Madlela Ma Nene a Ka Chicumbane

Our project garden at CACHES just after planting corn.

That´s Changana for.... Good Nutrition in Chicumbane. 

That´s the name of the agriculture and nutrition project CACHES and I started in September through a Peace Corps Small Projects Assistance grant. The project was the brainchild of Nelio, one of the volunteers I work with at CACHES, and now he and I are the project coordinators working together to make the project a reality...

Our goals for the project are: Teach conservative agriculture to the community of Chicumbane, promote the planting of more nutritious plants and promote good nutrition in the community. 

We have been working on the project for the past eight months, but it has just recently gotten underway...

April: I brought Nelio to PDM, a three-day Peace Corps sponsored conference on project design and management. At the conference we worked through the process of designing a project from start to finish.

May-June: Upon returning home from the conference, Nelio and I sat down and designed a project. We spent countless hours working our way through the project design process: developing goals and objectives, creating a timeline, planning out monitoring and evaluation and drawing up a budget. We took what we had learned at the conference and used it to create our own project focused on agriculture and nutrition. 

July: Nelio and I submitted the grant to Peace Corps. 

August: APPROVED. We heard back from Peace Corps that our grant was approved. 

September: We opened a bank account for the grant funds. We met with local community-based organizations, Tsembeka and Chikuha, about their involvement in our project. We sat down with the community leaders to inform them about the project. Things started coming together...

October: CACHES, Tsembeka and Chikuha all prepared their land to plant a garden.

Nelio demonstrating how to make a tip-tap, hand washing station.

November: However, it was not until November that we first received our grant money. Believe it or not, the government shutdown had something to do with the delay in receiving our funds... Despite the delay, we jumped into gear buying necessary equipment and material and hosting agricultural trainings weekly at CACHES for the 15 volunteers who signed on to work with our project. Every Friday we hosted a training covering permagardening; conservative agriculture; compost piles and making a tip-tap, a hand washing station. 

One of our Friday morning agriculture trainings at CACHES.

The volunteers learning to make a compost pile.

December: We continued to host trainings for the first two weeks in December. On Friday, Dec. 13th, we planted corn in our garden. And in addition, we planted some more nutritious plants, including chaya, moringa and katuk. We received all of these plants from my friend Evan´s organization Mozaic in Manjacaze. They hosted the nutrition training I attended in November. Moringa is known as the miracle plant here being very easy to grow and containing lots of vitamins, minerals and protein. Chaya and katuk also contain more vitamins and minerals than other green leaf plants commonly eaten here. One of our goals throughout this project is to introduce more people to the nutritional value of these plants.

The project is now on holiday break until January 10th. As I learned last year, Mozambique takes ferias (holidays) very seriously. Not much in terms of work gets done from mid-December until mid-January. So instead of battling the holidays, we just accepted them and decided to take holidays ourselves. So starting in January we will continue our project. At that point, we will work with our volunteers who attended our agricultural trainings in November and December to go out into the community to teach families in the community how to do conservative agriculture within their own homes. After that point, we will then start nutrition trainings for our volunteers again. And once we complete our nutrition trainings, we hope to have health fairs for our community at CACHES. (More details to come once they are up and running.)

Distributing plants including chaya, moringa and katuk, to our volunteers.

So far, the project seems to be going pretty well. It has definitely been a learning process for Nelio and myself, but for the most part it is going well. Even though every training is set to start at 8 a.m., usually everyone shows up by 9 a.m. and we are able to get started. And as opposed to having five volunteers from each organization each week as we had hoped, we usually average about three volunteers from each organization. We opened our trainings up to members of the community so we have a consistent two members who participated in our trainings.But, I have learned these are minor aspects in the grand scheme of the project.  What´s more important is that we are distributing the information to those who there and that we are meeting our objectives.  My role has been very minor in actually facilitating with the trainings, which I am very happy about. Both Nelio, and another volunteer from CACHES, Paulo, have attended trainings with me on agriculture and nutrition, so they are primarily the facilitators. They like to remind me that my job is to handle snack. I can do that. No, but seriously, I work with them to plan beforehand, and then during the training, they take the lead. It is much more sustainable. 

