time the middle of mass came around we were almost on top of one another because people kept coming in and trying to fit themselves into the pews. I felt so claustrophobic and it was hot in the church by the end of mass. And the thing was that not everyone was there. All the kids in Anne Marie and Presentation weren’t there since we had a service at school for them earlier in the day. So imagine if all of those kids came too, I can’t even imagine….
Thursday evenings during lent there is a Holy Hour at the church. After school I ate some lunch and then took some time to do a few things before I walked to the church for Adoration. When I first got there there were only a few people but slowly throughout the hour, many people came. I’m realizing more and more about myself through the Eucharist here. There is a peace in my heart when I’m face to face with our Lord in the Eucharist and I enjoy sitting in silence, contemplating the Lord’s Love. I am excited for lent. It has always been my favorite time of year, especially in our Liturgical calendar because – for me – I understand more about Jesus through His cross and resurrection. Dying to oneself and rising anew with Christ…
This past weekend has been so wonderful. I can honestly say that I thought it was going to be really difficult but it turned out to be one of my favorite weekends so far, for many reasons. Initially I thought, “oh good, I’m going to relax this weekend. Some of the girls have an interhouse, I’ll wash my clothes, workout a bit, maybe take in a football game and meet with some friends.” It sounded like a great weekend to me, and on Wednesday Sr. Josaphine asked me to go to Kartung – a villiage 30 minutes south of Brikama for a football tournament that her group of 100 Junior Anne Marie Rivier kids were taking part in. My initial thought was that I was hesitant to go, mostly because I had an idea of what a relaxing weekend would be like. And then I got to thinking, “it will be fun, a new experience, and I’m not here for myself – I’m here to volunteer my time for these kids and for the sisters.” And on Thursday morning I said to the Lord, “well if the issue comes up again, I will tell her that I’ll come and help.” And, of course, it came up many times throughout the day and every time I thought about it, I just thought how much I just wanted my “relaxing weekend”. So by Thursday night I had decided to go. My voice was saying that I would go and help but my mind and heart were saying something very different. I guess I was thinking that I wanted a break from the loud group of young kids and I was going to be going straight from the classroom of screaming kids, to a bus full of screaming kids. Lord….give me patience. The one thing that was giving me comfort was knowing that I would be spending some time with Sr. Josaphine. Out of all of the sisters, I have not yet spent much time with Sr. Josaphine because she is the head mistress of Presentation nursery school which is in Brikama. I have wanted to get to know her better, since I thinking out of all of the sisters, Sr. Jos and I are the most similar. She is also the youngest. So the only thing that was giving me comfort was knowing that I would have the opportunity to get to know Sr. Josaphine a little bit better over the weekend.
Of course, just as he does – Satan takes full advantage of every situation. I wasn’t necessarily excited to go and just as we were leaving to come home from the school to get ready to pack up our things and get on the bus, I started to get a really bad head ache. I thought that maybe some food, and a nap might help a bit but neither of them did. I woke up after having ate lunch and taken a nap with an even worse head ache and I just kept thinking that I wanted to stay home. Just as I got up, I started to pack my things since I hadn’t yet packed and then Sr. Sue asked me if I would run an errand for her. I didn’t mind although I was a bit hesitant since I hadn’t packed yet and we were leaving in less than an hour. On my way while running the errand I kept saying, “Lord, are you sure you want me to go…”I” don’t even want to go, I have a head ache, I haven’t packed and I think I’m going to be late.” And earlier in the morning I stubbed my toe really bad to where I almost thought I broke it. I honestly am not saying this because I want sympathy ( I’m actually quite embarrassed to mention all of these stupid little things) but I just want to mention it to explain how Satan used even the tiniest thing to try to distract me from the Lord’s purpose in bringing me here…ultimately, to give of my time for the sisters and the kids in any way I can help. I’m not here to help myself – I’m here to help others. And as all of this played out on Friday it was to the point where I was making up excuses as to why I shouldn’t go. And…why not go?! I think about it now and I laugh. Why would I not want to go and have a new experience?! I think I was just looking forward to being comfortable this weekend and not having much to do and of course, with experiencing something new, sometimes comes a bit of change whether habit or environment. I know that the Lord was –yes, giving me the option to sit here over the weekend and have time for myself but he was also giving me the opportunity to go and have a completely different experience as well. I realized when I was at the bank, running the errand for Sister that the Lord was giving me the choice to make. And, as the perfect gentleman that the Lord is, He would bless either choice I’m sure. So, as I loaded the bus to go, there was a sense of peace that followed and I knew that there was a definite plan that the Lord had for me to go on this trip, I just wasn’t sure why.
