Hello! I'm back! Acutally, I didn't really go anywhere, but our internet connection did. But after a week and a half or so of disconnection from the world outside of Dakar, Senegal, I'm back plugged into the world wide web.
Things are going well here. I'm enjoying long but fulfilling days. The kids are teaching me a lot (they seem to have a knack for that) and my hope is that they're getting some good stuff from me too. The hustle and bustle of the house does make it hard to concentrate from time to time...and this is one of those times. So I hope to write again soon, when I have a few moments to myself.
A bientôt!
Monday, 18 July 2011
Saturday, 25 June 2011
Excitement in the Streets
While news of Whitey Bulger's capture is dominating the headlines back home in Boston, events here in Senegal are also making international news. Thursday saw demonstrations in the streets of Dakar, complete with burning cars, riot police, tear gas, and water cannons. Angry Senegalese took their frustration to the streets after the proposal of a constitutional amendment by President Abdoulaye Wade, that, if passed by the Parliament, would have greatly increased his chances for victory in the 2012 presidental election. Wade also sought to create the post of Vice President, which many saw as a method to transfer power to his son once the 81 year old is no longer in office.
The Senegalese electoral process follows the French model of a two-round system; if no candidate attains a majority in the first round (>50%), another round of voting between just the top two vote getters is held to decide who will be elected. If, however, one candidate recieves a majority in the first round, he is elected without having to hold the run-off. Wade wanted to change the percentage necessary to avoid the second round from the current 50% to 25%. This move was widely seen as a ploy for the aging and increasingly unpopular Wade to hold on to the presidency in the face of a divided opposition.
After 12 years in power, the Senegalese are tiring of Wade. I am certainly not well-versed in Senegalese politics, but the complaints I hear the most are that he is not doing enough to curb the daily power outages (we're 21 for 23 days since I got here. The two exceptions? The day of the national soccer team match and the day of the President's speech at the adjacent soccer stadium) and that he has put his own interests (remaining in power, his legacy, etc) ahead of the interests of the people. Widely criticized is the new Monument to the African Renaissance, a 160 ft tall (bigger than the Statue of Liberty) copper statue on a Dakar hill overlooking the Atlantic. While meant to be a symbol of unity and progress, the colossal statue instead is to many Senegalese a towering reminder of the President's neglect for the common man and his greed. Detractors say the $27 million price tag was too steep in a country where many still live in deep poverty. Wade has also been criticized for pocketing 35% of profits based on his "ownership" of "intellectual rights."
Quick tangent: I've been to the statue, and, if we can forget the backstory behind it for a minute, it's really quite impressive. It's massive...and it stands atop a hill overlooking a remarkably flat city, making it stand out even more. You must climb a Great Pyramid-esque staircase to reach the base. Aesthetically, it's really well done. Like a National Monument you'd see in the U.S. One of two places - the other being the superduper supermarket - in Senegal where I thought, "This could somewhere in America."
Many people here are eager for a change after 12 years of Wade. Sure, much of the frustration is against Wade himself and his policies, but I believe there is also the idea that a healthy democracy requires change. So when Wade started making moves to preserve the status quo, people took to the streets. There is little doubt in my mind that the Senegalese were inspired by the success of the "Arab Spring" where protesters in Tunisia and Egypt among other places were able to force the government's hand by voicing their disapproval publicly. And fortunately, Wade and the government also learned from the Arab movements and decided that capitulating, rather than fighting back, is the best course of action. Within just a few hours of the protests starting, Wade removed the bill from Parliament, and soon enough the streets were quiet again.
The Senegalese electoral process follows the French model of a two-round system; if no candidate attains a majority in the first round (>50%), another round of voting between just the top two vote getters is held to decide who will be elected. If, however, one candidate recieves a majority in the first round, he is elected without having to hold the run-off. Wade wanted to change the percentage necessary to avoid the second round from the current 50% to 25%. This move was widely seen as a ploy for the aging and increasingly unpopular Wade to hold on to the presidency in the face of a divided opposition.
