Halfway through training!

Just survived a long stretch in village! Back at the Peace Corps
training center for two more nights before heading off for a week long
visit at my permanent site… Just had our site announcements yesterday!
Feel like I won the lottery but more on that later. So where to begin.
Just overall I can say this second time in village was infinitely
easier than the first. Still a challenge no doubt but getting easier.
I’ve been opening up more with my host family. Helps that I’m getting
a little better with the language. The trainees and I still spend most
days in language class. Had a few field trips to break things up. One
was to a malnutrition center in Bamako. Saw some seriously
malnourished children. Felt a little strange walking around the center
just looking at people. There were probably eight beds, each occupied
by a young malnourished child/mostly babies and a mom, with the
exception of one child who was being cared for by the center because
his mother passed away. There were a couple of other rooms as well,
where more patients are diagnosed and treated. Depending on the
severity of their condition, some children are given these little
packs of what I think is just concentrated peanut butter. Saw both
types of malnutrition - one is protein deficiency that leads to the
distended belly and swollen hands/feet. The child has enough to eat in
this case, but the diet isn’t well balanced. I can understand this
completely based off of what I eat in our village! Then there were
children with the other type of malnutrition, which is just basically
hunger. They’re not getting enough protein or energy foods and this
makes them look like skin and bones. It was a difficult field trip to
say the least…. But on a better note, over 90% of cases the hospital
treats the child survives.
Another day we visited a clinic that serves people living with
HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). There are over 700 people that have utilized their
services but the clinic has only two doctors: one doctor and one
pharmacist. They have some connection with the Global Fund I think so
that all the medicines that are disbursed are free. The problem is
encouraging people to continue to come to the center and take the
medications on a regular basis. It’s not always easy for people to
leave their villages and travel, especially during the rainy season
where most people spend all day in the fields. There’s also a pretty
intense stigma attached to those living with HIV/AIDS, which will keep
people from coming to the clinic out of fear of having their positive
status revealed. Just like I learned in Ghana, women in Mali are
especially vulnerable to HIV/AIDS because of their sometimes
precarious economic situation (dependence) and the high rate of
polygamy. This same day we also went to another town to meet the
members of an association of PLWHA. They were an incredibly upbeat,
funny bunch. They have some income generating activities they pursue
and also go to the market together and sometimes cook so that they’ll
have more nutritious meals. I would LOVE to do more work with
HIV/AIDS. Really there are a lot more pressing health concerns here in
Mali though. The HIV/AIDS prevalence is fairly low (though this may
just mean people aren’t getting tested). Basic sanitation (washing
hands with soap), malnutrition, malaria, and maternal health seem to
be a much larger focus of health volunteers here.
We went to a local radio station where a couple trainees went on air
to broadcast in Bambara about both diarrhea and the importance of
pre-natal consultations. Radio might be a good resource for us at out
site because we can reach a lot of people. It could be especially nice
in these first months when we’re still learning the language because
we can write out exactly what we want to say.
For another field trip, we went to the Community Health Center
(CSCOM) near our village to paint a mural. The topic was the
importance of washing your hands. We did three scenes. One was the
importance of washing hands before cooking, the second was before
eating, and the third was after using the negen (the hole in the
ground bathroom we use). Not a lot of words so hopefully the message
will make sense to those who are illiterate.
We also went to visit another village that’s currently hosting
environment Peace Corps trainees. We were doing a “tech-exchange”
where they taught us gardening techniques and we health trainees were
giving them information about the status nutrition in Mali.
Outside of the field trips, life in village is pretty monotonous with
language all day everyday. Still only get one free day a week, every
Sunday. One Sunday, some other trainees and I did out best to escape
the hoards of children that follow our every move to lay out on our
woven mats under a tree. It’s so nice and necessary to get away from
Bambara even for a bit. Every Monday we go to a nearby village to
their market (it’s market day once a week). It’s a short half hour
bike ride and our only exposure to fruits and vegetables. The 7 other
trainees in my training village and I cook an American style meal with
our language tutors every Monday night. This past Monday we managed to
make couscous with vegetables, cucumber salad, and plantains. Not easy
to cook without electricity. We use these propane tanks that have a
little flame on top where we can rest a pan.
