Hello friends,
Here we are on the eve of my third month first-of-the-month
in Benin. Realizing that makes me feel really affirmed and confident. It is
strange to think that riding on the back of a motorcycle past dusty streets
crammed with bread vendors would ever seem normal; or eating boiled flour paste
would ever be appetizing. Yet here I am, and here we all are in stage 25 of
Peace Corps Benin, getting ready for the next challenge.
Since coming back from post visit, life has seemed very
busy. I am starting to feel more comfortable adventuring out into Porto Novo
with other volunteers. It seems like every day there is a reason to go to the
marche or sit and chat at a buvette (or bar). We also are having an hour of
local language class, about 3 times a week, after our regular classes. Besides
that we in Environmental action are also watering our garden beds before and
after class every day. Incidentally, the garden is doing really great. The
garden bed that I share responsibility over has okra seeds, and we have healthy
looking seedlings that are growing every day. It’s almost enough to make a
person think they are good at this stuff. Almost.
The days are going by fast, and there is lots of talk about
Swear-In (September 14th!) and buying the things we need for post
with our Move-In Allowance, and life at post in those first three months before
our in service training. People are really excited about getting back to their
assigned villages. I have to admit that I am a little nervous that it is going
to be a big adjustment. However, the practical training we have been getting is
a big help. It’s encouraging to think that I could work on simple projects that
could really help people. Here is a small example:
Over the past few weeks, our group of EA volunteers has met
with some gardening groups in the area surrounding Porto Novo. This week we met
with one group in particular and learned that they wanted to know more about
natural pesticides. We were able to pretty easily look some things up in our
‘EA Toolkit’ Handbook, and present a lesson, complete with a demonstration.
(Incidentally, making a tea by boiling strong smelling plants like garlic,
chillis, even dry tobacco leaves, mixing that with soap for cohesion, and
watering the leaves of your plants with that twice a day two days a week, makes
for a very good natural pesticide. Who knew!) So in one run on sentence I was
able to tell you what to do. However, working on this session made me realize
that I have a lot of almost assumed advantages that many of these women don’t
have. I speak one (or generously two) widely spoken, international languages. I
can read and write. I have access to a computer with internet. I have money to
travel to a library or book store. I know people who are very knowledgeable about
agriculture and gardening. All of these things make it very easy for me to gain
new information about gardening. Even though these women have been gardening
for years, finding new methods and news solutions seems to continue to be a
challenge.
Looking forward, it will be interesting to see how that
changes. (It will also be interesting to see how my understanding of their
available resources changes). I think the above illustration shows how
important education is here and in other developing countries. Speaking a
widely spoken language and being able to read and write is invaluable for
improving your life, your family, your community, and your country. At the same
time, it is mind bending to observe a culture that doesn’t have electricity,
but does have cellphones. It’s crazy to watch teenage girls pound yams with a
giant mortar and pestles, like people have been doing for thousands of years,
and then text their friends about it. I suspect that cellphones are already
changing information availability, and I think that will only increase with
time.
Benin is on an interesting and exciting adventure, and I am
glad to be on that adventure with it.
Thanks for reading! With Love,
Lauren
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