Dearest Malawi moto,
Malawi, Malawi, how I would visit you today if I was able. You have taught me so much during my short stay. I have learned what I want to be when I grow up. and how to focus on the things that really matter in life. I am so blessed to have met some of your most amazing citizens. You have bonded a group of students who now have a passion to further educate and provide for your people. Thank you for giving me many new friends, friendships that are built on Malawian values. Your citizens have taken us into their homes and fed us, treated us like their own children. Because of you we have learned about the most amazing people and take home their values to share with the people in our lives. Thank you for all of the smiles and high-fives, moments to last a lifetime. Zikomo for teaching me what really matters in life and how not to worry about the little things in life. Your country and people are truly talismanic you have changed 27 lives forever.
Until next time,
Alison Reynolds
Gule Wamkulu
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Sunday, July 10, 2011
I'll Never Say Goodbye
Friday, July 8:
Today was a pretty emotional day, but nearly as much so as I had imagined. We all woke up with butterflies in our stomach, knowing that this was the day we had to say goodbye to our kids. I was all of nervous, upset, sad, hopeful and anxious. What if all my boys didn’t even come to school today? What if I didn’t get to say goodbye to some of them? What if they didn’t grasp the point that I’m leaving, and it’s no longer “tu nana mawa”? Will they understand that this is goodbye for good? Will they understand how much of an impact they have made in my life, and that I would do absolutely anything to give them the best futures possible? So many thoughts and emotions were flooding my mind and heart as we pulled up to the school.
Today was the day that the teachers handed back the exams to their students, acknowledging if they passed or failed the standard. Because of this, almost the entire school was present which made us all so happy as we pulled up to the school. As Katie and I walked into our classroom, the standards were combined again and Odina told us that about 64 students had passed standard 5, and 143 had failed. Is that unbelievable or what? Now I understand why standard 5 is the largest grade at most schools in Malawi; it is the first year that the lessons are to be taught in complete English, as are the final exams. As the exams started being handed out, Katie and I noticed how each of the kids looked like they were about to cry, and it was the one time I think that I witnessed the class in almost complete silence. The teachers explained the numbers of those who failed and passed, and the students faces all dropped. All my boys looked so distraught, especially Brighty, Albert and Raphael. The teachers began handing the exams out, first handing out those who passed and then handing out to those who failed. Katie and I looked at each other in disbelief; can you imagine if this was the system of passing out tests, let alone exams, in America? If your name was called to the front and the entire class knew whether you had passed or failed?
By the end of all the finals being returned, Edward, Chisinsi, Mike and Henery were the only ones out of my boys who had passed (I guess according to the statistics that’s a good amount out of nine). Yakobe, Allfu, Albert, Raphael, Brighty and 138 other students were going to repeating standard 5 again next year. My boys who had passed were all so excited and so proud of themselves, as was I. However, my boys who had failed looked so confused and disappointed, so I tried to comfort them as much as possible and let them know it was okay and I still thought they did a great job; standard 5 is the hardest grade, after all.
When the exams were all finished being passed out, the entire school headed outside for the last school assembly before summer break. The headmaster lead the school in their national anthem, and afterwards everyone cheered and screamed and started running around. I started handing out the rest of my shoes, giving a pair of tennis shoes to Chinsinsi, another pair to Grant, and my last pair to Edward and Edwin (even though I gave them a pair yesterday). I handed out the rest of my pens, and also bags of trail mix to Henery, Edward (playing favorites?), Allfu and Albert. Katie and I then quickly realized that the students were heading home, and they didn’t understand that this was the last time they might see us. We went searching for the ones we needed to say goodbye to, but most of them had already left. I was dragging off the goodbyes, and as we headed to MIE I had Albert, Raphael and Edward walk with me to get the teacher bags we had put together. I then walked back to Domasi for the beginning of our “Farewell Ceremony”, and in my mind I knew that those boys would still be waiting for me when the ceremony was over. I didn’t really understand why I hadn’t cried yet. Allfu, Brighty, Yakobe, Chinsinsi, Mike and Henery had all left. They were gone, and I hadn’t really said goodbye. I think the reason I didn’t cry was because I know in my heart that I will be back to Malawi. I know that I am going to do everything in my power to keep in touch with them through Odina; I will write her letters to hand off to them, I will send them money and pictures, I will constantly remind them that I am here for them and will never forget them. I want to stay with them as they grow up. I want to encourage them to stay in school and try their hardest to get into secondary school. If they graduate secondary school, I will do everything possible to get them a visit to the United States. Whether these boys realize it or not, they will be in my life forever, and I want to be in theirs as well. I think they are too young to understand the meaning of “goodbye”, and the true distance, metaphorically and physically, between the United States and Malawi. All of my hopes and aspirations for these boys is what kept me from crying. I think I justified it by the fact that if I cried, I would be accepting that I will not see these children again, and my work for them is through. However, I am not accepting that fact. I will see them again, and my work has only just begun.
