one year later

packed bags, out the door on that fateful day

last meal with mama, some delicious filet

a blank slate and unsure of what to expect

its one year later and time to reflect

one year ago, thoughts just swirled: living in a hut without even a friend

how would i ever mend?

and me teach my own class?

ive been a student my whole life, would my kids even pass?

and could i even keep up with happenings in the states?

would my friends all have new mates?

and would i really become a full fledged member of the community?

chilling by a fire with my new family while sipping tea?

and despite the anxiety and fear

the overarching purpose was clear

an introspective search for goals did commence

time to break from that american bubble and white picket fence

become independent, confident, and a bit more mature

but with everything else, i was much less sure

okahandja: our training location

but lets be real, we were at club o on more than one occasion

then my fate, it did seal

living in the kavango region, this all became a bit more real

arriving in my village created quite the stir

posh nam life behind me, as if it were a  blur

and yet within a few months, ndiyona became my home

part of the community, it was my own

then i took on that role, a teacher

and no, im not trying to be some kind of preacher

but once those shy kids were shown some love and support

their academic and social performance, not even i could thwart

suddenly my confidence and authority began to grow

ideas and knowledge among my kids, they did sow

all that ive learned even has me excited to be a parent

assuming when i go home, of course, and can afford to pay rent

that american-nam identity fusion began to occur

thoughts i rarely considered, now became engrained and sure

being open about race, sex, and life for that matter

no more of that politically correct chatter

living in nam has enshrined so much: what it means to free spirited and accountable

that you can live life without cable (and still be stable)

that life sets you on a path thats sometimes unrecognizable 

and that being sarcastic, here, im barely able

no more longer seeing namibia as this other place

often forgetting im not the same race

6 dogs, hiking around, sandy roads, goats and all

i hardly remember that, to many, this isn't normal

and yet while, of course, nam has transformed me

i owe so much of this to a girl named sydney

yeah we escaped hippos, and danced with orphans, all while reaching new stages

but what truly impacted me was what i learned about love, something you never read on book pages

that when you know, you know cause its perfect when its real

theres no better way to end this poem, then with the way i feel

boy with a coin

i was sitting in the back of a pick up truck with sydney, laying on a mattress from a china shop on our way to a cheetah farm. right now that sentence makes complete sense to me. and thats kinda the point of this introduction. when we hike, we often end up in the back of a truck and if were lucky enough, we will have a thin material to lay on that some might consider a mattress. also if you're lucky, you wont have to switch cars. we weren't that lucky. our original car was smoking out of its hood causing us to pool to the side of the road and allowing syd and i to walk to the nearest tree and search for "fun" materials--that was our entertainment for the moment. 

but what caused for such an anecdote before i even get to the crux of this post? well, its for this reason: while we were laying on said mattress hoping to (at some point) reach our final destination, I expressed a strong sentiment I have been feeling for awhile to syd (no, not that one) and told her this: i no longer have those IM IN AFRICA moments. and whats more fascinating than that is that even when i try to have one of those moments I CANT and its purely because I have become so enrapt in my life here that i cannot have a moment in which i feel like im in such a foreign,- exotic place when that place is none of the sort. its my HOME. and you cannot separate yourself from your home. 

so with that as a preface, let me recount some of the highlights over the past month. just keep in mind that when a goat walks into the staffroom, like one just did, i consider that a normal nuisance so what you and I find interesting may not be quite the same. but you can humor me, right?

what not to do in an american school

this is something i often think about as a teacher in namibia. i love teaching so much, but perhaps a large part of that is because Im in a namibian school and not an american school. thus consider the things im able to do as a teacher here that would perhaps land me on maury in the states:

• bring your puppy midway through a lesson so they can examine her swollen nipples. then proceed to determine whether or not she's pregnant. (DID I MENTION SHE MIGHT BE PREGNANT?)
• excuse the learners from the afternoon study so they can slaughter a goat for the school's enjoyment. or to kill a rabid dog thats disturbing the village.
• convince my learners that justin beiber is my little brother. and actually have them believe me. 
• painting my classroom resulted in a standing ovation from my kids. and also resulted in the following question: did you paint your class yellow to match your skin color? well, obviously. 

"sir, honestly, we'll just end up sleeping for a real long time"

my top priority as a teacher is to sharpen and enhance my kids' critical thinking skills. to me, its the most powerful skill one can possess. however, reaching that end is so much easier said than done. what i realized, is that often the best education occurs outside of the classroom and luckily living at a hostel school has offered me countless interactions with my kids outside the class. and what is essential is that the learners trust their teacher so such a learning experience can take place.

take this for example: we were having a GLOW club meeting and towards its conclusion, I asked 2 of my top learners, mashika and t-pain, to stay after to discuss some english class matters. and then somehow a quick recount of the book HOLES (yes, were reading it right now) led to a discussion of what happens to us after we die. what makes this conversation especially intriguing is the context. namibia is a devoutly christian country with little room to shy away from expressing those beliefs. and yet, my learners, without my input engaged in a provocative discussion that completely exposed their critical minds. they asked questions such as "of course there is not a hell, why would a great GOD make such a terrible place?" or "we'll just end up sleeping for a real long time, don't you think? i mean i've never seen any proof that God exists." while these comments wouldn't appear on the CNN ticker as breaking news, you need to consider that religious skepticism is essentially silenced and thus to be able to think such contradictory thoughts and take it a step further and EXPRESS them is admirable. perhaps they stole my copy of golden compass. 

and another: i was sitting in our "library" (yes, purposely put in quotes) with some other BRILLIANT  learners, prisca and justiana and they asked me a question: "sir, do you believe in the illuminate?" DID I MENTION HOW MATURE I FEEL WHEN IM CALLED SIR?! alright but lets continue….so for those of you who are a bit confused by the subject matter, I,too, had little knowledge of what the illuminati was until arriving in namibia where i heard about it on a copious amount of occasions. from cab drivers to villagers to teachers to small kids they often raise some unearthed concerns: that many american celebrities are in cahoots with the devil to establish some sort of new world order. so instead of answering the question, i asked the girls where they read about the illuminati. they told me on the internet. and i asked "do you believe everything you read on the internet?" and they responded with the most concise and precise (did i mention i like to rhyme now?)  answer id expect "of course not, anyone can write something on the internet." and thats when i knew we reached them. and i told them, if i teach you one thing its this: don't accept anything at face value, discover the truth for yourself. 

