The Past Month

Since the swearing in ceremony, I have been involved in a number of activities.
1. I moved into my own three room space on a small family compound with a few other small structures on it. Since this only occurred within the last week, I have just begun settling in to my new quarters. I do have electricity, running cold water and toilet. It is located about one half mile from the school so my commute will be walking paths around housing compounds filled with chickens and goats. Shops are not far so I can walk there as well. Will give an update in the near future. Have been enjoying cooking and trying different vegetables. We do have Indian spices here locally so my vegetables are curry with ginger.
2. Have been getting acquainted with my school by visiting classes, making a map to find classes and offices, talking to students, teachers and administrators and attending school assemblies and meeting of which most are in Setswana. A small book which I carry helps me keep track of the names of the people I meet, but I usually at a lost coming up with the right name when people test me.
3. I covered a few guidance classes dealing with vocational skills. One exercise dealt with the process of finding jobs in a newspaper which listed qualifications required and the application process. Writing a curriculum vita and practicing job interviews are things that we will work on hopefully in the future. The classes generally have 30-40 students. My English was a real barrier. The students tend to talk Setswana and write English which is a real good trick. They did listen when I talked setswana and helped me with it. Even a few phrases here and there helps.
4. A week ago I attended a guidance and counseling workshop with about 30 teachers for the primary and junior secondary schools. Lots of attention was given to making plans and assessing needs. There are about 8-10 schools in my cluster and I hope to visit some of them in the future. Some of these schools have up to 50 students a class.
5. My own needs assessment of the school and Molepolole is moving along. In addition to interviewing students, teachers and administrators on campus about issues facing the school, I am visiting NGO’s(nonprofits) and government organizations in the community. Had a great interview yesterday with the administrative counselor in charge of development for the district. There are many challenges in the Kweneng District. Most of the district is rural but part borders on the capital of Gaborone so there is a competition of resources and funds between rural needs and more urban development and housing. Water is a big issue in terms of drinking water and water for farming. Generally the district has subsistence farm
6. Having been working with a young university student on my Setswana pronunciation as well as a primary teacher on my grammar, but alas her vacation is over. She and her friends where teaching guidance classes about HIV and AIDS. They had a rally with music and entertainment. Very successful. The students really related to them. My language progress is slow. We have trouble being understood in English and Setswana because we do not have the normal English accent nor the proper sounds a combination of consonants in Setstwana. For example “tlh” is pronounced more like cl in clay, an “ng” which is inhaled and nasal, and “kg” is a strong k with an expiration as in Kalahari. Plus we do not give the lyrical sound to most sentences.
7. Have been walking and running through the dirt paths and roads in this village area learning my way around and greeting people, especially enthusiastic kids who wave and run after me with saying hello or a lyrical “howareyou” as a single phrase. Generally people warm up and wave when you say "dumela" and test me on my greeting responses.
8. Spring is on its way. There are some flowering read bushes, a giant pointsetta with only red leaves at the top of each stem and no green ones, and lots of colorful birds both big and small. Have also been enjoying lots of different kinds of chickens and their chicks. It seems to be gradually staying lighter longer. So there is now light between 6:30am to 6:15pm.
9. Have been enjoying the "Cry of the Kalahari"by Mark and Delia Owens which is an older book dating back to the seventies and their research on lions and the brown hyena. They really encountered some life threatening experiences in the Kalahari. They were gutsy. I read the latter mixed with "A Few More Days" by a Swedish journalist ,who documents the life of a woman with HIV and AIDS in the 1990’s and one of the Ladies No. l Detective Series by Alexander McCall Smith, set in Botswana. Since it gets dark early, we have lots of time to read, cook, do our assignments for Peace Corps, etc.

Hope summer has been good in the Chicago area. I know I will get my share of sun and heat in the near future. Would love comments. Have lots to learn. Can not talk about much with authority after just three months.

I intend to get photos up in August with my new haircut.