Giving Thanks

Its a week after Thanksgiving and I have much to be thankful for. Two weeks ago we had our IST (in-service training) in Lusaka. We finally got to see all of our PC friends that we haven't seen since August. It was an amazing week. We had training sessions all day long and then had plenty of time to catch up at night. I've never danced so much in my life. Good times had by all.

We learned about a program called SPA (Small Project Assistance program). We can apply for small grants through the PC to help fund workshops and trainings for our community and farmers etc. I hoping to send some of my farmers to a week long workshop on fish farming next year. Its a great program. Also there is a partnership program where you can donate money to a specific project of mine. If you're interested, please let me know and I can explain it in more detail.

After IST we headed back to Chipata for Thanksgiving. It was fantastic. Eastern province has some people that can cook. We had Turducken...turkey, duck and chicken all wrapped together. Yum! Along with that we had all the usual fixens....sweet potatoes, stuffing, pumpkin pie etc. We all went around the table and said what we were thankful for. I have to say I was sad to spend Thanksgiving away from my family, however I'm truly thankful for the people here in Peace Corps. The last few weeks have been a turning point in my service. I've solidified several friendships that I know will last a lifetime. The girls of Eastern province are my rocks. I love them and cherish the times we get to spend together. Its helps making the days in the village go by quickly. They keep me sane! Its amazing...never could I have imagined meeting such wonderful people here.

After Thanksgiving, it was back to the village. Going through another time warp. Chipata to Lusaka to the village...they couldn't be more different. It really messes with your head sometimes. So I was really happy to see my family in the village again. I was excited to come back to a kitchen that was almost complete and a fence in the working. It was also a very informative week. I spent a great deal of time talking with the Amai's. They love teaching me about Zambian culture. As most of you know, I've had a lot of crazy things happening in my village. I finally got the history of my area and everything is starting to make sense now. Kapatamoyo means "to hate life" and they are very much into witchcraft and juju. Many women use "love potions" to try and keep their husbands from cheating. Which is a big problem here. On Thursday I met with a group here in Chipata to try and get them to come to my village and teach them about women's rights etc. There are a few individual cases that I'm dealing with now. I feel very strongly about women's rights so I'm hoping I can help them in some way. I won't be doing it myself, but hopefully I'll be pointing them in the right direction.

Then I was back to town. Yesterday was World AIDs Day for those that didn't know. We helped with a bike race and a basketball tournament. At the tournament, Sarah, Christi, Rachel and I held an HIV/AIDs session for the kids. It was crazy because it dealt with popping balloons and anwering questions about HIV. Fun times had by all. It felt great to be apart of such a big day. There was a marching band and dances. Rachel and I got to hold the finish line at the bike race. We were the only muzungu's in the stadium of several hundred Zambians.

Tomorrow its back to the village to get some work done and get some rest. December 5th marks my 6th month anniversary in Zambia. Time sure does fly. Hope all is well at home and I hope to update again right before leaving for Christmas vacation in Tanzania. Christmas Eve will be spent sitting on a white sand beach on the Indian ocean sipping some of Africa's finest wine. Can'
t get much better than that. I love Peace Corps and couldn't be more thankful for this experience!