Muli Bwanji!!

Well, after a long three days of travel, Me and my fellow Zambian SALTers- Malinda, Chrissy and Tiffany FINALLY set foot on Zambian soil. Praise the Lord for no complications in travelling, luggage or immigration! We were welcomed by our host reps, Eric and Kathy as they took us back to the Lusaka guest house as we transitioned through jet lag and a bit of cultural adjustments before meeting our host families. This was a blessing in disguise, because I had no idea how much in country prep that still needing to be done. I learned so much about Zambia -good and bad- in the first week that would have been to over whelming to just jump into right away. Plus, how can you pass up one last week of Canadian food, having passion fruit, mangoes and pineapple right at your fingertips, and the amazing company of three girls and two amazing country reps?

One of my favorite parts to this week was the cultural orientation, when we gathered the SALTers host families, bosses, and some of Eric and Kathy’s friends to openly talk about North American/African differences in regards to food, etiquette, personal space and so on. Its amazing to see how similar two cultures can be, but at the same time incomprehensibly different. It was here that the acronym of “SALT” or “serving and learning together” really made sense to me. In the past 2 ½ weeks I learned so much about cross cultural living. Learning how to live in a culture where you don’t exactly belong in, learning how to set aside pride and try new things (food language, ect) learning how to let go of things I can’t change about Zambian lifestyle, learning how to be open with people…. The list goes on and on. I can’t even imagine the things I will learn by the end of my term here.

Thursday was my “move into my new home day,” where I was welcomed by my three host sisters: Mweembe, Munsanje, and Munsaka (don’t worry, it took some time to get the pronunciations right on these ones too!) with big hugs and smiles. There was a lot of anticipation leading up to this day, but I was surprised to feel at ease in such a new setting. I pulled out a puzzle of a map of Canada, which they went wild for. Every day I am learning a little more about their country, and in return they frequently ask me about my country too. Today Mweeme was plating (or braiding) my hair, and when I told her Canadians don’t usually have this hairstyle (trust me, it did not suite me). She exclaimed “well you should go and talk to the president of Canada about that!!” Important issues for a 12 year old Zambian.

I am sure there will be days when I will be frustrated not having my home in Dundas, but there is something truly healing about having three girls here that openly and quickly decided to welcome me in as their big sister. I am passionate about women’s issues, and it is so important to me that these girls feel loved this year. However it’s a two way street… they have done an amazing job at showing me love with the joy they bring in. After having a “girls craft day” with watercolors and coloring books in my room, we all had an epic house wide dance party (and sadly, they are all much better dancers then me… but you know I still try). How can I feel sad when I have this? Still, I know I have only been here for a very short time and I am still trying to find out my role as a “sister” and not a “babysitter”. This means carving out time to be alone, getting enough sleep, or learning to say no to games when I am too burnt out. I will learn how to do this better as time goes on, because right now they are just so dang cute.

I will admit, homesickness has become a daily part of my day since I left Canada. This moment flushes over me when I can’t help but think “why did I do this again?” or “11 months is way to long to be away from home!!” But as I settle in, I’m getting more of a sense of my place here. I am (slowly) learning how to close one chapter of my life, and move on to the next with no regrets. I need to remember that my home, my family, my boyfriend, and my best friends will all be waiting for me when I come home. But for now I need to be here, and that purpose will be revealed to me in time as I learn more about the culture. I could go in circles wondering if I chose the right placement or program or path in life, or I can just accept where I am and invest fully. And when I do that, I am seeing each passing day and opportunity as “hopeful” not “one less day until I come back to Canada.”

Prayer points:

-Sickness: I think the mixture of getting over jet lag, new food and a high energy couple of weeks has made me sick. Pray that I can get over this soon!

-Sleep: For those of you who don’t know I do have insomnia. While im trying not to be dependant on sleeping pills, its very hard to get to bed at a reasonable hour with a new bed, and many many sounds (dogs, cars, people ect) that keep me awake at night.

-Safety: While I am safe in my new neighborhood and home, travelling to and from work on “mini buses” is going to be very testing for me as a white woman in a black male dominated area. Of the few times I have gotten out into the city, being called out as “Mazungu (white person)” over and over again is draining, and very disempowering. I am asking for strength to handle this as it comes, and to use this anger towards men here to ripen my sense of calling during my time here. Women power, yea?!?

Whats happening this week….

- I have come back to the guest house in Roma, Lusaka and have begun a week long intensive language training course in Cinyanja, the local language people speak here. Although most Zambians can speak English, it will be nice to have this as a connector as I visit local schools and meet with teachers in my role as peace club coordinator. I have used the few phrases I have learned already as I pass people on the street, and it is amazing to see their faces light up from even a few simple lines of Chinyanja. They have definitely appreciated our feeble attempts!