Patrick Swaziland

Hey everyone! I wanted to catch you up quick on some things that are going on! First, I shadowed a girl named Allie who has been in the peace corps for a year now. She works at a school in the rural parts of Swaziland. The headmaster just started his job there and is related to the king. Swaziland is the last African monarchy…and maybe the last one in the world I think. The people are governed by tradition and culture which has close ties to the King and Christianity mixed with past witch craft. I live next to a traditional healer if that tells you anything. My friend is staying in my room tonight because her family’s grandfather, mhkulu in siSwati, died 2 years ago today and all the relatives are staying up all night to have a night vigil. Its very common. Funerals are another story, but I haven’t had to go to one with my family yet. The Zion church is influencial here too. There are different types and they were different colors, but the red group are a little more aggressive and scare me. One volunteer from a past group went to one of their services and they started pulling her hair. They are known for beating each other up and themselves by biting and hitting. I don’t fully understand why, but they scare me and I try to stay clear.
I have visited some kagogo centers (community centers) and also some clinics. We are going to be interviewed soon for placement. We also have our siSwati test coming up and we have to be at a level 4 this year. Previous years volunteers have only had to pass a level 3, so I’m a little nervous. The language has a lot of clicks and stuff, so its difficult to remember.
My community doesn’t seem to have a high number of HIV/AIDS victims. That is only by the naked eye though and its difficult to tell. We went to the school in my village though and 80% of the kids we talked to knew someone or was living with someone with it. That’s nuts. They are polygamous here which doesn’t seem to help. I live with one of the wives of my Babe (father pronounced in Spanish vowels). Its surreal sometimes when I look around and think that I am actually here…and alone! It’ll be good for me though and it will give me time to think about future plans, personal goals, etc. A girl as young as 11 yrs. Came to the clinic in the nearest town to be tested for HIV/AIDS because of sexual activity. It’s really sad. We’ve been interviewing kids to find out when their freetime is to try target those times to do activities to keep them out of trouble. It seems like HIV/AIDS has affected so many people, you don’t really know where to start. All I want is to be useful. I don’t want to waste this time by not being effective at all. My hope is to help at least one young teenager in my area or mentor someone or anything at all to make me feel like I helped even a fraction of what’s going on.
I was getting water from the watering hole the other day with another volunteer. We had our buckets. A bunch of kids were filling their buckets too. I know limited siSwati but the kids love it when we try. I yelled Jiyva (which means dance) to a little girl who was dancing around the water spring. She laughed and soon I formed a circle of little kids and made them clap their hands to a beat. When someone would get in the middle we would sing, “Sinenhlanhla likes to dance. Oh she likes to dance. Who will dance for me!” And then I’d pick someone. The kids were really good dancers and they loved to see me try. They were all ages. For the finale, I did the robot. Needless to say…it was a hit. The robot is universal. It’ll always be a good idea. When in doubt…do the robot.
Lastly, I confirm again and again how irreplaceable my friends and family are. It would be nice to be able to talk to you guys during all this. Maybe God wants to use this time to help me recognize and appreciate the relationships he gave me while I lived at home.
We listened to Mariah Carey in a taxi on our way to town yesterday. It made me happy because A) it was a piece of America and B) it reminds me of friends: singing til my vocal chords almost exploded with kate trying to hit the high notes on our way to see Melinda and thinking of sieff’s little mini crush on Mrs. Mariah Carey Cannon…I miss you all!
One more thing...I went to a church today that was amazing. Chuch usually lasts 4hrs. around here so it gets long. When you are white, its hard to sneak out...so you don't. It was good though and it was translated into English. The usher invited me because I met him at a store earlier this week and he helped me find the rice krispies because I am making bars for my family. They requested them. :)
Write me letters! Get the address from my mom or sister! Its so hard to check my emails and really expensive. It’s about $5 US to use this and I get money to keep me living at the standards of the area around me…so not much. I would love to get a letter though because I can re-read them over and over again in my room at home if I am homesick. I think of you all often and have pictures that I show everyone.