Happiness Found in the Small Moments of our New Life

-GREETINGS, GREETINGS, GREETINGS, in Botswana they are definitely the most important part of seeing ANYONE. It is such a pleasure for everyone to say hello and ask how you are doing. In America, all too often you don’t know your neighbours and go through your day without saying hello to any strangers. Here it is the exact opposite. Go say Hi to your neighbour!

-Waking up this morning, the first thing I said to Matt was I can’t hear the chickens, it is dawn, why is it so quiet. I was actually scared I would over sleep since the chickens, which are our natural alarm, where not crowing as loud as they possibly could outside our window. Most compounds, including ours, have plenty of them and you definitely know when the sun is going to rise. Your sleep schedule pretty much revolves around the sun here so the natural alarm clock is quite a treat.

-Being in an environment in which time is not of the essence and moves very slowly. While there are inherent frustrations that come along with people always being late and waiting for a ride while looking at your watch and realising only ten minutes have passed when it seems like hours, there is something magical about being able to enjoy these moments and truly reflect. Living in NYC time was never on your side, you had to find a space and place to reflect and process everything that was always going on around you. We began to enjoy longer walks just because you had more time to think and be alone in your head. Here, I have more time to think and be alone in my head then I ever have (minus hours spent on the beach in Hawaii) and I have to say there is something captivating, addictive and to be learned from this. Inspecting the small minor happenings that become all the more interesting because you have time. Letting go of the frustration that arises by all that you should be doing and can’t because electricity is out or there is not transport. And instead, learning, due to the slow click of the man made minute hand, to enjoy what you can do with what is working or have witnessed throughout the day.

-Little Kitty, Kgosi (chief in Setswana). We have this adorable kitty that is growing all to fast. He is now, thankfully, flea free thanks to my sister Emily and mom. I love that he sleeps on my head and jumps right in front of the computer as I type, just like Nubs. I get such joy giving him our chicken bones. Especially since after watching Batswana devour chicken bones almost entirely, I feel less wasteful knowing I get to feed the cat. Whoever said you cannot feed cat chicken bones, even though I would not try this with American cats. Is this racist?

-Walking out of the school computer lab, into the lobby to see chickens scurry at the site of me and five cows and an uncountable amount of goats all around the school grounds.

-Being in Gaborone (the capital) yesterday and realising that the blank stare on commuters’ faces is a universal. I swear wherever you go and see people on public transit there is the same dull, get me out of here look. Ha, it is not just grumpy New Yorkers! I love universals that show how much we are all alike, no matter how different we might be. Would be interested in anyone that finds a country or city that challenges this theory we have.

-Batswana, and I would have to say most African countries that I have seen, have this ability to develop the best route to anywhere. Just when you think you have found the quickest dirt path, you come across another even quicker path. So while time seems to move slowly, there is always a quicker more time efficient path. I love the co-existence of opposites.

-Waking up to VOA and BBC on our little hand held radio. For a brief ten minutes, we are transported back to the world of news and media that we miss so much.

Thinking about all the places we are going to travel to in the southern part of Africa and all the visitors that are going to come.

-Having traditional lunch from Mma B outside the council offices. She cooks loads of food in a tiny tin shack. Laura isn’t much of a fan of the local food so I get the chance to fill up on either goat or beef with a healthy serving of rice, beans, or paleche (mashed up corn meal). It also gives me the opportunity to practice my Setswana.

-When people speak slow enough that I can actually understand what they are saying. Even though Setswana is kind of like Latin (the dead language) in the international world of communication, we are enjoying learning another language and practising when we can. I feel like I know the basics but have hit a road block although people constantly tell me I am doing very well. I think a tutor would be good so that I study more often. Re a leka!

-Donkey cart jams in our ward.

-Donkey noises.

-Baby donkeys and goats. I wish they would let you pet them. Maybe we should open a petting zoo. Yelling at kids that harass the dogs by throwing rocks. A teacher is always a teacher.

-The thought of staying in a hotel and taking a real shower.

-Starting the garden. We have developed a small plot on the compound and should be ready for planting in the coming weeks, once I get some chicken mesh to protect the feisty little birds from digging it up. Oh I am using chicken manure to make quality dirt to start the seeds as the ground has about 6 inches of straight sand on top. Damn chicken shit stinks.

-Every morning hearing the students sing beautiful songs at the assembly. I love hearing six hundred voices together with such spirit and cadence. Thank god I cannot understand what they are saying. I am sure it some religious preaching that I would not be happy about. No separation of church and state is still a little hard to digest. Oops, this is supposed to be only happy thoughts.

-Being able to finally talk practically about development and all it’s complexities. NO longer just talking theory. It so good to finally be working in the field of development.

-THE ENDLESS SKY! Sunrises and sunsets are worth the trip in itself.

-The fullness and brightness of the moon.

-The darkness of no moon as you feel as if you can touch the stars.

-LASTLY, LETTERS AND PACKAGES ARE AWESOME!