"and ndiyona combined school comes in 5th place……out of 5." 

alright so as you can see by this catchy subtitle, i have very little incentive to go into detail on the cultural competition we held in our village recently other than that we hosted all of the neighboring schools for a dance and drama event. and while we didn't WIN, i learned that you can still have fun when you don't win (NO REGRETS). so the event was held on a friday (during the school day) and of course, our school was confused on how to handle having an event during a school day. should we cancel classes? should we have the full day? should we release the kids early? no, how about we have school then let the kids go to the event part way through the school day and then get really angry that the kids don't come back for more school…have them return and roam around school grounds and complain and then re-release them so they can enjoy the biggest event of their month! and thats what happened. so obviously i spent most of the time at this event hanging out with all my colleagues and pretty much my best friends in the village. 

but then i noticed that a school event quickly turned into a community event. which is exactly when i ditched the teachers for the almost no english speaking ability elder village women. and thats when the event started for me. i was handed babies to care for, including my favorite kid in my village whose name is PILOT (no, that was not a typo) and also little KUPI (mr. mukupi's song who calls me mr. frankino). and best of all, the village women know how to take care of you. first you dance with them, then as a reward, they procure for you a COKE (the drink of global coexistence) 

"the river got frozen"

ok so while its cold here and there is a river nearby, no its not frozen but that is a line from one of my favorite fleet foxes songs thats playing right now and it encapsulates just how cold it has been. you know how as a pcv were supposed to dispel common myths about africa? well, heres one: IT GETS SO COLD. perhaps its because central heating doesn't exist in a school which barely has operable windows but nonetheless its been freezing. i even interrupted class one morning to run home and fetch (i use this verb often now) a sweater. additionally, it gets dark so early and darkness has a huge effect on daily lives here in the village. such as having to cook earlier for those who cook traditionally outside, it means showering in the afternoon to reduce the likelihood of hypothermia,  and pure reliance on the moon as your sole source of light when roaming the streets at night. however, its those night walks that are the most serene (right dip?) the only thing you need to be careful of are these: congata--these little thorns that stick to your clothes and pretty much anything imaginable. this is something i will surely be brining back to states with me. sorry. 

"even pregnant girls have a right to an education"

i was sitting in class when one of my learners delivered a letter to my desk. it requested of our school the following: send our debate team to RUNDU for the regional debate competition. "well this sounds nice," i simply thought understanding that we do not have a debate team. but the thought of the upcoming competitions distracted me throughout the day. so that afternoon at our GLOW meeting, I floated the idea  to learners about perhaps forming a debate team. i thought it'd be met with the typical shrug and we'd quickly move onto the next topic. what i didn't realize was that not only were all the kids unbelievably enthusiastic about the idea but we'd eventually meet each night and train our team. 

i quickly moved to assemble a team made up of a variety of grade 9 and 10 learners. i immediately got so consumed by our debate team and it is perhaps the most rewarding and exciting thing that i have ever taken on: the kids enthusiasm and the obvious display of such crucial deep critical thinking skills has been such an incredible experience. so we train quite often and its so amusing to challenge them. one topic thats hotly contested in namibia is this: "should pregnant school girls be allowed to return to school after giving birth" our team was split on the subject. some say that mothers need to stay at home and care for the children. and then we ask: what about their fathers? and what about their constitutionally enshrined right to an education? its a provocative topic. and quite important. 

the issue of teenage pregnancy is one that is of grave concern to our region and especially our school. coercive sex and unsafe practices often lead to unwanted pregnancies. and the lack of legal and moral obligations of the father to care for his child exacerbates these issues. and thus a pregnant school girl is often left alone, unless she has the gracious support of her family.  thats not always the case. one afternoon last week, a woman was walking past our local church when she discovered the body of a baby. following a traumatic response, she reported the finding to the police who determined that it was not a baby but a 6 month old fetus. meaning a woman had an illegal abortion and discarded of the unborn baby in the bush. that woman turned out to be a grade 9 learner at our school. this story is tragic and still too fresh. but it captures the pressing need that exists in our community: the support for young pregnant women is extraordinarily low. 

rescuing dogs on the side

so following that walk with the cheetahs, syd and i decided, why not get another dog? procuring dogs has been a defining aspect of our service and theres no reason why that should stop. so we once again found ourselves at the SPCA of windhoek. we befriended a few pups that could potentially be named jackal. but what makes our trip to the SPCA a uniquely nam experience was this: we were roaming around schmoozing with dogs when hillary (were on a first name basis with the staff there, of course) approached us with the following proposition--we need to rescue dogs that are roaming around the city. however, it was presented with solely one option: YOU'RE COMING. and so we did. and within a few minutes i was sharing the backseat with a great dane and golden retriever. and yet, i still claim that my allergic reaction was a result of closeness to cheetahs. we can hope, cant we?

home

arriving back from windhoek to our gas station on the edge of rundu, we were met with screams of kasiku and mr. kasiku (clearly we have reversed gender norms)  just one of many times when that feeling of "home" is confirmed. but lets be real....home is whenever im with you 

love and peace. 

OH-SIX-6 and the 4 ONE ONE

066 and 411. the 2 most important numbers in my life. the former refers to the town code for rundu. the second refers to the best day of my life. but instead of giving details on that, i will highlight everything that happened before 4/11 and after since my last post :)

so heres the deal: don't really feel like trying to tie my life together in some concise [vocabulary word] fashion. and i already used the insert transitions idea. so…im just gonna have a bunch of random subtopics. enjoy.

