Learning, Loving, Having fun. :)

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Well, it's been a few days since I've blogged and I have so much to say in so little time. lol...The internet/technology here isn't at all like it is in America- quick DSL connections don't exist, but we're making the best of it. 😊

Ok, first things first. Two nights ago, we went to a play, "Moj and the Antarctic"...it was amazing. It was a one woman show about a woman's difficulty with slavery, sexuality and other various historically "taboo" topics. It was very blunt and potent...and I enjoyed every minute of it. It showed racism from a different point of view and it actually felt good to be in the hot seat. I was sitting next to Bose (OU student that is a native Batswana) and at one point she leaned in and said, "Do these racial comments make you uncomfortable?" I said, "No...because there is truth in them and everyone needs to learn how things are viewed." I'm not sure how else to put the experience into words, so I'll go no further. I guess the poem at the end was "Why Bother?" which for some reason got ppl in an laughter uproar. 😊 lol I didn't get it but maybe I wasn't supposed to.

My setswana is coming along nicely. We've had a lot of time to socialize with Bose's friends and other people from the area. I've learned some nice things and some not so nice things. 😉 lol...No better way to learn a language than to practice what shouldn't be said. There's a lot to be said about communication.

Yesterday was beautiful. We got up early and went to a traditional Botswana village...the name I can't remember now, but- it was beautiful. It seemed to be a hidden gem in the middle of and African savanah...we drove up a wickedly winded and trenched road, and then walked a little way through bushes and brush. To be candid, as soon as I got off the bus and started walking, tears began to well up. I'm not sure if I felt kind of a connection or what it was...but it was an involuntary emotional catharsis. Everyone was beautiful and welcoming and I think from the first "Dumela Mma" it actually hit me that I was in Africa. Completely out of everything I had ever known or imagined...developing a deeper connection with the people and the earth, separation from the comfortable American life, yet at the same time, love...I felt something in my core. For this past week, I had been waiting for it to hit me...waiting for my soul to shake and for me to finally get it. I had written in my journal that I was craving more...and that I knew it would come at some point, but I didn't expect it to be then and there- in the middle of the group, exposed and vulnerable. I'm just glad I was wearing sunglasses. 😉

At the village, we got to have a dinner prepared by the women that owned/lived there and then we got to do some other fun things like grind some type of seeds. see how a Batswana wedding was performed and then see how dancing and singing were part of the celebration, life, love and knowledge. The food is delicious...omg. 😉

On a cultural note: are Americans deprived of this richness? These rituals are typical for all Batswana...I'm trying to find the equivalent.

AFTER the village, we came back, took a rest and went to a welcome home party that Bose's friends were throwing for her. AGAIN- Awesome food, people, chats, dancing, and being cozy around a bon fire. Even Dr.Pillay was there and let his hair down a bit. 😊 It's interesting how the dynamic has shifted between our friends and how we are getting to know one another on differernt levels.

Dr. Pillay bought a ridiculous hat today...he looks like crocodile dundee...pictures to come...lol

OH OH OH!! Today at the market, I ran into some Ajuma!!!! 😊 So I started speaking in Korean to them and it really made my day. 😊 More on that if you want to know. 😊

With Love,
Sarah

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Comments

[Alicia]

ajjumas in Botswana!
It's so funny you ran into an ajjuma in Botswana of all places. I really think America is devoid of any true cultural richness. We have certain things that are "ours" and there's a lot of different cultures in the States but, to me, it seems like the culture that people bring with them is very muted. And what do we "white Americans" have... Christmas? haha