After 12 years in power, the Senegalese are tiring of Wade. I am certainly not well-versed in Senegalese politics, but the complaints I hear the most are that he is not doing enough to curb the daily power outages (we're 21 for 23 days since I got here. The two exceptions? The day of the national soccer team match and the day of the President's speech at the adjacent soccer stadium) and that he has put his own interests (remaining in power, his legacy, etc) ahead of the interests of the people. Widely criticized is the new Monument to the African Renaissance, a 160 ft tall (bigger than the Statue of Liberty) copper statue on a Dakar hill overlooking the Atlantic. While meant to be a symbol of unity and progress, the colossal statue instead is to many Senegalese a towering reminder of the President's neglect for the common man and his greed. Detractors say the $27 million price tag was too steep in a country where many still live in deep poverty. Wade has also been criticized for pocketing 35% of profits based on his "ownership" of "intellectual rights."
Quick tangent: I've been to the statue, and, if we can forget the backstory behind it for a minute, it's really quite impressive. It's massive...and it stands atop a hill overlooking a remarkably flat city, making it stand out even more. You must climb a Great Pyramid-esque staircase to reach the base. Aesthetically, it's really well done. Like a National Monument you'd see in the U.S. One of two places - the other being the superduper supermarket - in Senegal where I thought, "This could somewhere in America."
Many people here are eager for a change after 12 years of Wade. Sure, much of the frustration is against Wade himself and his policies, but I believe there is also the idea that a healthy democracy requires change. So when Wade started making moves to preserve the status quo, people took to the streets. There is little doubt in my mind that the Senegalese were inspired by the success of the "Arab Spring" where protesters in Tunisia and Egypt among other places were able to force the government's hand by voicing their disapproval publicly. And fortunately, Wade and the government also learned from the Arab movements and decided that capitulating, rather than fighting back, is the best course of action. Within just a few hours of the protests starting, Wade removed the bill from Parliament, and soon enough the streets were quiet again.
Friday, 17 June 2011
Chez les Filles!
Not only have the boys changed in the 10 months I was away from Dakar, but the House of Hope itself has changed as well. Last summer, the Masion d'Espoir actually consisted of two houses: Maison I housed 12 adolescent boys between the ages of 11 and 17 while Maison II was the home to 8 elementary school-aged boys. This year, a Maison III has been added to accomodate the first girls to be part of the House of Hope. The younger boys have moved into Maison III while the girls are at Maison II. Unlike with the boys, the girls do not live at the house; instead Maison II functions more like a school. The girls arrive in the morning and go back to their homes in the evenings. I do not know the backgrounds or stories of the girls very well, but I do know that, unlike the boys, they do have a home to go to at night. However, for whatever reason, they have been deprived of an education. (So Maison II is now a school. And I am the newest teacher!
Maison II has 9 students between the ages of 4 and 9. We study French and Math. I teach both subjects which means, yes, I am a French teacher...in a Francophone country. How did that happen? These girls know little to no French. Though French is the official language here in Senegal, it is not the first language of most Senegalese. At home, or on the streets, most people speak Wolof or a regional language. So I actually know more French than these girls. But it is a bizzare turn of events. After 8 months of struggling to learn French, at times convinced that I would never be able to confidently speak French, here I find myself teaching it!
I am only responsible for two of the girls, Olivia and Ally (names changed), who really don't speak or read French at all. So I'm teaching them to identify letters and sound them out. It's fascinating to see how quickly they progress - even in a matter of days. We also do math - identifying numbers, counting, basic addition and subtraction.
I work with the girls all morning, from 8:30 to 1pm, and then eat lunch with them. Remember how about a week ago I remarked on how quickly the boys eat here? Not so for the girls. The first time I ate "chez les filles" I had to put on the brakes to ensure that I didn't gobble down the entire plate. If we ever have a Maison d'Espoir meal with all three houses there are going to be a lot of hungry girls...
Below is a photo of the mural one of the boys did at Maison II. Quite impressive!
Maison II has 9 students between the ages of 4 and 9. We study French and Math. I teach both subjects which means, yes, I am a French teacher...in a Francophone country. How did that happen? These girls know little to no French. Though French is the official language here in Senegal, it is not the first language of most Senegalese. At home, or on the streets, most people speak Wolof or a regional language. So I actually know more French than these girls. But it is a bizzare turn of events. After 8 months of struggling to learn French, at times convinced that I would never be able to confidently speak French, here I find myself teaching it!