As we walked into the classroom for our “Farewell Ceremony”, there were chairs lined up in a semi-circle and the teachers were all seated at one side. There was a table at the front of the room where the headmaster and Dr. Kelly sat, behind them being the chalkboard with a pretty, written drawing saying “Farewell Ceremony: We wish you all the best when going back to America”. They had one of the teachers be a d.j. and we all danced for a little bit with each other and our teachers. Then, we officially began the ceremony in prayer and John Wesley read an opening speech about how thankful they are for us, and everything that we do for them. The teachers then handed out snacks and refreshments, which was so nice of them; it was the usual choice of Fanta’s but we were all pretty excited when they brought out a little tray of shortbread cookies. After there were a few speeches from John Wesley, Dr. Kelly and the headmaster, it was our turn to step up and speak. One by one, the roommates got up and spoke to their teachers, and then handed them the bag of school supplies that we put together for them. Lindsay and Ashley went first, followed by an emotional Bebe and Alison who began the waterworks, then Anna and Kaitlin, Katie and I, and ending with Emily and Devon. When it was Katie and I’s turn to speak, I decided to just read the letter that I had written for Odina. I never get nervous during public speaking, but for some reason my hands were shaking and my body was tense; I’m assuming from all the built up emotion. As I read my letter, Odina put her head in her hands and started crying, and I could no longer hold it together. I was fighting tears as I read the letter, explaining how grateful I was for having this experience and being welcomed with such open hearts and open arms. I told Odina that her positive spirit was uplifting and I couldn’t wait to see everything that she did for these children’s futures. At the end I told her we loved her and would be writing her letters and sending her pictures often, and then we presented her with her bag and school supplies. We all gave big hugs, and the look in her eyes was so genuine as she told us she was going to miss us so much and wished we could stay forever.
After Emily and Devon gave their speech, the headmaster gave a final speech about the difference we make in everyone’s lives when we come to Malawi, and then he called up McDonald and Odina to present us with our presents. This began the lighter section of the ceremony, for we all knew what the presents were and were so excited to receive our traditional Malawian custom outfits! They presented the gifts in the same way as was done at the orphanage, by dancing slowly up to the person and then placing the gift in their arms or by their feet. After we all received our presents, the lady teachers took us into another classroom and we all changed into our matching Malawian outfits; what a sight it was, and what an amazing souvenir we now have from this experience. The teachers led us, dancing of course, back into the ceremony where all the other teachers started cheering and we all proceeded to dance. (Standard). After the ceremony was officially ended, we all went outside to take pictures with our teachers in our “chisinsi” and tops, and then took a few group pictures. They are absolutely adorable, and the teachers kept telling us how beautiful we looked.
While we were outside taking pictures, Edward, Edwin, Albert, Raphael and Katie’s little Innocent came over and played with us for a while. We took a lot more pictures with them, and tried explaining to them that we were leaving to go back to America and didn’t know when we would see them again. They kept responding with “okay” but I definitely don’t think they understood what we were saying. I handed them some more food, and Katie gave them her peanut butter, and then we waited for the bus to arrive. As we were loading the bus, the boys all came running over, with the peanut butter jar completely empty- it had been maybe 15 minutes since we gave it to them completely full. All we could do was laugh as their hands were covered in stickiness, and their faces globbed with peanut butter. As the bus was about to leave, I held onto all of their hands and told them that I loved them. I didn’t think they knew the meaning of “I love you” in English, but as we were pulling away then screamed, “I love you Kelsey, I love you!” At this point, I knew that I left on the best note possible. I smiled, and cried, on the way back to Annie’s, just thinking about the next encounter I will have with them, and hoping they also forever hold onto the memories we’ve shared. Peace, love, Malawi.