We arrived at the church because we had to pick up all the kids and when we pulled up, it was like mass ciaos. The kids are all trying to get on the bus and fit their luggage on and honestly, it’s quite hilarious to sit back and watch. When we got to the church, I saw a friend Vincent who I realized would be making the trip as well. I was glad to see a familiar face and to know that he would be helping out with the kids too. As we left, the bus was packed full with food, luggage, kids and all of a sudden all the kids started singing. And they sang songs the entire ride there, clapping and laughing and smiling. It was a really fun environment and I was glad to have witnessed it.
We arrive in Kartung just as the sun was setting so we didn’t have much time to get unpacked and the kids into their classrooms. And…another thing, Kartung is just by the ocean so it’s SO cold at night. I had shorts and a tank top on and I was anxious to get to my bag to put a sweater on. As the kids were getting situated in their classrooms, I went to check to see what everyone was doing. I realized then that all of the girls were in one room. They had laid out mats (thin mats) and all they were covering up with was their wraps (Milan). I just thought, “oh thank you Lord, for giving me a bed and blanket!” I was so grateful that we were staying in a house and not in that classroom. I’ve shared my fair bit of classroom sleeping on the floor and I was very glad to see a bed at the end of the day. But let me tell you, the kids were so excited to be there and they were all so excited to be sharing time with all of their friends that nothing phased any of them. We went over to Father Jaqcue’s house where all of the cooking was done (just across the street from the school) and we fed all the kids. It was dark by then and after they all ate, they headed to bed. Sr. Josaphine and I and another sister, Sr. Elizabeth (who is part of another order but knows Sr. Josaphine really well) all shared one room which had two beds. I was glad to be a part of their little group and we had lots of laughs over the last few days/nights we all spent together. By the end of the day, my head ache was still there but I hoped that by the morning it would be gone, and it was. We were actually able to sleep in a bit before mass, and after mass we started breakfast (which was bread and tea) and then we all started on lunch. The more and more I’m here, I realize that the majority of how time is spent here is spent cooking. It took all afternoon to make the lunch meal which we ate at around 3:30pm. It was fun though, I really enjoy helping out and learning how African cooking is made. And usually it’s made for a lot of people so the more hands to help the better. I think there were 6 or 7 of us cooking and cutting and we all laughed and had a good time. Vincent is hilarious and I always kill myself laughing at him moreso because he isn’t trying to be funny and he just says what’s on his mind. Throughout the time we were cooking I went to get the kids ready for their game so I brought the balls over so they could play a little bit and while I was over at the school, I realized I had a little friend following me. He couldn’t have been more than 3 years old, but he was walking – barefoot with his matching little orange and green pair of shorts and t-shirt. I had picked him up once to say hello and I then later realized that he was following me the entire day. He didn’t understand a word of English and I had to ask someone to translate to ask him his name. His name was “Zoe” ( I think that’s how you spell it?!) and I can honestly say that I don’t think I heard him say one word the entire time I saw him. He was so quiet and so darn cute.
After lunch was served, which was again in huge bowls set for 5 kids each, we went out to the football field which was just behind the school. I am continually overtaken with how beautiful things are here. But I will say, that it’s been a gradual attitude toward how I feel since when I first got here, everything was so different and there was sand everywhere. Now I’ve realized how beautiful things are, and how “African” they are. And realizing that because it’s different – it’s “African” – it wouldn’t be much of an experience if everything was like home. As we walked up to the field it was this cleared out area that obviously had been a football field for a long time. It was all sand except for the tall, stick-like weeds that were on the outer corners of the field. There were two concrete benches that were for both teams and there were “hut” houses on the one side of the field. It was so beautiful. Palm trees and fruits trees in the background and I was taken back by all the kids who showed up to watch. And of course, they were all singing and dancing. I didn’t realize this but one of the houses on the side of the field was Therese’s (one the girls in the hostel). It now explains why she loves football.
