Wow, I guess it’s been a while since I’ve written. I guess quite a bit has happened lately. First of all, my parents just wrapped up their 2 week visit here… that was a good time. I think they really liked Benin and Boukoumbe, and I’m really excited because now they can actually understand the things I’m talking about all the time.
It was cool to speak French and translate with them. I caught myself a few times speaking English to Beninese and French to my parents… but I did a fairly good job at keeping it straight.
It was really mind boggling to even just imagine what my parents might have been experiencing here. For me, life here has become every-day… You see poor people every day, begging people, people with no education, people with no food and no money for food,…… people who have no chance of escaping the life they are trapped in….
I know it seems sad, but to be sad everyday would be a waist of life. I have found that the best way to take it is to just accept it as reality, and to try to make changes in the foundation that might help a group of people rather than one or two. That is my job here.
What do I plan to do??? Well, I would like to work on finishing the school building that’s half built in Boukoumbe. My little local school might not even have classes past 9th grade, but they still don’t have enough class rooms to hold all the classes and kids. Kids have to go to school on Saturdays even.
I’m also excited about my business club field trip. A lot of these kids have never been on anything like a field trip, and many of them will probably drop out of school soon, so this is going to be the chance to make a difference in their lives. We aren’t going far… just to Natitingou, the next big village, but if only they can see people doing something other than what their parents do. If only they can see that they don’t have to do exactly what their expected to do… that they can dream.
That is something about people here; they really don’t seem to know how to dream. It’s almost like maybe we take that for granted in the States. We dream so much we don’t even realize it. Nothing is set in stone for us… in fact, our futures are so unpredictable that many of us are afraid of them.
I know I am slightly afraid of my future. There are just so many what ifs that I don’t know what to do next. I could go back to school, I could get a job, I could get an internship and then get a job or go to school, I could travel and learn other languages till I figure out what I want to do………… There are just SO MANY OPTIONS!!!!! The kids I know here, they knew their future before they could add. Me, I have so much to choose from that it scares me.
And then there’s the inevitable question of, “Why me?” Why did I get choices and they got tradition? This question has lost its appeal for me anymore… you can only think like that for so long before you realize that it’s pointless. So it goes.
I’ve also spent a lot of time recently thinking about what a Beninese would be like in the US. What a strange thought. First of all, the Beninese have no idea of race issues. They think of America as a sort of ‘promise land’. If they can get there, they think they’ll be rich and full of good food and happy. First of all, I don’t think they would even like our food. I’ve made many things in Boukoumbe and shared them with my friends, only to find my precious labors of love to be completely disgusting to them. They eat it to make me happy, but the look on their faces might make you think I was feeding them… goats head (hehe, they eat goats head like its special). Second, they wouldn’t understand a word of anything. Nobody speaks French over there. Third, they would be so looked down upon, both as an immigrant trying to take US jobs and then as a black person, that they would go through serious and painful psychological shock. Fourth, even the rich Beninese would be poor after just even paying for that plane ticket…. Much less paying 1 years worth of average wage for a dinky little apartment somewhere. And then they come home to the dinky apartment to eat food that tastes about as wonderful as pate (pronounced ‘pot’. Literally means ‘paste'.) does to me, and that’s not saying much.
What a funny world we live in. There are some things that you can expect from most human beings, 2 of them being that; dreams and reality are rarely ever the same even when the dreams are fulfilled, and the true beauty of that place called home is never realized until its not there anymore. What a funny, funny world. Really though, I guess those two statements could be applied to a lot of things in life, and maybe I should add many more things to expect from humans … and not just about homes and dreams.
Well, so it goes. I hope you all are doing well and in the very best of health. I hope you see the beauty of that place you call home. Home can become a completely different place if you are ever lucky enough to loose it and get it back. That may not be the nicest thing to wish for you all, but I have to say that I think it has done me some good. I just hope I do get it back before it changes too much.
Best of luck to you all.
Sarah
It was cool to speak French and translate with them. I caught myself a few times speaking English to Beninese and French to my parents… but I did a fairly good job at keeping it straight.
It was really mind boggling to even just imagine what my parents might have been experiencing here. For me, life here has become every-day… You see poor people every day, begging people, people with no education, people with no food and no money for food,…… people who have no chance of escaping the life they are trapped in….
I know it seems sad, but to be sad everyday would be a waist of life. I have found that the best way to take it is to just accept it as reality, and to try to make changes in the foundation that might help a group of people rather than one or two. That is my job here.
What do I plan to do??? Well, I would like to work on finishing the school building that’s half built in Boukoumbe. My little local school might not even have classes past 9th grade, but they still don’t have enough class rooms to hold all the classes and kids. Kids have to go to school on Saturdays even.