"uhhh what time is it?"

i suppose that one bit of information that i ought to divulge before i get to the crux of this post is that i don't know what time it is. its not cause my watch was ripped off my arm or that my cell phone suddenly stopped working. so day light savings occurred last week. and in typical fashion (since winter is approaching) we fell back an hour. seems simple enough. but despite that it was widely known that this was happening, i was still a bit apprehensive. so it was sunday night and i went to bed not sure if i ought to fall back or not. in the morning i texted some of the teachers to get an idea of what time they had. then i found out the following bit of information: our school will set the time back at the start of next term. meaning the end of may. meaning our school has defied the international time standards. pretty baller. and pretty confusing at the same time. but ill just leave it at that. 

[re]uniting. now that i mention it, in more ways than one.

reuniting with SUPRIYA. many people envisioned (or at least tried to) just what that might look like. some adjectives could surely be attached to the moment: beautiful, emotional, life-changing, heart-pulsing. it was better. so "my friend at the time", sydney, and i trekked along to botswana a tad unsure of how to navigate the terrain, where the town we were meeting up was located (or how to pronounce it for that matter) but no worries because kupi drew a map for us on a spare piece of paper that essentially would determine our fate.

-------kupi is also one of my fave people in the village who cannot be described in a mere post…but heres a quick visual: one night about a week ago when we were just finalizing the final exams and entering in the marks, he came knocking at my window (as he normally does) and beckoned me to the staffroom to work together. later i approached the staffroom, flanked by kiara, and there i saw him, Kupi: sitting in a revealing navy robe with NOTHING underneath (and yes it became quite obvious that that was the case) and he sat with an empty bottle of wine to his left and a loaded gun to his right. clearly the necessary tools to mark exams. also i ought to mention that kiara spent the night in the staffroom)

many apologies for the tangent cause i was just about to explain reuniting with SUPRIYA.  so syd and i managed to hike our way across the border and through botswana. we also noticed that despite the fact that namibia and botswana are neighboring countries, the differences were apparent. consider: the roads were more narrow. the huts were more circular. the trees were taller. and the cows were fatter. this is all truth. and once you've spent as much time in nam, you'd notice these nuances as well.then we reached maun, and more importantly our hostel. syd and i walked towards the front gate. i was shaking. i was nervous and ohhh so excited. and then we made eye contact. i doubt i could truly articulate what was going through my head, but just know that the reunion was better than i ever could have imagined. and then we did a shot. 

so we hung out at the hostel. sup and i got some necessary bonding time. as did sup and syd. and one other thing i ought to mention is that we saw the most brilliant spider ever created. ill just leave it at that. everything else that happened is better as memory than a blog post ;)

so predictably, we had to leave bots. before we did i found a gigantic leaf and gave it to sydney. i told her that if we can procure a use for this leaf than she has to give me N$100. well, she left it behind eventually…it just became too big to carry. sadly, we later did procure a use for it--a souvenir! cause we never got one in bots. although, ultimately, we did end up getting something much better than a leaf.

***also i have to give a disclaimer to explain that "procure" is my new favorite word.

important fact: the nam-bots border closes at exactly 6pm. after some strategic bargaining and negotiating, we reached the border literally at 5:59pm. phew we made it. but then we were asked the following question. 

"do you guys have a car?" 

"uhhhhhh no"

"well hopefully you have blankets cause looks like you'll be sleeping in the bush tonight"

"uhh huh..."

but then, as things tend to do here, luck bent in our favor. just as the gate was about to close its unforgiving self, a truck approached it. and it just so happened it was the same people who had driven us in the first place. we rode all the back to my village. listening to our music. watching the sunset. (rumor of a lion siting occurred) and then…well, ill just say once we reached my village, we were hoping that the ride would never end.

[re]uniting with kate. so almost immediately after we came back from bots…syd and i…….. kate came to NAM! kate is one of sydney's best friends and she got to stay in kavango for 3 weeks and immerse herself in our region. so obviously, i learned how to rear a goat with kate around but i wont get into the details. on kate's first night in rundu, vegas also came up and we made some friends. im not embarrassed to say that these friends were 50 year old women. cause they were. they invited us to a braii and we went the next day. the following weekend, we all went to popa falls a "waterfall" east of my village. the only thing was was that you cant access the waterfall during this season cause the river was too high. oops. instead we procured some friends and while we sat on the bridge i also did what i do best--faciliated love via text. 

here are some texts i received from some nam friends:

"kativa (thats me) can you organise nangura (thats kate) for me. i have a black lady for you"

"matthew i need a husband to marry. do you think you could find me a soul mate to marry later today?"

[re]untiting with sydney….woops. sorry lost my train of thought. let me just continue. 

people of ndiyona, GLOW yourselves.

so you know the deal. GLOW--its our afterschool club mostly made up of the grade 9 and 10 learners at school. the ones who are a bit more outspoken, confident, and lets be real…cool. we planned a social event for the whole school run by our club. the event had  a few purposes: educate the school community about things we have learned, let the kids in the club take a leadership role and plan it, and also give the 220+ kids who live at school and cannot leave on weekends SOMETHING TO DO.  

one thing all of us wanted to do was to perform a drama that touched on teenage pregnancy and the danger of sugar daddies. so one meeting, a few weeks before the event i wanted to get a feel for how the kids act. i told them to prepare something to perform. expectation: kids would be socially awkward, shy, not into it, stutter, just like any kid would in that situation. reality: i was immediately enrapt in the play. not even realizing it was in one classroom with my grade 9 learners. it was realistic. there was side movement going on. props. and passionate, real acting. i was so impressed. although part of me was somewhat disheartened by the fluidness of the performance--it essentially showcased that these issues (teenage pregnancy, underage drinking, and sugar daddies) are all too common in our village. 

as for the social event itself, it looked like this: 

• sydney helped the kids with decorations. they were especially impressed with her "people of ndiyona, GLOW yourselves" poster (i hope you get the how to lose a guy in 10 days reference)
• T-Pain (a grade 9 learner) was the emcee. and he rocked the place.
• there were a few eating competitions. try 562. 
• it was probably 124 degrees inside the hall cause we had to cover the windows with sheets to prevent kids from climbing through them
• we had chugging contests (juice, don't worry) and my chugging skills came into play when i BEAT one of my learners who challenged me
• we danced a bit. and when i danced, place got insane.
• also the one baby in my village who is afraid of me because she thinks im a ghost, FINALLY LET ME HOLD HER. #winning
• we had bobbing for apples. but only used one apple to bob with. i later realized that the kids had been hoarding them in the back. 