Kelsey Muffler
Today was a pretty emotional day, but nearly as much so as I had imagined. We all woke up with butterflies in our stomach, knowing that this was the day we had to say goodbye to our kids. I was all of nervous, upset, sad, hopeful and anxious. What if all my boys didn’t even come to school today? What if I didn’t get to say goodbye to some of them? What if they didn’t grasp the point that I’m leaving, and it’s no longer “tu nana mawa”? Will they understand that this is goodbye for good? Will they understand how much of an impact they have made in my life, and that I would do absolutely anything to give them the best futures possible? So many thoughts and emotions were flooding my mind and heart as we pulled up to the school.
Today was the day that the teachers handed back the exams to their students, acknowledging if they passed or failed the standard. Because of this, almost the entire school was present which made us all so happy as we pulled up to the school. As Katie and I walked into our classroom, the standards were combined again and Odina told us that about 64 students had passed standard 5, and 143 had failed. Is that unbelievable or what? Now I understand why standard 5 is the largest grade at most schools in Malawi; it is the first year that the lessons are to be taught in complete English, as are the final exams. As the exams started being handed out, Katie and I noticed how each of the kids looked like they were about to cry, and it was the one time I think that I witnessed the class in almost complete silence. The teachers explained the numbers of those who failed and passed, and the students faces all dropped. All my boys looked so distraught, especially Brighty, Albert and Raphael. The teachers began handing the exams out, first handing out those who passed and then handing out to those who failed. Katie and I looked at each other in disbelief; can you imagine if this was the system of passing out tests, let alone exams, in America? If your name was called to the front and the entire class knew whether you had passed or failed?
By the end of all the finals being returned, Edward, Chisinsi, Mike and Henery were the only ones out of my boys who had passed (I guess according to the statistics that’s a good amount out of nine). Yakobe, Allfu, Albert, Raphael, Brighty and 138 other students were going to repeating standard 5 again next year. My boys who had passed were all so excited and so proud of themselves, as was I. However, my boys who had failed looked so confused and disappointed, so I tried to comfort them as much as possible and let them know it was okay and I still thought they did a great job; standard 5 is the hardest grade, after all.
When the exams were all finished being passed out, the entire school headed outside for the last school assembly before summer break. The headmaster lead the school in their national anthem, and afterwards everyone cheered and screamed and started running around. I started handing out the rest of my shoes, giving a pair of tennis shoes to Chinsinsi, another pair to Grant, and my last pair to Edward and Edwin (even though I gave them a pair yesterday). I handed out the rest of my pens, and also bags of trail mix to Henery, Edward (playing favorites?), Allfu and Albert. Katie and I then quickly realized that the students were heading home, and they didn’t understand that this was the last time they might see us. We went searching for the ones we needed to say goodbye to, but most of them had already left. I was dragging off the goodbyes, and as we headed to MIE I had Albert, Raphael and Edward walk with me to get the teacher bags we had put together. I then walked back to Domasi for the beginning of our “Farewell Ceremony”, and in my mind I knew that those boys would still be waiting for me when the ceremony was over. I didn’t really understand why I hadn’t cried yet. Allfu, Brighty, Yakobe, Chinsinsi, Mike and Henery had all left. They were gone, and I hadn’t really said goodbye. I think the reason I didn’t cry was because I know in my heart that I will be back to Malawi. I know that I am going to do everything in my power to keep in touch with them through Odina; I will write her letters to hand off to them, I will send them money and pictures, I will constantly remind them that I am here for them and will never forget them. I want to stay with them as they grow up. I want to encourage them to stay in school and try their hardest to get into secondary school. If they graduate secondary school, I will do everything possible to get them a visit to the United States. Whether these boys realize it or not, they will be in my life forever, and I want to be in theirs as well. I think they are too young to understand the meaning of “goodbye”, and the true distance, metaphorically and physically, between the United States and Malawi. All of my hopes and aspirations for these boys is what kept me from crying. I think I justified it by the fact that if I cried, I would be accepting that I will not see these children again, and my work for them is through. However, I am not accepting that fact. I will see them again, and my work has only just begun.