The girls played first and lost only in a shootout since the score was 0-0 at the end of the game. It was heart breaking since they played really well. The boys won by a forfeit since the score was 1-0 for Kartung and our boys scored from a penalty shot about a minute before the end of the game, one of the coaches got so mad that he wouldn’t let his team shoot in the shootout. So they forfeited the game to us. They all played so well and Sr. Josaphine was really proud of all of them. The kids loved it! There are always a ton of kids around and by the end of the game, I had two kids on my back wanting a piggy back ride. I enjoy the kids so much! It brings back a simplicity to my life that in “growing up” I’ve lost. So every opportunity I get to race or jump with them, I take it. And they love for anyone to play with them. On our way walking home, I became familiar with two little girls who had been walking around with me, but I didn’t really notice until we were walking home. One of them, Rose, asked me as she grabbed my hand, “Do you like kids?” And I said, “yes, I do. I love kids!” And her reply to that was, “well then you will be my mother. And I’m going to call you ‘my mama’”. I was so shocked, and as I grabbed her around the shoulders to give her a hug, I realized how as hard as it is going to be to leave in July – I’m going to have had made many friends, as well as been impacted by all of these young kids.
So as we were walking home I took the opportunity to race Miss Rose and some of the other girls to the end of the street. They all took off running and since they are all pretty young as I passed them they all started laughing! It was funny because everyone on the street was looking and probably thinking, “who is this white woman?!” haha…I definetly got a kick out of it and the kids love when you play with them. We got the kids fed back at Father’s house and sent them all to get ready for bed and we cleaned up and went to bed. It was a pretty relaxing evening but we were all tired from the sun and cooking earlier in the day. We woke up in time for mass at 9:00am. And as I was walking into the church I looked down and saw the little Zow following me. He was all dressed in his shorts and shirt and he grabbed my hand and followed me into the church. He sat with me the entire mass and for the most of it he sat on my lap playing with my braclet since the church was packed and the adults had to fit into the pews. I think he was quite content just sitting on my knee because he didn’t move and he didn’t say one word throughout the entire mass. One thing I was quite impressed with was that when the consecration came and when everyone knelt, so did he. He was kneeling and hanging on to the top of the pew so he wouldn’t fall in between the pew and kneeler. I was just amazed because he knew just what to do, you could tell it wasn’t because everyone else was doing it. The church was a little tiny church and it reminded me of one of the old little country churches back home. Father Jaque said mass.
After mass all the kids filed out to father’s to have breakfast, so we were all there cooking and enjoying our bread and tea/coffee. As I was eating my breakfast I saw that little Zow was sitting away from everyone just as content as could be waiting for something. So I took my bread over to him and gave him a quarter of my bread. He didn’t hesitate to take it and I didn’t mind sharing with him. As much as I enjoy his company, I thought I would take him back over to where the kids were playing so that he could enjoy the fun. On my way back, I was stopped by the referee from our game yesterday. He mentioned to me that some of the people wanted to “know me”. I just laughed because for the most of the weekend when I would walk by where these people were sitting, I would get a, “hello! How are you? Are you fine?!” And today all of them wanted me to sit and visit with them. The one thing I’m realizing, that for the most part, everyone would just like some time with you – even if it’s only 5 minutes. They just want you to sit with them to show that you care about who they are and that you’re not just some tourist passing through. I’m realizing that since I’m living here, and one of the few white people here, people are recognizing me and getting to know me a bit more. When most people see a white person it’s because they’ve come out of their hotel to just “SEE” what it’s like. And then they go on back to the hotel thinking they’ve experienced all that they’ve had to see in bush villages. I’m grateful that it’s the other way around for me. When I first arrived here, I would’ve given anything to be a tourist, but now I have grown to love the people in the small villages and here in Brikama because I’ve learnt more about the simplicity of life and what a smiling face and five minutes spent with someone can really do to a persons heart. I’ve been extremely touched by the people who have allowed me to just sit and visit. Today, as I sat down to visit with these people in Kartung, I realized more and more of this lesson. They offered me some palm wine and we all sat around asking each other questions. They definitely had a lot for me, as it seems that they had been watching me walk back and forth from the school to father’s over the weekend and they must have been wondering who I was. So they asked me about my home, family, customs, traditions, politics, economics…etc. At one point in the conversation I thanked them for inviting me over to visit with them. One gentleman mentioned something so true to me that I’m not sure I will ever be able to forget his advice. He said, “everyone has ideas of what a place is like – from books or the news, etc, but rarely do people ever find out what the place is really like because they refuse to sit with the people who experience that culture everyday and discuss what it’s really like.” I realized then, how stupid I have been. I walk and walk and walk some days and all I say is a surface “hello” when someone greets me, just trying to be polite, never to actually really mean it. And I would’ve NEVER sat down with these people if it hadn’t been for them inviting me to get to know them – even for as many “hello! How are you doing? Are you fine?!” ‘s that I would’ve gotten. How often do we do that in our lives? How often do we only give what’s on the surface and never go deep within our souls to possibly relate to one another? I’m definitely realizing that I need to be more open with people, and be a bit more inviting.