"does anyone know what cat feces smells like?"

staff meetings. they're either the best (or worst) way to start a morning. we start each morning with one and they often dip a bit into period 1. i would normally love skipping time away from school…but as a teacher, its the worst. it would be ok if the discussions were substantive. well, ill just let you decide. 

so one morning 2 weeks ago (better known in nam as "last of last week") there was poop found on my learner's bed in the hostel. reaction that you'd expect: a cleaning crew cleans and sanitizes the area. a new blanket provided. not too much publicity made out of the incident. but this is nam. so that morning. the poop began to harden while our discussion commenced. was it human or cat feces? valid question, i presume. then, the hostel manager asked the teachers, "does anyone know what cat feces smells like?" but heres the thing. even if i (or anyone else for that matter) could distinguish between various animal feces…it probably wouldn't become common knowledge. and so there we sat. silent. waiting for the mess to be cleaned. but more importantly, for the culprit to be caught.

now the latest drama encapsulating our staff at school. so witchcraft. its quite common in our village. while some of you might merely roll your eyes and read ahead. consider that perhaps its equally valid as any religious explanation that has also yet to be "proved." but relax and delete that drafted email cause im not saying i believe in witchcraft ;) anyway, heres the deal some male teachers have been complaining that they've been having sex dreams about one of the female teachers at our school. they soon discovered that it was the same female teacher. and that she was quite "aggressive" in all of them. so what could explain dreams about a hot girl? well, witchcraft of course. so the female teacher is yet to be called out but she was warned. and our staff meetings have been contentious eversince. example: our head of department walked out of school. in search of a witch doctor. this is the real deal. 

"so we'll be fluent in a few weeks, true??"

as a teacher, its easy to get consumed by the learners and your school. but as a volunteer its important to engage with the entire community. thus thanks to heightened interest, i decided to start an english class for the adults in our village. a simple after school activity  soon became my biggest challenge in namibia. at our first meeting, 20 adults sat eagerly awaiting the start of FREE english classes. soon after our introductory meeting commenced i realized that the gap within the class was WIDE. some adults were parents who had not completed grade 4. others had completed grade 12. others were workers in the hostel. but what was clear was that i had some decisions to make. and one thing ive learned as a teacher is that you must be decisive. and more important than that, you need to look decisive. 

i divided the class into 2 and then decided to have 2 sessions. one would be for adults who have little no to experience with english and thus need to start essentially fresh. the second would focus on the following: resume writing, preparing for interviews, writing business proposals, and perfecting their english. for the first class, my host brother, mashie, works as my interpreter which, in turn, helps him enhance his english skills. one thing that needed to be clear to all of the adults though, was that despite that their teacher was american, they would not become fluent in english or rich from an incredible business plan in a matter of weeks. expectations are sometimes insanely high when an american walks in. which is why its important for reality to be imposed on the class before you get started. 

once the classes did finally commence, it became so rewarding. engaging with the community, those eager to find work, some who had to leave school due to an early pregnancy, or those who are inspired by their high achieving child inspire me daily. and not only that, but i made a friend named thimoteus who is in a BAND. 

my second home

sydney and i have adopted eachothers  villages as our unofficial second homes. most people who join peace corps get the chance to intimately understand and connect with one village. which is incredible. as for us, we get 2. 

mavanze (sydney's village) weekend looked like this:

• i helped put the water tower some structure after a casual walk around the village
• one of syds host brothers gave me 5 dollar coin (granted it was plastic…no qualms)
• we went to the homestead where kiara was born. i met her mom and bro. ill just say im glad i didn't leave her there. 
• played a soccer game with the boys and then it started raining…syd advised me to shower quickly so i wouldn't get struck by lightening. so i showered in the rain right after she did. and it was magical. and no lightening strikes. 
• we had to locate kankala (again) who had ran off with my ipod due to his obsession with bedrock
• we pounded muhangu (video to follow)

"lets call her lily"

 i had my first experience in a southern village! school is over and i finally did what i shoulda done awhile ago--visit LAINE. perhaps its cause we live here and know our villages intimately, but laines village couldn't be any different from mine. the biggest difference: the concentration of homes which are made of corrugated iron and crowd a small farm settlement is truly unique. mountains encircle the small settlement and make for a spectacular view. but what was better than observing the village, was bonding with laine! for several reasons. she taught me spite and malace (my new favorite game…we have to finish our tournament btw), we got to watch gory movies, but most IMPORTANTLY we (temporarily) rescued a baby puppy (that was perhaps redundant) and we decided to name her lily inspired by black swan. despite the fact that she peed almost as much as laine, she became one of my best friends in nam. we cuddled with her. and fed her milk. then she disappeared. oops. 

then laine and i headed to windhoek. we split a bottle of champagne. need i say more? bonding session. check.

theres not a problem with having favorites…right?

as most of you know, the first term has come to an end. and as i alluded to in my previous post, teaching has been more enjoyable than i could have imagined. but what i love most about teaching here would never exist in an american school. like the kids and teachers essentially living together. the relationship between learner and teacher that is uniquely nam. and the lack of a mentor, or adult who believes in the kids, and so providing that, well, rewards everyone exponentially.

my grade 8 math classes surpassed their goal for the term. the goal for the class average was a C. the average this term was a B. and as a side, last year, the average grade in math was an E.

grade 9 english reached their goal, as the average grade was a C. additionally, the average for english last year was an E.

but now its time to showcase my faves. but what makes a favorite is not just "liking them" but their sheer motivation, work ethic, and performance, and leadership in the class. being a teacher makes me appreciate the kids who are inquisitive more than anything. the ones who, when pushed, reach further than ever imagined. 