As we walked into the classroom for our “Farewell Ceremony”, there were chairs lined up in a semi-circle and the teachers were all seated at one side. There was a table at the front of the room where the headmaster and Dr. Kelly sat, behind them being the chalkboard with a pretty, written drawing saying “Farewell Ceremony: We wish you all the best when going back to America”. They had one of the teachers be a d.j. and we all danced for a little bit with each other and our teachers. Then, we officially began the ceremony in prayer and John Wesley read an opening speech about how thankful they are for us, and everything that we do for them. The teachers then handed out snacks and refreshments, which was so nice of them; it was the usual choice of Fanta’s but we were all pretty excited when they brought out a little tray of shortbread cookies. After there were a few speeches from John Wesley, Dr. Kelly and the headmaster, it was our turn to step up and speak. One by one, the roommates got up and spoke to their teachers, and then handed them the bag of school supplies that we put together for them. Lindsay and Ashley went first, followed by an emotional Bebe and Alison who began the waterworks, then Anna and Kaitlin, Katie and I, and ending with Emily and Devon. When it was Katie and I’s turn to speak, I decided to just read the letter that I had written for Odina. I never get nervous during public speaking, but for some reason my hands were shaking and my body was tense; I’m assuming from all the built up emotion. As I read my letter, Odina put her head in her hands and started crying, and I could no longer hold it together. I was fighting tears as I read the letter, explaining how grateful I was for having this experience and being welcomed with such open hearts and open arms. I told Odina that her positive spirit was uplifting and I couldn’t wait to see everything that she did for these children’s futures. At the end I told her we loved her and would be writing her letters and sending her pictures often, and then we presented her with her bag and school supplies. We all gave big hugs, and the look in her eyes was so genuine as she told us she was going to miss us so much and wished we could stay forever.
After Emily and Devon gave their speech, the headmaster gave a final speech about the difference we make in everyone’s lives when we come to Malawi, and then he called up McDonald and Odina to present us with our presents. This began the lighter section of the ceremony, for we all knew what the presents were and were so excited to receive our traditional Malawian custom outfits! They presented the gifts in the same way as was done at the orphanage, by dancing slowly up to the person and then placing the gift in their arms or by their feet. After we all received our presents, the lady teachers took us into another classroom and we all changed into our matching Malawian outfits; what a sight it was, and what an amazing souvenir we now have from this experience. The teachers led us, dancing of course, back into the ceremony where all the other teachers started cheering and we all proceeded to dance. (Standard). After the ceremony was officially ended, we all went outside to take pictures with our teachers in our “chisinsi” and tops, and then took a few group pictures. They are absolutely adorable, and the teachers kept telling us how beautiful we looked.
While we were outside taking pictures, Edward, Edwin, Albert, Raphael and Katie’s little Innocent came over and played with us for a while. We took a lot more pictures with them, and tried explaining to them that we were leaving to go back to America and didn’t know when we would see them again. They kept responding with “okay” but I definitely don’t think they understood what we were saying. I handed them some more food, and Katie gave them her peanut butter, and then we waited for the bus to arrive. As we were loading the bus, the boys all came running over, with the peanut butter jar completely empty- it had been maybe 15 minutes since we gave it to them completely full. All we could do was laugh as their hands were covered in stickiness, and their faces globbed with peanut butter. As the bus was about to leave, I held onto all of their hands and told them that I loved them. I didn’t think they knew the meaning of “I love you” in English, but as we were pulling away then screamed, “I love you Kelsey, I love you!” At this point, I knew that I left on the best note possible. I smiled, and cried, on the way back to Annie’s, just thinking about the next encounter I will have with them, and hoping they also forever hold onto the memories we’ve shared. Peace, love, Malawi.
Kelsey Muffler
Providing an education
Today was probably one of the best days of my life. I was so happy after I left school today I wanted to cry. It started off teaching our class about the 7 continents and the oceans. They somewhat understood, and definitely got that we were from North America, and they are from Africa. Still, it was hard for them to grasp and most of them just memorized what we were saying. Oh well. Then we had class after and we talked about the book we were supposed to read. After that we went to the Demonstration school to meet all the scholarship students. Each year Dr. Kelly, Patty and Liz Barber, each school, sponsors 3 students. Usually Dr. Kelly just pays for the scholarships out of her own pocket, its 100$ for each kid for all four years they are in secondary school. The scholarship pays for the school tuition, uniforms, shoes, pens and pencils, and exercise books. These children have to have passed their exams and then be selected by a school committee in order to be allowed to get a scholarship. These are students who have the grades and test scores to go onto the next form, but don’t have the funds in order to move on. Usually there isn’t enough money to sponsor all of the students who are selected, but this year was different. There were 24 students sponsored, and 8 or them are mine. I sponsored 8 of the form 2 students for they’re next two years of secondary school, there junior and senior years. Without my donations, they would no be able to move on. I got to meet one of my students today, unfortunately the other 7 were in exams and didn’t get the message, but I was so happy that I at least got to meet one. His name is Hope, and he wants to be a lawyer when he grows up. He was adorable, and so was his father. These kids comes from no money and their parents are all farmers, so without this education, they would be stuck in the farming community and not be able to get out. I am so happy that I got to help all of these kids finish their high school degree and hopefully get selected to go to a university. I made them so happy, and it brought tears to my eyes when they all walked out with their new backpacks on. I love that I have given these children and education, because that is the most important thing to them since they come from such horrible backgrounds. I have given them a life better than their mothers and fathers. I am so happy that I could contribute to their success, and I know that they are every so grateful. It was one of the best days of my life. Impacting these children and their families, I have never touched someone else’s life so greatly, and I love the feeling of it. I truly feel like I have meaning in my life now, this is my impact on the world. I love all 8 of my children, and I hope for the best and that they all succeed in their schooling and life after that.
