Here are just a few of the older letters we've recieved. Contact Cathy if you're interested in seeing more!
Hello! June 27, 2002
Can you believe that it’s the end of June?! I know this
will be late but happy 4th of July! Set off some fireworks
for me! I’ll be in Abidjan for the holiday so maybe I’ll
get to celebrate a little bit. Apparently the Embassy used
to throw a big party for all Americans so we’ll see!
The big news!!! I tried monkey. I was eating out last
week in Blolequin & I decided that I might as well try it!
It was ok but I still prefer the other “bushmeat”. The
Ivoirians thought that I was crazy to say that I preferred
another kind of meat-they think monkey is as good as it
gets. I didn’t tell anyone in my village because 1. I
don’t want to make a habit out of eating monkey & 2. I’ve
made such a ruckus about not eating monkey since it’s our
“cousin”(!!) that who knows what their reaction would be!
Mini & I finished the World Map painting in Blolequin-it
looks so good! It is 6 ft x 12 ft on a school wall. You’ll
see the photo in the next roll. I can’t wait to do it here
but I have to wait until the construction on the school is
over. Of course, that could be next year! They started in
March & were supposed to be done at the beginning of May…it
looks better already-I can’t wait to see the finished
thing!
Some good news! We’re working on a project proposal
right now for new school benches. So you may get to help us
out financially! Two people are getting estimates
tomorrow-I in Blolequin & the other in Guiglo so hopefully
this will work! It’ll come to about $450 for 40 desks. The
desks seat 2 or 3 students (but here they put 4 on one
because there aren’t enough). I’ll keep you updated!
I had a rather embarrassing experience in the latrine.
The door doesn’t close completely & definitely can’t be
locked when you’re inside which has always made me paranoid
that someone’s going to walk in one me! It finally
happened. The young good-looking teacher who lives next to
me caught me-fortunately just as I was zipping up my pants!
Anything before that wouldn’t been truly a disaster. He was
humiliated & I just laughed & tried to make it seem like no
big deal! He hasn’t looked at me since. Needless to say, I
am even more paranoid in the latrine now!
I’m impressed at how the villagers don’t question my
odd behavior anymore. Of course, who knows what they’re
saying about me but they don’t say much to me about it! I
would wonder if I were them! This morning I was walking
around the house with plastic sacks on my hands-2 on each
hand up to the elbow. I was in & out of the house &, of
course, they all noticed me but no one said a word. Not
even the children! I was actually treating my mosquito net
with insecticide & it said to wear rubber gloves. Well, I
had to make due with what I had around me! I’m hoping that
my net will be potent enough to kill the ants when they
attack this year-they’re out in full force. It’s only a
matter of time before they enter my house!
Mini left last week & I was devastated, of course! She’s
in Guiglo for a month & then she goes to the States. I’m
going to miss her so much! Philomen (Noel’s sister) tried
to cheer me up the rest of the weekend by cooking my
favorite meals, making me take walks with her, & giving me
her beautiful baby. She adopted Baby Grace not that long
ago & I have become very attached to this gorgeous little
girl! I wish I could be in Blolequin all the time to take
care of her! Noel moved to Abidjan to play football
(soccer) so Philomen gave me his old room so that I have a
place of my own when I come to town. Mini left me her oven
so I still get to do some baking! I guess everything works
out in the end. I won’t know if a new PCV is coming to
Blolequin until the end of July but I’ll keep hoping that
I’ll happen.
They have elections on July 7 so things are really
hopping around here! What I’ve learned so far? One
candidate may be your best friend but if the other buy
gives you more money, you’ll jump right over to the other
side! All of the villages are making so much money –that’s
how we’re paying for the school desks actually! It’s all
been touched by politics! We have to stay out of it
(obviously) but it looks like so much fun-there are
rallies, dances, masks, festivals-the cars drive through
the village with signs on each door & honk their horns! If
only people were listening to the agendas & not just
looking for the money or alcohol coming to them!
Well, I’m off for now! Miss you all more than you can
know! Love, Mary
PS-I received the package from the Vacation Bible School
children from the church-thanks! Gifts will be given at the
end of the year party. Also packages from Tanya Webly &
Mary Wavell-thanks!
May 11, 2002
Hello from Abidjan! I just spent a couple of days in the
region of Bondoukou so that I could check out Julie’s new
village and at the same time, get away from my own village!