I sat with them for quite some time and as many times as I said, “ I should really go and help cook dinner,” I found myself really enjoying the time that I spent with them. I got some email addresses and phone numbers and they all invited me as their personal guest to visit them during the upcoming festival on the 26th of March.
When I left them, which was I’m sure close to an hour later, I met up with Vincent and Fatima who were just leaving to go to the beach, where everyone else was. To get to the beach you have to just go behind father’s house and cross a pretty big pasture. But…get this, there is a sacred crocodile pool in the back forest behind father’s house. I guess it’s sacred because there once appeared these crocodiles- which is rare in that area- and they couldn’t figure out how they got there. Apparently even Friday at noon they come out to hunt, so many people get to see them. We got to Kartung late on Friday so we didn’t get to see them, we only saw the pool. We walked past the field and I was amazed at what I was experiencing while I walked to the beach. The three of us were walking together and as we were getting closer to the beach –which was about a 15 minutes walk- the sand got heavier and heavier. After we left the crocodile pool the landscape was just like a pasture that we would have at home although the trees are all very different. There was one point where we got to that the sand was like walking in the Sahara desert. So fine…and thick! There came a point where there was a hill and the sand was beautiful. I took my sandals off and walked up the hill only to see the beautiful ocean waves with a hut on the beach. I was overwhelmed. I can honestly say that of any beach I’ve ever been to – tourist beach, or non tourist beach – this was the most beautiful beach I’ve ever been to. The kids were all playing in the water and as we walked down to meet them, I thanked the Lord for bringing me here – to Kartung of all places. The place I didn’t want to come to at the beginning of the weekend. We played football with some of the boys and most people took a swim. I hadn’t thrown my bathing suit on, so I just went into the water up to past my knees. I honestly love the beach and it reminds me of how huge God is – how He has complete control over the depth of the sea and He can control – what seems to be “uncontrollable” waves. I find I can just be silent and take in the surrounding when I’m at the beach. No words are necessary and I could just sit the entire day and would never get bored. I took a bit of a walk and had a young girl join me. She was asking me all sorts of questions.
We only stayed for about an hour because we had to get back to get the kids fed before we left, but I wished that we could’ve stayed longer. Vincent, Fatima and I stayed back with a few kids and enjoyed the sun a bit and then started walking back. As hard as it was to realize how different everything is here when I first got here, I have learnt to love the sand in my toes and the sun on my face. I know I’m getting more and more used to everything because I don’t find things as shocking now. When I run or walk past a donkey on the path, it doesn’t surprise me anymore.
We got back and distributed the food and after we all ate we cleaned up and packed the bus. It wasn’t as uniform as you think. The kids all want to be the first ones ON the bus and the first ones OFF. And, any school bus kid, knows that can’t happen. But it seems that these kids don’t get it, so it’s mass chaos. I tried to help, but realized my yelling and trying to organize only ended me in the middle of a group of pushy anxious kids, so I stopped. They eventually all got on the bus. HAHA…teach me to mess with the African way of doing things. .
The bus ride home was good and as we pulled up to the church to let the kids off, all the kids surrounded the bus waiting for all their things to come off. I was glad when we were heading home because I was excited for a hot shower. When we got home, I helped unpack the bus and the sisters were having a meeting with Sr. Madeline. Sr. Madeline comes to stay for a couples days during the year to visit the communities to see how things run. This weekend is her time to stay so, I greeted them and then I boiled water and took a shower. I realized then that I had gotten quite the suntan.