I’m also excited about my business club field trip. A lot of these kids have never been on anything like a field trip, and many of them will probably drop out of school soon, so this is going to be the chance to make a difference in their lives. We aren’t going far… just to Natitingou, the next big village, but if only they can see people doing something other than what their parents do. If only they can see that they don’t have to do exactly what their expected to do… that they can dream.
That is something about people here; they really don’t seem to know how to dream. It’s almost like maybe we take that for granted in the States. We dream so much we don’t even realize it. Nothing is set in stone for us… in fact, our futures are so unpredictable that many of us are afraid of them.
I know I am slightly afraid of my future. There are just so many what ifs that I don’t know what to do next. I could go back to school, I could get a job, I could get an internship and then get a job or go to school, I could travel and learn other languages till I figure out what I want to do………… There are just SO MANY OPTIONS!!!!! The kids I know here, they knew their future before they could add. Me, I have so much to choose from that it scares me.
And then there’s the inevitable question of, “Why me?” Why did I get choices and they got tradition? This question has lost its appeal for me anymore… you can only think like that for so long before you realize that it’s pointless. So it goes.
I’ve also spent a lot of time recently thinking about what a Beninese would be like in the US. What a strange thought. First of all, the Beninese have no idea of race issues. They think of America as a sort of ‘promise land’. If they can get there, they think they’ll be rich and full of good food and happy. First of all, I don’t think they would even like our food. I’ve made many things in Boukoumbe and shared them with my friends, only to find my precious labors of love to be completely disgusting to them. They eat it to make me happy, but the look on their faces might make you think I was feeding them… goats head (hehe, they eat goats head like its special). Second, they wouldn’t understand a word of anything. Nobody speaks French over there. Third, they would be so looked down upon, both as an immigrant trying to take US jobs and then as a black person, that they would go through serious and painful psychological shock. Fourth, even the rich Beninese would be poor after just even paying for that plane ticket…. Much less paying 1 years worth of average wage for a dinky little apartment somewhere. And then they come home to the dinky apartment to eat food that tastes about as wonderful as pate (pronounced ‘pot’. Literally means ‘paste'.) does to me, and that’s not saying much.
What a funny world we live in. There are some things that you can expect from most human beings, 2 of them being that; dreams and reality are rarely ever the same even when the dreams are fulfilled, and the true beauty of that place called home is never realized until its not there anymore. What a funny, funny world. Really though, I guess those two statements could be applied to a lot of things in life, and maybe I should add many more things to expect from humans … and not just about homes and dreams.
Well, so it goes. I hope you all are doing well and in the very best of health. I hope you see the beauty of that place you call home. Home can become a completely different place if you are ever lucky enough to loose it and get it back. That may not be the nicest thing to wish for you all, but I have to say that I think it has done me some good. I just hope I do get it back before it changes too much.
Best of luck to you all.
Sarah
Mom and Dad and I in front of a tata somba, the traditional housing of my local tribe in Boukoumbe, called the Ditamaari. Dad's wearing is shirt I had made for him.The mound in the foreground is a voodoo protector. The taller ones with caps represent elders and the small ones represent the young people. There will be one for each person in the family. Only the living have mounds. When they die their mounds are moved.
This is the front view of a real, fully functional tata somba. These are actually 2 stories, and the people live on top, animals on bottom. Each of the grassy things on top is a grain tower where they store the produce from their crops. First, they dry it on their rooftop. As mentioned above, each mound in front represents a member of the family. In occasional ceremonies chickens will be sacraficed and their blood will be spread on each mound that is to be blessed. Oh, and just as a reminder, not all voodoo is bad. There's good voodoo too... white magic, if you will.
This picture was taken during the dance ceremony that my work partner in Boukoumbe hosted in honor of my parents' arrival. Though the colors involved might change, these hats and items are traditional dance costume.
This is a side view of my house. The horse belongs to the neighbor behind me. The woman walking is on the path that leads to my front door. Really you could say that this is the side view of my side of a duplex house. The trees surrounding it are all mango trees.
This is one of my business clubs at the local high school. Really, these kids are more of a middle school age. They can drive me crazy sometimes, but I can't help but love them.
This is just a scenic view of the mountains next to Boukoumbe. This was actually taken from the car as we left Boukoumbe.
This is just a scenic view of the mountains next to Boukoumbe. This was actually taken from the car as we left Boukoumbe.
This is my family with my host family that I lived with during my training (2 months). The cameraman wasn't the best, so the picture's a little crooked. Really though, not bad for the first time taking a picture... ever...
This is just a picture of a baobob tree in front of a tata somba and a woman walking towards it with a basin on her head. I thought it was pretty. It's starting to rain again, so things are becoming green and beautiful again!!!
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