Wa lala po?

Clearly, I am not very good at updating/blogging. Thought I’d give a brief update of what I am doing and how things are going. Two weeks ago I swore in as a volunteer…..whoothoo….officially a PCV! Directly after that I was driven up to my permanent site in Oshakati.

For the next two years I will be living with a family in a modern style home. We have running water; cold showers are something I don’t think I’ll ever get use to and electricity (even a TV w/cable!). Yes folks, I am living in the posh corps! The family consists of: Meme, her three daughters, two grandchildren, one cousin, and two/three random cousin types. Let’s just say cooking dinner for the family can be interesting! My meme is super sweet and understanding. She really understands that I need my own private time and space, which is great, since it can be super overwhelming at times.

I am working with an organization, which has an afterschool program for 120 orphans and vulnerable children. I am responsible for improving and running the program, which was just structured in February by a couple of volunteers from England. I have one volunteer helper, but it is still a challenge to get the kids settled down and listen. Also, my lack of understanding in the children’s language tends to be a problem when trying to get them to quiet down. At the moment, I am just treading water, trying to figure out the best way to structure lessons for the children and keep their interest while doing it. If anyone has any ideas/games to play with the kids, email me!

“Hey Shulumbu” is a phrase that I am becoming accustomed to, translated as ‘hey white person’. The children at the center call me it daily and I am constantly reminding them I have a name.