Faustino, one of our community volunteers planting his garden.

So as we close out the year, I am content with how the project has gone so far, but I know it is just the beginning. There are definitely areas that need improvement and the bulk of the project is yet to come. So as they say in Changana, Catsonga (probably spelt wrong). . . .pouco a pouco. . .  little by little. One step at a time. 

Murals...Murals...Murals

I have never been extremely artistic. But, since I have been in Moz, I have surrounded myself with people who are quite talented. So I have had to step up my game. But, that is still not saying much.  However, over the past two weeks, I have participated in three mural projects. However, I only let myself paint big spaces. No detailing allowed. And mostly, I just sit in awe of the talent of those I am working with. It has been a busy two weeks, but it has been such a wonderful experience. 

Two weekends ago, my supervisor Sam and I went down to Namaacha to help the newest group of volunteers, Moz 21, do a mural at the Peace Corps office in Namaacha (See pictures below). And last weekend, we hosted three JUNTOS groups, a Peace Corps secondary project focused on expressing health messages through creative art forms, to do a mural in Chicumbane. Then, on Dec. 1st, World AIDS Day, we worked with the kids at CACHES to do a mural. So considering my lack of artistic talent, we have been pretty busy the past few weeks. And the results haven't been half that bad.  But, don't take my word for it....see for yourself. 

JUNTOS Mural in Chicumbane completed November 30, 2013.

Some JUNTOS members working on the mural.

The whole group in front of the mural. We had about 40 participants in total, including members from Macia, Chibuto, Xai-Xai and Chicumbane.

Tania and I at the completion of Day 2 on the Namaacha mural.
Please note: I was only responsible for painting large spaces. No detailed areas.  

My supervisor, Sam, working on some of the finishing touches of the mural. 

TA DAH!!!!!!

December 1: World AIDS Day at CACHES.

Some of the older kids at CACHES worked on a mural at CACHES on World AIDS Day. As part of World AIDS Day, we talked about HIV/AIDS, played some games, danced and enjoyed a snack from the Canadian organization, Right to Play.

Working on the mural.

All of the kids, about 85 in total, lining up to play Limbo.

Alface!!! That's the Mozambican word for Cheese.
The whole group in front of the mural the kids did on World AIDS Day. 

To America and back...

The latest blog post ever...seriously. I started this blogpost over a month ago. And then I was on the road...Tofo, Manjacaze, Namaacha, Maputo, Macia, Bilene. And then, I foolishly dropped my computer and broke my screen. So let's just say, I've been a little out of touch. But, thanks to my dear PCV friends Mike and Marisa, I am at their house using their computer and Internet bringing this blog post to you. So very belated, but here are some pictures from my trip home and a nutrition training I went to in Manjacaze last month. The trip home was a whirlwind of family, food and friends. I can't put all the pictures here so I'll just share the work-related ones. I was also able to share my experiences with three different groups: the 4th and 5th grade at my middle school, my grandmother's senior center and my cousin's 7th grade class on Long Island. I loved hearing their questions and their expressions as I shared some of the realities of my daily life. While now it is tough to think about how just over a month ago I was back home spoiled in the land of milk and honey, I am so glad I took the time to go home and visit. But, there is no doubt, that it is great to be back in Moz. So it goes...

As part of Peace Corps Goal # 3 to improve the understanding of host country nationals on behalf of Americans, I have been participating in the World Wise Schools Program. When I was home, I presented to the 4th grade class at the Old Saybrook Middle School. 

One of the students trying on a capalana.

Some of the students watching videos the kids from CACHES made for them to watch. The kids from CACHES also sent a soccer ball made out of plastic bags to show the kids how they make soccer balls. 

Nutrition Training at Association Mozaic in Manjacaze, Gaza.

Evan, one of my fellow PCVs, who led the training, using some volunteers to explain the benefits of using compost in your garden.

My counterpart Paulo and I at the nutrition training. 

During one of the cooking demonstrations, Evan demonstrated how to use chaya, a more nutritious plant, to make traditional Mozambican dishes. 