I am only responsible for two of the girls, Olivia and Ally (names changed), who really don't speak or read French at all. So I'm teaching them to identify letters and sound them out. It's fascinating to see how quickly they progress - even in a matter of days. We also do math - identifying numbers, counting, basic addition and subtraction.
I work with the girls all morning, from 8:30 to 1pm, and then eat lunch with them. Remember how about a week ago I remarked on how quickly the boys eat here? Not so for the girls. The first time I ate "chez les filles" I had to put on the brakes to ensure that I didn't gobble down the entire plate. If we ever have a Maison d'Espoir meal with all three houses there are going to be a lot of hungry girls...
Below is a photo of the mural one of the boys did at Maison II. Quite impressive!
Friday, 10 June 2011
Changes
One of the great joys of being able to return to the House of Hope and live again with the same group of boys is to see how they have changed in the ten months since we've last seen each other. Of course, in the areas you wouldn't want to see change they remain as impressive as ever: their generous and loving spirit, their sense of brotherhood, their determined work ethic, their commitment to their faith...I could go on and on! But to see how they are growing and developing is very exciting! The first thing I noticed is that they are simply physically bigger. Growing taller in adolescence is natural, and something we take for granted in U.S. and the rest of the developped world. But for the thousands of children living on the streets in Senegal, most do not reach their "potential" height-wise because of malnutrition. So to see these former street kids sprouting up like beanstalks is just another reminder of the work God is doing here through the House of Hope.
It's also exciting to see the boys coming into their own as young men, developing interests and independence. I think particularly of one of the boys named Boris. Boris is 10, the youngest boy in the house, and last summer he seemed a little out of his element with all the older boys. Though he had a 10,000 watt smile, he often kept to himself remaining on the fringes or even retreating to his room while the others did what boys do - wrestle, play games, argue with one another. He wasn't a recluse by any means, but I sensed he was lacking a little bit of confidence to be able to hold his own with the bigger guys. This summer, he is clearly coming into his own. I'm definitely seeing more of him; he's always in the fray and in addition to taking a little ribbing he's learning how to dish it out too. It's fun to see! (In case you were wondering if it was the Soviets and not the French who colonized Senegal...no, his real name isn't Boris. In the interest of the privacy of the boys, I won't be using their real names.)
The boys are also discovering their passions. Edward is a talented artist; last summer he was very excited to show me his notebook full of his pencil drawings. In the past year, his artistry has really taken off - one of his canvas paintings is hanging in the living room, he 's painted dozens of greeting cards to sell, and he painted a huge mural at the Maison II (photo to be posted shortly). I sensed last summer that Oliver had the makings of a natural leader. He takes his studies very seriously, he's always the captain for the neighborhood soccer games, and the other boys look up to him. He told me last week that he has a desire to help improve the fate of his countrymen, to help the poor in Senegal. He wants to study law and work in the legal system, to be a Christian voice in a country where he says the small minority of Protestants are afraid to speak up for their rights. Finally I think of Ivan (to finish with the Soviet Witness Protection program theme) who, like I did at his age, loves basketball. We played a lot last summer, and he insisted that I coach him (I was happy to oblige:) Well, I am completely blown away by the improvements he's made! Last summer, his shooting form more closely resembled that of Shaq than of Ray Allen. But this summer, it's like a different player! He's making his shots much more consistently and instead of wincing when he touches the ball, I can look on and admire his good form.
In both the little and the small things, I am consistently impressed by these boys. They are living testaments to God's transforming power!
It's also exciting to see the boys coming into their own as young men, developing interests and independence. I think particularly of one of the boys named Boris. Boris is 10, the youngest boy in the house, and last summer he seemed a little out of his element with all the older boys. Though he had a 10,000 watt smile, he often kept to himself remaining on the fringes or even retreating to his room while the others did what boys do - wrestle, play games, argue with one another. He wasn't a recluse by any means, but I sensed he was lacking a little bit of confidence to be able to hold his own with the bigger guys. This summer, he is clearly coming into his own. I'm definitely seeing more of him; he's always in the fray and in addition to taking a little ribbing he's learning how to dish it out too. It's fun to see! (In case you were wondering if it was the Soviets and not the French who colonized Senegal...no, his real name isn't Boris. In the interest of the privacy of the boys, I won't be using their real names.)