Thanks for reading,
Katie Fuson
Thanks for reading,
Katie Fuson
Friday, July 8, 2011
Bittersweet Times
July 8, 2011 – Patricia Kelly
Last night we gave the teachers in all three schools a Celebration Dinner at Malawi Institute of Education dining hall. Just as we were getting ready to start, the electricity went out and stayed off all evening. MIE couldn’t turn on the generators because there is no fuel. So a few candles were brought out, but not enough to be able to really see anyone. We served fried chicken, rice with a wonderful tomato sauce, and greens with onions and tomatoes. It was the best meal that MIE has ever made us. Of course, we had introductions of all three schools’ staff with many cheers. Our group ended the evening singing the two songs Innocent had written for us. The crowd cheered as we sang. They obviously enjoyed the sentiments we were singing in Chichewa.
Today Domasi Government School gave us a farewell party. They had a sound system and one teacher serving as DJ. We danced and danced. They presented all of us with dresses, which we put on in an adjoining room and returned dancing all the way so the teachers could see them. The good-bye speeches were sometimes difficult to get out because of tears. It’s been a busy three and a half weeks; students have worked hard, but it’s still sad to say good-bye to some relationships that may never be renewed again. Through their tears alll students talked about how much they learned and how good everyone had been to them.
We announced the hen laying project that will help the school generate some income as well as make their agriculture curriculum practical. A chicken coop is on the school premises but has been abandoned for 20 years. The project is a collaboration among the Virginia Tech students, the school and its teachers, the PTA, and MIE. I’m really pleased that it’s finally off the ground because it’s something I’ve talked with them about for four years. Now we’ll see how they perform. They’re to send regular reports. I’ll be able to check on the project next summer and look forward to taking pictures of a successful project.
Last night we gave the teachers in all three schools a Celebration Dinner at Malawi Institute of Education dining hall. Just as we were getting ready to start, the electricity went out and stayed off all evening. MIE couldn’t turn on the generators because there is no fuel. So a few candles were brought out, but not enough to be able to really see anyone. We served fried chicken, rice with a wonderful tomato sauce, and greens with onions and tomatoes. It was the best meal that MIE has ever made us. Of course, we had introductions of all three schools’ staff with many cheers. Our group ended the evening singing the two songs Innocent had written for us. The crowd cheered as we sang. They obviously enjoyed the sentiments we were singing in Chichewa.
Today Domasi Government School gave us a farewell party. They had a sound system and one teacher serving as DJ. We danced and danced. They presented all of us with dresses, which we put on in an adjoining room and returned dancing all the way so the teachers could see them. The good-bye speeches were sometimes difficult to get out because of tears. It’s been a busy three and a half weeks; students have worked hard, but it’s still sad to say good-bye to some relationships that may never be renewed again. Through their tears alll students talked about how much they learned and how good everyone had been to them.
We announced the hen laying project that will help the school generate some income as well as make their agriculture curriculum practical. A chicken coop is on the school premises but has been abandoned for 20 years. The project is a collaboration among the Virginia Tech students, the school and its teachers, the PTA, and MIE. I’m really pleased that it’s finally off the ground because it’s something I’ve talked with them about for four years. Now we’ll see how they perform. They’re to send regular reports. I’ll be able to check on the project next summer and look forward to taking pictures of a successful project.
My Malawi Alphabet
As our time in Malawi is coming to a close, I have begun thinking about everything I will miss. We have experienced so many events, cultural differences, foods, and landscapes. Throughout my time here, I have been mentally keeping an ongoing list of things that are Malawi.
