Happy's log: I can take pictures too!

Me watching Muno while Mommy cooks

I love  my little T.V. Mommy only lets me watch one hour of my favorite shows a day and sometimes she lets me hold my T.V. and watch "Yo Gabba Gabba" while she is cooking.  Mommy says my T.V. is a classic and that is why I have to wear headphones.  But that is ok with me!  Mommy puts my special head band on to keep the round things on my ears.  She is just so smart! 

This is the best show ever!

I love making funny faces!

When my show was over and I realized Mommy was taking pichas, I just HAD to take pichas too!  Sometimes Mommy will let me push the button if she holds the camera and I love to do that.  She doesn't let me do it that often.  But thats ok.  We looked at all my pictures on the computer when we were done.  Mommy kept laughing but I thought my shots of our ceiling and wall were spectacular and not at all funny!

See, Mommy's smiling. I'm a good photographer!

~Happy

Shae's log: Its silver I'm looking at, not Tanzanite

Washing up my fruits and veggies!

So for all the many people, places, and things in Tanzania that I complain about, I decided that a balance was in order. There are many "silver lining" items here in Arusha that I choose not to acknowledge because wimpering over "what I don't have", or "what I miss", or "who is annoying me now" is fun drama to write about.  But its not realistic to the life I live here.  Sure, there are a reputable amount of negatives going on that make my days more difficult. Still, there are a lot of positive things happening that I will miss when I'm NOT in Arusha anymore.  One of the biggest things that I could never deny Tanzania --that is beyond wonderful-- is the quality and price of the produce. 

While its true that finding produce items I am accustomed to in the United States is a bit difficult to procure here in Arusha, there are some key items that CAN be found in certain markets, on certain days, during certain seasons.  And when you find them.... food heaven.  So I thought I would list for you what my sleuthing skills championed for me this week:

With a total equivelent cost of 27 USD, and a trip to 4 different markets, I bought:

2 shelves & 1 drawer full of produce goodness

tomatos
carrots
bell peppers
onions
potatoes
broccoli
lettuce- green leaf (hard to find)
lettuce- spring mix (impossible to pass up when found!)
mnafu (Tanzanian green leafy-- like kale)
CILANTRO -  my prize find this week!
limes
lemons
sweet corn on the cob (so good I ate some of it raw!)
butternut squash
purple cabbage
artichoke (steamed and consumed tonight! Yum)
apples
canteloupe (season has begun)
watermelon
green beans
bananas

I will NEVER be able to purchase that much quality produce in the U.S. for that price.  With the amazingly fresh cilantro (coriander for my international friends)  and lime purchase, I have been chopping up and serving fresh salsa for lunch.  My housegirl loves it!  Happy puts her whole hand in the bowl and just eats the tomato, onion, cilantro, and lime mixture like its a finger food!  I am in fruit and veggie heaven this week and I couldn't be happier.  I will miss that when I am gone.  All this fresh produce is why I'm fighting allergies as well I am!  There is something so RIGHT with fresh foods and something so WRONG with all the overly processed JUNK we eat in America.  I am convinced that this good diet is what is helping Happy grow and overcome the obstacles of her infancy.  Lets just hope that all this good eat'n will help me make up for not eating during the first trimester of this pregnancy.  Time will tell.  But seriously, my skin and nails have always been the healthiest both times of living in Tanzania.  Its the "silver lining" food. I'm convinced.

Tonight's meal: cut potatoes and onions with a side of boiled artichoke.  So good.

Shae

Shae's log: Culture vs. what is right

So, I've been very annoyed that my camara charger "walked out of my house".  It was very upsetting to not get any video footage of Happy's father because there wasn't enough charge on my battery.  Four days... FOUR days we looked for that charger.  Opened every bag, took out every single clothing item, unfolded it, inspected, and put back, with through every toy, blanket, box of medicine, EVERYTHING at least three times to make sure I was absolutely NOT losing my mind and that it was gone.  Well.  It was. 

And then it showed back up on Wednesday, in a crate, on an obvious shelf, and in a location that we had dumped out, searched, reassembled, and dumped again about 3 times.  I know how it got there.  I haven't said a word.  I am just grateful that it is back and am letting it be...

I was discussing this with a volunteer friend today as we ran some errands in town.  I was telling her that I really haven't felt like the person who took it from me has been successful in taking too much.  Because everytime I mention something is missing, and we tear the house up looking for it, it reappears in the exact spot that it should be and a spot I"ve looked and my housegirl has looked a million times over.  But my volunteer friend reminded me of this: 

There is a pressure on Tanzanians by OTHER Tanzanians to be unfaithful to their white, western employers.  There is this perception, and rightly so, that white people have all the money and won't miss anything from their home, purse, car, whatever.  And so the loyal Tanzanian workers for these westerners are torn between the pressure of their friends and family to "borrow" whatever is needed from the employers home and what they know is right--- which is leave it alone!  I keep forgetting this fact.  In truth, I will never know this type of pressure.  And while I find it annoying to keep looking over my shoulder, the depth of poverty and struggle in this country is SO BEYOND what I will ever experience in my lifetime, that I must show a little compassion and let be those things which have been made right.  And I am. 

