Okay, I finally have some time to myself to write and let everyone back home know how things are going.
My good friend Kieran Thompson (shout-out!), recently sent me a FB message inquiring about my life in South Africa. Being a person who likes to be blunt, I offered the first statement that popped into my head: "There are a lot of black people here." And let me tell you that it is truly weird to go from being a member of the vast majority race-wise to the polar opposite end of the spectrum. I mean I am the only white person in both of my villages and, besides the tourists who are armed with their sunglasses and digital cameras as they zoom through the villages in their land rovers, I am certainly the only white person who has ever truly interacted with their communities.
Remarkably, though, my presence isn't the most surprising thing to the Zulus in my area. What really throws people off is the fact that I prefer to speak in isiZulu when I first interact with them. Every Zulu that I have ever met for the first time is completely unprepared and caught off-guard when I greet and carry the conversation forward in their mother-tongue. It usually turns out to be a very rewarding and positive experience. The other times, it is just awkward haha. But I am enjoying myself. If I was forced to sum-up my experience to date, I think the best way to describe how I feel is that I feel like a rockstar here in South Africa (minus the sex, drugs and rock 'n roll).
No matter where I go, even in my home community, I am constantly stared down. And I can never tell what the stare means until I attempt to greet the person in isiZulu. A smile means they're just confused by my being and a continued stare means either that they're still confused and don't want to react to my smile OR they are not enthused by my presence. So far, I have thankfully encountered very few instances of the last option. Most people are overly excited and surprised that I am living in the rural communities in which I am working. Everyone wants to know everything about me.
Also, everyone wants to make sure that I am taken care of in the most generous way imaginable. I have been to a multitude of weddings, funerals and other community-wide cultural events in the past few months (yes, weddings and funerals are both considered the entire community's affairs) and every time, I experience something new just because I am new in the community. I have been seated at one of the front tables next to the bride and groom even though I came several hours late, have been served food before everyone else at funerals even though I was the 200th person from the front of the line, have been served a mountain of food on my dinner plate even though others were far hungrier than me and have been asked to introduce myself to everyone smack-dab in the middle of a huge Zionist church service. The culture here aims to makes guests content even when it inconveniences or makes the host uncomfortable. A guest who leaves with a cheerful heart and a full stomach is the ultimate mark of pride for a black South African family.
Being sort of a rockstar in the community affords me many privileges that homegrown community members are not given. I find that I can ask about HIV/AIDS conditions and about vulnerable children much more easily than the locals. I also am looked at as an all-knowing resource. People have already started resourcing me to start providing help where it is most vital. For instance, I am already leading a maths study group Monday through Thursday at my house to help the Grade 12 learners with problems that their school educators cannot solve in order to pass their high-stakes test that are less than 2 weeks away. I am viewed as a fresh set of ears and as a community ally, which is helping me to grow and helping me to integrate with my community. I am stressed, overwhelmed, safe, happy, challenged, welcomed and needed. That about sums up how I feel.
Now as for my living arrangements, I am including a picture of my ihhisi below:
It's basically a rectangular rondavel (but called a ihhisi) and has a thatched roof that leaks profusely when it rains. I have a twin bed, a wardrobe, several small tables, an electric 2-plate burner, an iron with ironing board and a mosquito net. Originally I wasn't supposed to have electricity but my village was wired around 2 months ago. This enables me to play music, charge my phone and iron my clothes for work!
I live by myself in my ihhisi but I am a part of a family plot. I am now the 18th person in the Sigubudu family. We have 22 cows, over 30 goats, more chickens than I can count and 3 dogs. My oldest sibling is 26 years old and the youngest is 9 months old. On our plot, there are 2 ihhisi, 2 rondavels, the ancestral hut, and 3 small 2-room buildings.
The area that I am living in reminds me of the midwest. I live on top of a hill, overlooking a monstrous grassland, complemented with picturesque mountains in the background. Absolutely beautiful and breathtaking. It is always windy here and the temperature has varied from being ridiculously hot to unbearably cold. To say that the weather has been unstable would be an understatement. The past few days, we have had never-ending rain and epic lightening storms. The thunder is louder here than I have ever heard it in the States for sure. I actually lit my 1800's-style paraffin lamp the other night while the lightening was raging and read Pearl S. Buck's The Good Earth while enjoying a glass of my favorite South African Merlot. So relaxing. Here's a sample of what my area looks like:
As for my work, I am working in 2 communities and 2 schools. The first school, Mampunga Combined School, is right across the dirt road from me in Magaga. It is a K-9 school and has about 450 students currently attending. The second community, Section K, is about 4.5 miles across an immense grassland from my house. I have been walking but I am considering getting a horse or a bicycle to make my journey less time consuming. In Section K, I am working at a K-8 school called Buhlebamangwe Combined School. Buhlebamangwe has about 350 students currently attending it.
For the past month and the next 2 months, I am going to be observing, assessing and integrating myself in my communities. I have a series of tasks that Peace Corps gave me to occupy my time but I have also found myself walking around, meeting so many people and spatially mapping my community. At the beginning to middle of December, I will be drafting an action plan for the next 21 months of my life in South Africa. By that time, I hope to be a knowledgeable member of my communities and more in-the-know about a variety of challenges my communities face and the accomplishments that my communities have achieved.
Overall, I am excited that I am finally a PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEER who is in my permanent site and who is starting to create a POSITIVE IMPACT WITH MY COMMUNITIES!!! I could not be happier and I am certainly looking forward to the upcoming months of observation. I'll keep everyone posted with my progress. Thanks to everyone who has sent mail, posted on my Facebook wall, mentioned me on Twitter and/or sent me email. Your words of encouragement mean more to me than you imagine!
Siyabonga kakhulu,
Chad Wolver noma eSouth Afrika mina ngingu Mvelo Sigubudu
(Thank you so much,
Chad Wolver or Mvelo Sigubudu in South Africa)
