Hey y'all...I'm not sure why the last blog written appears twice!?!?! This time, though, you are not seeing double...the title is almost the same as a blog from a couple of weeks ago because this, too, is really from Erin. I received an e-mail today asking me to post this for her -- it's very current! (And current in Madagascar is quite unusual! You may notice Erin referring to the nearby city as Diego -- and you may not be able to locate Diego on a map. Diego's name was changed to Antsiranana in 1975. You can probably find Antsiranana on the map; however, change is slow in Madagascar and the local people still call it Diego.) Now for what you really want to be reading...ENJOY! (Remember, Erin is writing on a French keyboard so there could be some little oddities.)
Hey y’all! I hope you are doing great, had a very happy Thanksgiving and are now looking forward to the rest of the holiday festivities. This past month since I had internet to write you last has been quite a ride.
I would like to share my thanks as I missed that chance back home in the States with y’all:
THANKS…
For the constant amazement God lets me stand in
For my supportive friends at home, serving around the world and my new and priceless friends here in Madagascar
For the Peace Corps… this is the most humbling, exciting, exhausting, real, overwhelming, simple, inspiring, frustrating, empowering experience I have ever had. I love its mission and goals more each day – to foster peace and friendship in this world, to share our skills with those in need in a sustainable way together, to learn a new culture which is the best reflection of our own, and to share our American ways in which, thanks to Mr. Sabato, it is engrained in me that "politics is a good thing." I was afraid my idealism would get lost and flounder, but instead, in these 3 months which have flown by but in which some moments have felt like eternity, a sense of pragmatism and reality has been sprinkled among my lofty dreams in a way in which I will forever be grateful for the incredible Peace Corps training.
For the laughter and joy felt amid the expectations gone awry… the resilience and support and positive attitudes of my training group and our outstanding trainers, PC staff, host families and other rockin' volunteers.
For a clear mind as I walk into my new home tomorrow.
Of course, in the back of my rainbows and sunflowers mind I have some plans which I would love to have be a significant part of my service here (holding a huge soccer tournament and concert in which we raise tons of awareness about AIDS and Malaria for all the Malagasy in the Diego area, in which we raise money from the wealthy vazahs to open a safe house for learning for the overflowing amount of commercial sex workers who are precious 14 year old girls being pressured by their families to makemoney in order to merely survive, to teach all the wonderful children I meet how to actually speak English so they can have a chance at making an honest living as a tour guide and helping promote a greener Mkar so they can maintain their unbelievable landscapes and plant and animal life like nowhere else in the world, installing solar panels at a nearby rural health clinic so the villagers can finally get vaccinated, persuading people to drink clean water, use mosquito nets and plant their own gardens, helping with a country-wide PC effort with my friends through bike races, marathons, concerts and camps to help give the Gasy the knowledge to improve their own lives…) but this is not my job. My job for these first 3 months as a volunteer is to observe. To take it all in and try to grasp what my community wants and what they feel they need. I wish I could jump right in and see my great impact, but it's gonna be slow, it's also going to be something I only facilitate, they will do it all on their own, because they can.It's pretty awesome but also scary as hell.
For this beautiful country I now get to call home!
For the wonderful Peace Corps doctors who got my through my first tropical belly ache.
For Ellen reminding me that that there is no language barrier to a smile...and also for the success of immersion in Sakalava
For giving a 15 minute speech in Sakalava about Malaria prevention and treatment
For the conversations and encouragement among the volunteers and our Gasy friends as we all work together here
For the PC approach to development as we share our love, hope, passion and skills with these great but needy little villages… how we take the ingenious Gasy resourcefulness and encourage our new friends, students, Gasy families to work together to better their own lives.
For the relationships. A week ago I was thinking too much and becoming slightly overwhelmed. Julia reminded me that we need to work one person at a time. Building relationships is the key to stirring about a better knowledge, attitude and behavior changes.
For y’all's support and love across oceans, keep it up, I love and miss y’all!