I’m very grateful for this weekend, I am so glad that I actually went and didn’t let all the stupid little things get in the way of the Lord speaking to my heart. I am so glad that I got to spend some time with Sr. Josephine, I really enjoy her company and she’s really funny. I love it when she is excited about something because she explains with large hand gestures and she makes the story so funny! We have some really good stories to tell and I appreciate her so much more now having gone through this weekend with her. All in all…it was a huge success.
Friday, March 27, 2009
A day at the beach
Sunday, February 21, 2009
This week has been a pretty relaxing week if I do say so myself. Well…maybe I shouldn’t say relaxing, just a bit out of the routine of the way things normally are.
February 18th in the Gambia is “independence day” (just like July 1st in Canada and July 4th in the USA). One thing that is different that they do here is that each school in the Gambia is chosen to send a few representatives to travel to Banjul (to the football stadium) to march in what is called the “Independence Day March Past” The reason they call it this is because each school lines up with their banner and all dressed up in their school uniform and they “march past” the President – Yaya Jammeh. He basically sits there watching the kids just march past where he is sitting. I’m not sure exactly why they do this but it seems a bit strange to me. I’m sure they have good reason. We didn’t take part in it because the nursery and primary schools are too young to stand in the sun all day waiting for all the high school and upper basic schools to go. The nursery and primary schools have theirs later on, I guess. So I only heard about it but I hope to go when the other kids have theirs.
We (the community and I) spent the day at the beach! And…as many of you know, if there is one thing I love…it’s the beach. On wed we got up early for mass and then when we got home we cooked the food that we were going to take with us to eat. We made many different things since each community brings whatever they would like to feed the people in their house and then we all share. We made meat pies, nan borom ( which is rice that is pounded and made into balls and then mixed into baobob juice. I probably spelled that the wrong way but I don’t know how else to spell it) and a few other things. There is always PLENTY of food around this community and I enjoy all of the different foods I get to try. Sister Cecile and I looked through the games that they had at the house so that we could bring them and we ended up bringing a few decks of cards and some familiar board games. As we were all packing up and almost ready to go, the girls in the hostel were sad to see that they were not making the trip but they were all hanging around the house and it seemed like they were waiting for something to happen. I didn’t know why that is until the young sisters started all coming out with random “beach attire”. Sister Josaphine came out with a bright blue beach dress and a straw hat along with her beach bag, sunglasses, etc. Sister Catherine had another style of beach dress and a brimmed hat that kinda looked African. And Sister Bernadette came out wearing her head tie and a different kind of ball cap on her head, along with a t-shirt and a beach skirt. All the girls started yelling and laughing and I was in the truck at the time so I had to RUN to see what was going on. I’m not sure if that is a tradition when the sisters go to the beach or if it was a one time deal but we all had a good laugh over it all. We all packed into the truck- and I mean PACKED into the truck – and were on our way to the beach. We went to a lodge which was just north of Sr. Catherine’s home village of Kartung. I can’t remember the name of the lodge but it was really nice, very African looking. The had a really big round hall area where people could have gatherings and parties at the top of the hill just off the beach side. you can see the beach from the windows. From there, there was a path that lead down the hill to a little gate just off the side of the beach. Just before the gate, the beautiful but hot sand started. As we walked through the gate we noticed that the other sisters had already arrived and they were all sitting under a little palm hut. I was over taken with the beauty of the ocean. It was the first time I had really seen the ocean here (beside the time I went to the fish market – and it was so busy and loud). What I loved most about it was that it wasn’t busy at all. We were close to the only ones on the beach. We had miles and miles of beach all to ourselves. Well I shouldn’t say to “ourselves” since there was a herd of cattle around 100 meters away from us enjoying the beach. I’ve seen dogs, horses, and maybe even a cat or two on the beach but cows?! That’s a new one for me. We unpacked our things and the two postulants that had come – Ellen and Harriet wanted to play a little bit of football. So we took the football down to the water and we kicked it around for a bit. The sun was hot but the nice thing about being by the ocean is that there is always a cool breeze. The down side…you don’t realize that you’re getting sun burnt. I even put 50 sunblock on and at the end of the day – I was really red. I didn’t realize it until I had gone to shower and I was pretty sore. We had an awesome day. After we played football we had a bit of lunch and I saw a few new foods that I haven’t tried yet. I guess in Ghana, they make these balls – what look like dough to me – made of rice or corn and they eat it with palm oil. The sisters all love them and I tired them but for me I didn’t really enjoy it all that much. Maybe later if I try it again. There was a ton of food a we ate desert and snacked all day. The sisters played a few games and as much as I enjoy all of their company, I kinda felt like sitting by myself, so I took my book and I went out by the water to read. I spent a bit of time reading and then Sr. Gladys came to read her book as well. I’m not sure if many of you know who Sr. Gladys is but she spent 3 years in Canada – in Prince Albert to be exact. The funny thing is that I didn’t realize who she was when I first got here but she used to come to the Pharmacy in PA. After we both figured out who one another was, I could recall the times she had come into the Pharmacy. What a small world. So Sr. Gladys and I talked for a bit and enjoyed the sun and our books. It was nice to just sit and chat with her. One thing I really liked about Sr. Gladys is that I could understand her when I first got here. Since she had spent time in Canada, she knew how to say words that I understood. And it’s always good to be able to relate to someone who knows close to home.
