water.
I’ve been feeling the urge to update this blog throughout the week but I haven’t felt that I had anything new/interesting and/or deep/thoughtful to share. At the same time, I am also so critical of my writing that composing a casual post turns into an hour long endeavor or longer. And frankly, after a full day of training, writing a new entry just seems so daunting and time consuming.
Earlier today, I was at my usual hang-out spot (Casa Dos Dois) with some of the other trainees and we were talking about what it’s going to be like when we return to the states. We know we’ve only been here three weeks (as of today!) but its little things that we never paid much attention to that seem to consume our reflections and frankly, the majority of our conversations. For example, today we had about an hour long information session on diarrhea. To quote one of the trainees, “I think I’ve talked more about shitting in these past two weeks than I have during my entire life!” When you become a Peace Corps volunteer and you are half-way around the world, you and your fellow colleagues will spend a significant amount of time describing and talking about your bowel movements. The conversations range from ‘I’m good so far! Fingers-crossed that it stays that way’ to talking about who’s sick, who’s constipated, and frankly… any other interesting or unusual bathroom stories- like the success of not peeing on yourself while squatting over the nastiest toilet you’ve probably ever seen in your entire life (and here I thought bathrooms in Mexico were gross).
Anyway, I’m veering of my point- we were talking about what we were going to feel like when we returned to the states and got the opportunity to use a flushing toilet or a shower with warm running water. This guy named Mike (who is here with his super cool wife, Marissa. Yup! We have a couple in our training class!) said, “I think I’m going to CRY!” I think many of us are going to be over-joyed to move on from bucket baths and nasty bathrooms.
In perspective, a bucket bath is not the worst thing in the world. It’s more time consuming, yes- but overall, it’s not a big deal. You heat some water, bring it over to your casa de banho and mix it with some cold water in a bigger bucket and ta-da! You have warm water for your bath. It’s just interesting for us (trainees/future volunteers) to think about the different ways we go about our daily routine and how it compares to the comforts back home.
It’s really interesting, for me at least, to see how well people can adapt to different circumstances. I’m constantly reminded everyday of what a luxury it is to live in the states, and how so many task are just so much simpler. Since people here in Namaacha (and in other parts of Africa that are more rural) don’t have running water- the task of obtaining water for their basic needs consumes so much of their time and energy. If they don’t have a faucet in their garden or near their house, they have to go to a well and get water by lowering small plastic containers or buckets. Once they have obtained the water they need, they need to carry it back to their house… and its probably hard for you (the reader) to conceptualize this… but think about how heavy a gallon of water can feel after a few minutes. Now multiply this and imagine carrying all the water that you could possibly need- for drinking, bathing, washing, etc. Crazy, huh?
And even if some people do have faucets in their yards, the water doesn’t run every day. So when the water is running through, people take advantage of it and conserve extra water in larger water bins throughout their house (that they or their embragadas have to restock). In my house, we have medium-sized water container in each bathroom and we have a large one outside that stores the water that is used for washing clothes and such. Luckily, the kitchen faucet always has running water, and that is water that has been treated and is used for cooking.
So, later today, when you jump into your shower as you are getting ready to go to work or school, etc- know that you are privileged and be grateful. Grateful for the convenience of not having to fetch your own water and treat it or heat it before use. Be grateful for running water, be grateful for warm water, and be grateful for clean water. Even though this might not seem a luxury to you- know that IT IS and that many people in the world do NOT live this reality.
I’m not writing this to make anyone feel bad, I just think that it is important that we have a conscious understanding of the world that we live in. And I understand … that yea, I’m over here ‘roughing it in the 3rd world for 2 years’ as a Peace Corps Volunteer but at the end of my service I still have the privilege of returning to the states. Whereas, the people I encounter during these next two year will continue to live this harsh reality after I am long gone … Ideally, the hope is that their lives will see an improvement in their quality of life… and if not during their generation- in the future generations to come.
Earlier today, I was at my usual hang-out spot (Casa Dos Dois) with some of the other trainees and we were talking about what it’s going to be like when we return to the states. We know we’ve only been here three weeks (as of today!) but its little things that we never paid much attention to that seem to consume our reflections and frankly, the majority of our conversations. For example, today we had about an hour long information session on diarrhea. To quote one of the trainees, “I think I’ve talked more about shitting in these past two weeks than I have during my entire life!” When you become a Peace Corps volunteer and you are half-way around the world, you and your fellow colleagues will spend a significant amount of time describing and talking about your bowel movements. The conversations range from ‘I’m good so far! Fingers-crossed that it stays that way’ to talking about who’s sick, who’s constipated, and frankly… any other interesting or unusual bathroom stories- like the success of not peeing on yourself while squatting over the nastiest toilet you’ve probably ever seen in your entire life (and here I thought bathrooms in Mexico were gross).
Anyway, I’m veering of my point- we were talking about what we were going to feel like when we returned to the states and got the opportunity to use a flushing toilet or a shower with warm running water. This guy named Mike (who is here with his super cool wife, Marissa. Yup! We have a couple in our training class!) said, “I think I’m going to CRY!” I think many of us are going to be over-joyed to move on from bucket baths and nasty bathrooms.
In perspective, a bucket bath is not the worst thing in the world. It’s more time consuming, yes- but overall, it’s not a big deal. You heat some water, bring it over to your casa de banho and mix it with some cold water in a bigger bucket and ta-da! You have warm water for your bath. It’s just interesting for us (trainees/future volunteers) to think about the different ways we go about our daily routine and how it compares to the comforts back home.
It’s really interesting, for me at least, to see how well people can adapt to different circumstances. I’m constantly reminded everyday of what a luxury it is to live in the states, and how so many task are just so much simpler. Since people here in Namaacha (and in other parts of Africa that are more rural) don’t have running water- the task of obtaining water for their basic needs consumes so much of their time and energy. If they don’t have a faucet in their garden or near their house, they have to go to a well and get water by lowering small plastic containers or buckets. Once they have obtained the water they need, they need to carry it back to their house… and its probably hard for you (the reader) to conceptualize this… but think about how heavy a gallon of water can feel after a few minutes. Now multiply this and imagine carrying all the water that you could possibly need- for drinking, bathing, washing, etc. Crazy, huh?
And even if some people do have faucets in their yards, the water doesn’t run every day. So when the water is running through, people take advantage of it and conserve extra water in larger water bins throughout their house (that they or their embragadas have to restock). In my house, we have medium-sized water container in each bathroom and we have a large one outside that stores the water that is used for washing clothes and such. Luckily, the kitchen faucet always has running water, and that is water that has been treated and is used for cooking.
So, later today, when you jump into your shower as you are getting ready to go to work or school, etc- know that you are privileged and be grateful. Grateful for the convenience of not having to fetch your own water and treat it or heat it before use. Be grateful for running water, be grateful for warm water, and be grateful for clean water. Even though this might not seem a luxury to you- know that IT IS and that many people in the world do NOT live this reality.
I’m not writing this to make anyone feel bad, I just think that it is important that we have a conscious understanding of the world that we live in. And I understand … that yea, I’m over here ‘roughing it in the 3rd world for 2 years’ as a Peace Corps Volunteer but at the end of my service I still have the privilege of returning to the states. Whereas, the people I encounter during these next two year will continue to live this harsh reality after I am long gone … Ideally, the hope is that their lives will see an improvement in their quality of life… and if not during their generation- in the future generations to come.
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