Last week I had a site visit with Ba Silvester and he came to see what I've been up to the past three months (I've been in Zambia for 5 whole months already!!-it's crazy.) I brought him to the special needs school to introduce him to the Head Teacher and show him the classes I have been working with and such. It was cool because the Head said some really nice things about my work there and it made me feel like I've been alot more influencial/productive then I realized...
Some small accomplishments since last post:
1. Made Guava Jam!
2. Made Bread from scratch in my new oven :o)
3.Celebrated "Christmas in July" with the rest of Northern Province
4.Ricardo and I put up plastic in my house (but my allergies persist-boo!)
5.Took another volunteer's dog to the vet (story to follow)
6.Planted some seeds...will they ever grow? who knows
7. Made a gate with my friends Wise and John (but...it's not very sturdy/is already falling apart...hmmm)
8.Made some mazes, connect the dots, and other games/activities for my fine-motorskills class
9. Wrote a letter to send out to medical supplies companies (for my first aid workshop)
10. Had a "This is Why I'm Here" kind of moment! :o) (story to follow)
Trip to the Vet...
Another Volunteer's dog, Killroy, is living at the Peace Corps House now (it was eating her neighbor's goats!) so she broght him to get fixed because there is already a female dog, Suzie, living at the house. Unfortunatley she had to go back to her site and couldn't stay around to check up on him after the surgery and asked me to do so because I live so close to town. Since then Killroy pulled his stitches out and was running around with Suzie with an open wound...so yesterday I had to bring him to the vet to get sewn back up. Thankfully Dale, another volunteer, was around and came with me. Getting Killroy into the cab to go there was a challenge...he was not very happy (probably because he remembered what happened the last time he took a trip in the car) but eventually we were able to lift him into the backseat without him biting anyones face off. So we bring him to the Vet and he makes us get in the backseat of his pickup to go to the clinic. We get to the clinic, which is pretty sketchy, behind a bar and there is already a dog there that they are putting to sleep ( :o( he had cancer and lots of tumors). So Killroys flipping out about the other dog and on edge because he recognizes the doctor (who sliced off his manhood just days earlier!) Finally the Vet decides to use the stick hold thingy (like you see on animal cops) so he couldn't bite while he was given the injection.) Which was pretty scary and kind of awful, but he got the injection to make him drowsy...but it didn't work that well cause hes a big dog...so then they had to give him another one to make him sleep so the Vet could sew up the wound. I had to hold his leg up while the Vet did the sewing...and Killroy kept coming-to and struggling...it was a bit stressful. I felt so bad for the poor dog... Dale and I had to carry him into the cab again...this time with him a bloody and drugged up and when I got back to the house he woke to snap at Suzie before falling back to sleep on the ground with his tounge all hanging out and lifeless. Within hours he was awake and walking around, seemed fine...but today hes limping...soooo hopefully that will go away...cause another trip to the Vet might kill the both of us!
This is why I'm here...
On a lighter note... I had a great "converstaion" with some boys at the school this week. I say "conversation" because they were grade 7,8, and 9 H.I. (hearing impared) and the convo consisted partitially using ASL mostly with writing question/answers on the chalkboard. The boys were 17,18, and 21 and asked me lots of questions about myself. They wanted to know how I knew sign language, where I came from, and why I was in Zambia. It was fun getting to know them and what made me choke up a bit was when I explained to them I'm a volunteer and I'd come to help with education , and the boys all said "oooh I see" (in asl) and then one wrote on the board "Thank you so much!" Tear!
Quote of the Week:
I'm showing a 12-year-old girl (who knows limited English) the Atlas my mom sent me...
Chelwe: What's That? (points to a picture of a globe)
Me: It's a Globe
Chelwe: "Ooohhh! Global Financial Crisis!"
Limited English but she know "Global Financial Crisis" - amazing isn't it? I hope Kilroy is doing well. It really sounds like your experiences are wonderful. The "thank you" from the teen you were talking with must have felt great. You're doing terrific stuff there Ellyn - keep shining!
ReplyDeleteBy the way, jbdg4 = Jayne
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