We spent the rest of the day just relaxing and then the wind started to pick up a little bit later in the day. So we packed up our things and headed up the hill to make a bit of supper. The sisters had brought their little charcoal grill so Sr. Bibian and Sr. Bernadette grilled fish that we ate with lime and onions.
There was a group of Anne Marie Rivier Associates women who had gathered in the hall area on top of the hill who had music playing and were enjoying dancing. They invited us to go and enjoy the music and we did for a little bit. But as it got dark we decided to pack up and go home.
On our way home it started raining! We couldn’t believe it. It was the first time I had seen it rain since I got here and it was really refreshing. We unpacked the truck and since it had been such a long day I took a shower and went to bed.
They way it works in the Gambia, is that if you have a government holiday the president will declare the day after a holiday as well. The sisters all laugh and mention that we need a holiday from the holiday. But since this year it wasn’t clear because the president didn’t say anything on the news we weren’t sure if many of the students were going to come to school. So we all got up and went to mass and when we got to the school there were no children! So Sr. Odile declared that it would be a midterm break. So we took Thursday and Friday (since none of the kids would probably come since we usually only have half a day of school on Fridays). So when we got home we had some breakfast and then for some reason Sr. Odile, Sr. Cecile and I got talking about skipping and Sr. Cecile reminded me that she had a skipping video for “double dutch”. Do any of you remember what Double Dutch skipping is? I remember doing it when I was a kid, but the people on this video were experts! We watched it and tried to take a few pointers as to how to get into the ropes and then how to just skip. After we watched we went out to try…and trying is about as far as we got. Boy, it’s a lot harder than it looks! I forgot how to do it and when I went to try my memory didn’t remind me. The girls from the hostel came out and wanted to try but they hadn’t watched the video and most of them hadn’t seen Double Dutch before so they all piled into the living room and watched the video. When they first saw the people skipping faster than anyone they’d ever seen skip, there were many, “woah..”, “ah….”, “woah…”’s and it was hilarious to see their reaction. When the video finished they all got up and were so excited to see if they could double dutch and of course all of them wanted to get into the ropes at the same time. So it took some time to get organized. FatouBintou was the closest to getting in but she couldn’t do the skipping part. And none of the other girls were able to do it either. So at one point we all just gave up and skipped with one rope. I got it on video, so it’ll be interesting to watch all of them.
Other than that, I washed clothes a bit and then Saturday evening is my night to go out to Kembojeh. I always enjoy it since there is usually a good crowd and they enjoy when I come. I love that the kids all jump in the back of the truck to just ride for maybe a block. It’s not much but the excitement that they get in their voices is priceless.
I hope all is well with all of you!
In Jesus and Mary,
Jennifer
This week has been a pretty relaxing week if I do say so myself. Well…maybe I shouldn’t say relaxing, just a bit out of the routine of the way things normally are.
