Swear-in

We came back to camp early Sunday morning after our last ten days at homestay and an overwhelmingly emotional “final farewell.” It is very taboo for Malians to cry in public, so I was caught off guard when all the women in my family were practically wailing. In what I think was a defense mechanism on my part, I felt nothing and just wanted to get out of that village and on to my site. The last ten days at home stay were definitely the roughest. I had come back on a high from site visit, my language skills had really improved and I felt so integrated that I went practically unnoticed as a Toubab! Well, not really at all, but I was definitely more comfortable with my village, greetings in the local language, and even the food! My digestive system now feels like a tank, ready to take on anything Africa can throw at me, due also in part to the probiotics a little angel sent me in a care package (hi mom!), but I digress.

I would like to take a little time to talk about my host sister, Mama, because I feel that without knowing her, you won’t know anything about me in Africa and the strange personality that I have taken on as this “Alima” character. Mama is a sixteen year old who acts like she is the boss of her village. While at first it was endearing and kind of awesome because she acted as my body guard, she had become increasingly persistent and copped some sort of attitude with me every moment we were together. However, it was in those interactions when she bossed me around, that I developed the greatest cross-cultural asset, “sass.” I guess acting like a puppet by making me dance for other Malians at the market, or eating t’oh over and over again has its advantages. I can confidently say I am ready to take on any kind of crazy, rude, invasive Malian that’s thrown my way because I’m pretty sure I’ve dealt with one of the worst. Not to say that she’s bad, but she’s definitely… sassy. Mama may be the source of most of my frustration with Africa, but she was also my greatest learning tool.

On our last day at home stay, our village had a little party for us. Since it is Ramadan, dancing or partying of any kind is not encouraged, but our 101 year old village chief said “screw it” (loose translation from Bambara) and had a dance party for us anyway. We all gathered in his concession, greeted and thanked and blessed one another in much the same way as the first day we arrived. When I think back to that first day, driving into our village, trash covering the streets, nyegen pools overflowing, hundreds of children with unfamiliar faces, covered in flies, I was petrified. Little did I know that after two short months I wouldn’t notice the trash anymore, I’d be comfortable walking through the streets and the market, and not only know all the children, but like them too! I was sitting next to my host mother, Kyatu, and her little baby boy and had my three favorite gals, Batama, Awa, and Ara standing behind me, listening intently to the village chief and our language facilitators exchange blessings. Batama (my African C.C.) had her hands on my shoulders and would occasionally pick a little pimple off my back. I’d turn around and look at Awa, her big beautiful smile beaming at me and laughing like she would never be able to stop. Sitting there with them was another one of those reflective moments. These past months have been a part of the toughest thing I’ve ever done in my life and it definitely sucked at times, but this moment and the way I feel know in Africa has made it all worth it.

I’ve grown not only to like Malians and feel comfortable with them, but I am also growing closer to our group of 66 volunteers. It’s taken a while to get to know them all individually because there are so many, but I can definitely feel some long lasting friendships forming already. Everyone is really respectful and supportive of each other, and we haven’t had anyone “early terminate” yet, which is apparently a huge accomplishment for Peace Corps Mali. Groups from previous years had lost a significant amount of their members by this time in their stages, so we’re all pretty proud of how “die hard” our group is, especially since Mali is a hardship country and the 3rd poorest in the world.

We officially swore in as Peace Corps volunteers on Thursday (I’ve posted new pics of the ceremony and the after party!) I’m now in Segou, and I leave for my village on Tuesday. I’ll be there for the next three months, working on my language, getting to know people in my community and trying to figure out projects I want to work on. Today, I am excited and ready to get to my site. I’m ready for the change of pace and finally getting control over my daily schedule. Training was definitely starting to wear on all of us but the structure and preparation of it all has truly impressed me. Peace Corps is much more organized than I had anticipated and I feel totally taken care of.