Graciously, you accept the offer for tea. After all, to refuse would be impolite. Together, the professor and you head to his house just off school grounds. He prepares the tea that is strong and tastes like an adventure. You suddenly remember that not everyone is in Africa, speaking a new language and hanging out with the locals in a small village. The world is suddenly surreal and you find that you are having the time of your life laughing and joking with your colleague. You range all over different topics from the welcomed appearance of some vegetables in the market to the inauguration of President Obama. You swell with pride for your homeland and for your connection to this new soil. The tea is soon gone. You depart with a blessing and an amen.
At home, you prepare your version of mexican food. You make a note to give some of the extra tortillas to your director. He loved them last time. Though, you do decide to keep the hand, tree and star shaped tortillas for yourself.
While reading in the evening, you receive a knock on the tin door. You open it to find a horde of kids waiting to come in. You go an flip on the external light, the only external light in this part of the non-electrified village (thanks to the last volunteer giving you a solar panel). You sprawl out the mats and help the kids until late in the night. The conversation runs through math, english, history and random cultural questions. You explain the idea behind constellations and why you have decided to grow out your hair. They show disbelief when you talk about the men that went to the moon. You ask them how far they have gone and they average around 15 k away. Somewhere in the conversation, you even put in a few inspirational stories about people that lifted themselves out of difficult situations. Their laughter and chatter still echo into the night as they head home around midnight.
In the closing of your day, you find yourself in an odd place of satisfaction. When you try to write the accomplishments of the day in your journal, you are empty of words but not of substance. You aren't saving the world like you thought but it is saving you. You close your eyes to one thought: "i'll never have to say that i should have..."
fin
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Kong Comp Lab
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a little about burkina faso
Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) achieved independence from France in 1960. Repeated military coups during the 1970s and 1980s were followed by multiparty elections in the early 1990s. Current President Blaise COMPAORE came to power in a 1987 military coup and has won every election since then.
Burkina Faso's high population density and limited natural resources result in poor economic prospects for the majority of its citizens. Recent unrest in Cote d'Ivoire and northern Ghana has hindered the ability of several hundred thousand seasonal Burkinabe farm workers to find employment in neighboring countries.
Location:
Western Africa, north of Ghana
Geographic coordinates:
13 00 N, 2 00 W
Area:
total: 274,200 sq km land: 273,800 sq km water: 400 sq km
Burkina Faso's high population density and limited natural resources result in poor economic prospects for the majority of its citizens. Recent unrest in Cote d'Ivoire and northern Ghana has hindered the ability of several hundred thousand seasonal Burkinabe farm workers to find employment in neighboring countries.
Location:
Western Africa, north of Ghana
Geographic coordinates:
13 00 N, 2 00 W
Area:
total: 274,200 sq km land: 273,800 sq km water: 400 sq km
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