I was just getting so frustrated that I was afraid I might
just fall apart! I think that the break is helping and I
should be able to go back a happier person! I’ve met up
with some other volunteers who went through training at the
same time I did and I was relieved to hear them say the
same things about how they’re feeling right now. We do
sound like a group of depressed adolescents though – but at
least I’m not alone! And we only have 10 months to go!
Yeah!!
I had a funny experience on transport
yesterday. Here, they tend to put all the baggage on top of
the vehicle, which often includes aminals. Well, I am
sitting next to the window just daydreaming about what I’ll
eat in Abidjan when our truck comes to a very quick stop.
Suddenly, there’s a HUGE sheep hanging from a rope right in
my face! I was too shocked to speak. Fortunately, someone
else noticed a moment later and then the craziness began –
everyone in the bus is yelling – saying how he’s going to
die so hurry up! The guy behind me reaches out the window
to try to help and someone’s outside trying to get him off
the rope without dropping him and all of a sudde, the sheep
is free and takes off running! That kind of stuff always
makes me laugh! They did catch him and he was tied back
onto the roof and for the rest of the voyage, it sounded
like someone was trapped, he kept pounding his hooves on
the rooftop! Poor guy…
May 13, 2002
I have been feeling so much better these past
few days! I’ve hung out with some cool volunteers and we’ve
been eating and drinking to our heart’s content! Today I
saw some doctors and it’s looking like I have to come back
in two weeks to have another checkup and then I’ll see a
specialist about my hands (the rice cutting has left
scars), I figure as long as the Peace Corps is paying, I
might as well get it all in!
Our supervisor is in the States so she’s been
temporarily replaced by this awesome guy! He was a PCV in
Togo and has worked with the refugees in my region of Cote
d’Ivoire. I went in to talk about my frustrations and ask
for some advice and I walked out feeling 100% better! He
said I needed to stop banging my head against the wall but
other than that, I’ve done everything right (the
ultimatums, threats, etc are all OK to use in this case!).
He agreed that I should not put in a proposal for a school
because if they can’t do a soakaway pit, they will never
get their act together to build something like classrooms!
It was a relief to hear him say “you’ve done all you can
do, now just let them figure things out and if they truly
want to accomplish something, they’ll let you know.” It’s
disappointing but there it is. I can’t do this for them.
They have to wait to do it themselves. He also suggested
that I find another village to work in (but continue to
live in Medibly) so we’ll see what I can find. Noel would
love it if I could work with his village, they sound
motivated so I might go and check it out. I just don’t like
the idea of being out of Medibly all the time, I really do
like my life there!
So Mini and Inoussa are getting married on May
25th. I am so excited to finally go to a wedding since I
appear to be missing everyone else’s at home! We’re trying
to plan some special things (surprises for Mini so I’m
really looking forward to it!).
Alright, I have to go and get ready for my last
night in Abidjan with this group of PCVs! Hope you’re all
doing well.
Love, Mary
8 June 2002
Hello!
How are things going? I suppose you’re all set for summer
to begin-it’s still weird that summer never ends here! It
has been unbelievably hot but thankfully, it rained & it’s
“cooled” down to bearable temperatures!
I was just thinking about how lucky I am. I have this
great new routine. At dusk, I take my bucket bath (I’ve
left the bucket in the sun so the water’s not too cold!),
wrap myself in a pagne (sarong), make a cup of tea, put in
a tape and sit in front of the house until 7:30 pm, then I
crawl into be & read until I fall asleep (normally around
8:30 pm). I don’t know who said that we’d stay up later as
we adjusted to life in the village. I can’t keep myself
awake! I’m reading this book about “mindfulness
meditation”. It’s hard to take seriously when it
recommends taking a moment to just “be” or to take a few
minutes away from a hectic schedule. Well I suppose my
life would be called “hectic” if we really stretched it!
It’s just funny b/c I have so much time to just be – to sit
by myself and think or no think or daydream or reminisce.
I worry that that will be a problem at home. I’m in
control here of my routine, my schedule. I have all the
time in the world to just “be” all by myself.