Thought y’all may be interested in my journal entry and reflections as I walked away from my host family's home for the last time, into the amazing sunrise and future of 2 years serving in this special country:
"How do I feel so okay leaving this home, it's like looking back atall the beautiful places and people I left in Costa Rica, Australiaand other great vacations. Is my heart hardening as I learn to notexpect anything, as I grow frustrated but my mind and eyes open more widely with every step. Life really is a merry-go-round – a carnival – but this is more than a vacation. This is my life – this come and go and leave some hopefully lasting and helpful footprints along the way. I passed the rolling hills streaming up smoke as they burn what's left of their precious forests so they can plant more rice, the rice paddies that go on forever and are more shades of green than all of Ireland. Ireland, what a special place, special trip with my grandma. I think about all those I left at home. My beloved friends and family. I realize how much I miss everyone. I think about my friends also doing mission trips and volunteer work all across this world. We are so lucky, but there is so much need. Because we are so blessed, it is our moral duty to help others. Imagine what John Lennon was singing about – all the people living life in peace. I smile and look behind me, then beside and fast far in front of me. The young school children giggle, yell ino voavoa (what's up), giggle more, stop to quickly wash their bare feet in the dirty puddle and then scurry off to class wherethey will learn in the ancient French style of teachers writing on the board and they copy in their falling apart notebooks. The red dust flicks up and makes my legs look tanner than they actually are in these temperate highlands. I dream about my new site. The intense heat which will soon melt my heart up North. I refocus on the now and feel the cool early morning breeze on the back of my neck through my fully braided head. I begin to pass the homes which housed and comforted my dear friends. We all walk, one big white pile, down the hills which so acutely feel like the Virginia/West Virginia border. I remember our killer rafting trips and the good ole song of wahoowa. Back here, we laugh at our last nights amusements, our precious families and our final understanding of that tiny village which nourished us with rice3 times a day but with the patience and love of a real family, wevent, we stand amazed at the sky. I remember that its beauty is partly from the intense pollution. I remember why I am here. This is it, this is my life in Madagascar. But it's all abruptly about to change. I pray for peace, friendships, safety, health and more fun-packed adventures to come – most importantly, that I actually continue to make a great impact on these Malagasy brothers and sisters of ours."So, I'm off to site. I will write y’all again hopefully aroundChristmas. Please stay in touch! Also, let me know what y’all wouldlike to read about… what should I relay to my sweet momma for you?What questions do y’all have? And fill me in on all life where you are right now!Oh yeah! My site! Haha, sorry, that's probably the biggest thing y’all want to know… My village is called Sakaramy. It is named after the Ramy trees which used to be all over. There used to be these beautiful trees everywhere, as well as many lemurs. However, they burnt them all for need of wood and ate all the lemurs. Lucky, I have an amazing site mate whose focus is eco-tourism and environmental education. Her name is Erin, too. She's from Wisconsin and 25 and really great and laid back and helpful, caring and fun. I am so lucky and blessed to have someone to work with and really make a great lasting impact in our community. Sakaramy is a commune, so we have a mayor and 4 tiny villages around us. There are around 1,200 people that I will be reaching out to around my community. We are only a short 17 miles away (which takes about an hour on our roads) from Diego which is the coolest city I've been to in the world. It is colorful, clean, has great old French colonial architecture, a peacock blue bay, nice hotels and restaurants for the slight occasion in which we can splurge on ice cream and visiting a 5 star resort with a swim-up bar! The city is about 25 minutes away from a beautiful beach and 3 white sand bays on the Indian Ocean. I cannot wait to go there in a few weeks for Christmas! Sakaramy is right between this rocking city and another great little town called Joffreville. Joffreville is the base for Amber Mountain National Park. We are a 10 minute drive/hour walk andwill be working there and Diego a lot as well. Amber Mountain is an ancient volcano with a rain forest on top of it, waterfalls, lemurs and chameleons galore. From the top (which I will see any day now!) you can see all the tip top of Madagascar and where the Indian Ocean, Diego Bay and Mozambique Channel all meet in a beautiful, unique blue. We have 2 elementary schools right by our house and I will be working a lot with these kids on early empowerment and youth development. I will teach them about clean water, brushing their teeth, teach them some English, nutrition, gardening, malaria prevention, life skills through fun games… I will also be going to the middle and high schools and clubs around Diego to explain that AIDS is a real threat and weneed to prevent it while we have this special chance. I will help give confidence and facilitate peer education for the sexual tourism girls so they can continue and education and find a healthier, safer career. I am so excited about the next 2 years! It is going to be pretty rough at times… sometimes I just want a real shower, air conditioning in this intense heat (it's around 100 at day and 86 at night but there is no way to cool down at all), to be able to talk as often as I want to y’all, to hug y’all for goodness sake! But, my training has been outstanding, I am so grateful for the challenges I've already made it through and I am pumped for this adventure, this journey and this incredible way to make a difference. Thanks for all of the encouragement, I love and miss y’all so much!
Please stay in touch and keep me posted on everything you are up to! Come visit!
xoxo,
Erin
