For the last month, I’ve felt a pang of guilt every time I
jumped on the internet to check on my email: how have a managed to neglect my blog for so long? Unfortunately, it’s not a desperately
necessary chore, like fetching water.
It’s been so long since my last post, can’t it wait for another
day? Sort of like a diet gone bad
for a weekend- I already stuffed my face with an entire cake, what’s the harm
of eating a tub of ice cream? The
last two months have flown by, and I doubt I’ll be able to accurately account
for my absence, but I’ll do my best over the next few posts.
Even after our Mid-Service Conference at the beginning of
May, I could barely believe we’ve survived over one year of service as Peace
Corps Volunteers. Our COS (Close
of Service) dates will not be determined until January, but most volunteers are
expected to COS in March and April of 2013. Some days, I can’t believe I only have about nine months left in Uganda. Other days, I can’t believe I have nine months left in Uganda. Some days, I want to avoid “real life”
for as long as possible- I’ll be homeless, jobless, carless, phoneless and
directionless back in the good ol’ US of A. At least in Peace Corps, I finally figured out my role, I
have amazing friends, I can make my own schedule and hey, I’ve got two
phones! But other days, I’m
incredibly anxious to get back to the states to start figuring out what my next
step will be, all the while gorging myself on In-N-Out and Mexican food, going
to a gym again, hanging out with my family and being completely anonymous in a
crowd.
Most feelings in Peace Corps are conflicting, intense and
ever changing. I have never
experienced such a rollercoaster of emotions as I do every day here. One moment, I can feel so accomplished
for holding a successful presentation. The next moment, I may be screaming explicatives in a
taxi park because a man slapped my ass through a window. And then, I cannot be more grateful to
meet my friends at the pool for some well-needed down time. I have never felt more lonely,
adventurous, frustrated, confused or determined in my life. Ironically, in this patriarchal
society, I have also never felt more proud to be a woman.
Recently, I’ve had many self-doubting moments wondering what
I’ve really achieved in Peace Corps.
All of my projects have the potential to fail now or collapse once I’ve
left. In those moments, I am only comforted in knowing that I have demonstrated
time and again the strength and power of women. The longer I serve in Uganda, the more I convinced I become
that development will only move forward for this country when women are safe,
can make healthy decisions, are educated and enjoy the same rights as men. Although I can’t foresee the future, I
am confident that the remainder of my service will be working solely to empower
the girls and women of Uganda.
A few months ago, I tried an innovative lesson plan of
examining song lyrics for my P7 class.
Yes, I rapped “Miss Independent” by Ne-Yo for my P7 pupils, who thought
I was completely insane. Insane
because I have difficulty keeping a tune and because I was singing the praises
of a woman who “is her own boss.”
By the end of class, I doubt I had convinced any of the boys. I can only hope that one day, one of
the girls will grow up to be a “Miss Independent” and teaches those boys a
thing or two about girl power.
No comments:
Post a Comment