Shashipapo Moses

he's in my grade 8 register (homeroom) class. he's the most modest and soft-spoken boy there. most learners in my register class are loud, outspoken, and enjoy the moment they can show off. moses, on the other hand, sits in the back and cruises through school at an unprecedented pace. he calmly and confidently exceeds all expectations and, most importantly, treats all of his peers (regardless of ability) with the respect that they all inherently deserve. no judgment, just quiet guidance. he received a 99% in math. often when im walking around the village with a moment to just think (perhaps while gazing at the stars a bit) i ponder, "where will my kids be in 5 years, 10 years, in the future?" i ponder because im truly curious and excited but also anxious that they harness their obvious potential. moses is always the first i think about when pondering that thought. purely because his future is unbelievably bright. 

Mbambo Kaveto

kaveto is also in my grade 8 register class. like moses, he excels and received a 97% in math this term. thats where the comparisons stop, however. kaveto is an outspoken leader in the classroom. he was elected to the learner representative council (LRC) and has made his foot print on our class quite obvious. he is the first to ensure that all learners understand their assignment and urge them to seek help from either him or a teacher if thats not the case. 

Ndumba Hellena

hellena transferred to our school just this year and she, also, is in my register class. she came in having no friends. she is bigger than all of the other girls and her lack of self-esteem was evident. so, as the teacher, it was my role to ensure true immersion in the school community. she was one of the first learners who reached a comfort level with me to inquire about education, ask questions about america, and seek help in her social and academic realms of life. now? she was elected to the hostel representative council and to chair the math club that i also run. she was one of the top 5 learners in grade 8 and she even has a vibrant social life. basically, she's smart and popular. perfect combo.

Mashika Basilius

mashika is a grade 9 learner. and the second best english learner in all of grade 9. he is the most inquisitive learner that i have ever encountered. from day 1, he took advantage of the purpose of having an american teacher--he engaged in cross-cultural dialogue asking about airplanes, schooling in america, my family, and careers. he's ambitious but his confidences hovers at a level that one would never expect based on his academic successes. he lost his mother at the start of the school year and instead of conceding and falling through the cracks, he's pushing himself and challenging himself despite that he sometimes loses faith. thus as his teacher and mentor, im working with him to restore that. 

Marembo Prisca

prisca is 15 years old. a grade 9 learner and undoubtedly the brightest learner in all of grade 9 and perhaps in the entire school. she's a leader, she actively engages in class discussions, and she is confident. she refuses to subscribe to the gender norms that she easily could have inherited. she aims to be a doctor and i have no doubts that she cant reach that goal. she's the one that i can always rely on to engage in provocative discussions in english dealing with peer pressure, self-confidence, teenage pregnancy, and HIV/AIDS. she doesn't merely speak, she engages, provokes, challenges, and her convictions are more than apparent. she is also a leader in our GLOW club and is the learner that all teachers rely on to excel, motivate others, participate, and make the school more than a school but a community.   

peace.

"kwato serious"

the following scene happens quite often so i think its appropriate that it share with you: syd and i walk along the gravel roads that make up rundu (likely outside our lodge) and then a cab driver shouts something out his car door--typically one of our names. not too eventful, i know. but then one such afternoon, our name was not spit out the window but this was: "kwato serious!" and that leads me to the all important topic of "namlish." 

"this one he is not serious" you will hear that from young to old, women and men, learners and teachers talking about themselves, americans, or even my puppy. what does it mean exactly? well, its kinda like an all encompassing phrase. its the phrase you dish out in leiu of a shrug of the shoulders, its a phrase to show sincere disappointment, its a phrase to merely mock a friend, or to imply that perhaps you should get you dog off that old woman's skirt. which leads me to my little twist (cass knows all about those) on the matter. my rumanyo skills have progressed enough that i can throw an english and rumanyo word together to make my own little variation. and thus "this one he is not serious" has turned into "kwato serious." and kinda like wiiwl, it has spread. even to cab drivers that i may or may not know.  speaking of rumanyo, i now greet my classes in rumanyo as opposed to english (part of my way to get them to view me as an equal and not some all knowing american) to which i am greeted with a standing ovation (my second ovation since the last time when i distributed blow pops to my register class on valentines day)

speaking of knowing or not knowing people (yet another common occurrence in nam that i ought to share with you) so picture this: im walking around my village, or perhaps along the river, or maybe even in town (and likely flanked by my little dip) and then some nam man comes approaching me asking the following "matthew..why don't you ever call me?? how are you??" well my instinctive answer never leaves my mouth because its this "uh perhaps cause i never met you before." but instead we shake hands, hug, and talk about enough things without actually compromising the truth (that im a little lost right now). the reason i emphasize this isn't cause its happened a few times, but literally every day and thus in order to get an accurate glimpse into my life its important that you understand this. people can meet you one time, perhaps even just in passing, and will forever rememeber you and your story. im working on my memory issues to integrate in this aspect.

but now lets talk about the unknown texts for a second. syd and i were enjoying another salami pizza as usual along the river when i received this text "matthew, im sitting right behind you." it was from an unknown number. typically such a text from an unidentified number would warrant a spontaneous bathroom break to plot your escape. but being nam, i wasn't phased and turned around and invited this man to our table and we indulged in the oil laced pizza together. i soon realized it was my friends boyfriend. soon after, my friend, tracy, also joined us and im going into gross detail for a particular reason so stay patient. the lodge is situated along the kavango river and faces angola and so angolans often come to the lodge. so we were sitting there kicking back (nothing bad just fun) when tracy pointed out quite an astute observation: a bunch of people were standing along the balcony and have been like that for awhile. 

