Long Time Gone

In just a few weeks I will have been in Lesotho for one year. At times it seems like it’s been longer than that, yet at others it seems like I arrived yesterday. The sense of time passing here is much different than it was in the States. Some of that probably has to do with the complete reversal of seasons I experienced. It’s warm when it’s Christmas and cold on Independence Day. Winter is upon us at the moment and I have been enjoying it tremendously. Even though it’s been fairly cold at night and in the morning and only will get worse in the coming months I’m still not worried. I’ve learned that I’m more of a cold weather person rather than a hot one. Also I'm not a huge fan of higher elevations.

I’ve fallen into a routine. I teach life skills 3 days a week at the local primary school and keep up with my cooperative on the weekends. Each class is moving at a different pace than the others which has been a little challenging for me to keep organized. My class 6 and 7 students are learning about HIV right now while my class 4 and 5 students are still on the concept of self-esteem. We only have a few more weeks until they gone on break for awhile so I plan to review all this material again in August to keep them refreshed. Sometime I have to go over very basic concepts over and over again, but I think it’s important that the students actually internalize this information rather than moving on to new topics constantly.

I’ve been growing pak choy in the garden recently. It’s great with rice or noodles and soy sauce. I’m very happy that Chinese people are here and operate stores that sell their food. Growing pak choy has been fun. It should last in the winter. My broccoli plant finally started showing me the goods last week! I should have a head of broccoli in another week or so. I can’t believe it finally started growing something edible. Besides that I won’t be gardening much until next spring.

A teacher at a local high school and I started follow-up interviews for my last work shop on HIV/AIDS. We are analyzing the answers to find out what people actually learned. Unfortunately many participants don’t seem to be internalizing a lot of new information. Thankfully this entire year the workshops will be on HIV/AIDS so I have more time to teach. I know that results don’t happen overnight, but I hope to see some in the near future.

I’m a bit disenchanted with the idea of development work at the moment. Some PCVS have said that Lesotho is the best example of development gone wrong. NGOs, charities, and others have poured so much money into this country without a huge impact on the overall development of Lesotho. Corruption is rampant as well as the sense of entitlement. Sometimes I wonder if countries like Lesotho wouldn’t be better off if outside organizations and governments just left...

In exciting news I am going on vacation next month! I am going to the World Cup with a fellow PCV and we are going to Johannesburg for 2 games. The first one is Spain vs. Honduras at Ellis Stadium and the next one is Ghana vs. Germany at Soccer City Stadium. I can’t wait! I’m for Spain. They are currently ranked #2 behind Brazil I believe. I think they have a real chance at winning this thing & I really hope they do. Spain has never won. We are staying with Afrikaners we met on vacation last Christmas in Durban. I’m so happy to see them again and hang out. It’s been too long. They are some of the most hospitable and friendly people I’ve ever met.

In other news unrelated to anything is the fact that I love the metric system. The U.S. should adopt it immediately. Using the metric system not only makes sense because every other country in the entire universe uses it, but it is also easier to understand. We already buy 2 liters of soda, track teams run 100 meter dashes and all those who study or work in science and math related fields use the metric system. I admit that converting from Celsius to Fahrenheit can be tricky, but honestly everything else is much easier. True story.

Also I just want to say that I’ve been missing my friends and family a lot. People are moving on with their lives back home and I sometimes feel like I’m stuck here doing nothing, but I know that’s not true. However it is still surprising to me when I realize how many of friends are married from high school. Most of my college friends are in the single boat with me though! Many of my friends are having kids and buying houses already. We're not supposed to grow up yet! Life isn't supposed to go on while I'm gone. :) lol.

I’ve been thinking about what I’ll do after Peace Corps a lot as well. I am thinking about going to grad school in the States or finding a job in South Africa. I’ve been thinking about moving to England or teaching English in a Spanish speaking country. There are so many options! It can be overwhelming to think about deciding on any one thing. It’s hard to reconcile the side of me that wants to stay in one place, get a job, buy a house and a dog and the other side that wants to keep exploring and learning about the world. Plus, do I want to get into serious debt by going to grad school? I love learning, but I don’t really like school. I like working because to me I’m producing a tangible result when I’m receiving a paycheck. Studying and getting good grades don’t do enough for me. In the meantime I’m going to start studying for the GRE and looking up information on renewable energy sources and grad school programs on the subject. I have time to decide right?

Well today I need to finish up reporting for Peace Corps then I'm going to watch movies on my laptop while I have electricity. It will be a nice and easy Sunday. I don’t know if it is my old age or what, but I am just not as social as I used to be. I have a feeling that that might change when I’m in Jo’burg or when I return to the States. I just have to get back to my element. :)

Be well everyone! Take care & thanks for reading.