This week, the son of my housegirl has been struggling with a chest infection and in the last two days he has been vomiting.  I gave her money and time off to take him to the hospital.  She was short some cash for medicine and I paid for that too.  In truth, it cost me under $20.  You, my amazing friends have given me money as a one time gift or continue to put some in my account every month and I am SO grateful.  Please know that in addition to helping me and Happy, you are also giving a 18 month old sick little boy some relief.  I could take a hard line and say, "well, I pay my housegirl enough, she should be able to pay for this herself".  But the truth is, I don't pay her enough.  Its shameful what I pay her and yet I pay her better than the going rate.  And she has made my life so much better in the last four months.  And while she may struggle with the pressures that I mentioned above, I want my impression to her to be one of compassion.  I don't have to be naive and vulnerable to being taken advantage of.  But as a young mother, you will do anything you can for your child.  And I think she is just trying to do that herself.  Culture and environment are forcing her into decisions that she herself is obviously struggling with. Because I see her correcting her mistakes whenever she makes them.  So I guess I need to take the kinder gentler approach and do for her what so many of you have done for me. And in doing so, I will remember that I have been imperfect, I have been guilty of wrongdoing, and I am still struggling with what is good and right.  I deserve compassion and forgiveness as much as anyone else!

Anyway, that was a long approach to saying I can take pictures again!  I'll post some soon.  My friend Lauren is going to take some photos of me to capture this time of pregnancy since I don't really have any.  Those photos also coming soon.

~Shae

Happy's log: Mommy is buggin' out

He's thick, black, and hops about 4 feet high.  And he chirps SO freakin loud. Never seen a cricket this huge.  He's disgusting and I have about 3 a night. UGH!

 

Its 1:45 a.m. and Mommy is trippin!  Several nights over the last two weeks, Mommy and I keep waking up to a visitor in her bed, my crib, or somewhere else in the apartment.  Just now, mommy woke up when I popped my head up over my crib... I think she's hearing the same thing I am.  She started pulling clothes from the shelf and food from the kitchen pantry shelves, looking for Mr. Cricket.  She's saying not-nice words and cursing my home country.  Its a good thing I only understand English better than I can speak it.  

Mr. Cricket has stopped singing and I think its actually making Mommy more mad because she keeps calling him and he stopped answering.  When he does come out to play/sing, I wonder if he'll hop into my bed again.  Sometimes I hear him hitting the underneath of my crib and mommy's bed but he doesn't always make it in.  He hops on the door and the rhythm sound is kinda' cool.  But sssshhhhh! Don't tell Mommy.  I don't think she likes his beat!  I don't mind his singing, but sometimes it gets too loud and wakes me up.  It wakes Mommy up too and I think she doesn't like it.  I heard her say to Pendo that Mr. Cricket from yesterday was 2 inches big... but I don't know what that means?  I only know metric.  I think that's bigger than my hand and longer than Mommy's pointy finger.  Kinda' cool, huh?  This afternoon, I got to hit Mr. Cricket with Mommy's shoe after she had been pounding on him because he wouldn't "go to sleep".  He's so thick!  I guess he needed a good pat on the back to settle down! He's more fun than those annoying ants.  But the ants in Mommy's pants this weekend made me laugh because she was hopping around like a crazy woman.  But besides that, those ants are just annoying.  Ok, I"m gonna' try and go back to sleep.  Its 2:00 now and Mr. Cricket has stopped singing and Mommy is now on her computer. I'm sure I'll hear Mr. Cricket in a little while. I wonder if Mommy will start cursing again??

~Happy

Shae's log: The president and the prime minister

So today, my boss a.k.a Gemma Sisia a.k.a. Mama St. Jude a.k.a. an australian celebrity got called all day to see the President of Tanzania.  She finally (and calmly I might add) made her way from the Arusha campus to the Moshono campus and met him at his temporary residence across the street.  And being the forward thinking and gracious women that she is, she took a secondary student from St. Jude with her.  When she got back we got to hear about the surprise that the student had at meeting the president, got to see pictures, and saw more pictures of Gemma and her daughter hanging at the Prime Minister's house in/of Australia.  Gemma is so humble about all of it.  She is the type of woman I strive to be.  People always say how inspiring she is and she shrugs it off and puts credit on other people.  I think this is the way we should all be-- humble, disciplined, spitfire (when need be) and gracious (when you don't have to be).  I want to be like her when I grow up. 