My Malawi Alphabet
A is for Africa, the continent I had never been and Annie’s, a home away from home
B is for baobob trees, bottled water, “botolo!” begging beginning to take a big toll, bartering, babies on backs, Black Diamond, and beautiful weather.
C is chicken and rice, Carlsberg, and chambe. Culture and caring. Club Mak.
Domasi schools, full of delight and dancing. Drumming—Du, Du, Ke.
E is to educate. Education is essential. Eggs and elephants
F is for Freedom Gardens, fire, Fanta, and figuring out a future…
Glass bottles of pop. Glass windows gone. Goodness and God
H is for Happy, a feeling and a businessman. Hippos are huge. Hunger is haunting.
I is for interesting and intriguing. Internet? Impeding and in high demand
Jump rope, join the jam
K is for Kumbali and Ku Chawe Mountain, Kuche Kuche
L is for lessons learned, living life, and Lucius Banda
Malawi, Malawi, Malawi! The warm heart of Africa, for sure. Markets in town and music with words of might. Moni! Mosques and Mt. Mulanje. Malawi Moto!
Night comes early, with nsima on one’s plate. Never underestimate
Outside is outstanding. Our own obstacles we create
Pepper? Paypani, you won’t find it here. Power is a problem. Pun intended. Political and patriarchal society, please pay attention and provide education
Q is for Q, a poet with words so quick. Questions that quiet the mouth and open the mind
Remember and replenish. Recycle and reuse.
Sustainability. Singing. A stunning safari so stellar!
T is for travel and tradition. For teaching and tomorrow, something transitional and tender.
Understand.
Venture out, vindicate, we are visitors to their village. A vendetta, we don’t create.
W is Willie, our bus driver so true. Walk and don’t waste. The wall will make you wonder where your kwacha went. Where’s the white wine?!
X eXcite. eXtend a hand. eXotic Fanta.
You may just find Yourself along the way.
Zikomo, Malawi. Thank you, Malawi for your zeal and your zebras
Katlin Wohlford
My Malawi Alphabet
A is for Africa, the continent I had never been and Annie’s, a home away from home
B is for baobob trees, bottled water, “botolo!” begging beginning to take a big toll, bartering, babies on backs, Black Diamond, and beautiful weather.
C is chicken and rice, Carlsberg, and chambe. Culture and caring. Club Mak.
Domasi schools, full of delight and dancing. Drumming—Du, Du, Ke.
E is to educate. Education is essential. Eggs and elephants
F is for Freedom Gardens, fire, Fanta, and figuring out a future…
Glass bottles of pop. Glass windows gone. Goodness and God
H is for Happy, a feeling and a businessman. Hippos are huge. Hunger is haunting.
I is for interesting and intriguing. Internet? Impeding and in high demand
Jump rope, join the jam
K is for Kumbali and Ku Chawe Mountain, Kuche Kuche
L is for lessons learned, living life, and Lucius Banda
Malawi, Malawi, Malawi! The warm heart of Africa, for sure. Markets in town and music with words of might. Moni! Mosques and Mt. Mulanje. Malawi Moto!
Night comes early, with nsima on one’s plate. Never underestimate
Outside is outstanding. Our own obstacles we create
Pepper? Paypani, you won’t find it here. Power is a problem. Pun intended. Political and patriarchal society, please pay attention and provide education
Q is for Q, a poet with words so quick. Questions that quiet the mouth and open the mind
Remember and replenish. Recycle and reuse.
Sustainability. Singing. A stunning safari so stellar!
T is for travel and tradition. For teaching and tomorrow, something transitional and tender.
Understand.
Venture out, vindicate, we are visitors to their village. A vendetta, we don’t create.
W is Willie, our bus driver so true. Walk and don’t waste. The wall will make you wonder where your kwacha went. Where’s the white wine?!
X eXcite. eXtend a hand. eXotic Fanta.
You may just find Yourself along the way.