February 18th in the Gambia is “independence day” (just like July 1st in Canada and July 4th in the USA). One thing that is different that they do here is that each school in the Gambia is chosen to send a few representatives to travel to Banjul (to the football stadium) to march in what is called the “Independence Day March Past” The reason they call it this is because each school lines up with their banner and all dressed up in their school uniform and they “march past” the President – Yaya Jammeh. He basically sits there watching the kids just march past where he is sitting. I’m not sure exactly why they do this but it seems a bit strange to me. I’m sure they have good reason. We didn’t take part in it because the nursery and primary schools are too young to stand in the sun all day waiting for all the high school and upper basic schools to go. The nursery and primary schools have theirs later on, I guess. So I only heard about it but I hope to go when the other kids have theirs.
We (the community and I) spent the day at the beach! And…as many of you know, if there is one thing I love…it’s the beach. On wed we got up early for mass and then when we got home we cooked the food that we were going to take with us to eat. We made many different things since each community brings whatever they would like to feed the people in their house and then we all share. We made meat pies, nan borom ( which is rice that is pounded and made into balls and then mixed into baobob juice. I probably spelled that the wrong way but I don’t know how else to spell it) and a few other things. There is always PLENTY of food around this community and I enjoy all of the different foods I get to try. Sister Cecile and I looked through the games that they had at the house so that we could bring them and we ended up bringing a few decks of cards and some familiar board games. As we were all packing up and almost ready to go, the girls in the hostel were sad to see that they were not making the trip but they were all hanging around the house and it seemed like they were waiting for something to happen. I didn’t know why that is until the young sisters started all coming out with random “beach attire”. Sister Josaphine came out with a bright blue beach dress and a straw hat along with her beach bag, sunglasses, etc. Sister Catherine had another style of beach dress and a brimmed hat that kinda looked African. And Sister Bernadette came out wearing her head tie and a different kind of ball cap on her head, along with a t-shirt and a beach skirt. All the girls started yelling and laughing and I was in the truck at the time so I had to RUN to see what was going on. I’m not sure if that is a tradition when the sisters go to the beach or if it was a one time deal but we all had a good laugh over it all. We all packed into the truck- and I mean PACKED into the truck – and were on our way to the beach. We went to a lodge which was just north of Sr. Catherine’s home village of Kartung. I can’t remember the name of the lodge but it was really nice, very African looking. The had a really big round hall area where people could have gatherings and parties at the top of the hill just off the beach side. you can see the beach from the windows. From there, there was a path that lead down the hill to a little gate just off the side of the beach. Just before the gate, the beautiful but hot sand started. As we walked through the gate we noticed that the other sisters had already arrived and they were all sitting under a little palm hut. I was over taken with the beauty of the ocean. It was the first time I had really seen the ocean here (beside the time I went to the fish market – and it was so busy and loud). What I loved most about it was that it wasn’t busy at all. We were close to the only ones on the beach. We had miles and miles of beach all to ourselves. Well I shouldn’t say to “ourselves” since there was a herd of cattle around 100 meters away from us enjoying the beach. I’ve seen dogs, horses, and maybe even a cat or two on the beach but cows?! That’s a new one for me. We unpacked our things and the two postulants that had come – Ellen and Harriet wanted to play a little bit of football. So we took the football down to the water and we kicked it around for a bit. The sun was hot but the nice thing about being by the ocean is that there is always a cool breeze. The down side…you don’t realize that you’re getting sun burnt. I even put 50 sunblock on and at the end of the day – I was really red. I didn’t realize it until I had gone to shower and I was pretty sore. We had an awesome day. After we played football we had a bit of lunch and I saw a few new foods that I haven’t tried yet. I guess in Ghana, they make these balls – what look like dough to me – made of rice or corn and they eat it with palm oil. The sisters all love them and I tired them but for me I didn’t really enjoy it all that much. Maybe later if I try it again. There was a ton of food a we ate desert and snacked all day. The sisters played a few games and as much as I enjoy all of their company, I kinda felt like sitting by myself, so I took my book and I went out by the water to read. I spent a bit of time reading and then Sr. Gladys came to read her book as well. I’m not sure if many of you know who Sr. Gladys is but she spent 3 years in Canada – in Prince Albert to be exact. The funny thing is that I didn’t realize who she was when I first got here but she used to come to the Pharmacy in PA. After we both figured out who one another was, I could recall the times she had come into the Pharmacy. What a small world. So Sr. Gladys and I talked for a bit and enjoyed the sun and our books. It was nice to just sit and chat with her. One thing I really liked about Sr. Gladys is that I could understand her when I first got here. Since she had spent time in Canada, she knew how to say words that I understood. And it’s always good to be able to relate to someone who knows close to home.
