Fire Walk With Me

I just spent 5 days in a town called Bayakh, population 2000, about 30 minutes away from the comfort of the training center in Thies.  It truly was a trial by fire.  We learned what language we would be learning ( I got Wolof) and had our first language class one day and were promptly shipped off to our new families the next.  We knew only the bare essentials which consisted mostly of greetings and polite ways to take leave.  Those few days were a whirlwind of 7 hours of formal class per day plus meeting, greeting, and getting to know the family despite not having any idea what they're saying.  Despite all of this, I couldn't have asked for a nicer, more welcoming family so far.  While this test has pushed me to my limits so far, the support of my hosting family makes it a little bit easier.

My spirits were up and down during my first stay at what we call CBT (Community Based Training).  I had a spectacular meal during lunch and a meal that gave me food poisoning at dinner.  I would have a positive interaction and feel like I was making progress one day and feel completely lost the next.  I mostly resorted to pity to earn the good graces of my host family.  It's not the most honorable strategy, but it was likely the most effective I had at my disposal.  The more I learn the language, the more comfortable I'll feel.  Or at least that's what I have to keep telling myself.

Culturally, the Senegalese typically live in big families and these families share everything, including germs, unfortunately.  Meals, especially lunch, are eaten together from the same bowl.  This provides for some moments of questionable hygiene, but also some moments of touching displays of compassion.  When we're eating from the bowl, I will often get pieces of fish or carrot tossed into my part of the bowl by another family member, subtly suggesting that they are there to take care of me and ensure I get what I need and also subtly suggesting that I should eat more.  If we've learned nothing else in our local languages so far, we've learned the command "Eat!" and we've learned how to say "I'm full."  That is one of the most essential skills of CBT.

Tomorrow, I will return to Bayakh for 11 days and begin working on my training assignments which includes analyzing the physical and economic landscape of the community and basic financial literacy skills in my family.  It appears that as I get more comfortable with the language and culture, I will be given more and more complicated work assignments.  I can only hope that the fire dies down before the hot season comes.