Zikomo, Malawi. Thank you, Malawi for your zeal and your zebras
Katlin Wohlford
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Last Day of Class Realizations
Tuesday July 5th was our last official day of class. We arrived at the Domasi Government School to a crowd of toothy smiles chanting "Azungu". However, today was different because our hearts were filled with mixed emotions as we embraced the African children that had won over our hearts. In class, Bebe and I had the learners (a term that Gertrude, our standard six teacher refers to her students as) write letters to us. We had been working with the standard six learners on English, countries, animals, basic human anatomy, and creative arts. The letters were a great review of the English concepts and many of them wrote about how they enjoyed the other learning topics we had covered. As we observed the letters being written the language barrier become even more apparent. The learners really struggled to create coherent sentences, spelling words correctly and not phonetically. We are so lucky in America that every student in school has a textbook they can reference and are not forced to memorize or minimally write down some ideas from a lesson. The students write the same as how the words sound when they speak. An example from one of our top students in class, "the dog chees the theefs awae" which should correctly be written (or spelled) "the dog chases the theifs away" it does sound right but as one can see is spelled incorrectly. After reading some of their writing I realized the long journey needed to help many of our students succeed. As our teaching time has now ended I know that our students enjoyed our interaction with them and hopefully picked up some skills along the way. To make children smile while simultaneously hoping they retain some information is all I could ask for despite the true English aid I wish I could offer.
Even though English is taught in starting in Standard One and eventually the exams the learners take are written in English the language is often not learned well enough to be able to pass a written exam. Walking around town one can communicate in English but if I knew Chichewa or Yao I would be able to get much more out my experience in Malawi. The language gap has really made me appreciate how lucky I am to speak a language that is used all over the world and is used for business. Since I am not bilingual or multilingual I am so blessed to speak such a universal language. Also coming to Malawi has shown me the beauty of diversity America . I love living in a melting pot of cultures, languages, backgrounds, and outlooks on life.
Alison Reynolds
Tuesday July 5th was our last official day of class. We arrived at the Domasi Government School to a crowd of toothy smiles chanting "Azungu". However, today was different because our hearts were filled with mixed emotions as we embraced the African children that had won over our hearts. In class, Bebe and I had the learners (a term that Gertrude, our standard six teacher refers to her students as) write letters to us. We had been working with the standard six learners on English, countries, animals, basic human anatomy, and creative arts. The letters were a great review of the English concepts and many of them wrote about how they enjoyed the other learning topics we had covered. As we observed the letters being written the language barrier become even more apparent. The learners really struggled to create coherent sentences, spelling words correctly and not phonetically. We are so lucky in America that every student in school has a textbook they can reference and are not forced to memorize or minimally write down some ideas from a lesson. The students write the same as how the words sound when they speak. An example from one of our top students in class, "the dog chees the theefs awae" which should correctly be written (or spelled) "the dog chases the theifs away" it does sound right but as one can see is spelled incorrectly. After reading some of their writing I realized the long journey needed to help many of our students succeed. As our teaching time has now ended I know that our students enjoyed our interaction with them and hopefully picked up some skills along the way. To make children smile while simultaneously hoping they retain some information is all I could ask for despite the true English aid I wish I could offer.
Even though English is taught in starting in Standard One and eventually the exams the learners take are written in English the language is often not learned well enough to be able to pass a written exam. Walking around town one can communicate in English but if I knew Chichewa or Yao I would be able to get much more out my experience in Malawi. The language gap has really made me appreciate how lucky I am to speak a language that is used all over the world and is used for business. Since I am not bilingual or multilingual I am so blessed to speak such a universal language. Also coming to Malawi has shown me the beauty of diversity America . I love living in a melting pot of cultures, languages, backgrounds, and outlooks on life.
Alison Reynolds
Into the homestretch
Its crazy that at this time next week we’ll be back in the States! The past few weeks have really flown by. Since it’s the last week of school we’ve tried to plan some fun hands-on activities. We kicked off the week by making yarn bracelets with the class on Monday. The class size has been dwindling each day, with probably 15 or so students absent on Tuesday. Today is Malawi’s Independence Day so school was cancelled. We’ve heard that most students don’t come back to school after being off today so we pretty much celebrated the last day yesterday. We passed out the pictures we had developed and then each student was able to make a popsicle stick picture frame to put around it. They were so excited to see their pictures. The kids LOVE to have their picture taken and usually they only see it on the camera, so I know they were happy to be able to have their very own picture. It was definitely a great project to end with. After the frames were dry we passed out our last items we’d brought for the class. Lindsay had brought some VA pins and I had some Mardi Gras beads. There were of course cheers and clapping when we showed them what we brought and they loved posing for pictures with their new stuff.
Tomorrow we’re back at the schools to say bye to the class. McDonald invited us to his house for lunch, so Lindsay and I are excited for that and to meet his family. He’s been awesome to work with. Then the whole group heads to a Catholic church for some traditional dancing. After we walk back to M.I.E, which is right beside our school, for a good-bye dinner with all three universities and the teachers from the three schools that we’ve been working with. We head back to the schools Friday for a final assembly.
