10.8.13 Day 18: Today I taught immediately following chapel, from 07:30-08:50. The form 1 students are slowly coming up. The distinction between interested learner and disinterested learner can be made within a few minutes of each class session. Luckily, the number is growing in favor of interested learners. The students are beginning to understand my style and approach towards teaching them, and are beginning to show signs of enjoyment! After my lesson which covered adjectives, conjunctions, adverbs, tenses, and a review of vocabulary which is all in preparation for their first test coming up, I bid them farewell and returned to my house for some coffee and chatting with Bertha. Upon arriving at our house, I was upset because we were unable to access the internet. Having just been installed a few days prior, it did not make sense that we should already be having problems. I asked Bertha if she has an Airtel cellphone, to which she replied yes. The way internet works here in Malawi is based upon airtime credit. Allow me to explain. If you have never traveled abroad, you know that most countries around the world operate off a sim card system. We do as well in the US, but most of you probably have a carrier that does not require pre-payment but instead, is based on a post-payment system. As far as I know, Malawi only has a pre-payment system, which I actually prefer. You can purchase as much or as little airtime as you wish, with no mentioning of contractual agreements. The internet installed in our house operates off of a sim card, requiring Airtel (which is the company) airtime (which is the pre-pay credits you purchase). So I asked to borrow Bertha’s phone to put our sim card in it and check the balance. To my relief, the reason why we did not have internet service was not because something was broken or had been installed improperly, but simply because we had run out of airtime! Wanting very much to get in contact with my family to make sure everything was okay, I dashed off to the bank to get some Kwacha and then to find some Airtel airtime. The bank is about as far away as Charles’ internet café, so I decided I could use the walk, no problem. Approaching the edge of the St. Andrews campus, a skinny fellow approached me. Sometimes it is hard to know whether a person is being friendly, begging for money, offering you a ride on their bike, or advancing for some other reason. So it is best to keep one’s wits about them at all times. As I am walking, I hear a man speaking Chichewa to me, pointing in the direction I want to go, and finally says “Bus co” to which I somehow understood to mean “I’ll give you a ride.” Why? No idea, but I was correct. Being an experienced Nadja nji rider now, I have little fear about riding on the back of a bicycle, so I naturally hopped right on after securing valuables in my button-able pockets. Here is some advice when it comes to choosing your Nadja nji drivers—seek youthful, energetic men in your discernment process, because you get where you are going in a much faster and safer manner, and you can usually bargain your way down to the fair price of K 100 with little problem, and without the feeling of guilt. I made it to the bank safe and sound, paid the Nadja nji driver, and proceeded to enter the bank. It was around 10 in the morning by this point, and the bank was a happening place. I stood at the back of the line and waited patiently for my turn. As many will tell you, everything comes down to who you know in this world. It is especially relevant here in Malawi, even more so than the States I am finding out. While standing in line to get my money exchanged, I made eye contact with Geoffrey, one of the bank managers who is also a member of St. Andrews congregation. He was the man who assisted me in my first exchange of money a few weeks ago. So Geoffrey and I lock eyes from across the room and he motions that I should approach, so I exit the long cue, and see him privately! Taking the express lane is a fun luxury to enjoy. I would have waited 30-40 minutes to be seen otherwise. I am grateful to have met some helpful and loyal people here thus far. I intend to nourish each relationship that I have, that is worthy of proper care. Sadly, there are some who attempt to befriend you in order to gain something for themselves. I have already handled a few of those types swiftly and without issue, thankfully. So after my unexpectedly quick visit to the bank, I popped over to the Mulanje Motel next door, owned by Henry, another St. Andrews member. His establishment sells Airtel airtime, so I bought a healthy amount to last me about a month. Making the purchase, I chatted with Henry for a little while, and then wished him a safe and happy day. Just as I was leaving, Nelson gave me a call and said that he was told I was in the bank nearby and he wanted to walk me home. I find it quite funny that without GPS tracking technology, I am still very easily followed! But luckily it is by friendly people whom I wish to be accompanied by, and not strange folk. Anyhow, Nelson gave me some company on my walk home, and we made plans to meet up later in the afternoon for some music lessons. He is really coming up! I can tell that he is enjoying the struggle of learning staff notation, and we are applying his knowledge of the solfeggio system (Do, re, mi, etc) into the written form. It is a tough task for anyone to learn to read music, but I am making promises that if they learn how to read music, they will open up a Pandora’s Box of newly accessible music in this written form. I am truly enjoying this part of the adventure! Later in the afternoon, Nelson and I had a productive lesson and learned our way around some new material. Following his time, I taught 2 of my 5 handchime groups for 30 minutes each. I have over 60 interested students at this point! The first group had 11 students and was quite fun to work with. I assured them that despite not yet being able to read music, they could survive! I told them that if they understood the difference between left and right, they could master the art of ringing. I fibbed a bit considering that it obviously takes more understanding than just that, but they really needed encouragement in this moment of duress. Following my time of instruction, I heard the youth choir singing out in the courtyard and I decided to join them in song. Some of the members of the youth choir are also familiar faces I have met before playing ball outside of my house and the like. The song they were in the middle of singing was in Chichewa, so I tried my best to sing along with some of the words as they quickly passed by. If nothing else, I was able to produce tones that matched the singing. The bass was nonetheless supported! They kindly decided to rehearse a song in English that would be much easier for me to follow and sing along with. I was clearly instructed to sing bass, and so I listened intently while making it up as I went along and ended up doing a halfway decent job! What I love about the song structures here is that they tend to have refrains/choruses that are simple and easy to learn which repeat often enough for you to be able to really be involved in the process. It speaks to their M.O. of wide open arms of love and acceptance to all who come to Malawi. They make it as easy as possible to participate in their way of life, which is such an inspirational way to live! We all could learn a great deal from these people. After enjoying this session of music making with some youth, I retired to my home to spend the last evening together with Sarah. She is excited about going home and I can tell that she certainly has made the best decision for herself. I am happy for her but sad that she must go. She will be better off back home, and in a much healthier state of mind for sure. We enjoyed ourselves and watched the final episode of season 1 of Game of Thrones; she is now hooked! I wish and pray for her safe travels and an uneventful return back home to the US. Mulungu Akudalitse Sarah!
Posted on: Thu, 10 Oct 2013 08:45:11 +0000
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