They started “Operation Village Cleanup” today (that’s
Rolands Name for it) & I was so excited! They called in
all the young men (25-40) to cut down all the brush. Grass
trees, weeds, etc all around the village. What a huge
difference it makes! I handed out some suckers as a thank
you and they were worse than children – chasing & fighting
b/c someone took 2! I asked if some of them would clean up
behind my house & they all volunteered (knowing full well
there would be more candy!) and said they needed to protect
me. “Protect me, from what?? Snakes?? “ I asked. They
laughed but what do know, not even two minutes into their
machete work, they killed a cobra! Right next to my
shower!! It was small but like they said “he would have
grown up”. It makes me appreciate all the work I’ve done
around the house to keep the grass out at least with a dirt
yard. You can see what’s there!
Kurt and Gretchen leave this week and Mini will be going
not long after so it’ll just be me out here! We’re hoping
a replacement will come to Blolequim but there’s never a
guarantee. This week Mini & I hope to do a world map on a
school wall in Bloequim. I don’t mind being away from
Medibly since no one’s in the village during the week
anyway. I’ll make it back for the weekend & no one will
even know that I was gone.
9 June 2002
I was nearly attacked by a mad mother pig today. I don’t
know what all the animals have against me. I’m one of the
few who doesn’t want to catch them and kill them!
One of the disadvantages of people speaking French instead
of a local language…One night our transport vehicle broke
down on the road. We all have to get off & I watch from a
distance as they play around with one of the back tires.
They start to take nuts and bolts from the other wheels and
then I hear two of them say, “Do you remember how many
we’ve taken from this tire? I wonder how many it really
needs.. What I’m not going to really make it, am I ?? Well
obviously we did make it and apparently the tires really
don’t need all of the nuts and bolts! At least not in
Africa!!
Well, I have stuff to take care of and hopefully I’ll get
this off to you soon! Take care!
Love
Mary
May 27-Hello! I have been so incredibly busy & there have been so many things that I wanted to write about but I can hardly remember what happened yesterday, let alone what happened last week!
Beatrice & I have been working in the fields everyday-normally we start around 7:30 am & end around 11:30 am. We should work more but it’s so incredibly hot that we have no choice. We would normally go again in the afternoon but it’s hard to get re-motivated that time of day! We’re weeding right now. It’s a ½ hectare but it seems huge when you’re looking at the multitudes of weeds that surround the rice! I wear my gloves each & every time so now no one thinks I’m working in the fields because my hands aren’t calloused, blistered or dirty!
This past weekend was Mini & Inoussa’s wedding in Guiglo. (Mini is the Peace Corps worker there & has become Mary’s friend-this is Mini’s 2nd year). On Thursday, her hands & feet were painted with henna for the traditional wedding that afternoon. Since Inoussa is Muslim, the ceremony was something that we had no idea what to expect! It turned out to be something just for women-they had drummers & someone to sing & we all sat in a huge circle & then they danced (& so did we when they called us up!). Mini wore several boubous (a traditional dress) & after it was all over, we went out for a nice dinner. Friday night we had the “bachelorette” party, which turned out to be really fun!
We made her sell condoms & give out AIDS info to all the men we met at the maquis or the “night club”-it was as if we were working while having a good time, considering that’s what we’re supposed to do with the general population! Sat. afternoon was the wedding itself & it was very interesting-definitely not what I expected! You have to have a wedding at the mayor’s office first & they start by asking you if you will keep your earnings separate or if you’ll combine them (of course, people cheered when Mini said that she would share!). Then the audience went wild when they each said “Yes”, when they wanted to marry one another. The Mayor’s speech wouldn’t made me run from the “altar”-it was about the man being in charge & continued on to how many children they would have (six). The mayor was a woman so I was surprised as to what she was saying about male dominance in the marriage. I was getting all worked up just sitting in the audience & listening. I would’ve been furious if I was the bride & probably would’ve lost my temper! After the wedding, they had a huge reception at someone’s house & several of us wore the matching pagnes & sang a song to Mini & Inoussa, just to make things a little more “normal”. It was really fun & I can hardly wait to go to another wedding!
OK, I have to end this quickly because it has to be sent out right now. I’m going to Abidjan for medical & then hope to stay in the village for awhile. Will write then! Got a package from Marijean. Love you all, Mary
April 22, 2002
Hello! I’ve been waiting to write until I could write something positive about my projects and how the village helps. I started to think that you’d never hear from me again. It’s just been one disappointment after another and they were doing NOTHING to prove to me that they could do what it takes to get a school built.
