Laughing after a good days work!

Laughing after a good days work!
Originally uploaded by Carrie May.

Sulaiti, my counter part, and I.

My Audience

Who’s reading this thing anyway? The reality is that you never really know. It’s the nature of internet. My words and photos are open to any and all to see and interpret.

I do, however, know of my target audience. Or, at least know of those who tell me they read it. They include: family and friends in Michigan and Alaska, former Supervisors and colleagues in Alaska and Michigan, my current Supervisor and colleagues at Emesco, Peace Corps Uganda staff, fellow Volunteers and the random person who curiously stumbles upon my blog.

Because of the diversity with in my target audience, I try to tailor my posts to the ‘G’ rated version. I have written a few letters and e-mails. Those lucky souls get the PG – PG13 version of events. And my personal journal is the only place that borders on the R rating. Sorry…. Or some of you may be thanking me!

I know as time goes on, I will either become more adventurous in my topics or my daily life will become so common place that I will run out of things to write about. Who knows! For your sake….Let’s hope for more adventurous topics.

Catching up, funny moments and amazing care packages!

1-22-07

Catching up…

Forgot to mention the past holiday was the easiest I’ve had in years. I think my most difficult was my first holiday in Homer, Alaska. I was new in town – didn’t know many people yet. And, I was still getting used to being alone and living with out running water. My past holiday here was a breeze. Mainly because it didn’t feel like Christmas. A steedy 82 degrees outside had alot to do with it. To summarize: attended an end of year party with Emesco staff, partners and community leaders, attended the Christmas day mass in Runyooro, Christmas night dinner and drinks with new friends, enjoyed a visit and company of a fellow PC Volunteer over New Year’s weekend, ate goat on a stick and danced in the New Year doing ‘calypso’ under African skies!

So, I bought some DVD’s in Kampala, the capital city, over the past weekend. There are no copy write or anti-piracy laws here – so, you can find knock off DVD’s for cheap. (about $6 each!) It’s pretty weird to watch them, especially for longer periods of time. I totally forget that I’m in Uganda and the drastic cultural differences between America and Uganda. I have yet to decide if watching them is good thing for me…. I feel pretty disoriented after zoning out to ‘Sex and the City’ for a good hour only to be slapped with culture shock once I closed the computer screen. It’s like a drug. Get the quick ‘American’ fix and come down off it with all the withdrawal symptoms! Is it worth it?

There are no chickens in the whole District. They are finished. Or, so I have been told. I got pretty used to eating my daily chips and chicken – only to one day find out there are no more. How can that be? Did I single handedly eat all the chickens in the 30 mile radius? Or, did I eat them too quickly – so, they were unable to produce off spring and now they are extinct? Needless to say, I still have a lot to learn about agricultural and economic development. Now a days I eat chips and pork. There are plenty of fat pigs and little piglets running around town. When I see one cross the road in front of me on my bike, it just makes me laugh. Not sure why? Maybe it’s the tail; maybe it’s the fact that it’s just so ‘normal’ here and yet seems so random.

Stamps are finished as well. Went to the post office yesterday to mail off and over due letter to a long time friend in Michigan, only to find out – there are no stamps. From my days in bush Alaska, I know how important and influential workers at the post office are. An incredible amount of trust is put in their hands. And, in a small town – they can be a link to the outside world. I made sure to befriend our local post lady. Maybe there will be stamps tomorrow.


1-17-06

A word about care packages ~

All I can say is amazing! I mean really AMAZING! I can not believe the extent and thought people have put into these packages to send to me. I have received several in the last couple weeks. Each and every one of them makes me smile.


1-5-06

Funny moments

So, the children in town have figured out where I work and exactly were I sit in the office. Those that collect water at the town bore hole see me as they walk down the hill to town. These kinds, age 5 and up, carry big jerry cans of water on their heads. When they spot me seated at my desk, they spot and stare. Some wave and giggle.

Today, one boy really wanted to get my attention…he took the jerry can off his head and proceeded to do a dance in the middle of the road! I waved, laughed and they continued on down the road. Made me smile.

Irregular entries with Mefloquine

So, I know I don’t have as many regular entries on this blog as the traditional blogger. For those who are regulars, please forgive me. You will find that there are regular updates on the photos though….. This is because it is much easier to just take a photo, load it and let the image tell the story.

This is how my mind works – you see. There is plenty of ‘time’ for reflection and composition of a blog entry. But, for many reasons it’s like pulling teeth to sit down and do it. Many factors contribute to this: electricity is only available when the generator is on, I lack the discipline, sometimes difficult to convey topics in the ‘G’ rated version – as this blog is open to anyone and everyone to read, and I suspect my malaria prophylaxis (Mefloquine) has contributed many times in my inability to concentrate.

I am now switching to Doxycycline and hopeful that the side effects of these meds will not be too disturbing. Malaria is very prevalent in this area, so much so that if someone has a fever they automatically treat for Malaria. When talking with people who mention they are not feeling well…. They refer to malaria as Americans would like the common cold. It is common for some one to have malaria at least twice a year. It seems to correlate with the end of the rainy seasons. Believe it or not, malaria kills more people (300 a day in Uganda) each year than HIV/Aids.

Needless to say, malaria is nothing to mess around with. So, I take my prophylaxis and sleep under the mosquito net religiously. The prophylaxis we take will not prevent us from getting malaria. It does however build up a sort of resistance, lessens the effects and prolongs the window period if we do happen to come down with the red blood cell bursting parasite.

Visiting the villages

My favorite part of my work so far is doing field work – which means biking to surrounding villages, observing, talking, listening and seeing some beautiful people and places.

