some oddities of adjustment:
I still haven't had ice cream (too cold to want it) but I will soon find an occasion.
Haven't looked at a nutrition label for 6 months.
Haven't seen 40 degrees celsius (104 F) since I left Niger last week and swapped it for 1 Celcius in Europe.
Didn't miss billboards and commercials.
Haven't driven since I sold it to a friend last summer but I have gone a lot of places!
I forgot that mirrors steam up if you get too close or take a bath.
I'd forgotten about buildings with 2 stories or more.
and weather forecasts! when I hear them, it seems so obvious that of course its drizzly and cold- because that is what is it's doing outside. And of course it is going to warm up- it always does during the middle of the day with the sun's position. I think I got used to calculating my own daily forecast in Niger by looking at the sky on my little walk each morning down the road to our base office. a strange thought for me.
and no, I don't need to speak French to everyone with an accent (which is everyone). I can just blurt out my thoughts without translating first.
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
There are so many things I respect about the way of life in Africa, considering the few spots I have been privileged to taste.
Africans know how to find the center of gravity, and USE IT! (these are mild examples. with the harvest, i have seen incredible feats of gravity and balance!)
They know their elements- water, fire, air, soil/sand.
Adaptability.
Patience is like oxygen- essential and natural.
The earth as the floor- You don't have to think twice about tossing the rest of some liquid to the side- it will disappear or dry in minutes.
A shower is simple- a drain in the bathroom floor, normally within feet of the toilet and the sink, and the shower head mounted high. It all dries eventually.
I like how much pleasure people take in greeting each other. They always say its going fine, even if it isn't. you can tell they gain energy from the encouraging camaraderie. I will really, really miss that warm exchange.
No one speaks one language. So their brains are open in ways that many of western minds are not, with the capacity to mix and match, to express and communicate and adjust to the mélange of people around them.
Africans know how to find the center of gravity, and USE IT! (these are mild examples. with the harvest, i have seen incredible feats of gravity and balance!)
They know their elements- water, fire, air, soil/sand.
Adaptability.
Patience is like oxygen- essential and natural.
The earth as the floor- You don't have to think twice about tossing the rest of some liquid to the side- it will disappear or dry in minutes.
A shower is simple- a drain in the bathroom floor, normally within feet of the toilet and the sink, and the shower head mounted high. It all dries eventually.
I like how much pleasure people take in greeting each other. They always say its going fine, even if it isn't. you can tell they gain energy from the encouraging camaraderie. I will really, really miss that warm exchange.
No one speaks one language. So their brains are open in ways that many of western minds are not, with the capacity to mix and match, to express and communicate and adjust to the mélange of people around them.
Water.Color.Palette.
You might be surprised how green it is here. The other day on the way back from the clinics, I counted 7 different shades of green! Admittedly some of them had clear family resemblence to their brother Brown, but I counted them decidedly green:
Thorny acacia trees and a greener more leafy cousin, scrubby plants that I could describe as a dark green prickly ameba, faint prairie grass stretching away in a metallic sheen, and various other grasses and scrubs.
You know when you're sorting tomatoes, selecting the ripest for canning, and subtly the standard of color shifts before you eyes. The last 'ripe' one you choose is remarkably orange compared to the first, but ripe all the same. It is kind of like that.
I am sure now that the shades and frequencies of color are infinite. My eyes have had a 6 month lesson in beauty, staged in totally new surroundings. In each locale, the eyes take in the local palette of frequencies.
"everything is beautiful…in its own way…"
Thorny acacia trees and a greener more leafy cousin, scrubby plants that I could describe as a dark green prickly ameba, faint prairie grass stretching away in a metallic sheen, and various other grasses and scrubs.
You know when you're sorting tomatoes, selecting the ripest for canning, and subtly the standard of color shifts before you eyes. The last 'ripe' one you choose is remarkably orange compared to the first, but ripe all the same. It is kind of like that.
I am sure now that the shades and frequencies of color are infinite. My eyes have had a 6 month lesson in beauty, staged in totally new surroundings. In each locale, the eyes take in the local palette of frequencies.
