Developing Work

(Written April 28, 2015)

This month has been very productive! (I am actually writing the April blog post when it’s still April!) I feel like I’ve finally gotten into a real routine and I only spent three nights out of sight this month, because the work level in my community is finally starting to grow. I have had several trainings/field applications/work days on the topics of coffee pruning and fish tanks. One of the coffee pruning days I was accompanied by a member of the community I had already had a training session with. I was pleasantly surprised when he reminded the man I was training to bring an ingredient to the farm that is often overlooked, but is a very important part of the pruning process. Later that morning I felt a little useless as these two men went around the farm and pruned coffee trees. I uncomfortably stood around feeling like I was not doing my part, I was not helping, not contributing. Then it dawned on me; this is a good thing. This is what is supposed to be happening. This is what sustainability looks like. When I leave I won’t be here to train new people or to encourage a little more work upfront that will make their lives better in the long run. After all, the main goal of a development worker is to work themselves out of a job.

I had a government organization come and give a training on culantro production. A different government organization and the area’s representative come and assess the needs for constructing a road (widening the current foot trail) to the community.

 

I have held a weekly reading club for the children in my community. Once a week they come to my house and we read books for hours. Then each child chooses a book and answers the following questions: what is the name of the book? Summarize the story in three or more sentences. What was your favorite part? I have to work one-on-one with the children to actually try to get them to critically think about what they read. All they want to do is copy sentences straight for the book (this is how they are taught in school). It is a slow process, but I believe progress is being made. The children absolutely love the books. They are constantly coming to my house asking to read the books. After all, these books are the only story books they have in the community and I would safely bet the first many of them have seen.

 

In terms of personal garden improvements: I have finished my terraces, started watermelon, squash, beets, eggplant, green onions, and celery. I hauled bags of sawdust for mulch (and my latrine) and large wooden boards that were freshly cut so I can build another raised bed. I built my worm box, hauled cow poop, and successfully obtained California red worms that are currently turning that cow poop into beautiful compost. My tomato plants are looking good and producing several little green orbs. I hope to soon be eating delicious vegetables picked right outside my door.

 

One afternoon I went down to make banana bread with the teacher. This method of baking over a fire involves putting the pot full of banana bread mix (or whatever) on top of an empty tuna can inside another, larger pot with a lid. AKA the double paila (large pan). I did this for my birthday at my host family’s house and it turned out a little gooey in the middle and burnt around the edges, but the in-between was delicious. Everything was going according to plan until I heard the teacher (who was passing by the fire) start laughing... She then came to tell me that the tuna can fell. I was very confused (as I normally am when trying to make sense of Spanish) as to what this meant. I go to look at the pots and don’t see how she could tell that the tuna can had fallen. I ask her and she points below the pot, I bend over and this is what I see:

Yep, the tuna can had fallen alright, right through the hole I had just burned through the bottom of the pot. There was lots of laughing and me shaking my head thinking; of course this would happen. The banana bread was burnt around the edges and gooey in the middle. The parts picked out tasted of bitter failure. I bought a new pot for the school and took the one with the hole in it up to my house to hide the evidence. It currently has lemongrass planted in it.

 

Also this month my original host mom and two of my host sisters (my first host family I lived with for nine weeks during training) came to visit me in my site. It was very sweet for them to come and see my site. It also felt a little backwards being the host for them. Especially in terms of food. I cooked all the meals and couldn’t help thinking; are they going to like it? Did I make enough? Did I wait too long between meals? Did they starve the entire time they were here? It was a very weird role reversal and for the first time had me wondering if they thought the same things when I lived with them.

I would like to finish by giving a quick shout-out to best friends. When I actually get to talk to them I feel a little less crazy, a little more sureof myself, and very appreciative. I cannot accurately express in words the value of a best friend.