"do you know why theyre all standing up like that?" she asked. 

"uh no" 

"well, they're angolan" 

"oh?" 

"angolans are used to war, so they're used to standing." 

makes sense. 

quest for petrol. finding petrol (commonly known as gas) always results in quite the adventure. so one day after school when two fellow teachers came knocking at my door and asked me to join them on their quest i enthusiastically complied. (although lets be real, it was more like this "francolino get your shoes on, were searching for petrol") so we sat in the back of the truck cuddled on the mattress and drove around the village and up to the river. walked around for a bit. mingled with locals. then we abandoned the car and approached some out of place gates that stood along the river. i quickly realized that this was not a petrol station (and when i say station, picture a small shop with a guy and a funnel to pour gas into your car from his milk jug) but embraced the moment regardless. the 3 of us soon discovered that this gated area was a lodge just kilometers from our village. we explored the area, took videos of ourselves, then walked along the river although my friends wouldn't let me get too close to it cause they worried that if something happened to me that the US ambassador would intervene (sometimes i think that they are serious. therefore my reply is simple: kwato serious!)

lets talk about stereotypes. part of my mission is to break them down and replace them with objective fact. i planned an english lesson on stereotypes. what i didn't realize was that that one lesson would turn into a unit. while my learners couldn't define the term they were more than able to provide ample examples. (wow, that rhymed) let me share a few:

"americans are so rich that they burn their new cars after one year"

"there are no schools in america because white people already know everything"

but this is one of my favorite parts of my job--provide my learners with the ability to search for the truth on their own and not rely on reported opinions in magazines. thus our lesson turned into one based on bias, point of view, and critical thinking. and being able to decipher the truth is an all-powerful tool, though always easier said than done. and instead of merely just denying the stereotypes, its about acting. such as the one about men that was mentioned "men cannot cook, only women can." and this transcends the village. the teachers often come in to my house and check the pot on the stove. no, not to take a bite of our food. but rather to experience the inexplainable--that YES a man can cook….macaroni, that is! 

breaking down stereotypes is all about seeking to understand the person that you have a stereotype about. and thus i hope that throughout my experience i can help you break down the stereotypes that often plague africa but at the same time i hope that the intimate exposure to an american will do the same for namibians. for every namibian who drops their jaw to my cooking ability, there is a man who reveals that he is the cook for their family. and that brings me to GLOW (guys and girls leading our world).

this year i established the GLOW club at our school: Our mission is two-fold: empower and strengthen the leadership skills of the future leaders of Namibia while, at the same time, navigating within the context of gender equality. when i first arrived at school the shame issue seemed paramount. but having gotten to know these kids as well as i already have, i realize that they merely just crave an adult role model and true respect despite living in a culture which prides itself on seniority above anything else. thus when we first established the club, i was weary as to whether or not the kids would express themselves on the issues that plague them and their community and, more importantly, how to overcome them. and they've already exceeded my expectations. we have 20 dedicated members and they are some of the brightest teenagers i have ever met. and thats the most important thing to remember: they're teenagers. and teens all over the world can truly relate. the issues, the societal and peer pressures, can resonate with them all. i assigned essays about injustice and community problems to get a sense of the kids im teaching. and definitely, some things that they have seen or experienced surpass anything i can imagine. like watching a friend get beat to death, or losing both parents to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, or lacking the family support. but what shines more than these issues is the kids' resilience and strength--something i can also barley fathom.  

we were originally only supposed to meet once per week but the kids pleaded that they needed this outlet and just comfortable environment at least twice a week: i obliged. we have had discussions about shedding gender boxes and why societal expectations of gender can be damaging. we are now planning to host a social event at school and perform a drama to showcase what we have learned. and i urge you to acknowledge that the fight for gender equality is not just namibian, nor just african, but global. not only do we have gender discussions but our aim is also to tap the leadership potential of the GLOW meetings so we are in the process of planning a trip to the University of namibia. its quite telling that when i suggested we plan a trip the one that the learners were loudly enthusiastic about was the one to a college.

so as you may already know, our school does not have any computers for learner usage. but the desire to learn is more than evident. so with my GLOW club i set up times for the kids to use my macbook air. and david and i set up a blog so our kids can correspond. and my learners are often checking their hair each time we take a photo to impress those american boys and girls. so then when the other learners got wind of this news, well, it got a little crazy. so i also opened it up to my register class grade 8A. and now my 8A class has become the 8[global]A[mbassadors]. so we are setting up another blog for them to post messages and photos to educate americans about namibia…to which this idea also warranted a standing ovation. [stay tuned for these upcoming blogs by the way :)] 

living on school grounds at a hostel school where the majority of learners also reside affords me quite the unique opportunity as a teacher. ive never been a teacher in the states but id venture to say that the investment in learners' lives is difficult to compare when you essentially live together in a small rural village. its impossible to measure how invested i am in these kids lives, and the source is purely the potential and love that espouses from each of them (ok, most of them!) i admit im not the strictest teacher at our school, but thats strategic. behavior standards are kept an enormously high level. and so i decided instead to replace the word behavior in that sentence with academic. i might not have strict behavior expectations but one thing that has been clear is that my academic standards are higher than they've ever experienced. and the learners are responding accordingly. they just needed someone to believe in them. i think belief in ourselves and from others is something we always take for granted.  

 so last friday, it was ndiyona weekend for me and syd and so we watched "she's the man with about 40 kids in the library crowded around my small laptop screen" but they still loved it. speaking of, if you haven't already seen it, please do. [nice.--i think only you, syd will get this] what else happened this weekend? well, syd and i stumbled upon a bush part of my village where we laid under a tree to avoid the burning sun. we intended on staying for a few minutes. a few minutes turned into a few hours. and thankfully it did cause otherwise we wouldn't have met the old drunk lady or played mankala with beans (or whatever they were) and sand. and how could i forget? syd also got to ride a horse. named sydney. sunday morning we woke up to the sound of learners (one con of living on school grounds) but (and here comes the pro) they were clearing my grass…gotta love those hostel kids. and then later that afternoon, one of my learners delivered me fresh maize (pro) and then also later that day, an oven. yeah, im not sure either. 

