Back on the Grid

It has been quite some time since I submitted a post on here, which goes without saying. Lately I have been having a hard time finding things to write about. At this point in my service, it seems like nothing really comes as a surprise to my anymore. Everything around me just feels normal now, and I have been able to call this place home. However, there have been a few noteworthy moments that I do want to share, some good and some bad.

First off, I will start with some of the good things. I have been able to make considerable progress on some of my projects that I have been working on here. The library at my school has come a long way. The books have been cataloged and neatly shelved according to genre and reading level and will soon be ready for the students. I also collected letters from my 7^th and 8^th grades students here that they wrote to their American pen pals. I will be mailing them out once I return to the Capitol in the coming week. One of my counterparts and I also held a Scout weekend campfire for our Scouts. There we did various activities to promote teamwork, discipline, fitness, and other life skills. They seemed to really enjoy it, as did I. Other exciting things that happened recently were climbing to the top of a cellular tower, eating a bush rat, diving into the Gambia river, watching Gambian wrestling, encountering a warthog, and having one of my photos get chosen to be featured in a publication at my college. (Shown below)

Now for the not so good part. Last month a fire broke out in my village. It was a Sunday night and I had just finished eating dinner and was getting ready to settle in for the night. Then I heard agonizing screams coming from somewhere in my village. When I stepped outside my house I saw flames coming from nearby. I quickly put on my shoes and headed in that direction. When I got there I saw a building was on fire and the villagers were in a frenzy trying to get bowls and buckets of sand and water to try and put the fire out. I jumped in as well trying to collect sand and water to contribute. I also got a chain started with some teenagers and we were able to quickly pass sand up to the people nearest the flames. After about an hour we were able to get the fire under control. I walked back to my compound covered in dirt and feeling exhausted. My host mother gave me a jug of water so I could wash up. That night I had a hard time falling asleep. Even though I was physically exhausted from the ordeal, my mind was flooded with too many unanswered question. I was wondering, how did the fire start? Whose building was that? Was anyone hurt? How much damage was done? The lack of information made it difficult to sleep. The next morning I met up with one of the village elders to try and get some answers. It turned out that it was a shop that caught fire when a gas stove went haywire and took the building. Thankfully, no one lost their lives that night. Also the fire did not spread to anyone’s homes. So that was a rough night, but things have gone back to normal and adequate repairs have been done on the building.

So that is a summary of the last few months. I will make a conscious effort to post on here more regularly. I am a third of the way done with my Peace Corps service, so I should have plenty of new and exciting experiences to share along the way!

I also want to take this moment to thank a few people. I first want to thank everyone who has sent me something, and you know who you are. Your gifts has been a Godsend! Also I would like to thank the students and staff at Saint Stephen School for their participation and continued patience during our pen pal project. The letters from your Gambian pen pals will be sent out soon! Lastly I would like to thank my mother and the students and staff at North Branch Elementary School for their generous book donations. They are a great addition to the school library here, and the teachers and students are very happy to have them. Pictures to come soon! Thank you again everyone and God bless!