Day-to-Day Life

It’s very easy to fall behind on writing. When I catch up it’s tempting to recall each event and record them one by one. This glazes over the daily events with define most of my time. If I want this blog to describe my life to others and to serve as a record to myself, it needs to describe the everyday realities which are easy to take for granted.

I remember earlier, the most difficult times were when I took a break from reality and then was abruptly forced back in. Particularly in the first week, I would watch a show or read and completely forget my surroundings. Being jolted back could be quite cruel; it made me want to crawl inside a shelter. I find that sensation is gone now. I have adapted to my surroundings and no longer feel the shock. In fact, while watching ‘Blood Diamond’, I stepped outside and felt comforted that I was indeed in Africa.

I spend most days doing manual labor and some time with school groups that come through. For a more thorough description, I’ll take an excerpt from my mid-way report:

In the past 4 weeks at Mokolodi, the following activities have been undertaken:
- Development and implementation of team-building activities for middle school aged children
- Aiding in the day-to-day running of programs for student visitors to the Education Center (EC)
- Traveling to local schools for Outreach about Waste Management
- Examination of grey-water system functioning and possible revitalization.
- Construction of a watering hole to allow for game viewing. This includes digging out, tree and rock removal, addition of sand and complete cementing of the hole
- Sanding and re-finishing of observation deck overlooking the watering hole
- Construction of a concrete ramp to ensure the EC is physically accessible to a greater range of visitors
- Chemical treatment of living quarters to prevent the movement of termites
- Creation of material for the quarterly newsletter, including information about typical grey-water systems and documentation of improvements made to the EC

I travel into the city every weekend to see my friends. This is not a great habit as I think it limits my integration at the park. As one Peace Corps volunteer put it, I am here for a short enough time that it is alright. But over time I would realize you can’t survive weekend to weekend, your life is where you work and the culture of the people around you.

Part of me wishes I hadn’t brought a laptop. I don’t read very much and it is easy to pass the time watching movies. All this description probably makes me seem introverted. I’m very friendly around the park and know many people, I just hide in the evenings.

I had read that people have different reactions to new cultures. People cope with loneliness and isolation in different ways. I had read people consume more alcohol as compensation. I fall victim to this. Almost every night I have 2 drinks. Not a lot but I have them quickly. It is to settle a bit, become complacent with the evening and happier to lie in bed.

I doubt there will be much night life left. This is besides that fact I’d rather travel, paddle or hike. (You can paddle here, have I not written about it yet?). It is that just over a week ago my friend was sexually assaulted at a night club. She has gone home for that and other reasons. I could write at length about what has occurred, but I prefer to respect her privacy.