There are about ten villages with in biking distance from Karuguuza that I will focus on initially. I have been to six so far. My visits usually follow the same format:
I ride on ahead of my counterpart, Sulaiti, who eventually rides ahead of me on the motorcycle to the targeted village. Some are on the main dirt road. Others follow a one track foot path through high vegetation up and down many rolling hills.

Upon arriving, I’m a bit winded but all smiles as everyone is most eager to meet the Muzungu (white person). They are always most welcoming and surprised that I arrived to their village via the mountain bike. Some even harass my counterpart as to why he did not carry me in the back of his motorcycle, like a true gentleman. And, we are both quick to explain that Peace Corps does not allow Volunteers to drive or even ride on the back of motorcycles. I also tell them I enjoy the exercise and this seems to establish some form of sincerity in their village. The Cannon/Reverend from Ibambura I think put it best: “If the government and people of the United States can send this young women all the way to Uganda then move to Karuguuza for two years only to then ride her bicycle up these hills to our village to talk to us about HIV/Aids ….. why can’t we take this disease seriously and stop the spread of HIV by sharing her message with all those are not here. Next time she comes, the whole village should be here.”

What the people I meet don’t know is that it is me who is truly humbled and eternally grateful for the opportunity to even be in their village, let alone grow to know residents and life in their village. This is truly a once in a life time experience. I feel very fortunate to work with Emesco Development Foundation and be placed with my Counterpart, Sulaiti.

This man really loves his job and is amazing at it. When we arrive in these villages, I can instantly tell he is well respected. Sulaiti can sit and make small talk (or at least I think its small talk in Runyooro) and keep people engaged for hours on end. We often wait, on average, an hour upon arriving for people to show up for the meeting. Sulaiti outlines the objectives for the meeting (familiarization tour and HIV/Aids needs assessment), invites people to introduce themselves and I in turn introduce myself. I usually take this opportunity to share a few details about my self with them. Things like: not married, no kids, age 28, studied horticulture, one sister and brother, worked in AK for 5 years, born in Michigan, been in Uganda for over 2 months now, will stay for 2 years - seems to break the ice and gain some trust.

Even though some people have good English skills, Sulaiti does all my translation – as my Runyooro is still limited. And, once again – he’s amazing at it. When he speaks….the only thing I can compare him to – ah, a motivational speaker. He’s animated, powerful, direct and can make people laugh. He also has a remarkable way of addressing an issue in a straight forward and simple manner while still allowing people to feel empowered to make change.

Needs Assesments & Sustainability

The experience of having a group discussion through translation is something I did not expect to enjoy. It’s like a dance really, a maneuvering of the languages across the dance floor from person to person. My questions usually begin with:
Can you tell me about how HIV/Aids has affected your community? This usually sets the tone and serves as a guide for my following questions.

Can you tell me how HIV is spread and how it is prevented?
Can you tell me about the ABC model President Museveni started? (Abstinence, Be faithful and Condoms)
What population is most at risk for HIV in your community?
Where do people get condoms in your community, and do you know how to use them?
Do your children know about HIV?
What is the best way to reach youth with HIV sensitization messages?
What can be done for people who already living with HIV in your community?
What is your role as community leaders in the prevention and care of those affected by HIV/Aids in your village?

These are my stock questions. The discussions, sometimes lasting 3 hours, take on many directions with in community health. These related topics include: family planning, access to safe water, bed nets for malaria prevention and additional training for Community Health Workers in voluntary testing and counseling.

These Community Health Workers (CHW’s) are truly grass roots and the link to program sustainability. They are not paid for their time and only charge minimal fees to restock their medical supply kit. Their home becomes a form of clinic in the village to treat common aliments such as, malaria, anemia, worms, headache, cuts, burns, diarrhea, eye infection, skin infections, ect..

Their medical kits were supplied by Emesco who also provided a several week course in Community Health for each of the CHW’s. To date, there are 45 CHW’s. Each one was chosen by their own village which also has a Village Health Committee. It is hard to imagine that before Emesco came along, there was absolutely nothing – or structure for addressing community health in these 45 villages. Training CHW’s and empowering villages to form Village Health Committees is definitely the sustainable way to go. I am learning so much in the way of sustainable approaches in rural development.

Empowerment and Sustainability

Sustainability was definitely a ‘buzz’ word in the States or in any circle of people doing community development. But, I have to say…. Here in Africa, it takes on a whole new meaning. From my experience in America, people focus on organizational sustainability in the way of diversifying their funding sources. Such as, federal, state and foundation grants, individual donors, in-kind donations and tangible revenue generation. Here, issues of sustainability take on a much more program development focus. Such as our mosquito bed net revolving fund.

There are NGO’s all over Africa giving out bed nets for free in an effort to prevent the spread of malaria. Very noble, but not in any way sustainable or empowering. The mosquito bed net revolving fund at Emesco works like this: 500 bed nets are purchased via grant funding. They serve as the ‘seeds’. Ten nets are distributed to each CHW who then distributes the bed nets to individuals in their village who will make payments until the total cost is paid in full. At that time, the CHW purchases another, distributes and collects payments. This cycle continues on and on. A sort of lay away plan, but you get to use it while paying on it. It also empowers people to actually use the net, because they are paying for it. All too often, a rural poor family is given a mosquito bed net by some well meaning NGO free of charge. The family feels good, the NGO feel good. However, many do not end up getting used. They can be hot and sometimes arranging a place to hang it is a problem. Another problem arises when all the nets are passed out, that’s it – there is no more. You are left in search for additional grant funding. But, with the revolving fund, seed money is only needed. The system is sustainable.