We spent the rest of the day just relaxing and then the wind started to pick up a little bit later in the day. So we packed up our things and headed up the hill to make a bit of supper. The sisters had brought their little charcoal grill so Sr. Bibian and Sr. Bernadette grilled fish that we ate with lime and onions.
There was a group of Anne Marie Rivier Associates women who had gathered in the hall area on top of the hill who had music playing and were enjoying dancing. They invited us to go and enjoy the music and we did for a little bit. But as it got dark we decided to pack up and go home.
On our way home it started raining! We couldn’t believe it. It was the first time I had seen it rain since I got here and it was really refreshing. We unpacked the truck and since it had been such a long day I took a shower and went to bed.
They way it works in the Gambia, is that if you have a government holiday the president will declare the day after a holiday as well. The sisters all laugh and mention that we need a holiday from the holiday. But since this year it wasn’t clear because the president didn’t say anything on the news we weren’t sure if many of the students were going to come to school. So we all got up and went to mass and when we got to the school there were no children! So Sr. Odile declared that it would be a midterm break. So we took Thursday and Friday (since none of the kids would probably come since we usually only have half a day of school on Fridays). So when we got home we had some breakfast and then for some reason Sr. Odile, Sr. Cecile and I got talking about skipping and Sr. Cecile reminded me that she had a skipping video for “double dutch”. Do any of you remember what Double Dutch skipping is? I remember doing it when I was a kid, but the people on this video were experts! We watched it and tried to take a few pointers as to how to get into the ropes and then how to just skip. After we watched we went out to try…and trying is about as far as we got. Boy, it’s a lot harder than it looks! I forgot how to do it and when I went to try my memory didn’t remind me. The girls from the hostel came out and wanted to try but they hadn’t watched the video and most of them hadn’t seen Double Dutch before so they all piled into the living room and watched the video. When they first saw the people skipping faster than anyone they’d ever seen skip, there were many, “woah..”, “ah….”, “woah…”’s and it was hilarious to see their reaction. When the video finished they all got up and were so excited to see if they could double dutch and of course all of them wanted to get into the ropes at the same time. So it took some time to get organized. FatouBintou was the closest to getting in but she couldn’t do the skipping part. And none of the other girls were able to do it either. So at one point we all just gave up and skipped with one rope. I got it on video, so it’ll be interesting to watch all of them.
Other than that, I washed clothes a bit and then Saturday evening is my night to go out to Kembojeh. I always enjoy it since there is usually a good crowd and they enjoy when I come. I love that the kids all jump in the back of the truck to just ride for maybe a block. It’s not much but the excitement that they get in their voices is priceless.
I hope all is well with all of you!
In Jesus and Mary,
Jennifer
Sunday, March 22, 2009
I know...I'm sorry!
Hi everyone!
I know I own everyone an appology for the late posting. I've been trying to get connected to the internet and even though I've had a bit of time to get on, the connection is very weak and I have alot of trouble just trying to reply to a simple email. So trying to upload such a large quantity of reading material is a big problem. But, my plan - since I have posts from over a month ago saved on my computer - is to just upload one at a time this week (since the connection has been ok) until I'm updated. I hope you haven't forgotten about me, since it's been a while since I updated last! I can't thank you all enough for the kind emails that you've written! I enjoy hearing how much you enjoy the experience I'm having! It's been amazing so far and there is always a new adventure every morning that I wake up. Please continue to pray for me as I am for all of you!
Much love - In Jesus and Mary,
Jen
I know I own everyone an appology for the late posting. I've been trying to get connected to the internet and even though I've had a bit of time to get on, the connection is very weak and I have alot of trouble just trying to reply to a simple email. So trying to upload such a large quantity of reading material is a big problem. But, my plan - since I have posts from over a month ago saved on my computer - is to just upload one at a time this week (since the connection has been ok) until I'm updated. I hope you haven't forgotten about me, since it's been a while since I updated last! I can't thank you all enough for the kind emails that you've written! I enjoy hearing how much you enjoy the experience I'm having! It's been amazing so far and there is always a new adventure every morning that I wake up. Please continue to pray for me as I am for all of you!
Much love - In Jesus and Mary,
Jen
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