Summing up: another post before the last one

I leave tomorrow and as things will be, I am having conversations that are shedding light on the future and the possibility of my continued involvement re in Senegal.

Today, I got to the office and the gate was locked. As some of us waited for someone with a key to come, we chatted and I struck up a conversation with Sara who works with cyber learning here in Senegal. She is young, American and has been here for some time ...  We spoke about the library and the culture of borrowing Vs giving and of how to obtain suitable reading material-- in French-- that includes African authors and materials especially adapted for Senegal.  We spoke of adult literacy.  I feel hope that in some way the work I have done here will trigger a small wave that will facilitate learning and therefore empowerment for someone....

There are the goals of an organization and then there is the reality of day to day experiences and the fact that change happens most often imperceptibly.

Yesterday at home  it rained in torrents and we moved indoors me and sat and chatted as Maman made supper (deep fried fresh fish, french fries, salad .. and for me deep friend shrimp- some sort of snack food that I can eat.  The light was dim, and our numbers were reduced to 6 as the two young men who I had thought were nephews and just discovered are friends of friends left in the morning for the vacation. 
One young woman who does the cooking and cleaning  had gone home; the other, Soxkhna was sick, so Maman (third oldest daughter) cooked. The grandson had for some reason stayed with his parents for the last couple of days.  The two other American volunteers had left.  So we were just 6 around the evening supper tray.

After supper (around 8:30), Mme Sanakho and I sat with our feet up against a corridor wall ... we all sipped the treat ( a bottle of sprite ) Mama and I had put in the fridge that afternoon (the fridge in the corner store had not been working). Then we watched a sitcom in Wolof together.. I got fed up with one of the characters at one point and prepared to go to bed but the group persuaded me to stay - . I am glad I stayed and shared this family moment. Excellent way as well to learn a little more about Senegalese culture.


In the home I live, there seems to me to be a gap between the freedom given to the young and the traditional expectations  expected of married children. Must be difficult for this young generation to know how to make sense of the different values.

Today I am finishing up my final report at the office. The program director has not been here this week and I may not see her before I leave. I am making copies of everything.

At home Mama is doing  my laundry- of course, by hand. She or maybe Yande will iron it with the charcoal iron.  No chance that I do it myself. :-)