All hands in. During the training, we worked together to make peanut butter.

We also made banana jam. Olivia, one of my PCV friends and some of the female counterparts working to mash the bananas for banana jam. 

English Theatre Network

English Theatre is a Peace Corps Secondary Project in which groups of high school students write and perform a skit in English. Each year, there is a theme that groups must incorporate into their skits. This year, the theme was "The Choice is Mine, the Future is Ours." I took 10 members of my group, Grupo Amizade, to compete in the competition in Guija, Gaza last Saturday, September 28th, 2013. 

Grupo Amizade

The day started with a traditional dance group from just outside of Guija.  

The judges table. Pharren, Elisabetta and Marieka.

Giving out certificates of participation.
Chalia played the mother in our skit. Alden, on the left, was the national coordinator of English Theatre Network this year. And Americo, to his right, was the coordinator for Gaza. 

Our skit won "2nd Place" and "Most Creative".
Our skit was about a mother who remarried a man, Armando, for his money, but ended up contracting HIV/AIDS. She got very sick and had to be hospitalized. While she was hospitalized, Armando raped the mother's daughter, Mirella. The mother ends up dying in the hospital. But, Mirella confides in a classmate, Mutukuzi, who was also sexually abused, and together they go to report the stepfather and get her examined by a doctor at the violence against women and children sector of the hospital. Mirella finds out that she too is HIV positive and is now pregnant. Even though the mother made a choice that ruined her and her daughter's lives, Mirella made the choice to report Armando and the choice to get tested. She is now responsible for the future of her unborn child.
"The choice is mine, the future is ours."

Paulo Mendes, one of my students who played one of the lead roles, Mutukuzi, took home "Best English Speaker."
He said it was because of his teacher. :)

Grupo Amizade with Calvino, who used to be in our group, and his dance group from just outside Guija.
It was a great day all around!

Just a fun photo...
the kids showed up at my door pretending to be puppies themselves. Check out their tails.

Calor. Church. Cacana.

Yes, it is that time of year again. That time of year when everyone is talking about it. CALOR. THE HEAT. It’s back. Seriously. Most conservations go as follows:

“Boa tarde, tudo bem?”

“Sim, tudo bem, mas calor.”

“Ep pah. Calor.”

Yep. All is well, but the heat is back.

I don’t know if it is because of the heat or what, something has been going on. I have two stories to share that I just could not not blog about. The first is from about two weeks ago. And the other is just from this past Wednesday.

When I first got to site over a year ago now, I went to the Catholic Church. I just wanted to check it out. I think it might have been my second weekend at site, and I didn’t really know anyone so I got away with just sitting in the back trying to blend in. Key word: trying. I still got all the stares and strange comments, but that’s normal. In working at the hospital, I got to know one of the nurses who is also a nun, Irma Flomena. She invited me to go back to church with her. So I did. But, this time instead of trying to blend in, I was called up to sit next to her in the front with the group that sings and then had to do a formal introduction at the end of mass. Since then I have only gone back twice.  

But, my neighbors are always very concerned about where I pray. I tell them, how I was raised Catholic, but since I have been here I do a lot of praying on my own. And usually I either have visitors or I am traveling so it is sometimes hard to make it to church on Sundays. They continue to invite me to attend their church; the Presbyterian, Seventh Day Adventist, or this one church, the name escapes me, but they go on Saturday around 9 p.m. and stay til sunrise the next morning. A few weeks ago, I finally agreed to accept my neighbor’s invitation to go to the Presbyterian Church. She had been so persistent. And I had run out of excuses.  

So Sunday morning at 9 a.m. Lalina, her granddaughter, came and got me and we walked to the Presbyterian Church. When Lalina and I arrived, the mass was already in session, so we tried to sneak in and find Dona Rachel, her grandmother. Given the circumstances, there actually wasn’t much sneaking at all. But, we tried. Anyway, we found Dona Rachel. She happened to be sitting next to my Portuguese/Changana tutor, Professora Teresa, and just behind my neighbor Avo Salvador. As I sat there through the mass which was all in Changana, I spent most of the time looking around the church realizing just how many people I knew there: coworkers from the hospital, kids from CACHES and of course, my neighbors. Inside the church, benches line both sides facing each other with one main aisle in the middle, so it was a perfect set-up for my people watching. The front of the church had a very simple altar with a few wooden chairs.