The boys are also discovering their passions. Edward is a talented artist; last summer he was very excited to show me his notebook full of his pencil drawings. In the past year, his artistry has really taken off - one of his canvas paintings is hanging in the living room, he 's painted dozens of greeting cards to sell, and he painted a huge mural at the Maison II (photo to be posted shortly). I sensed last summer that Oliver had the makings of a natural leader. He takes his studies very seriously, he's always the captain for the neighborhood soccer games, and the other boys look up to him. He told me last week that he has a desire to help improve the fate of his countrymen, to help the poor in Senegal. He wants to study law and work in the legal system, to be a Christian voice in a country where he says the small minority of Protestants are afraid to speak up for their rights. Finally I think of Ivan (to finish with the Soviet Witness Protection program theme) who, like I did at his age, loves basketball. We played a lot last summer, and he insisted that I coach him (I was happy to oblige:) Well, I am completely blown away by the improvements he's made! Last summer, his shooting form more closely resembled that of Shaq than of Ray Allen. But this summer, it's like a different player! He's making his shots much more consistently and instead of wincing when he touches the ball, I can look on and admire his good form.
In both the little and the small things, I am consistently impressed by these boys. They are living testaments to God's transforming power!
Tuesday, 7 June 2011
Meal Time
One of the more radical differences between my experience in France and my life here in Senegal is meal time. The French have a well-deserved reputation for being food conisseurs. They take food very seriously, and the day takes its shape around the mealtimes. Eating is never rushed in France. We always had an hour and a half break at school for lunch and my roomates who worked in various sectors each took at least an hour break at midday. Furthermore, the French are very particular about mealtimes. Eat a sandwhich while walking down a street in a French city at 4pm and you are sure to get a few strange, and likely dissaproving looks. Snacking, a favorite pastime in America, simply isn't done in France. I got the impression that snacking is disrespectful; food is so revered that it deserves its proper place - a table. We would often spend hours around the table at my appartment, starting with an "apero" of chips and a drink at 6:30 before eating our main dishes, then desserts, and then lingering around the table afterwards with a cup of tea. Likewise, at a restaurant or café, once you take the table, it's yours for the evening. No pressure from the waiters to move on so they can get the next party in and squeeze the maximum profit out of a Friday night.
Sooo, take that image of everyone seated around their table, calmly and patiently enjoying their meal....and contrast that with 8 hungry, growing, adolescent boys in Senegal. Mealtime here lasts approximately 6 minutes. We sit at a round table and eat out of a huge round bowl, each one with a spoon. Everybody claims a wedge-sized piece of the "pie." When we eat from a common bowl, the dishes are rice based, with vegetables and the meat - usually fish but occasionaly chicken - in the center. You start with the rice close to you and quickly little walls form between your space and that of your neighbors. Shortly after someone will start divvying up the veggies and meat, slicing them into bite size pieces with the side of their spoon and distributing a piece to each person. The boys make sure that everyone gets their fair share.
The food is very good here. What is lacking in variety of main ingredients (we eat variations of fish and rice about a third of the time) is made up for in flavor. The dishes are always tasty the flavor is never the same, though often slightly spicy, which I like. And there is always plenty to eat, though the boys make sure that nothing goes to waste. In this house, known as Maison I, the boys do much of the food preparation. Just this morning I lent a hand preparing the veggies and saw just how organized they are in the kitchen. Every morning they prepare not only lunch but also the evening meal. As someone who has trouble preparing one meal at a time for only one mouth, I am impressed at how well these teenage boys prepare multiple meals at one time for 15 people. And it always comes out good!
But I am impressed with the speed at which these boys eat. This weekend, when one of the boys finished his dinner in about 4 minutes flat and scampered off to turn on the TV, my acquired French mealtime habits sounded alarms in my head. "What are you doing?" I asked him. "You're already finished? I just started!" Seemingly reading my mind, he replied "This isn't France Brad!"
