April 19, 2006
Muli Shani Bonse? (How is everyone?) Before I go into detail about what my first few weeks in the village have been like, I want to back-track a bit... I came across a journal entry that I wrote a few nights before swearing-in & I would like to share it with all of you. On March 26 I wrote the following:
"Today (for the 1st time) I began to really process what I've learned outside of the classroom since arriving here. Usually when you think of a foreign culture, all you can see at 1st is the differences, the barriers, the alien quality that makes it feel so far-removed from your own life that you have to remind yourself that this is "real", it "actually exists"... I remember the 1st time I heard someone talking in Bemba - it sounded like a cluster of random syllables all jumbled together. The fact that anyone could glean information from those sounds seemed ridiculous to me.
Then, as I studied the language, I found that it has structure & grammar (it's not just sounds thrown together at random... amazing!) And slowly, it started to unfold before me, and the more I understood of Bemba, the less exotic (& intimidating) it sounded... The same holds true for the people of Zambia. The more I sensitize myself to their habits, mannerisms, stories, traditions, etc., the less foreign and far-removed they seem. The intimidation melts away, the differences subside, and I am left with the realization that here I am in a third world country staring at people who are just like me - They aren't National Geographic specials, they aren't the famined people you see on CNN, they aren't people speaking Jibberish and wearing clothes we are unfamiliar with and practicing rituals we don't understand- They are you & me. They brush their teeth in the morning, they drink tea, they like the occasional coke or cookie. They work hard, they want the cheapest price at the market, they laugh with their children, they sing with the radio, they cry at funerals. They value family and friendship, they feel disappointment and jealousy and pride and love and embarrassment... They pray to my God. When I look at a Zambian now, I see a mother, a child who just wants to play, a man who wants a beer, a girl who wants a boyfriend, a pastor who loves his church, a depressed farmer, an exhausted wife. I see the same people that I know in the States. Their exotic qualities are fading away as I feel more and more like each one of them, and less and less like a foreigner in this land.
The universality of humankind sets in and I am reminded that I could just as easily have been born a Zambian. How would my life be different as a result of nothing but my birthplace? It disturbs me and fascinates me and overwhelms me to think of how much my life has been influenced by my nationality. I could just as easily have been born in a third world country. But I wasn't. Why? Only God knows and I'll be lucky to understand it in my lifetime... But in the meantime, I will be glad and thankful for what I have, where I am, and the lives I've intersected with. I came to Zambia hoping to find so many things , but it never crossed my mind that I'd go to the other side of the world and meet more of the same - people I can relate to, emotions I've felt, frustrations I've shared. It's been a wonderful discovery and I've never felt such a connection before. It's lovely... As I finish this last week of training, I felt like it was just today that I've actually learned anything. I am excited for the next 2 years!"
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