Toward the end of the mass, there was a collection. And quite contrary to how collections are done in the states, where a basket is passed through the pews quite solemnly, this collection included the parishioners being called out by each section of the church and then dancing and singing down the main aisle to put their donation in the basket at the front. It was then that Professora Teresa explained to me that the church was divided into sections based on neighborhoods and there was a friendly competition between sections. When one of the sections was called out, Avo Salvador tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Vamos (Let’s go)”, but Dona Rachel piped up and said that I was with her. Even though they live just blocks apart, they are apparently in different sections. So we sat and watched the other sections bring up their contributions. When Dona Rachel and Professora Teresa’s section was called, Professora Teresa grabbed my hand and we started to dance down the aisle. We hadn’t made it very far before one of my neighbors, Vovo Maria grabbed my arm and said, “Oh no, she’s with us.” It then turned into a tug-of-war, if you will, and I was the rope. Vovo Maria vs. Professora Teresa. Mind you, this was all over the two meticais coin I was going to put in the basket. I tried to explain how I could put something in both baskets, but it was a fierce competition. Eventually, Vovo Maria won breaking free of Professora Teresa’s grasp and she proceeded to drag me to the front of the church and then out the door to put my two meticais coin in the basket of the section I apparently belong to, which they had already started counting outside. Every little bit counts right? I tried to figure out why the church is divided into sections anyway? Doesn’t it all go to the same cause? The best I could come up with is that it is in the spirit of a friendly competition.  Who knows?

After said collection chaos, Professora Teresa dragged me up in front of the entire congregation to introduce me. She spoke all in Changana and then asked me to just say my name. As I did, the whole congregation started laughing. Still not quite sure why, but so it goes…it definitely wasn’t the first time that’s happened to me and it won’t be the last. The pastor then spoke saying how pleased they were to have me visit and how I am welcome back anytime as now I am part of the family. To be perfectly honest I am a little scared to go back considering how the last time ended in a proper human tug-of-war. But, I know my neighbors are keeping tabs. They have asked every Sunday since if I will go back. Even complete strangers ask why I haven’t been back. I try to explain that I just went to “conhecer” get to know their church. But that doesn’t seem to be good enough. They even came over last Wednesday when they usually have a neighborhood bible study to ask if they could have it at my house next week. Unfortunately, I had to decline, but only because that is usually when I work at CACHES, but I said we will figure out some week to do it. I am sure they will not let me forget that I agreed to do that.

In other news, my neighbor, Filomena, approached me months ago saying she wanted to run with me to lose weight. I explained to her that the key to losing weight here would be portion control. I said how Mozambicans already have a very labor-intensive lifestyle—carting water, walking everywhere and working on their farms. They just also have a tendency to eat a heaping bowl of xima or rice, lots of carbohydrates, which doesn’t help one’s figure.

We started running. But, pretty inconsistently and it was more a run/walk.  But, it was winter, so it was cold and dark in the mornings. And I was traveling a lot. So inconsistent it was. But, now as it is getting brighter earlier and warmer, we have been keeping it up every morning Monday through Friday for the past month. We found that my seamstress, Dona Sidalia, also works out at the school every morning. So we decided to join forces.

Now our routine is as follows: 5 a.m. alarm, call Filomena to wake her up and confirm we are going, run to Filomena’s house, together we run to the secondary school and then I continue to lead about four women in exercises for about 30 minutes and then we run home. I love it. They complain. They gossip. They roll their eyes at me when they think the exercise is too hard. They tell me it hurts. They criticize one another for doing it wrong or not how I demonstrate. But, at the end of the day, they work hard.

