It’s been a long time since I’ve kept this blog- I’ve never
been a good journaler. So much has happened in the intervening months that its
hard to know where even to start. ],
but lets give it a shot, shall we.
I wrote this journal entry over a period of days in my
village. Electricity came to my village for the first time in February and I have recently started bringing my computer
to my site and charging it once a week at one of the teacher’s house who has
power.
Time seems to have disappeared. As I write this I have just
5 months remaining in my service. Where has the time gone? Because I’m not sure. Term three is almost
over and the Grade nines who I have been English begin their big two week examination period tomorrow (
11/11). The results of these exams determine if the student can advance to the
10th grade or not. High
School is not compulsory in Zambia so many children end their school at the 9th
grade.
My big-huge(!) Project of my service has been the library.
In America, Libraries in schools are something we take for granted. But in
rural Zambia getting your hands on even one book can be challenging.
illiteracy, even for children in grades as high as grade 9 is a huge problem. In
June, I helped the school and PTA members to organize a fundraising walk around
the village to raise not only funds but also awareness about the project and
the importance of a library. Nearly every one of the shop owners in the market
area contributed but in was nowhere near our estimated budget so I wrote a grant
through peace corps which was funded in august! Things have really started
moving, though this being rural Africa, at a slower pace than I would like. We
are renovating a classroom and painting a Map of the world on the side of the
wall. World Vision and Oppe Elementary School in my hometown have generously
donated books. The soon-to-be librarian and I have only sorted and recorded
half the books and already we are at 637 books! Fingers crossed for us that we
will be able to complete the project before I finish my service!
More to come soon!