It’s been over a week since “my” pump was taken away from us. Some guy came and told the chief that the pump area was too dirty and walls needed to be built around the pump itself so he took away the pump pedal. When I got to the pump and discovered what had happened, I was mad! Why didn’t the chief tell him that we are trying to get money together to do those very things?? I threw a fit with the chief but he couldn’t have cared less. Thank goodness we fixed the other pump… it’s a long walk from the pump to my house (I live the farthest from it) but I’m not complaining since it is clean water. I went from collector’s house to collector’s house to take whatever money they had managed to collect from their families. One family did a great job but the others really don’t deserve to be mentioned. With that money and some credit, we bought cement in the hopes of constructing the walls and cleaning up the area. I paid a guy to finally dig the soakaway pit at the pump – it’s 1 meter X 1 meter X 1 meter and needs to be filled with big rocks, then smaller rocks and then gravel (A soakaway pit is to collect the runoff water from the pumps). Funny how 1 meter doesn’t seem like much until you have to fill it up! I started looking for rocks one morning and managed to cover only the bottom and it took me ALL morning. I was searching everywhere: along the road, in the grass, by people’s houses, etc. and no one helped me. People just sat there and watched. I offered to pay some guys to go and get rocks with a wheelbarrow but you know what they said? “It’s too much work!” What do they do all day? NOTHING. It was infuriating because I’m not supposed to be doing all the work. But, if I want to get done, I know I have to do it myself and I really want the soakaway pit there! Unfortunately it’s still not done and we’ve discovered that the ground just doesn’t absorb water at all. So that’s why it was a problem in the first place. Hopefully we’ll figure something out.
This morning I had prepared myself for another frustrating day. If we want the walls built, we need to bring the bricks to the pump. The village had made bricks several years ago for a house at the school and it was never done (what a surprise!) so we’re taking the bricks that have remained in decent shape to the pump project. The school kids will be paid to collect gravel and sand and the mason said he could start today so I had to get going! I carry one brick to the pump, 2 bricks, 3 bricks, and then realize what a long day it’s going to be! But then someone sees me working and cares!! He’s worried I’ll get sick carrying a brick in my arms and he’s willing to help if we can find a wheelbarrow. I search for a wheelbarrow and run into a man coming with one and he says “Mary, I’m coming to help you” and you know what I did? I jumped on the man and hugged him and nearly cried! I think he was scared… but I was just so happy that two people wanted to help. TWO!! We ended up moving 130 bricks and it took us 4 hours. I was still taking them 1 by 1, checking out my muscles as I walked to keep my mind off of the pain!! Now I have bruises covering my forearms and my thighs (I had to carry them with my arms straight down so the bricks bounced off my legs) and I can’t make it to the pump for water because I can’t move my arms! But I am so happy that we did it!!
April 23
I’m giving up on my village. The students didn’t collect the gravel or sand and I can’t find a single soul who will do the work (they’d be paid for it so it’s not even voluntary!). This morning I went to the pump and ran into some guys and I mentioned the problem of sand and gravel. They said I sounded discouraged. I’m like “Discouraged?? You could say that. I’m finished here, my work in Medibly is done.” They don’t argue – they know as well as I do that no one wants to work for the village – even if it makes life better for everyone. I told them that if Roland wanted to talk to me about it (he’s the only one who will believe that there is hope), he could find me in Blolequin. I can’t just sit here and watch nothing happen. You know what really gets to me though? How people still say “White people don’t know how to work.” Really?? Funny how I do my laundry, I cook, I clean, I go to the pump, and I do physical labor for nothing, for free – all for the village and yet they would still say that they’re the only ones who work. Just because they use a machete in the fields. It’s so irritating! I am very, very frustrated. I like Medibly but there’s only so much I can do if they’re not willing to help. It makes me feel like a failure.
I’ll be going to Guiglo for a big AIDS awareness day. I hope some people turn out for it, Mini did all the planning and there’s a bunch of “entertainment” scheduled. I would’ve liked to have brought some of the village youth but transport is so expensive – no one would be able to afford it.
Well, I hope you’re all doing well. Take care!
Love, Mary
PS I got packages from Dad and Traci, thank you!