But, just like any other all-women workout class, there is always something to talk about.  Last Wednesday the women were abuzz. Dona Sidalia shared how her maid had called her at 2 a.m. telling her that she had to go outside and collect cacana, a green viney plant, and tie it around her ankles and the ankles of her children because a sickness was coming. Excuse me, what?! They all gawked at how strange the call was, but said how it must be true for her to call at 2 a.m. We ended our exercises and proceeded to do some investigation into this cacana matter.

We went to one of Dona Sidalia’s neighbors, and low and behold, she too had heard that she needed to tie cacana around her ankles. When I asked why, she didn’t know, but she said you have to do it. I tried to play devil’s advocate and pulled out the famous line, “Well, if everyone is going to jump off a bridge, are you going to do it too?” I don’t think it translated the same way. Filomena insisted that we find her son on his way to school so that she could tie cacana around his ankle and know that he would be protected. In our search, we encountered other kids that had been wrapped in cacana as well. Nobody seemed to know why, they just knew they had to do it.

When I arrived at the hospital, the first thing my co-workers asked me was if I had heard about the cacana. They at least said it was because there had been a program on the radio that said a pangolin had come out of the river and the cacana would protect you from a sickness it carried. When I saw Luis, my supervisor at the hospital, he pulled cacana out of his pocket and tied it around my wrist. When in Mozambique, do as the Mozambicans do, right? It was not until I was working with one of my other counterparts later that day, that she yanked the cacana from my wrist saying, “This is a myth. In Africa, there are a lot of myths.” True. There are.

But, what I was amazed at was how this myth had spread like wildfire. Can you imagine if we got the truth to spread like that? At that speed with such credibility? Imagine if the Ministry of Health could send out health messages and have them spread like that? What if everyone really believed they had to use a condom to avoid HIV/AIDS? Or if everyone used a mosquito net to prevent malaria? But this cacana thing was a one-day phenomenon. People wore necklaces of cacana the size of Hawaiian leis. And some people even contemplated income-generating projects selling cacana. My colleague later informed me that she heard it was a television program that said there was a wind coming in that carried yellow fever. Good thing, I got that vaccination. Well, whatever it was, it got people talking and acting. Fast.

And just like that, the next day it was all over. Apparently the wind had passed. Or the pangolin retreated back into the river. But the hype over the protective powers of cacana was over.

My Government-Issued Friends

Moz 18. In Peace Corps Mozambique world, my colleagues and I who arrived in country June 1, 2012 are known as Moz 18. While we like to joke that we are really only government-issued friends, these government-issued friends have become my Peace Corps family. We started out as 31 coming from all different states, backgrounds and walks of life. Unfortunately three went home in the first week of training. So then 28 of us made it through training together. We learned Portuguese together. We endured the countless hours of training together. And we survived all the up’s and down’s of living with a host family. We swore in as volunteers together. 

Moz 18 at the end of training: July 2012

Then we parted ways going off to our individual sites, knowing we wouldn’t see some volunteers until our Reconnect conference three months later. We stayed in touch supporting each other and helping one another throughout this adventure that is Peace Corps.  And of course, getting together with volunteers close by as often as our schedules would permit. Within the first few months at site, another four had to go home for various reasons.

Since training when we were together all the time, there are only a handful of scheduled times, Peace Corps sponsored events, to have Moz 18 altogether. Last week was our one-year mid-service conference in Maputo. We are now just 24. But, 24 going strong. The main objective of mid-service is to see the doctor and dentist for a one-year check-up. Since this requires all volunteers getting together in the capital city, Peace Corps uses this opportunity to host a variety of sessions allowing time and space for volunteers to share and collaborate on ideas, projects and experiences. Aside from the conference, we spent the week hitting up our favorite watering holes, the Chinese restaurant, the Indian restaurant, the karaoke bar and we even treated ourselves to a ridiculously expensive drink at Hotel Cardoso, the 5-star hotel overlooking the city.

