Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Sometimes a pictures is worth a thousand words...so I will let Moie, Bertha, and Benne do the talking this week! These three girls can be found at my house just about every day, swinging upside down in my chikuta and just being silly. Moie and Bertha are the niece and daughter of Mrs Mpongo, and Benne is the daughter of one of the teachers at my school. I wish you could all have them come play at your house one day - they are so much fun!

Zam Fashion

If you are anything like me, when you picture African fashion you imagine tribal attire with the sword or water jug as the perfect accessory. Not so my friend! Unbeknownst to most of the world, Zambian fashion is made up mostly of second hand clothes from other parts of the world – mainly the United States. Since my last blog was a bit heavy, this week I thought I would stick with a lighter subject-the majesty of the second hand t-shirt, and its impact on Zambia. Most of the Zambians wearing these t-shirts have no idea what the slogans or logos mean and so this makes for a really humorous situation. I highly doubt that Milimo really was one of the ‘Mission Viejo Softball Champions’ or that Nchimunya has been to Arizona. My friend Brad tells of the pastor at the church in his village preaching an entire sermon while wearing a t-shirt with the caption ‘Tequila Mornings’ under the picture of a donkey wearing a sombrero passed out on the floor. His only response was “Amen.” At the funeral this last week Mrs. Mpongo wore a ‘Las Vegas’ t-shirt with a glittery rose on the front. Not exactly your typical funeral attire in the US. A couple months ago I was teaching at the school when a student walked in wearing a ‘Drake Relays’ shirt. Drake is the university in Iowa my little sister Devon attends. Maybe they know each other? The rapper 50Cent has a clothing line that is also very popular here in Zambia, though most of the people here have never listened to his music. My favorite is the knock off ’50Cents’ line of clothing that has also become popular. I also love seeing little kids wearing ‘Nick and Jessica 4ever’ shirts – guess that one didn’t work out? One day I know I’ll see a Coronado High School or PRIDE soccer shirt…you just never know who will be wearing your clothes next! Granted, for a lot of the people in my village this is the nicest shirt they have, and so they wear these clothes proudly, but I can still smile to myself and think, “Where am I?”

Price of a Life

Chipego Caitlin Mpongo October 11, 2006-February 7, 2007. "If there was a price for life I would have paid it. If I could have bought it to save her I would have." Those were the words my friend, Mrs Mpongo, sobbed into my shoulder as I held her on the side of the road. She had called me minutes earlier to tell me her daughter had died. Let me start from the beginning...Mrs Mpongo is the head nurse at our clinic and her family has embraced me since I came to my village in August. We've worked, cooked, played, and gardened together for the last 8 months. When she gave birth to a baby girl last October she introduced her to me as my "namesake" and another Chipego Caitlin was welcomed into our village. Two Thursdays ago Chipego musyoonto (little Chipego) had a fever and trouble breathing and was rushed to the hospital here in Choma. Her parent's waited with her Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. On Monday tests were finally done to try and diagnose her condition. When I came to the hospital to visit on Tuesday the doctor had still not come to read the tests but she was showing signs of improvement. The x-rays showed pneumonia in her lungs, and Mrs Mpongo had advised the nurses to give Chipego medicine while they waited further information from the doctor. It was around 10am on Wednesday morning that Chipego looked her mother in the eyes and then took her last breath. Mrs Mpongo told me she only wished that Chipego could have talked so she would have been able to tell her what was going on inside of her. Over the last 8 months I have been so immersed in the poverty here that I have somehow become a bit numb to the situation. It is easy to forget that poverty truly is a matter of life and death. We take so much for granted living in the US. Health care at its very worst in the US is still far better than the health care system here in Zambia. As a child I too had pneumonia, had I been born here in Zambia, most likely I would have died. Through the funeral and burial process in my village I have heard people comfort the family by saying, "it was God's will." Though I am fully aware of God's presence through this situation, I honestly do not believe it is God's will for people to live in poverty, for children to die because of medical negligence. Had this same scenario played out in the United States we would be screaming about malpractice and fighting for justice. On Friday we buried Chipego on a farm in our village. The choir sang "It is well with my soul". She fought for her last breath here on earth, but I am sure Chipego was having no problem breathing in the sweet scents of heaven. A little girl's body lies beneath the soil now, but her memory will remain alive in my heart. Cherish the time you have and those you love.

Care Packages

Thank you to all of you who have sent me AWESOME letters and packages here! People are always asking what type of things I want/need out here, so here is my latest list! But most importantly I love getting letters and pictures from you all!

Canned tuna/chicken
Trail Mix
Beef Jerky
Raisins
Dried Fruit
Brown Sugar
Oatmeal
AA Batteries
Magazines
Books
Skittles/Starburst/Gummy Bears/Peachios/Any fruity candy
Paper/Pens for my village kids
Bubble Gum/Candy for kids in my village
Any kind of ball/game for kids in my village

Thanks! Send any mail to me at: PO BOX 630569 Choma, Zambia

Laugh With Me

The topic I really want to write about this week is "Top 10 Reasons Zambia Sucks", but in an effort to stay positive I'll choose another topic. How about we go with things that made me laugh these past couple weeks? When we came upon a couple of pythons, I was quickly advised by my counterpart that pythons, contrary to popular belief, are actually "Christians, they don't bite people." Now you know. Chuckle. Or what about the names some Zambian parent's give their children? When you first see you precious newborn child why wouldn't the name "Alien" pop into your mind? Or maybe you think, "Oh wow, she looks just like a 'Pharisee'!" Those of you currently expecting, I just want to encourage you to maybe steer towards other name options. You don't want someone to make note of them in a blog one day. I also laughed/rolled my eyes as we are on transport to town yesterday and the top of our truck hit this branch causing a flock (yeah, that is the technical term) of catepillars to rain down on us. So not only are we in the back of this truck with bags of maize, a few goats, and tons of people, but now we have bright green catepillar guts on us and these bright furry creatures crawling everywhere. For whatever reason Zambians don't fear snakes but they fear catepillars. I was a pillar of strength amongst the masses and brought the hysteria under control. Definetly made me laugh.

Just a little insight into me, when I am really homesick I mask things with humor! Besides that, the last two weeks in my village have been the most encouraging workwise. I was able to do a training with 6 community members on Home Based Care. They will be caring for those who are unable or unwilling to get to the clinic for treatment. The workshop went really well and people were very receptive. My girls' club at school is going well, this last week we made "girls" out of playdough and had a really good discussion about all of our similarities and differences. Each girl was asked to write down a goal for the year, and when I received them, each one had written she wanted to be able to complete her education. I am super excited about investing into these young women over the next couple years. Also, on Monday I was able to meet with a doctor at a neighboring mission clinic and have organized for them to come do mobile HIV counseling and testing in our area on a monthly basis. This is HUGE as people in our area have never has access to testing. The head nurse at our clinic will be back from maternity leave in the next couple days, so work with the clinic should also pick up and go a bit smoother as she is an amazing woman.

I will close with a message from my friend here, Cholwe (17). She wrote this in a letter to Brittany, my friend back home in Colorado:

"You must not be thinking that Chipego is in trouble-NO! She is fine and she is under God's care. Greet all who know Chipego, don't worry, my friend, about Chipego, I'm with her."

Miss you all!