well i suppose its time for me to sign off from this blog. one of the teachers (who only calls me frankie) is literally knocking at my window. (why knock at our door, when you can knock at my window?)

also before i go, one last thing: my dad and chris booked their flights to come visit ('bout nam time!) but so excited to share this experience with them and so thats one more push for you ALL to book that flight. 

peace and lovee

keep up with me

i looked legit. no, im not saying that im some american stud. (although ive never been one to decline a compliment) but for the first time in my life, i was about to stand on the other side of the teachers' desk. id get to decide what we'd learn and how we'd learn it, who would pass (and who wouldn't), and i was the one tasked with the daunting challenge: teaching learners and shaping their educational  quest--and as if the challenge weren't daunting enough, need i remind you that me and these learners share very little (aside from that unbreakable bond called the human race ;). our first language, life experiences, and cultural context would never see light of day in the center of a venn diagram. and yet, none of that matters anymore. slowly that middle area is being shaded in as my identity is molding to fit in the namibian context.

so i stood there, along with the other teachers at our school, in front of the learners outside on the "field" where we have our weekly assembly. this time to welcome the learners back to school on their first day. i had the look of a teacher. confident. inspired. prepared. unfazed. it was then that i realized our fascination with a teacher. a teacher was always prepared. and why shouldn't they be? they only work like 6 hours a day? oh how i longed as a child to be on the other side of the desk. no homework. end the work day at 2pm. grades don't matter. 

being on the other side offered me a glimpse into a teachers head as i espoused the confident scowl to the chit chatty learners. uncertainty.  anxious. excited. inspired. and about that short work day and lack of homework…well, perhaps teaching is perhaps the only job where you don't get even a moment off (sorry, barack even you get a breather here and there) 

so thats where the parallels with american teachers starts and ends. because whats perhaps unique is that as we prepared to send the learners off to their classrooms on that ever-memorable first day, the following questions had yet to be answered: what subjects am i teaching? which grades? how many kids are in each class? which classroom will i teach in? but in nam, these (seemingly futile) questions will be answered…in time. so in the meantime, ya just go with it. and thats exactly what i did.  

so fastforward (an hour) and i became a register teacher for grade 8A, the grade 8 math teacher (4 classes in all) and grade 9 english teacher (another 2 classes). so what is a class teacher you might be asking in your head? a register class  is synonymous with homeroom--and though peace corps advises against us from taking on this responsibility, i decided that the extra work was worth the inevitable rewards. i came to nam as an education volunteer with one central focus: to educate and grow young minds through active mentorship and trust based on love and not fear. having my own register class to be responsible for could only accelerate that goal. plus, how else could i remake the arrogance of DRtothePR if not a register class of my own? since in nam the school day never goes precisely as planned, its just best to…well, go with it. and always be prepared. so homeroom lasted a bit longer than the allotted 15 minutes….it lasted 3 days. so what did we do for 3 full school days? well i wont fill your screen with too many details but heres a glimpse…

in the spirit of enhancing self-esteem and leaner ownership of their classroom and their education, i had each learner trace their hand (took a few demonstrations for them to get the hang of that) and inside each finger they wrote someone they admired (some already admired me…clearly trying to get on my good side…yes, it worked), goals for their future, their favorite singer, and adjectives to describe themselves. heres how one learner describes himself "i have a tung and 5 fingers on my left hand" (difficult to argue with that) and one girl proudly announced "i am short and fat" so together we hung the hands around the classroom. and the classroom (slowly) transformed from one with walls falling apart with one that evidently had bright young minds encompassing it. 

as i finally got to meet with my other classes (200 learners in all) they each traced their hands and filled in the fingers. ok so i wont go into each lesson for each day (though i know you're craving the fine details.) but heres what i do want you to know: each friday, i have my english classes write a creative essay on a prompt that I provide. it serves 2 purposes. the learners get to improve their biggest weakness: writing. and i get to literally chuckle (al right ill be honest its a more like my laugh during the 'hey mmmmm hey' she's the man scene) so i was scrolling through them trying to decipher their handwriting all while listing to one of 2 mixes syd made for me. so the first assignment was to write their autobiography. i wanted to learn about my learners. ya know, like their dog's name, their favorite color, and who their friends are. what i didn't realize was that these learners shared more personal and truly sad details about their life than i could have imagined. many have already lost a parent. some to AIDS and others because of lack of proper medical care. others dwelled on their impoverished life style seeking to escape. and then one girl wrote,"God put us on earth to play a game. thats all life really is. so we can only play the game were born into" truly brilliant. it was then that i needed a moment of comic relief (something that only roseanne barr--who by the way announced her candidacy for president of the united states and soon after i offered her my endoresement--could provide at the moment)  but then i read one girl's essay "i was 3 years when my grandfather kicked the bucket and when i was little i was always in hot soup when i didn't help my mother with the chores." gotta love those idiomatic phrases. 

