Tis the Season

Cold Season
Though Mauritania has cooled off, it feels more like the warm end of spring than late fall. The nights are pretty chilly and require a large blanket or sleeping bag. The other day, I spent the day wrapped up in a sleeping bag for the majority of the day. The thermometer said 84 degrees. Does that mean I’m adjusting to living in the Sahara? If Mauritania felt like this year round, it would be much more enjoyable. Even though we still have a couple of months left of this weather, I’m already dreading the hot season that follows. Luckily I’ll be in South Africa for a couple of those weeks in May. It will be winter in the southern hemisphere, which will make re-entry to Mauritania a little more difficult, but the break will be worth it.

Work
I’ve finally starting to form a direction of where I want to go with my work. The difficult part about being a SED volunteer is the lack of structure. Many of us are just assigned a town and told to get to know the community. Once a community assessment has been done, we decide where we can help and get started. Of course nothing is black and white and sometimes ideas become impossible before they’re fully developed. My first project I’ve decided to work on is with a village 2 kilometers from Magta Lahjar. Another volunteer was posted to this town the same time as me, but recently “early terminated” her service. While she was here, I visited Lekrae a few times and had lunch (and tea and zrig) with the families out there. Every time I was out there, I really had the feeling of “these are the people I joined Peace Corps for”. They’re so genuine, constantly smiling, and more than willing to work with Peace Corps. They’re also some of the poorest people I’ve seen in Mauritania. The people of Lekrae have wanted to have an AgroForestry volunteer for years now. I’ve gone to their gardens with them and seen what they’re growing. Of course, if any of you know me, I have no green thumb what so ever. If I tried to actually help them with their garden, chances are I would do more harm than good. So, I’ve started to formulate a plan to put a SED twist on things. I recently spoke to the Assistant Peace Corps Director (APCD) for AgFo about what I can do to help. We’ve discussed me getting monetary assistance from a Peace Corps fund to provide more seeds to the garden cooperatives. After this, I can analyze how many more crops they will be growing. When I asked them what they need, they had a list that included seeds, pesticides, fencing, a new water well, and gardening supplies, such as hoses and wheel barrels. Hopefully I can help them see that the profit they make with the new crops can be saved so they can purchase other supplies. I think this is a good start to many other avenues I could take. I’ve recently talked to many AgFo volunteers who have offered to come spend a few days in Magta Lahjar/Lekrae and do some classes with the gardeners. I’d also like to work with the cooperative on a SED level and see how organized they are. Often, money issues can stem from lack of organization with in a cooperative. Hopefully this will be a good first step.

Holidays
Thanksgiving has come and gone and Christmas is quickly approaching. Thanksgiving made me miss home and my mom’s delicious food, but made me thankful for the wonderful fellow volunteers. For Christmas, I’ll be heading to Nouakchott, the capital, with the majority of the volunteers to attend a special Christmas celebration at the Peace Corps Directors house. It’s a very generous treat he provides every year. It gives us a chance to not be as homesick on Christmas day. After Christmas, I’ll be returning to Rosso to see some friends and my old host family. Rosso is the stop in between Nouakchott and St. Louis, Senegal, where volunteers traditionally go for New Years. Hopefully I’ll be staying at a bed and breakfast for a few days and enjoy the comforts that aren’t available in Mauritania. St. Louis is on the ocean, so we can go to the beach and wear bathing suits without worrying about offending the locals. After New Years, all of the first year volunteers will return to Nouakchott for 5 days for Early Term Reconnect/In-Service Training. So as you can see, things are about to get crazy, so I’ll spend the next couple of weeks getting ready for being gone for three weeks.

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving and ate lots of turkey for me! I definitely missed seeing everyone and eating good food. The Panthers beat the Packers, so that’s good. If I don’t update before Christmas, may you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!