It was great to have the whole government-issued family together. Just like those annoying all-too-popular family Christmas letters, here is a little update on the fam. Two of my colleagues, Alden and Olivia can be heard on the radio in Chibuto broadcasting malaria awareness spots. Mike recently signed up over 50 GAAC groups, which are groups of six HIV+ individuals who then rotate to going to the hospital each month to pick up the groups’ medication, and is now working toward 100. His wife, Marisa recently received a grant from Peace Corps to start a jam-making project to open three preschools in Macia. Queshia was recently announced the JUNTOS National Chair. JUNTOS is a Peace Corps secondary project that works with teenagers through art, music, dance, theatre and journalism to promote healthy messages of HIV prevention.  Dan recently hosted his whole family here in Mozambique. Linda is starting to make peanut butter with a group in Manjacaze to start an income-generating project. Her sitemate, Evan, is speaking the local language Changana and will soon be helping me share his love for agriculture with an agriculture/nutrition project we are doing here in Chicumbane. (More details on the project to come in future blog posts.) Taylor just hosted a Peace Corps booth overseeing volunteers talk about secondary projects, moringa and malaria at the Sovala Timbili Festival in her town this past weekend. Adela is anxiously awaiting the response of a U.S. Embassy grant to do a moringa project with a local organization. Emily is busy training for a marathon at the end of September in Capetown. Lisa is starting up a REDES group with girls in her new site, Maxixe. REDES is a Peace Corps secondary project that works with teenage girls promoting health and education. Redeana just had a slew of visitors and is excited that things are finally getting going with her organizations at site. Lauren is working with a group of teenagers to compete in the English Theatre competition, another Peace Corps secondary project, next month. Wendy was recently announced the new REDES National Coordinator. Jess is busily working to submit a grant proposal to start an agriculture project at her site. Sabrina is in the process of opening a soy-based bakery with women in her community. Alexis just got back from a week in Vilanculos riding horses, a week at Victoria Falls and is currently in Kruger National Park. Anna just wrote an entire lab technician curriculum. Mary-Kate recently helped legalize the community-based organization she works with. David has been working hard to devise a new performance-based incentive system to be used with volunteers at his health center. Colin has been working with co-op savings groups and going around his community starting permagardens. And Lee just submitted a proposal to start a soccer program that includes malaria trainings for the kids in her neighborhood. That’s just a snapshot of the broad spectrum of what Moz 18 is up to these days.

A day doesn’t go by that I don’t talk to at least one of my government-issued friends. As with all families, there is definitely a fair share of bickering and snickering, fofocaring (gossiping) and bashing, but at the end of the day, we are always there for each other no matter what the situation is.  It is always one of these government-issued friends I call when I want to rejoice, curse, laugh or lament. Or just to get a reality check. There is an underlying understanding, almost like an unwritten code that speaks to the comradery of knowing what its like to be a PCV here in Mozambique: to lose all personal space in a 20+ person-packed chapa, become all too comfortable with using a xi-xi bucket, be completely humiliated in front of an entire village and be totally played just because you are the token foreigner around. Experiences run the gamete here from the heart-wrenching, to the sweat-dripping, the anxiety-ridden, to the adrenaline-rushing, the eye-brow raising, to the stomach-churning kind of incidences that only another PCV has experienced.  And of course, I have  friends in other groups, Moz  15, 16, 17, 19 and 20. And Moz 21 is set to arrive in September. But, there is something special about your own group, in my case, Moz 18. 

The next time we will all be together is May 2014 at our Closure of Service conference. Crazy. Only by coincidence were we all given the same country, same assignment, same timeline, the criteria for our government-issued friendship. But, through this experience we have become a family: Moz 18. 

Moz 18 at Midservice: August 2013

And by popular request, here are some photos of the most recent addition to my family. TEN PUPPIES!! That makes for 17 dogs I have cared for Mozambique...

Post Vacation Blues

Coming back from vacation is never easy. After almost an entire month away from site (including vacation and then training in Namaacha), it has been a bit of an adjustment back. I was fine coming back to my latrine, my bucket bath and cooking for myself again. I might have even missed all that a little bit. I was greeted by neighbors and co-workers who said I had disappeared and they missed me. And all three of my site-mates, Heather and the two German volunteers, have gone. The Germans finished their one-year contract, but will be replaced by two new volunteers at the end of the month. And Heather finished her two years in the Peace Corps (she was in Chicumbane just five months). It has definitely been a little tough getting back to the swing work-wise. Upon my return, I found that much of what had been planned for when I was gone, had not come to be.