my goal for my learners (other than the obvious) is to create an atmosphere where they feel willing and comfortable to express themselves, and to enrich themselves, grow and continue to learn. half of the 540 kids at are school live full time on the school grounds. the majority are OVCs (orphans and vulnerable children due to the HIV/AIDS epidemic and/or to economic hardship) and thus they are just craving that support that, in turn, will yield the best educational results. sometimes its not what you do but its what you don't do that makes a difference. when a kid asks a question, it means not turning our head and shrugging. when a learner doesn't understand a topic, it means not degrading their apparent lack of intellect. it means when a learner requires help, not turning a blind eye. it means when it comes to teaching, not viewing it as a job that ends at the ring of a bell. and thats why the line from an essay the learns wrote about a wish they had truly struck me. "i want to be a teacher like mr. francolino. he doesn't get angry or yell like the other teachers. he just teaches like i will in the future (spelled feature)" 

so remember when i talked about how in nam, ya just need to learn to go with it. (also if you don't remember, then perhaps there are other problems that we should be discussing instead) so let me explain another one of those "go with it" moments. in nam, one of the most hyped events is "athletics" which takes place during the first 2 months of school (?). i was excited to learn what exactly went on during this ambiguously titled month long list of activities. so one afternoon, i walked to my friends--some teachers at the school--and i just nonchalantly asked "hey so what exactly is athletics?" some shrugged. others nodded. and the most descriptive answers i got were essentially telling me that the kids "run." so thats when i decided to ask the teacher who is running the month long event. "the kids run and jump" so that was at least some more detailed information. i could be down for this. and despite not really knowing what was meant by athletics, this i knew for sure--team red (my team) would for sure have the most pride. step one: we wear red every day. 

so heres the deal: schools basically revolve around these track and field events for these 2 months and so in the afternoon, kids "train" (which means they are weeded out), classes are spontaneously canceled to increase the amount of training (weeding) and that brings us to this weekend. our school will be competing in the regional finals in the track and field items. im judging. should be interesting. 

speaking of my fellow colleagues (i like using that word--it makes me feel mature and smart) lets give them a little time on the blog. so as you know, i now live on the school premises--which is in itself its own community. 220 learners live here. as do 12 of the teachers. so i finally just got a housemate and his name is joseph. he also just graduated from college and he's become the perfect roommate. on his first night i made him rice and we watched 'how to lose a guy in 10 days'--couldnt think of a better way to orient our new teacher. i took the newcomer around our village and it was then that i realized---"woah, this is my home..and it feels as such" waving to locals, taking him to the shop, and then for a drink--it made me appreciate the home that ive come to have. 

on his second night, syd and i along with a few other teachers took joseph to a local bar and we were, of course, flanked by kiara. no thats not a local woman who is courting me (although i can see why you would think that)--thats my puppy. and now that i mention being flanked by kiara--i ought to let you know that my puppy has become a staple of our community--she follows me to school, to staff meetings and routinely interrupts our class, luckily the kids love her and…more importantly, people here respect her and never beat her, they know how much i love her. 

alright so back to my social life in the village. my one best friend--ms muyenga--had me over one night for dinner and a movie (hmmm now that i mention it….) and we watched a movie called "ousofia in london" about a nigerian man who finds himself in london and his culture shock is quite amusing. thats when she decided she wanted to film a movie called "matt in ndiyona" and we all know my desire to be in a feature film..so we'll see how this works out. but life in our community is so open. so serene. perfect. (i have a photo of a rainbow over our school that will prove the latter point) teachers just come to my house to hang out. people constantly visiting others. my favorite is when kids come to my door. i invite them in. they dont speak english. i don't speak rumanyo. then we watch full house together. kind of a  pattern. and of course, i still visit my homestead family as they always venture over to my place. i feel like im their son who has grown up. and then i blush. 

*****this subsection will be creatively and appropriately titled: bugs. (thats the best i could do for a transition…oops) so i came to nam being like "alright im not gonna be one of those ignorant americans who automatically pictures the creepiest and squishiest bugs possible when i think about africa." i arrived in nam and my convictions were cemented. then i went to my village. heres a brief description of what ive encountered in the past week: walking into my house requires the same routine: cockroach squashing--literally hundreds of cockroaches have invaded so i spend each morning and night putting those little beasts permanently to bed.  there are enough mosquitos in the room to get 219 mosquito bites in one night and of course i don't have the discipline to not scratch them--so the teachers always rub my sore wounds in curiosity, awe, and disappointment (always accompanied by a slight chuckle though as well). fleas attacked my puppy--thankfully the girl's a trooper. a one of kind breed of wasps (that makes them sound pretty cool) that sting any time you walk by them (my sting count is up to 4--including the top of my head) an insect that was literally 4.5 inches long on my shoulder (a photo will soon follow). oh and did i mention that i swallowed a fly. and that a cockroach came crawling out of my ear. sorry mama, i should have advised you to skip this section :)

so lets discuss life when im not busy changing the world (im conceded…shhhhh…i hope that sarcasm can translate well on the screen.)  last weekend--ludacrew (well most of us) had a much needed reunion. i mean, cmon, we hadn't all been together in a few weeks. syd came down to my village and even got to see me teach a few lessons (you can ask her for preliminary reviews unless they're already up on rate my professor) and we made mac and cheese for some teachers, ended the night with cut the rope (i promise thats a game) and then headed to our reunion the next afternoon. so this time the crew headed to tsumeb…aka the las vegas of nam. well thats mostly attributed to the fact the vegas lives there. so the reunion was necessary--laine (did i mention how much i love laine? she's amazing and perfect in every way…thats for you girl ;), vegas and i got to sing our adele-esque version of 'someone like you', chris and i concocted our plan to get our shot at reality TV on the amazing race, syd got to catch up with me on episodes of survivor and that was when we fell in love…with kim and ethan, respectively, then, per usual, we debated productivity vs. fairness, and then learned (pay close attention to these words of wisdom) that if you cook bread for too long, it can burn..and turn black. 

many times traveling around nam can be more eventful than the actual trip itself thanks to the need of hitchhiking. this trip back home was a little more low-key. but we did do one thing worth mentioning. syd and i played around the world on the side of the road as we waited for a hike. typicaly the game is played with a basketball and a net. our version required an empty yogurt container and some stones. still just as fun. then as we reached rundu, we said another emo goodbye. till next weekend, of course. 

i could go on. but its my turn to make dinner for the roommate. mac and cheese. again. but i wouldn't do my post justice if i didn't mention the sixers (who just beat the lakers i might add) and their dominance thus far. kinda reminds me of rick santorum. this time i wont even risk you not getting the sarcasm. that was sarcastic. 

peace and much love