We also got to go to a wedding! A wedding in our village consists of
a bunch of people (probably 50) gathered together in their nicest
clothes in the bride’s compound. The women dance, often in a circle to
the sound of two drums. The bride is hidden in one of the huts, her
hands and feet decorated from henna (or jabi in Bambara) from the
night before. The men, burst into the compound on motos and come to
negotiate the bride price. And yes, they even bargain though there is
a fairly traditional price based off of whether or not the bride has
been married before. This particular couple was a girl about 20 and
this guy in his 40s. She had already had his baby, pretty sure she
isn’t the first wife. After the bride price has been agreed upon, the
men go into the house where the bride waits and carries her out. She
was driven to the husband’s compound (on the other side of the
village) where she’ll need to fetch water for her husband and his
friends for the next week. Not really so sure what’s so special about
this week because it’s a woman’s job to fetch water for her husband
anyways. Then, at night, there’s a huge dance party. The village
breaks out a generator so that there can be a light. And then lots of
dancing and xylophone music.
Think I’ve figured out my host family’s daily routine. Still think
women work so hard here. They are always the first up in the morning
(at least by 6) and the last to go to bed. They fetch water from the
pump (a 5-10 min walk from my compound). They sweep. They cook all
three meals and still spend most of the day in the fields harvesting
shea nuts, peanuts, millet or rice mostly. They are always pounding
rice or millet. Sometimes my host mom will go into the village’s
community garden. Gardening is strictly women’s work. She took me with
her once and it felt like this beautiful oasis with all the green and
growth. They grown cucumbers, hot peppers, pumpkin, and maybe
tomatoes. Some other things I’m sure, hard to tell with the language
barrier. Never seen any of my family members eating vegetables with
their meals, but apparently they will crush up different leaves or
onions or other vegetables in the sauce they pour over rice or some
other heavy carb. Women also bathe and do all other activities related
to caring for the children. And this work starts young. I watch my
little host sisters, ten and younger, walking around with babies on
their backs, going out to the fields, and helping out with chores.
Pretty sure my little host sisters are WAY more mature than I am. My
16 yr. old host sister with the child acts like she’s at least 30.
They still ask why I’m not married. I think my language is good enough
that I was able to say that I can’t have a child because I am a child.
They just laugh, they are ALWAYS laughing at me.
Still not so sure what the men do. Granted my perspective is a little
skewed because I have no host father. Seems like the men spend a lot
of time sitting around the boutigis and chatting (boutigis are little
shops in village that sell little crackers, oil, sugar, matches, and a
few other things). Only men sell things in the boutigis. I know men
are also responsible for slaughtering the animals. See them on the
back of donkey carts a lot. They go to the fields as well but tend to
harvest different things. I was told harvesting millet was a man’s
job, but I know my host moms come back from the fields with millet.
Maybe women who lose their husbands take on some of the male’s
responsibilities as well? Really need to learn more about the men in
our village.
Alright, think that’s all for tonight. Still need to write about my
site placement! Leaving on Wednesday for a week at my new site. Then
back to the training center for a few days before another ten days in
our training village. Made it halfway through training! Oh and I
absolutely have to thank everyone for the packages and letters! Really
feeling loved. Molly you were my first letter, you have no idea how
much that meant. I miss my Ghana girls like crazy! Thinking of you all
often. And to my amazing family THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! Grandpa, the
hot sticks are SO appreciated. Mom, Larry and dad - my stomach thanks
you too!!! Been sick a few times actually so the American food really
helps. And last but not least, I have the best boyfriend in the world.
No question. Thank you for the most meaningful, thoughtful birthday
present I have ever received. I love you all!!!!! Will write soon all
about my permanent site.