My supervisor at the hospital had hoped to unroll a new process for organizing files that we had been working on for a while. I had a feeling it wouldn't happen while I was gone. Unfortunately I was right. We are still trying to get it into motion.

My first couple days back at CACHES, it was just myself with a handful of kids. Granted it was school vacation and was a community-wide campaign to have boys over 10 years of age circumcised so a lot of boys were preoccupied with that. But still, I was slightly annoyed to find out that while I was gone, there hadn't been any regular meetings, no one had filled out time-sheets, no progress was made on two projects and our regular schedule of activities was hardly upheld. Womp.  One of the CACHES volunteers told me that nothing happens while I am gone. Frustrating to say the least. And not sustainable at all. And if that is the case, I started to ask myself, what have I been working on here in Chicumbane for the past year?!

Over the past week, we have talked about having a meeting at CACHES to get things back on track, but we have yet to do so. After spending some time trying to rally the troops, we could still not come to a consensus on a good time to meet one night. Nelio and I started to walk home and I think he could tell I was pretty frustrated because he asked me, "Mana Colleen, qual e seu papel como voluntaria?" "What is your role as a volunteer?"

The kid was right.

What is my role as a volunteer?

A year in, I needed a reminder.

I tell myself over and over NOT to invest more time and energy into something than my counterparts. To NOT let myself want it more. But, am I actually heeding my own advice? Or am I just setting myself up for frustration? I am a volunteer. I am here to help with the organization. To support their mission. To promote health education and awareness. I cannot do the work of other people. The motivation has to work come from within themselves. It has be intrinsic. Without such motivation, it is difficult to accomplish anything.

The hardest part for me is that I can see the potential. The opportunity. The benefits to the work we set out to do at CACHES. The struggle is getting it to come to fruition. The lack of motivation. People not showing up on time. Not showing up at all. Not coming prepared. Not being dedicated. Finding other things to do. Having other commitments. Our motto at CACHES is "Onde a crianca e prioridade." "Where the child is priority." While it may be our motto, I am having a hard time seeing that at the moment. But, that is just part of the toughest job you will ever love. Peace Corps. Every day is a lesson in managing expectations and understanding your role. My role from here on out? I will heed my advice, manage my expectations and remain patient. And maybe it is just the eternal optimist in me, but I know that with a little bit of forca (strength), we can get things going again. And plus, we do have some potential projects on the horizon (more details to come in later posts). It just may take some time. But, I guess that's why I am here for two years.

So it goes in Moz...

“So it goes in Moz.” I found myself saying this a lot to my dad and sister as I showed them around my home for the past 13 months.  

They were surprised by the number of people always walking along the highway. 

My dad was shocked at just how dirty Maputo was. 

And they were amazed at how one could buy just about anything along the side of the road. 

They would ask me questions about why things were the way they were—things that had just become the norm to me.  

They were awestruck by the beautiful beaches. 

They were impressed by the work ethnic of the neighborhood kids. 

And they adjusted to the simplicity of life here.  

“So it goes in Moz.” 

But, I too, started to question things that I hadn’t thought twice about since my first arrival in country. So together we saw it all. Well, just about everything that is, in Maputo, Tofo Beach, Namaacha and my village, Chicumbane.

The view from our hotel room in Maputo.

Statue of Samora Machel, Mozambique's first president.

Maputo Central Market.

Lunch at the Fish Market. 

Maputo: Maputo was a whirlwind. When we arrived in Mozambique, we were there for just one day and two nights, but we saw a lot. We went to the cathedral, art museum, train station, fish market, Hotel Cardoso (which looks out over the Indian Ocean), the craft market, the central market and my favorite capalana store.  On our way back through Maputo on our return before their flight out, we stayed at Guest House Mozeika and I took them to eat meio frango (half of a chicken) and despite their doubts they were able to eat the whole thing.

Half of a chicken.

