It's amazing how relative time really is. The period of time that had passed, from the moment I learnt I was going on this trip to when I actually left for it, flew by without me noticing. On the other hand, these past two weeks have felt like an eternity.
We arrived in Camrose the Friday before last (Sept.3). After the group performed our rather beautiful song for everyone, my CP and I met some of our host family and they took us to what will be our home for the next 10(ish) weeks. Let me introduce the family to you:
1. Rod is my host dad. He is a social worker who, from what I understand, works closely with adults with disabilities, and makes sure that they are receiving proper government aid and anything else they might require. He loves the outdoors. In the winter he will dig holes in the snow and sleep in them. Like myself, he is an introvert, listens more than speaks, but has a lot to share.
2. Kathy is my host mom. And what a mom she is! From the moment I met her, she made me feel like I was already part of the family. I don't think I have ever met such a genuinely welcoming person. Kathy reminds me a bit of my dad. You could pick any topic that you wished, and she would surely have something to say about it. Like Rod, she has such a heart for those with disabilities, and has been working in various jobs with people having physical or mental limitations. She loves to talk, laugh, dissect movies, and is very well read.
3. Neil is my host brother and the oldest of the three children. He is quite possibly the smartest 20 year old I've met. He's read more books than I will in my life time, and can carry a conversation better than most adults I know. Diagnosed with muscular dystrophy early on, Neil has been in a wheel chair for majority of his life. Despite this, he's quite ambitious, and is currently taking film classes and is in the middle of preparing a story board for a comic book.
4. Tamara is in the middle. She's 16 and has just had her wisdom teeth taken out. I remember what I was like at 16, or remember stories of what I was like at that age anyways...and I think my parents would have lost a lot less hair had I been more like her. Like her brother she is very well read, intelligent, and has a lot to say. She is quite involved with Scouts and her church, and, honestly, seems so much older than what she is.
5. Elsye is the youngest at 13. She is the sweetest thing, and has done quite a lot to make me feel at home. I have never heard her talk back to her parents (or any of the kids really). She's quite thoughtful, also very intelligent (runs in the family), and has kindly been my tour guide around the city. Makes me wish I had a younger sister...or makes me wonder that I should have been a better younger sister....
Anyways, there you have it. My host family. I didn't mean to go on as much as I did, but there's just so much to say about them. I consider myself incredibly fortunate to have been placed where I was. Without a doubt they have been instrumental in keeping me sane over my first week in Camrose. It's nice to have this home away from home....
Moving on! So you've heard about my host family, now onto the program.
All this week, the girls have been meeting up from 9-5ish to discuss, plan, organize, quarrel, and discuss some more. Each day has been incredibly exhausting. We've been going over guidelines of the program, what is expected of us as volunteers, what to expect from work placements, etc. We had different speakers come in from the community to talk about sexual health, sustainability/environment, different organizations, and so on. Though we're having all this information given to us, I can't help but feel this program is slightly chaotic and incredibly spontaneous. Sometimes we have no idea what's going on until the hour before it happens....but I'm accepting that that is part of the nature of this program. We have to be incredibly flexible and dynamic, two qualities that are very new to me, but, I guess, are useful to have.
I'll mention two highlights of the program from this week just so you have an idea of what I've done so far.
The first was that on Wednesday we participated in our first community event. It was an International Dessert night for World Literacy Day. Now as part of the evening, we were to bake desserts specific to our background/culture and along with it write out the recipe (in English and home language) as well as a description about yourself and why you were attending that event. Though I wouldn't have given this request for a recipe/description second thought, some in the group brought up an interesting, and very valid, point. If this is for a literacy group that targets those who cannot read or write...why would you ask them to write out a recipe in a language that is not their first, along with the description? It does seem counterintuitive...and if anything would only alienate those they sought to target....
Besides that fact we went anyways. Don't think we had much choice though. As a group, we baked four desserts...two Canadian, two South African. The baking part was probably my favorite. I worked with some South African girls to make a trifle...which sadly, did not work according to plan, as the jello did not set in time. We compensated with the custard though, so it wasn't a complete loss! The actual dessert evening was so so. There wasn't much of a turn out, and if our group of 20 hadn't shown up the room would have been quite empty. I did get to meet some locals however, and I was glad to see that, though few, I (and the others on the CWY team) wasn't the only minority in town!
Second highlight, though at the time it felt like more of a lowlight, was selection of the work placements. Throughout the week we have had several activities or discussions that have required group decisions. Now picture 18 girls in one room. 18 girls from 18 different parts of the world, with 18 very different personalities, opinions, and histories.... This makes for some very difficult decision making. I don't think I have ever experienced as much frustration, helplessness, and annoyance as I have in this week.... Well, I probably have, but the fact that these feelings have been compounding day after day just makes it all seem worse than it really has to be.... Anyways. I was talking about the work placements. It was a very stressful hour. I ended up choosing as my first preference, the placement that five other Canadian girls also wanted. In the end, by some miracle, I wound up getting the placement. I do feel guilty that others got shafted in the process....and I wonder now if it was worth holding on to? People seemed OK (though slightly drained) after the whole ordeal was over though.
My placement is with an NGO called Sahakarini. The organization works with partners in developing countries to help them build and develop projects in education, health, etc. They focus on programs that are self-sustainable, and have contributed to different projects in Africa, Asia and South America. Here is the organization's website: http://www.sahakarini.org/index.htm.
I will definitely be filling you in on what I will be doing more next week when I start the job. I am very excited though....from what I heard about the organization and what they stood for, it lines up very well with what I was hoping to get involved with.
Well. I guess these are brief snapshots of little portions of my week. In a way I feel that this blog is serving as my own, incredibly inadequate, means of recording the entire process... I really wish I could say more but there is so much to say and I don't have the time nor patience to do so. Because of this, I also feel that I am limiting the whole experience in a way, and giving only one portion of this story. This blog will never suffice, but perhaps that is a good thing?
Anyways. Here is my song for the day: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYIqL9HUZu4
I loved this song back in the day....I remember it was my summer anthem a few years back. I would drive around late at night and listen to the song over and over and over again. I'm not sure what led me to it again. You'll probably find the song incredibly depressing, but I find it incredibly beautiful. Have you ever come across a song that, upon listening to it, has reached it's ghost of a hand inside you, taken grasp of your heart and transferred some form of it's emotion to you? I feel that when I listen to this song. Though, watching the video gives it a whole new dimension. There's something about that little ghost that just breaks my heart....
Anyways, I think that is enough for now....
I still miss my old life, but I'm also enjoying this new way of living.
Until next time...
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