I have processed arrival

It only took six months. Mali now feels like home. Sickness doesn’t plaque me everyday. My homologue (Malian counterpart) is one of my best friends. Drinking tea with the Bogolan women is one of my favorite things, I like mine with a touch of mint. Malians are more interesting than hanging out with than PCVs (Peace Corps Volunteers). A seasoned volunteer told me I was in the honeymoon phase when I told her I love living in Mali.

For Christmas I went on a three day hike with other volunteers up in Dogon Country. It was amazing. Being out up and down the cliffs, walking through villages, dancing with Malians at night and hanging out with other volunteers made my Christmas Holidays. It didn’t matter that the bus ride getting there took 20 hours when it should have taken six.

When I got home to Koutiala it felt like I had come home to my own bed happy to cook for myself again. The first thing I did was go around town and great the people I see everyday. I even went to the UAAK (my work place) and there were some of the people I see every day there hanging out, we were glad to see each other.

Currently I am at Tubaniso again for three week training on technical SED (Small Enterprise Development) and language. A week into it and I am home sick for Koutiala. I miss sitting around with the Bogolan women and drinking tea all morning, I miss going to the market and seeing “my friends” that I buy food from, I miss the boutiquie guy who helps with my Bambara and I miss Mali. Here at Tubaniso except for the few Malian trainers its all American, even the food is not all rice and sauce.

Training has taught me that I am right on track with my work. We had a whole day section on exporting. Many of us working with Artisans who want to export may only work at getting the artisans export ready, which matches some of the objectives I have been working on in Koutiala. Also many volunteers get restless because work here is slower that in America and people are intergraded in their work and social life. Talking with a second year volunteer she said that for the first year our work is 80% social and 20% work and at the first year mark that could change to as much at 60% social and 40% work depending on if the volunteer is in a village or city and what sector their in.

My day starts out with a bike ride followed by potato and eggs for breakfast. I take a fast shower before heading off to work. At work I hang out with the Bogolan women. Occasionally one of the three official employees asks for help with a computer problem or I ask them for information. My work is a lot of brainstorming with myself. Currently I am writing letters to a couple of small shops on Vashon it see if they will sell some of the bogolan the women I work with make. Junior Achievement is big here in Mali and would be a great secondary project for me. I visit a fifth grade class that to do an exchange with a fifth grade class in Bremerton Washington that Wise Schools has set me up with. Everyday I go to the market to get food since I don’t have a refrigerator. I take an after noon nap do the wash every three days. Now that dry season is here the dust is beyond your imagination. Doing domestic choirs here in Mali just takes a long time.

When I had my purse design made by the leather guy in the market I couldn’t find him the day he said it would be ready. I couldn’t figure out if he was not there or if I just couldn’t find him. I looked three days in a row. Monday morning he showed up at the UAAK with the finished purse. He knew where I worked and I never told him. Now Koutiala is a town of 110.00 and still it feels like living in a fish bowl as a “tobob”

Things that have been hard are both here and at home. My daughter broke her foot, her first broken bone and I wasn’t there to help her during this time. My dog Schooner just died, he had bone cancer. In the beginning I cried when I would just read the emails from home, this has gotten better. Adjusting to being here and feeling like a part of the community or that I even wanted to be part of the community took some soul searching. Being sick a lot didn’t help any of this. I had a lot of stomach stuff with fever, a cold with fever, and even a rash on my face with a fever. At a low point I had been sick for a week with no appetite going to the bathroom all the time the realization that I was loosing weight fast I started to force myself to eat. Fortunately my appetite is back and I have not lost any more than 23 pounds. The children chanting “tobob boo” as I walk down the street some days it’s OK some days it’s just too much.

Both me and my Malian friends and co-workers are learning to think outside the box. We are sharing our vision of the world through our eyes with each other. These are the golden moments. Cherished are the times my homologue and I are running between our houses to great and talk to each other, when the women (me included) are sharing tea, language class with Sadio one of my best friends in Koutiala or just wondering through the market saying to myself “Damn this is Afica.”.

Working In Koutiala

Many people have asked about the work I do. For the first three months the main objective to integration into the community and evaluate community needs.

Earlier I wrote about my experience on the last day of Ramadon where the events of the day clearly indicated that I was on the outside of my community. If Tabaski is any indication I have come a long way.

The morning of Tabaski I spoke with my host dad in my concession and asked if I could eat with them knowing that there would be a big feast after killing the two sheep that had been fattening up for weeks. Bocar my host dad told me to sit down served me eggs and tea. We talked for quite a while. He told me how he use to play in a band and perform in concerts all over Mali Mopti, Sagou and Sikasso. The last week I had been practicing Christmas Carols on my recorder and Bocar said he heard me. Bocar’s eyes lit up as he told me about his concert days and said that when he married Fatim he settled down and became a school teacher.

Fatim, my host mom, came out onto the front porch and told me to get washed and dressed. Lukily I decided to wear my Malian Complet because Fatim whisked me off to Mosque to pray on the highest Muslin holiday of the year. After the Mosque Fatim, her sister and I went around the neighbor hood and greeted many members of her family. I had no idea that her family was just blocks away from where I lived.

Just as we were entering our court yard the men were slaughtering the sheep that they had been fattening up for weeks. Fatim sat down and supervised the butchering. I took some pictures and she invited me to sit down, I said it would make me sick and went over to sit with the women cooking. As the afternoon went on I helped cook ate fresh organic sheep meat.

My homologue, Koro, came by around 4 pm and asked why I didn’t come over to ear with her. I had totally miss understood the conversation about the feast and her sheep. She said she was going to town now. I worried all evening that I had ruined my relationship with her. The next morning I went over to great her. Since I found out she lives just a couple of blocks from me I have been going over there a lot and she in return has been coming over here too. We had coffee and made plans to go great people from work. Koro told me I should wear my Malian Complet.

Koro and Awa showed up around 3:30 pm, punctual for Malian standards. We started out by going to the Broche’s house the RAC employee. I met his wife and daughter and I think a sister that lives with him. Then we went to the UAAK President’s house then the Le Chamber President’s house. After this Awa went home and Koro and I went to the Dugitigi of Medina Cora’s house. A Dugitigi is a leader who’s family has been chief of the village or area for generations and he works closely with the Mayor and other leaders in the community. Koro knows everyone. After this we spent many days going around town greeting people. Then Koro left for Corte Ivory for her brothers wedding.

A lot of time has been spent sitting around drinking tea with important people in my service. It is just what Malians do.

Other work has included showing Koro different bogolan websites which introduced new designs that we are going to present to the other bogolan artist. I also designed a purse that I had the leather guy in the market make.

Now my time will be spent finding other ways to help the whole of the artisans here in Koutiala. Many of them are very active.