Tofo: After an 8-hour drive to Tofo Beach, once we parked the car, my dad said we wouldn’t be moving it until we were leaving. Who could blame him? We had beachfront accommodations and everything we needed within walking distance. Our three days there were spent reading, getting up to see the sunrise, beach walks, swimming, snorkeling, sunsets, hammock time, reading and a competitive game of wiffle ball with other volunteers followed by a dinner out on the town (a real treat for PCVs) thanks to Den-Den. Aside from enjoying seafood, I had my family try some local market food including pumpkin leaves and matapa. They were pleasantly surprised by this rustic beach town set on the Indian Ocean.

The view from our room in Tofo.

Sunrise over the Indian Ocean.

Footprints.

Sunset over Tofo Beach.

Tofino.

MATAPA!

Market Matapa in Tofo.

Namaacha: While it entailed a little more stressful time in the car, I dragged my family out to meet my host family in Namaacha, where I lived for the first three months in Mozambique during training. But, once we got through Maputo, they were amazed at how scenic the drive was. We arrived late in the afternoon and just had time to have tea with Mae Ecineta. But, everyone really just enjoyed getting the chance to meet, even though it was brief.

Tea with Mae Ecineta.

Chicumbane: And lastly, but certainly not least, my home in Chicumbane. Even when we just passed in-route to Inhambane, some of my neighborhoods came over to meet the new white people in town. When we came back to stay for three nights, it was a non-stop visit. We had planned to build a perma-garden together in my yard. Upon setting out to start, we already had two kids to help us. Within five minutes, another…and another…and another. As they each came by, I told them to go grab a shovel or hoe and then they dove into help. Less than two hours later…the beds of the perma-garden were dug. 

Bridget and my neighbors digging the beds. 

Mixing in the manure...

The next day, the kids came back to help with putting in manure and planting. We did the manure, but decided to wait on the planting because I would be leaving for another week. I also gave my family a tour of the Rural Hospital of Chicumbane and introduced them to all my co-workers. And I brought them to CACHES. 

After introducing my dad and Bridget to the group, all the kids came up and shook their hands. I think the idea was to just shake once, but the kids ended up coming through the line about three times.

At CACHES, my dad presented the kids with a soccer ball that had been donated by a colleague of his in the name of a friend, Ned, who had passed away this year at 46 years old. 

Group shot outside CACHES.

They also came bearing pencils and erasers donated by Mrs. Evans’ and Mrs. Hunnewell’s fourth grade class who I have been corresponding with since I left. The kids and volunteers were overjoyed. We haven’t had pencils for a while. And with the soccer ball, the next day we had a big game with about 35 kids. They even got Bridget and I to play. 

One crazy game of soccer... 

We made it to Xai-Xai, where I took them to my market bean lady, Adelaide. In addition, i introduced my fruit and vegetable market ladies and the grocery store. We also made it out to Xai-Xai beach, my little oasis, close to home. 

Market beans with Adelaide.

When we were just hanging out the house, the neighborhood kids kept my dad company on the veranda and he enjoyed reading with them and making paper airplanes. 

Dad reading with his new friends on my porch.

And on the last night, a Thursday night when I usually do English lessons with my co-workers at CACHES, I invited them to come eat dinner with my family and practice their English. I had invited some Peace Corps Volunteers as well. A cultural exchange it was. We ate lentils. One of my co-workers insisted on getting xima for my dad to eat. We had a fire outside and introduced them to smores. My friend Mike brought his guitar and played songs for everyone. Some of my co-workers borrowed it and played Mozambican songs. They used a jug as a drum and started to teach my sister some Mozambican dances. My family wore the capalana tunics I had made for them. CACHES presented my family with t-shirts. And we all had cake in honor of Nelson Mandela’s birthday. And the next morning, we were back on the road.

Smores. Peace Corps Goal #2: Cultural Exchange.

The whole gang.

My dad and Nelio.

Grupo Amizade.

 As they got on the plane headed back to America, I got on a chapa back to Namaacha to go help out with the training of the new health volunteers. It is hard to believe I was a trainee just a year ago…

Saying good-bye to Chicumbane...(no, that's not Mel. Meet Lupe, my neighbor's dog)