Mid-Service Meeting, Visiting Host Family, & Blog Challenge

Happy New Year to everyone and best wishes for the start of 2016! I just got back from my Mid-Service meeting in Yaoundé where I was pricked and prodded when getting blood drawn, visiting the dentist, receiving shots, and finally getting medically cleared. Now I have the “ok” to dive into the last 8 months of my Peace Corps service. My stagemates and I also gave presentations on the work we have been doing for the past 15 months. I have to say that I am so proud to be a member of this stellar stage. Everyone is doing awesome work in their villages and even if they had a few bumps in the beginning, they have stayed positive throughout all the trials of Peace Corps. We left MST with new ideas and renewed motivation.

My host family except for the newest baby (Julia in front does not like pictures haha)

During my trip, I made a quick visit (literally spent 6 hours on a bus for a 3 hour visit in one day) to my host family in Ebolowa. I had not seen them since my training in September-November 2014. I was nervous about visiting since it could be very wonderful or maybe slightly awkward. I had kept in touch with my host family through text messages and phone calls but who knows how I would feel walking back into that house where I had spent my first months in Cameroon. I remember being so very homesick when I arrived in Cameroon and since I could not speak hardly any French, I was unable to communicate these emotions to my host family. Even with the tears and sleepless nights, my host family was kind and understanding which resulted in not only me staying in Cameroon, but successfully becoming a Peace Corps volunteer after training. I knew I owed a lot of this success to my host family.

Me and my host mom, Marie Paule

When I arrived in Ebolowa, everything felt different. I now knew French, understood the culture, and how to catch a moto-taxi. I had to laugh when the moto-taxi guy dropped me off at my host family’s house and his jaw dropped as my host mom came running up to me with a huge smile on her face. It was like turning the page in a favorite book, everything was familiar; the house, the dirt under my feet, the couches, and the smell of humidity mixed with dust that rose from the chair as I sat down. Life had changed a little for my host mom.  She was still with the same boyfriend and had since given birth to a baby girl named Flora. I got to hold Flora for a while and couldn’t help but think about how I used to dislike holding babies in the U.S., but now it felt natural. As I gazed around the room, I noticed that the furniture had been moved, but more importantly there was a water filter and a new small gas stovetop. I realized that by taking care of new Peace Corps volunteers during training, my host family had unknowingly learned about ways to help them live a better life. Had I really helped them even when I couldn’t speak their language or understand their culture? Just by being in Cameroon, Americans can make a difference by being themselves. Cameroon has helped me too. Sure I still try to live the “American comfort” as often as possible, but I am stronger mentally and physically. I guess the ability to speak a little French and Fulfulde helps too. And I won’t even begin to list what I have learned about agriculture and business. Visiting my host family showed me that it’s a two way street here in Cameroon between Americans and Cameroonians even if we don’t realize it.

Me and Flora (probably the first time she has done a selfie haha)

On another note, I recently signed up for a “Blog Challenge” where they give us a topic to write about each week. Not sure if I will be able to keep up with it all the time, but here goes for the first topic: “Why”

 

One of my stagemates used an awesome technique called the “5 Whys” to answer the question of why we are in Peace Corps Cameroon. I decided to copy his brilliant idea, so here goes:

1-      Why did I join Peace Corps?

                I felt that I did not deserve my comfortable life in the U.S. and needed to give some of my time to a purpose that was mainly helping others. I also thought that I needed to learn and experience more about different cultures in the world.

2-      Why did I feel like I need to give my time and learn more?

                I have a great life at home with wonderful family/friends and a freedom to strive for my goals and contribute to positive change. As much as I appreciate being an American, I did not understand why Americans were Americans or why other cultures were different. Also there were problems I couldn’t understand in my community and I had done all I can with what I had learned through my education and experiences. I was feeling like a part of my mind was missing and I might find more ideas and knowledge by living in another culture.

3-      Why is there more knowledge in living immersed in other cultures?

                By living in another culture, I can acknowledge the differences and similarities between the past and present of my home and Cameroon.

4-      Why is it important to acknowledge the differences and similarities between cultures?

It helps me understand how different cultures are formed; especially how the attitudes and ideas of the population are learned along with the start of traditions, language, and gender roles. I can then appreciate what makes us Americans and how much we can be thankful for.

5-      Why do I want to understand how cultures are formed?

                Hopefully this understanding will help me make a more positive effect on my community at home and cultures around the world.

I have already achieved most of my goals that I had when I started Peace Corps: To be taught about another culture, to teach about American ideas/dreams/agriculture/business, and to go home with an understanding of what makes us who we are and how to best work with everyone to make this world a better place.

And on a lighter note, I guess it’s nice to appreciate good American food, well-made margaritas, soft beds, working toilets, hot running water, the ability to wear shorts, petting animals without getting stared at, and just generally rolling in the grass without the threat of biting ants or large spiders.