Sooo, take that image of everyone seated around their table, calmly and patiently enjoying their meal....and contrast that with 8 hungry, growing, adolescent boys in Senegal. Mealtime here lasts approximately 6 minutes. We sit at a round table and eat out of a huge round bowl, each one with a spoon. Everybody claims a wedge-sized piece of the "pie." When we eat from a common bowl, the dishes are rice based, with vegetables and the meat - usually fish but occasionaly chicken - in the center. You start with the rice close to you and quickly little walls form between your space and that of your neighbors. Shortly after someone will start divvying up the veggies and meat, slicing them into bite size pieces with the side of their spoon and distributing a piece to each person. The boys make sure that everyone gets their fair share.
The food is very good here. What is lacking in variety of main ingredients (we eat variations of fish and rice about a third of the time) is made up for in flavor. The dishes are always tasty the flavor is never the same, though often slightly spicy, which I like. And there is always plenty to eat, though the boys make sure that nothing goes to waste. In this house, known as Maison I, the boys do much of the food preparation. Just this morning I lent a hand preparing the veggies and saw just how organized they are in the kitchen. Every morning they prepare not only lunch but also the evening meal. As someone who has trouble preparing one meal at a time for only one mouth, I am impressed at how well these teenage boys prepare multiple meals at one time for 15 people. And it always comes out good!
But I am impressed with the speed at which these boys eat. This weekend, when one of the boys finished his dinner in about 4 minutes flat and scampered off to turn on the TV, my acquired French mealtime habits sounded alarms in my head. "What are you doing?" I asked him. "You're already finished? I just started!" Seemingly reading my mind, he replied "This isn't France Brad!"
Saturday, 4 June 2011
Bonjour from Senegal!
Hello from the House of Hope in Dakar! It's good to be back, and amongst the boys and staff that I got to know last summer. It's exciting to see the changes that have occured in the ten months since I was last here but also refreshing to see that the joy, energy, and character of the boys and atmosphere here has remained the same. One other change is literally refreshing: it's cooler here than before! This is thanks to the fact that I arrived over a month earlier this time, June 2nd rather than July 4th. I actually shut my fan off and curled up with a sheet last night for a little warmth!
It's fun - and waaay less exhausting - to be able to better communicate this summer. While 8 months of teaching English in France has not made me fluent as I had hoped, it has certainly made a huge difference in my ability to carry on a reasonable conversation. And unlike last summer, I have no doubts when the conversation here switches from French to Wolof. However, it has been a little tricky adjusting to hearing French in something other than a French accent. But within a week or two my ears should adjust. I'm looking forward to being able to get to know these boys even better this summer.
My specific duties for the next two months are a little up in the air at the moment as the couple that heads the Maison d'Espoir has one week left on their sabbatical. Once they come back, I will know more specifically what I'll be up to. For now, I'll be staying with the older boys all day...and all night. I have a room on one wing of the house to call my own, complete with the requisite mosquito net. It's the same living arrangement that I had last summer. Though there will be times when I just want to escape for a little while to find some peace and quiet, it's really a pleasure to live under the same roof as the boys and get a good sense for the rhythm of the day.
I better post this before we lose power - we've only lost it once today for a couple of hours, so we're due for another outage. When I remarked this afternoon at 2pm that we hadn't yet had a power cut, I was told that Senelec, the power company, had announced that because of the soccer game featuring the national team, there would be no power outages until after the match. Which kind of makes you wonder, if they have the ability to provide power to everyone for a day, why don't they do it all the time...? I'll see if I can get to the bottom of that one.
It's fun - and waaay less exhausting - to be able to better communicate this summer. While 8 months of teaching English in France has not made me fluent as I had hoped, it has certainly made a huge difference in my ability to carry on a reasonable conversation. And unlike last summer, I have no doubts when the conversation here switches from French to Wolof. However, it has been a little tricky adjusting to hearing French in something other than a French accent. But within a week or two my ears should adjust. I'm looking forward to being able to get to know these boys even better this summer.
My specific duties for the next two months are a little up in the air at the moment as the couple that heads the Maison d'Espoir has one week left on their sabbatical. Once they come back, I will know more specifically what I'll be up to. For now, I'll be staying with the older boys all day...and all night. I have a room on one wing of the house to call my own, complete with the requisite mosquito net. It's the same living arrangement that I had last summer. Though there will be times when I just want to escape for a little while to find some peace and quiet, it's really a pleasure to live under the same roof as the boys and get a good sense for the rhythm of the day.