A full end to the week for sure!
Ashley FitzGerald
July 6, 2011
July 6, 2011
I can’t believe we only have two day’s left in the schools. It is so crazy that we have already been living in Zomba for more than three weeks. A week from today we will be back in America…crazy!
Tomorrow we are having a celebration dinner at MIE with our teachers. I think it will be sad to say goodbye to them. We have prepared a song to sing in Chichewa and I’m sure they will love it. We have been taking drum lessons every Tuesday and I think that we might do a little drumming as well. Ashley and I have been invited to McDonald’s house for lunch tomorrow after we finish up in the classroom. I am excited to see what we will be served and to meet his family. He told us he has four children. I hope they are all there so we can meet them. We are going to bring his kids and wife some bubbles, beads, and other fun stuff. It will definitely be a long day, but filled with really fun activities!
Today is Malawi’s Independence Day. We walked downtown for some of the day and they had put out the Malawi flags on the light-posts. We all though that was pretty cool to see the patriotism.
Everyone is ready for Club Mak on Sunday. Dr. Kelly said we would be leaving early on Sunday, in order to utilize the most amount of time there! I am really excited to see what the Lake will look like. I bet it is enormous and beautiful!
-Lindsay
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Drums and Songs
June 6, 2011 – Patricia Kelly
Today is the Malawi Independence Day when they celebrate independence from England in 1964. However, what followed was 30 years of a dictatorship by Kamuzu Banda, who proclaimed himself President for Life. There are celebrations in Blantyre and in Lilongwe but not in Zomba. Actually, they’ve become much like us and even the stores are open – when people are off work, there is money to be made.
A teacher at Malemia Primary School in the Domasi area, Innocent, has taught the whole group drumming each Tuesday. He has taught us various rhythms and drumming in the “spaces.” The Father Drum is a patient African; he doesn’t talk a lot and allows others to participate. He leaves a space for others to drum (a four-count). The Mother Drum, he says, is a typical African woman who talks, talks, talks. She allows no spaces for entering with your rhythm. So you fill the Father Drum spaces or find an adjoining drum that is allowing spaces and follow that drum. It’s an interesting allegorical concept. I’m not good at all with drumming, but I appreciate the life lessons.
Innocent has also written two songs for us. The first he wrote last year for us to sing at our Celebration Dinner for the teachers. It is a farewell song. “We are thankful that things have been good. We are leaving, we are leaving, until we meet again.”
Tikuthokoza, takhala bwino; Tapita, tapita; tidzaonana.
The other one says that “Malawi is a beautiful country, just like America; things are going well in Malawi and in America.”
Malawi, Malawi
Oziko Lokongola
Lifanana nd kwathu ku America
Malawi moto; Malawi moto
Amerika moto; America moto
Lifanana ndi kwathu ku Amerika
We plan on having some drums with the singing also. It should be fun.
Today is the Malawi Independence Day when they celebrate independence from England in 1964. However, what followed was 30 years of a dictatorship by Kamuzu Banda, who proclaimed himself President for Life. There are celebrations in Blantyre and in Lilongwe but not in Zomba. Actually, they’ve become much like us and even the stores are open – when people are off work, there is money to be made.
A teacher at Malemia Primary School in the Domasi area, Innocent, has taught the whole group drumming each Tuesday. He has taught us various rhythms and drumming in the “spaces.” The Father Drum is a patient African; he doesn’t talk a lot and allows others to participate. He leaves a space for others to drum (a four-count). The Mother Drum, he says, is a typical African woman who talks, talks, talks. She allows no spaces for entering with your rhythm. So you fill the Father Drum spaces or find an adjoining drum that is allowing spaces and follow that drum. It’s an interesting allegorical concept. I’m not good at all with drumming, but I appreciate the life lessons.
Innocent has also written two songs for us. The first he wrote last year for us to sing at our Celebration Dinner for the teachers. It is a farewell song. “We are thankful that things have been good. We are leaving, we are leaving, until we meet again.”
Tikuthokoza, takhala bwino; Tapita, tapita; tidzaonana.
The other one says that “Malawi is a beautiful country, just like America; things are going well in Malawi and in America.”
Malawi, Malawi
Oziko Lokongola
Lifanana nd kwathu ku America
Malawi moto; Malawi moto
Amerika moto; America moto
Lifanana ndi kwathu ku Amerika
We plan on having some drums with the singing also. It should be fun.
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