Coming to a close

I can actually say, 'sadly', even if it's a bit conditioned.

I have 11 days left here in Senegal. The last 3 months have had a different feel , definitely the last two, and certainly this last one.

The first 3 were the hardest.
Not surprisingly, it was the time when I was in the villages the most. Whereas the last 3, I've been in and out sporadically.

But, as I promised to myself and others, I've waited to make conclusive judgment.
With 100% truthfulness, I am thankful for the process, glad to have gone through it.

If you want to enjoy a culture, you have to be willing to engage it. And, if you're me, you need to have a bit of your own in order to step away from it for awhile. That's a principle lesson I learned.

It's not necessarily working overseas that's hard. I think, for me, it was simply the 'working' part. And then it was made harder being overseas. But, I understand my own needs and preferences a lot more as a result of this internship.

But enough of this talk . . .

I was in the market today. My Thiya have caused quite a stare in the city. In fact, I sort of wish I had discovered them a lot sooner. Then turn the attention from 'give me money' to 'look at that white guy with thiya (pronounced, btw, CH eye ah. I actually have no idea how it's supposed to be spelt . . . ! ah ha ha ha).

While in the market, I bought my bananas and oranges. And then I walked past some Peules who stopped me and asked about my Thiya (of course, they asked in Peule, and thus I understood nothing). I showed them my Thiya. They showed me theirs. It was quite interesting, since they have knives attached to the sides of theirs. Being nomadic, they carry these knives around, I guess in order to defend themselves and for any necessary killings.

And now, I have a knife at my side. Alduma Ba give it to me. I have no idea who he is, where he came from, how old he is. Only that I took an interest in the knife (with the full intention of looking for one in the market today when I go to Kaolack). And then he showed it to me and proceeded to give it to me . . . Needless to say, I was a bit 'embarassed' you could say. More accurately, it was a confusion on how to respond appriopriately. A total stranger. A knife. Certainly not too expensive, but a gift all the same. And all I had was 5 oranges and 2 bananas I had just bought (along with a slew of pens, markers, cahiers, my laptop, my MP3 player, cell phone, wallet etc etc etc. But these were in my backpack. And I can't really justify to WV that 'yes, I gave him my laptop with all my research on it because he gave me his knife'. I'm not sure that would've been well received!).

So, I gave him the fruit. It was all I had that I felt I could appropriately give away.

Someone stepping out to offer me a gift first without ouright expecting something in return. That, I believe, is partially cultural. He refused the fruit 3 times before finally accepting it. Just, I felt I had to respond then and there for I will very likely never see him again. Just, it was finally the gesture I would have wanted to received from so many here in Senegal. Give me your 'hand' in friendship, unconditionally, not attached to my money, and I will give you mine in return.

It was a unique moment, and a very memorable one certainly.
. . .

I now have 3 Thiya. 2 Thiya sets (thiya with bou bou) and one Thiya just by itself (the green ones - John would know what I'm talking about). There's a Christmas party on December 1. I will be there, and I will be wearing my Thiya . . .

. . .

In the course of this internship, a part of me has been left in the sandy soils that are the heart and soul of the Senegalese 'poor'. Just, while materialistically poor, I will atest to the fact that they will do their best to give you their best.

For we the 'lofty', comfortable, and unconscious, it is hard to come alongside them in their fields and get our hands dirty. (we isn't we here, if you get me). But, if we can overcome the hurdles, and we invest in their individual or collective capacities, I think very positive transformation is possible.

Personally, I'm still a hung jury. The idealism of the past has been questioned by the very apparent reality. Just, I'm not sure I see poverty as a lack of means as much as it is a broken will to try, an inability or refusal to risk.

My workshops have wanted to bring people to the point where they start questioning why they believe they can't and why they don't believe it could happen.

The first workshop got stuck before it arrived. I learned a lot from it.
The second workshop, I pray, will succeed in different ways from the first.

The report will merely be a recollection of the lessons I learned during these past 6 months. Perhaps the format will be nice and professional, but I'm hoping to personalize it just a bit. We'll see what freedoms WV affords me when I return home.
. . .

And now for home and beyond. I hope not to stay too long, if I find the good fit for a next step. Otherwise, I might get stuck sticking around.

But, at any rate, truly, I am looking forward to the cold, coffee, snow, and snowboarding.
. . .

Thanks for reading all through this time. Thanks for your prayers and your support.
. . .

It's come to a close faster than it needed to.
See you in a bit.