"everything is beautiful…in its own way…"
CRAVE
While I have adjusted to the arid Sahelién landscape, I miss water. Yesterday, working in the office, a sensation of longing doused me with thirst for rain, out of the blue. (you like the accidental alliteration of images there? that's for my friends who miss my puns :)
I long for a dark rainy evening in which to walk home from work, because I forgot my umbrella. I would love to sit by a stream in a shady forest. When we have a rare cloudy day and the wind kicks up mysteriously, I have the sense it should snow, the dust looks like flurries…
I long for a dark rainy evening in which to walk home from work, because I forgot my umbrella. I would love to sit by a stream in a shady forest. When we have a rare cloudy day and the wind kicks up mysteriously, I have the sense it should snow, the dust looks like flurries…
Awful Thought:
If someone would like to torture me, they could simply lash me to the trunk of a tree in which resides a flock of guinea fowl. In a matter of days, I would go stark- raving mad.(can you guess the background noise I'm hearing?)
You birders might like to find a sample of their tortuous song on a birdsong website, then you'll know what I mean.
You birders might like to find a sample of their tortuous song on a birdsong website, then you'll know what I mean.
Nice Thought
Well, it was a nice thought anyway- winter, that is. I kept chomping after the carrot strung in front of my face, as friends here assured:
"by November or mid-December you'll need a turban, a sweater, socks…"
"just you wait- next week the wind will really start- oh wow!"
"by mid-January it will be cold like Europe"
"just you wait, it's chilly now, but the real cold will come- next week or the next"
Well, with one hand of truly frigid days to note on the calendar (3 in Dec, 2 in Jan), I think everyone here agrees that we've left winter behind in the dust. 40°C in the shade yesterday. When I exclaim that it's hot, they all say now, just wait until May! Then it's REALLY hot!
When I remark on the mal-calcultated forcast, locals here agree that it has been a abnormal winter and people know about global warming. Makes me glad I rode my bike a lot at home. Also makes me brag of all my friends and fam who carpool and bike, so I can tell friends here that we are trying to make a difference!
Already my body starts adjusting. Last night under the moon, when the night breeze finally eased its way out of the darkness, I got cold, and I would guess it was just shy of 30° C (80's)
"by November or mid-December you'll need a turban, a sweater, socks…"
"just you wait- next week the wind will really start- oh wow!"
"by mid-January it will be cold like Europe"
"just you wait, it's chilly now, but the real cold will come- next week or the next"
Well, with one hand of truly frigid days to note on the calendar (3 in Dec, 2 in Jan), I think everyone here agrees that we've left winter behind in the dust. 40°C in the shade yesterday. When I exclaim that it's hot, they all say now, just wait until May! Then it's REALLY hot!
When I remark on the mal-calcultated forcast, locals here agree that it has been a abnormal winter and people know about global warming. Makes me glad I rode my bike a lot at home. Also makes me brag of all my friends and fam who carpool and bike, so I can tell friends here that we are trying to make a difference!
Already my body starts adjusting. Last night under the moon, when the night breeze finally eased its way out of the darkness, I got cold, and I would guess it was just shy of 30° C (80's)
Just Thought About it
That our clinics serve thousands of kids each year, with only natural lighting and no electricity. Running water comes from tubs filled and mounted on stands. Never missed it.
Forgot about cookies and ice cream.
Haven't worn socks for 5 months.
Forgot about washcloths- haven't used one since July.
Half a year in one of the hottest areas on the globe and never once thought about getting a tan. My legs are winter white! My feet on the other hand (uh, other foot?) are brown. And I never use sun screen. I just gravitate to the shade or cover up.
Just thought about it that I am really going to miss this place.
Forgot about cookies and ice cream.
Haven't worn socks for 5 months.
Forgot about washcloths- haven't used one since July.
Half a year in one of the hottest areas on the globe and never once thought about getting a tan. My legs are winter white! My feet on the other hand (uh, other foot?) are brown. And I never use sun screen. I just gravitate to the shade or cover up.
Just thought about it that I am really going to miss this place.
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