Mvua mbwa na paka nje leo
Trip Start
Aug 19, 2009
1
11
14
Trip End
Dec 18, 2009
Iringa, Iringa, Tanzania
Thursday, November 5, 2009
It is mvua mbwa na paka nje leo (raining cats and dogs outside today) and it is cold for once which is awesome! I am so gross right now though, I think my family thinks I don't like to shower very much, so they have stopped giving me them recently...which is starting to be a problem since showers are actually just buckets of warm water that get you... pretty much clean... but oh well, I am pretty used to being a dirty hippie american here. Honestly, people here are so clean and sharp looking, they always look at me like I am gross, and it is true compared to them. Who would have thought I come to africa and worry about fashion more than america. haha oh well. I got a sweet dress made that has huge suns on it and is one of the only things I can wear to fit in with this high fashion. I am also loving the colors of the congas and kitanges, I have bought WAY too much fabric, it is sort of a problem...but you know, things could be worse.
We are in Iringa for 4 more days only, time has gone so fast! We have four days after we leave when we are staying at a lodge and writing up our public health synthesis paper and also our ethnographies. So many cool things have been learned recently, Iringa has defnintely been a cool and eye opening experience. Many ideas have come together, ideas that will come home with me. Last night I made a list of things I was missing but also things I was loving. They balanced out, and it was very thereupeutic.
Some things I am missing (and swahili does need a word to describe to mis other than to remember I think, because it is a true emotion)
-Listening to loud music in the car and singing really loud
-techno
-running in a straight line on pavement for long distances, next to corn fields and with my favorite running partners (rosalie, rachi, I love you guys!)
-Being able to pee most places I go, and having toilet paper, and having a normal poop schedule
-My wonderful family and home and couch, and pheobe, Jamal and Starbuck, and my fish
-FALL!, especially the smell of fall, jumping in leaves, wearing scarves and my wierd sock shoes
-chocolate, cheese and salads
-cooking for myself
-not being in a constant state of being full, (Hamna Ongeza!!)
-Lake Michigan
-Driving
-PBR...yea wierd
-Growing things
-My room, (one place to return to consistantly, that looks like me)
-Back campus
-Not being noticed when I walk down a street, or talked to at all
-Earlham ridiculousness
-naps
-The hill
-Building Fires
-Wearing shorts and jeans
-Clean Clothes
-long walks, deep breathes, and all of the amazing people I have in my life, the number is too high to count. And you have all gotten me to the place I am now, our conversations and what you have taught me about myself, life and love. (ya it sounds sappy but it is true...)
(just some things, but more importantly these are things I am loving)
-beautiful fabric and people
-Loving and understanding what I am learning, why I am learning, and how incredibly important education is.
-Getting a clue as to what I might want to do in my life, or at least a peak
-Understanding that people are just people, everywhere you go, we all bleed red, we all need love, art, a home, a family, food and water in the same amount.
-That farmers and artists are pretty much rad everywhere you go
-Crazy eye opening conversations every single day, with people I never expected to meet or talk to
-Meeting people with names like Innocence and Happiness
-Understanding myself, what I need and what I want to do more clearly than I can remember
-Loving my home and appreciating my country in a way that was not possible before now
-Singing and dancing a whole lot, harmonizing and remembering old backstreet boys songs to sing way too loud with people I am so happy to be here with. Our eclectic group is incredible, I am so happy I am getting to know all these people who I never would have known if it wasn't for this trip.
-Pooping in pit toilets successfully
Part of me feels like I am growing up too fast, but the other part of me feels like life is becoming more simple. The more truth I discover the more I feel both of these things.
Asante and love!
-Molly
Comments
Molly! I love you SO MUCH and miss running with you as well. Sounds like you are having some incredible experiences, and I'm so proud of you and how much you're learning. You go girl! Hugs from the good ole US of A :)