April 6-Hello everyone! It’s amazing how things are provided when you’re in need! I was looking around my kitchen last night & realized that I’m down to the basics: rice, onions, spaghetti & cabbage. I don’t mind eating plain rice but I want to stay in my village until Wed., so that makes 4 full days of very plain food! I could go to Blolequin to get some vegetables but I really don’t want to leave Medibly (so there’s the proof that I’m not looking for sympathy because I could do something to change my situation, including dropping by other people’s houses around lunch/dinner time!!) Anyway, a guy drops off a huge chunk of meat last night for me & then this morning a girl comes by with a pineapple so now I can make sweet & sour sauce & who knows what I’ll get tomorrow!! I just think that that is so cool.
April 7-Something was finally accomplished in my village today. I can say it’s partly due to me! I’ve been harassing people about fixing the pump that just broke & I found someone who actually knows all the workings of the insides so we got a couple of men to help & we pulled the whole pump out (it goes down about 60 feet) & it turns out that nothing is broken-it’s just filthy. So they all cleaned it & in a couple of hours, the pump was fully functioning again! Next week, I’ve set up arrangements to have two soak away pits put in-one at each pump so hopefully this is going to work. Today was also my day to harass people about paying for the pumps & I was extremely discouraged this morning because 4 families have done NOTHING ( that is about 65 people total) & I was sure that the school project was cancelled. But this afternoon, I visited another collector & he was so excited to show me how well his family was doing-he’s even collected 2 months in advance! I wanted to hug the dear man!! The remaining 2 families said that they’re done but I haven’t actually seen any money so I can’t be sure. I just want to scream at them thought-they need water! I am so tempted to lock up the pumps & say “OK, go get your water. Let’s see how sick everyone gets!” That will be the most drastic, last attempt on getting it through their heads that they are lucky to have clean, accessible & practically free water!!
April 11-I decided to come into Blolequin for a few days because there is NO ONE in my village during the week (they’re all in the fields) & it’s both Mini’s & Kurt’s birthdays, so we’re going to celebrate. I’ll head back to Medibly tomorrow with some food & a new box to keep the rats out of my stuff! Hopefully it’ll work this time. Noel was supposed to go to Abidjan last week but instead he ended up in jail in Guiglo. It turns out he got caught driving without a license so they threw him & the chauffeur of the car into jail for 24 hours-then they had to pay a pretty big fine. I had to laugh because 1. Noel never does anything wrong. 2. It’s something that 15 yr olds in the US get in trouble for, not 28 yr olds & 3. he hates dirt & being dirty & of course the jail was pretty disgusting. His description of the “worst 24 hrs of his life” was hilarious to me. I think I probably could’ve handled it better! The room did sound pretty bad-no bed, chair, window & no food, etc. And it probably did have a terrible stench…needless to say, I think he learned his lesson! He was “sick” for the rest of the week & I think he still feels dirty! If he hadn’t been able to pay the fine, (actually, his brother-in-law paid it!), he would’ve been sent to our regional capital (Man), seen a judge, & then put in prison for a couple of months! It makes me want to commit NO crime here!! I can only imagine their prison…!!
Well, that’s all from here. Hope you are all enjoying spring!
Love, Mary
Mar 24-Hello! I finally learned how to plant a rice field-I thought that it would be the easiest part of keeping a field but I was wrong! I’m really bad at it! It’s hard to write because I have so many blisters from the machete (I didn’t bring my gloves because I assumed I’d be ok. I can guarantee you that the gloves will go everywhere with me from now on!!) At least most of the villagers give me credit for trying-it helps that I’m so honest & make fun of myself (I was demonstrating how fast Beatrice worked compared to me). Bea only has ½ hectare so we’ll hopefully finish in a couple of days & then I’ll give excuses to everyone else who wants my “help”.
Today I gave my ultimatum to the village about the pumps. I am so frustrated. I really want to believe that we can collect money each month & get an amount & do the whole thing without too many conflicts but they just don’t want to! We have 3 pumps-2 worked when I arrived &, as of last week, we only have one pump. Now you would think that people would be concerned but they’re not. So today, I called a meeting & by the time a few people showed up (a few hours after the time was set for) I was about to lose it! So I told them that if they needed to understand how important that one pump is, I’m going to lock it up & we can go without pumps for awhile. That leaves 1 well at the school & dirty ponds/puddles to get water from. My emotions were obviously showing & they took me seriously & then I told them that if we couldn’t collect for March/April/May, I will not help them with the school (we want to add two classes). After my lengthy & emotional speech, they begged for forgiveness, expressed their shame, asked me not to be so discouraged because now they really understood! It made me feel better but I don’t want to get my hopes up. If we can’t get our act together for a pump, there’s no way they can build a school.
