Finally a volunteer!

I leave for the North on Sunday. I’m excited and nervous. Also, I’m not reallllly sure how I am getting up North, nor how the car will transport ALL of my stuff. I have accumulated a lot. Like a bike, for instance. Right now, I feel like I have a million things to do and no time to do them.

I am officially a volunteer now. I had my swear-in procession yesterday. It was so nice to go to a house in Dakar, with grass on a lawn (!), and meet so many cool new people and eat good food. There will be an entry soon detailing the events.

My host family in Tatene Toucouleur is sad that I am leaving. I will miss the kids the most. I do have a few anecdotes about living with them. For instance, the teenage males in my family ask me all the time about the Civil Rights Movement. They ask if Blacks have the right to vote. I’m not sure where they get their information, but it is troubling to me that they know that America has racial problems, but that they don’t know that we have universal suffrage. They also ask a lot of questions about Martin Luther King Jr. They point blank ask me “Why do White people hate Martin Luther King?” Another troubling question. I then explain that, in fact, African Americans got the right to vote much earlier than women! They don’t believe that—but, whatever. I also explain that not everyone hated MLK, in fact, a lot of White people supported and took part in the Civil Rights Movement. It’s just interesting to me that they would go to the trouble of learning about MLK, but then not learn about current racial politics in America.

I also make it a point to always ask to wash my hands before every meal. Also, any time I am given food and expected to eat it on the spot, I ask to wash my hands. I think this is the kinds of work that I will be doing over the next two years. I know it seems like I’m being lazy by saying that, but really, I think if they see me washing my hands enough they will start to consistently wash their hands before eating too. At least this is my hope.

But, for all my hand-washing my standards of the word “clean” have diminished. For instance, my clothing. I have given up thinking that any article of clothing will ever reallllly be clean for the next two years. Unsurprisingly, there is no rinse-spin cycle here when you do the laundry by hand. If anyone has tips on how to get things clean, please tell me. I have also learned that taking more than one daily shower is acceptable and encouraged here, especially up North. But, every time I step out of the bucket bathroom, I immediately start sweating again and sand gets all over my clean feet. This is something I have become comfortable with and it no longer bothers me.

By the way, THANK YOU to everyone who has sent me a birthday card or a letter over the past two months. I really appreciate it. It’s nice to know that I have so many people thinking about me back home. I promise that you will all get letters in return with super cool stamps on them. It may not come for three months, but you will get it.