Who do you want to be when you grow up?

~Shae

Shae's log: Fulfillment of a Dream - St. Jude

Let me be honest… I love my Happy girl.  I am thrilled to have been able to come back here to Tanzania and be her mom.  She has long filled a void in my heart and I feel so complete with her in my life.  But I have to be honest about something else… I miss being a volunteer. 

My boss Gemma and some of the students

I don’t know how it happened, but volunteerism has become part of the fabric of my character.  I jones to serve the way a runner needs exercise and a retired teacher still needs to teach!  Coming back to Tanzania required that I set up a home and make money to care for Happy and me.  So accepting the job at Safaris-R-Us was a lifeline in this crazy storm of adoption and I’m grateful for it.   Still as elated as I was, and still am, to live and work here, the void of volunteering has created a sadness in me that I could not have anticipated.  I feel useless in a country screaming out for my talents and energy.  I’m a wasted vessel.  I hate it. 

K and his student

Well, I hated it until last week.  You see, I forgot about the promises that my job in my little safari company was delivering on someone else’s dream!  You have read my type (as opposed to “hear me say” – get it?  Yes, I’m lame!) about how our company donates a monetary portion of each safari to The School of St. Jude?  Well, our company is in its infancy.  It isn’t even yet one year old.  And yet, our little 6 member team somehow managed to secure enough clients for us to donate over 12,000 USD to the school. 12 thousand dollars people!  That’s a lot of money.  And it got me to thinking…

Some of the teachers at the school were once sponsored children themselves.  Someone from an organization established out of America or Europe decided to take a chance on these kids—now adults—and make sure that they got a good foundational education and sent them to teachers college.  And now these students are the adult teachers working at The School of St. Jude.   I realized what an incredible gamble was made by educating these individuals because there was no guarantee of a job after college.  And all the efforts of providing them a better life would go unfulfilled. And I think I lost sight of that.

Assembly time

Every time I land a client, book a safari, and get money deposited into our company’s account, I am fulfilling another dream.  While its true that The School of St. Jude gets their sponsors from all over the world, when the global economy went into crisis a few years back, so did the school.  Almost 50 positions were eliminated from the school in effort to keep it afloat.  And while it has been a few years since that happened and the economy and sponsorship is growing again, not all the positions have been rehired and many of those workers never ever found jobs.  I don't know what situations that had to go back to. Dreams unfulfilled.  And I somehow forgot that. 

the home of a student from St. Jude

While its true that I no longer have “my hands in the trenches”, my work in the safari company is so very needed.  We have a busy schedule ahead for the new safari season and it would be great if we could DOUBLE the donation amount for 2012, thus allowing outside sponsors to cover the students, as we slowly cover the cost of the Tanzanian teachers and staff.  

 

The inside of a boarding room at St. Jude

I may be behind the scenes, but I am coming to realize that I am as much a part of the volunteer “machine” as anyone on the front lines.  My efforts sustain the life of a teacher or staff member, who provides a new life for a current student, who will then go on and build a business and a future for his/her own family, and truly create a new Tanzania.  St. Jude’s motto is “fighting poverty through education”.  And I am so proud to say that I am a part of that fight. 

2011= $12,000.  I think I can do better than that for 2012! 

*all pictures courtesy of Gemma Sisia

A most beautiful sight.  The kids read and study all the time.

The entrance to the school and a reminder of why I'm here!

Me and Glady riding the bus

Shae's log: No more photos from Africa

After four days of turning my single room + bathroom apartment into shreds, I cannot locate my camera charger.  I have opened every food container, looked through every piece of clothing, opened every pocket and zipper of my empty luggage, pulled everything off of the few shelves i have, questioned my housegirl over and over and over, and relocated every piece of furniture. It is my conclusion that the charger was removed from my house. Sadly, I had my toilet worked on last week and although I was here... the list of people in my apartment other than myself comes to a total of 3. 

I'm just wondering about the day when I inadvertently forget to take the matching camera with me, and that too disappears? I hate packing up my electronics and locking them up everyday.  But seriously, the high rate of "misplacement" in this country is shocking.  Even people whom I love and adore here will look me straight in the face, with a bright smile and say "no, no, Shae Shae. I don't know what you mean" as I pull the lost item from their pocket.  And i'm not kidding.  My boss has so many stories and has taught me so many safeguards which has been really helpful.  We have an IT guy who has lived all over the world and it seems every week he, my boss, and I are swapping stories of "misplacement".  Its a sad reality.   

This week I'll go into town and look at the electronics that get hocked on the street.  And I'll offer a few shillings for someone else's "misplaced" charger if I can find one compatible.  It will make me feel sick inside.  But maybe, I'll find my own.