Sunday, May 23, 2010


Life in Kitgum is pretty quiet right now so I’ve taken advantage of this lull in activity to fix up my house and get started on my garden. The house is now painted with pictures (of you all) and food hanging and newly constructed tables and bookshelf. The garden is dug and my new babies (not quite Angelina Jolie style) are planted in nursery beds: green peppers, onions, eggplant, cabbage, collards, tomatoes, groundnuts, and cucumbers. The subconscious is a funny thing by the way: I didn’t realize it until after I had finished painting, but I painted my house red, white, and blue and I now know that I cannot dig my garden as others do, I have to dig in squares in a grid system just as I did in Jamestown…talk about being a creature of habit. I am getting used to life here and while matching some names with faces is still a struggle, I think there may be a light at the end of the tunnel. My town (market, shops, other volunteers etc) is about 3km away and I have succeeded in winning the hearts of a number of people in the market aka they don’t cheat me, they know my name (Aber, not Heather…no one even tries to say Heather anymore), and they put in a little extra for free (for instance, an extra tomato or scoop of rice…truly, it’s the little things). Many other volunteers complain that there are children/adults running in and out of their homes without a care in the world (like an open house…all the time). Personally, my intruders are of a different variety: roosters, hens, chicks, and the occasional goat (the turkeys and turduckens—mixture of a turkey, duck, and chicken…not really, but that’s what they remind me of—(pictured to the right) are building up their courage as we speak). My garden makes me feel like Farmer McGregor in Peter Rabbit or Farmer Maggot in Lord of the Rings because I am constantly chasing the chickens, roosters, and especially goats away by running with them with my hoe or with a few token phrases in a variety of languages (Russian is the most successful thus far). Beginning of term exams begin on Wednesday and classes next Monday. As of now, I’m not entirely sure of my course load/schedule etc…but I do know that I am teaching one section of Secondary 1 (equivalent of like 7th grade) Math (which is 100 or so students), one section of Secondary 2 (8th grade) Biology (another 100), assisting in Secondary 5 (this is when classes are 2 or 3 students instead of 100 because everyone else either dropped out or didn’t pass the national exam they take after Secondary 4) Math, and potentially computers…hopefully this will all be sorted out in the coming week. Another thing on my “to do” list for this week is to solve the leaking gas stove problem (over the last two weeks I have been trying out my stove with some fellow teachers and an electrician, having recently acquired the tap needed to release gas from my tank to my stove—when the tap is open gas has not only been coming out of the burners, but also leaking out of the rest of the stove so when I would light the match, the burner is not the only thing that would ignite…remember that time you nearly blew up the Chemistry lab with an experiment gone wrong? Now imagine that happening about 5 times in a thatched roof hut, then 2 more times outside under a mango tree, and then 3 more times with a different stove in a classroom…I’m pretty sure I lost every hair on my hands, but thankfully nothing else). So now I’m on the prowl for a regulator for my gas tank that will solve all my problems…again, hopefully. Please send me letters, pictures, and emails about life at home! PO Box 68 Kitgum, Uganda or hrpasl@gmail.com I hope all is well!

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Home Sweet Home



On Wednesday April 21, 2010, I officially became a Peace Corps Volunteer. The ceremony took place at the American Ambassador’s home in Kampala (which is absolutely beautiful, so if you have any inclination towards being an ambassador, do it: it’s the Oz beyond the yellow brick road). --to the left, see my home...a bit smaller but I have a mango tree as a neighbor!
After 11 hours on the bus, I arrived in Kitgum and am currently settling into my home. My school, Y.Y. Okot has about 1000 girls, all are boarders and most left for holidays the day after I arrived. The next month will be spent readying my home, learning how to get around, meeting people, and getting ready to teach Biology and Math this next term, starting the end of May. My address is PO Box 68, Kitgum, Uganda should you care to send me anything and I’ll get to writing letters to those of you I promised soon. The president of Iran visited Kampala the other day, marking yet another step in the development of an oil field here—this is the government gearing up for the upcoming election (accompanied by the creation of 14 new districts, a nation-wide tour, and road maintenance).
Meanwhile, I am busy making my little hut a home: painting, furnishing, gardening, etc. My first full day here included a nice welcome lunch with all the teachers at my school, followed by everyone sitting around my hut and drinking beers both to welcome me and to celebrate the end of a term. Things are a bit slow here because the students are all gone, but before the last of them left, I got to attend a student church service. The service was student-run and full of music and of this high-pitched yell that women make here as an expression of joy (kind of like Xena the Warrior Princess’s war cry, but faster). The service took place in a building that used to be a place for night-commuters during the war to sleep. The school stayed open throughout the war and resembles a fortress with a 24 hour guard, tall walls, and barb wire. Let’s just say, security will not be an issue. After attending a Canadian-run conference on teaching children affected by war and the first of two nation-wide track and field meets in honor of a famous Ugandan runner from Kitgum (these are meant to be a major recruiting event for the National Team so these athletes are the crème de la crop), both at my school, I have a feeling that I’ve come to a real hotspot of activity. I am continuing to learn the Acholi language (my fellow staff and the community are bent towards helping me) and as of this morning, I have acquired a Swahili teacher….hopefully I won’t get confused, become the tower of Babel, and need to be smote down by God… As always, my thoughts and prayers are with you all and I hope to hear from you all about how life is at home.