I better post this before we lose power - we've only lost it once today for a couple of hours, so we're due for another outage. When I remarked this afternoon at 2pm that we hadn't yet had a power cut, I was told that Senelec, the power company, had announced that because of the soccer game featuring the national team, there would be no power outages until after the match. Which kind of makes you wonder, if they have the ability to provide power to everyone for a day, why don't they do it all the time...? I'll see if I can get to the bottom of that one.
Monday, 9 May 2011
Back to Senegal!
I am very excited to say that in less than a month I will be heading back to Senegal! I'm looking forward to reconnecting with the boys and staff in Dakar and with 7 more months of French-speaking experience under my belt I'm also looking forward to responding to questions in more articulate ways than "Oui" or "Non."
Once again, I'll be journalling and posting to this blog when I have the opportunity (and the electricity) to do so. I am now in the preparation stage for this trip, trying to get the word out so that those that would like to support me and the House of Hope this summer in prayer or financially can do so. Here's the support letter that I've written. If you would like to support me and the boys and the work being done at the House of Hope, that would be a blessing :)
Once again, I'll be journalling and posting to this blog when I have the opportunity (and the electricity) to do so. I am now in the preparation stage for this trip, trying to get the word out so that those that would like to support me and the House of Hope this summer in prayer or financially can do so. Here's the support letter that I've written. If you would like to support me and the boys and the work being done at the House of Hope, that would be a blessing :)
Dear friends and family,
Bonjour from France! I am writing from the city of Rouen in Normandy, where I have spent the last 7 months teaching English in the French elementary schools here. I have had a wonderful experience in the schools and getting a taste (literally, I’m going to miss the baguettes…) for French culture. My teaching contract finished, I am now preparing to spend two months this summer in Dakar, Senegal.
In June I will travel to Senegal to work with the boys at the House of Hope. Last summer I spent 6 weeks with the wonderful children there, who age from 7 to 17. These boys come from difficult and painful backgrounds as talibés. A “typical” talibé was born in rural Senegal but sent at a young age to the city to learn the Koran from religious leaders known as marabouts. Though entrusted to provide for the boys, all too often marabouts exploit their talibés, barely providing for their basic needs and forcing them to beg for money on the streets. If talibés return to their marabout without collecting enough money, they are beaten. Not surprisingly, many talibés try to escape by running away from their marabout, but end up alone living on the streets. I saw these boys every day in Senegal last summer, and the hopelessness in their eyes is heartbreaking.
In the midst of this turmoil and despair, the Maison d’Espoir is shining as a beacon of hope and rehabilitation in Senegal. The two boys’ houses are home to twenty boys who had formerly been living on the streets. Despite a past of neglect and abuse, their lives are being transformed. I was absolutely astonished at the joy, happiness, and friendliness exhibited by these boys. Thanks to the House of Hope, these boys have a caring community, regular meals, clothing, shelter, and access to education. Above all, the House of Hope is a place where they are respected and experience the love of God.
I am ecstatic to be returning to Senegal, to reunite with the boys and the staff that I lived with and learned from last summer. I am eager for the opportunity to continue to develop the relationships that were established last summer. With 7 more months of French immersion under my belt, I am excited to be able to communicate with the boys more clearly. My chief role will be to serve as a big brother and mentor. For these boys who have been abandoned and abused by adults, simply being honest, just, and loving goes a long way.
I am thankful to God for this opportunity to return to Senegal. I feel strongly that my time in France has been a preparation for this summer. I know that I am going to need to continue to seek God and lean on Him to meet my needs and provide direction. Would you consider supporting the boys and me through prayer? Chief among them include good health, safety, relationships and communication with the boys and staff, and good sleep. My experience last summer impressed upon me just how invaluable prayer is and knowing I have a team of people back home supporting us through prayer will be a tremendous encouragement. Furthermore, the cost of the trip will be ~$3000. If you would like to contribute financially, you can make a check out to Rainbows of Hope and send it to the address below.
Thank you for letting me share in my excitement for this wonderful opportunity. I will be journaling from Senegal, and posting whenever possible to my blog at donthasselthehoffinsenegal.blogspot.com. Thanks again, and God bless!
Rainbows of Hope
PO Box 517
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