Just so you don’t think I’m a total lost cause, I’m going to do a condom demonstration with the young girls & see if we can keep meeting to discuss other issues (average age that a girl loses her virginity is 12, so I have no choice but to talk to the young ones) And if our school gets finished (the mayor’s office is supposed to finish up the 4 classes that exist), I’m going to do a world map mural. I helped another volunteer in her village with the map & it was work but so rewarding! We’re doing one in Blolequin in April & so I’ll have some “experience” when it comes time to start the project here!!
Some good news?! Two rats & one fat mouse have been killed since I last wrote! I don’t know where they keep coming from but it looks like I’ll never live in peace!
Mar 27-I think I’m going to lose my temper with a child today so I’m trying to keep myself in the house. It all began at 5 am-I hear the neighbors banging on my next door neighbor’s door & soon 14 children are causing quite a commotion. (the 2 families put together have way too many children!) I have no idea what’s going on but I’m getting irritated because I want to sleep but it’s impossible. Around 6, the noise is right on my doorstep (& therefore next to my bedroom window) & I decide that they must be stealing my sand. (I have a pile in front of the house for projects & all my gravel was stolen so I assume I have reasons to accuse them!!) I throw my window open & yell “What are you doing?” All these faces look up at me & they’re all holding torches & buckets & they say, “We’re catching termites. There are a lot at your house”. I can’t even think of how to tell them to BE QUIET because it’s not even light out so I slam the window shut-try to shut the noise out. It’s hopeless. I get out of bed &, as the hours pass, the kids are driving me insane & they don’t even know it. All I can think is that I wish I had hidden away some chocolate for a time like this when it dawns on me-“I had hidden a Snickers away!!!” So, at 8:30 am, I’m chowing down on a yummy Snickers while trying to block out the noise!
My cravings for American food had really disappeared until the last few days-I find myself dreaming about what to eat, daydreaming about different foods & restaurants. It’s torture. I don’t know what’s brought this on but I hope it goes away soon. I also hope I can keep my cool with the children but I’ve just about had it!! I keep trying to tell myself that in 2 days I’ll have my “vacation” but it sure is tempting to go now! Mini, Ting, & I are celebrating Easter weekend together in Guiglo so it should be a nice getaway!
Later in the day, Roland heard about my “outburst” the other day about the lack of motivation so he came over to try to make me feel better. Unfortunately, I became more discouraged! He is so successful & he has made himself into the man he wanted to be. I asked why there weren’t more villagers like him & he just said “they don’t think in the long-term. That’s how Africans are.” He told me that our projects will never work if we don’t do it all (he has a lot of ideas for what to do in the village) but my argument is this: “Peace Corps isn’t about me doing all of the work. Of course I am capable of doing what needs to be done, but that’s not sustainable development.” It’s frustrating but it’s nice that an Ivorian realizes why I can’t do any more than I’m doing. And then Roland asked me to take on a new “project”-he wants me to check up on the worker at the coffee/rice machine. Roland thinks he’s stealing, so each night, I’d go to the machine & ‘check the books’ & try to supervise. Again, it’s not sustainable development so I begged him to find a villager & he looks so serious as he says, “It’s you or me who won’t steal & whom people trust…you’re always here so it’s gotta be you.” What can I say? I agree to start working until we know if the worker is trustworthy. I believe he is ( as he has a way about him & he’s from BurkinaFaso &, in general, they’re more hard working & honest than the Guere,) or until we can find someone to replace me. Does anyone not steal? I suppose it would be hard to see that money coming in & not put a little bit in your pocket knowing that no one can stop you. How did our country get to the point where money was trusted in most people’s hands?
Well, I suppose that really is about all for me. Will write again soon! Love, Mary
PS-Just got packages from Rebecca, Bryan & mom-they’re huge! Can’t wait to dig through them!!
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