Returning to Tanzania

I have been back in Tanzania for almost a week now (!!) and throughout this first week, many thoughts, reflections and emotions have (naturally) surfaced.  Struggling to capture it all, I decided to make my first post consist of two ‘top six lists’.

Top Six Things that Have Changed (in no particular order)

6. School Faces.  Not a shocker that faces have come and gone in two years. Madam Gonda, such a sweet lady and the first teacher who really welcomed me at the school, has retired.  Madam Jennifer, who joined the teaching staff just a few months before I left, is now married and a ‘veteran’ teacher.  And, there are two new males teachers on staff, Mr. Raymond and Mr. D.

5. Hotel faces.  Like with teacher faces, some people who I used to see everyday are not longer and new folks have been added.  The very kind Eunice has developed cancer and can no longer work.  L  The dining room staff has hired two new, young men, Lucas and Z.  Lucas is full of energy and a goof ball and Z is very reserved, polite and very helpful.  And, in addition to the Stella Maris staff family, Inno Mkubwa and his wife Glory now has his own young baby!

4. The school library.  While I was here last time, the oldest children and I worked hard on the library  to make it a special place. We made our own (OLD SCHOOL) ‘color’ coded filing system for each book in the library – by simply coloring small 1 in x 1 in squares of white paper six different colors based on the levl of difficulty of the book and taping those 'codes' on the spine of books  –  so that we could arrange them like a real library.  We numbered each puzzle within the library, and the corresponding pieces to each puzzle, so that they could be kept intact over time.  We sorted and stored the rest of the donations so that items were easy to access and so that we always knew how many we had of each item.  And, while I was here, the library was open twice a day EACH day, on a weekly schedule so that each grade got to visit twice per week, so that children could come a read, color, play with puzzles, PlayDough, etc.  It was my worry that when I left, the library would ‘shut down’ and the organization that we worked so hard to make happen would fall by the waste side.  I tried my best to seek the assistance of one of the younger teachers before I left to ‘run the library’ while I was away - but I learned from both the children and Teddy that the library is rarely opened, and I saw with my own eyes that the library has become more of a massive storage closet than a joyful place for children to visit.  This is not too surprising, though, as running or monitoring a library is beyond the ‘usual’ Tanzanian teacher responsibilities, so teachers would a) not be used to this additional task b) are less willing to understand the 'need' for the library to be open each day.  It was still disappointing to learn, nevertheless.  It is my personal mission while I am here this time to really buy Mama Shayo in the benefits of keeping the library open regularly so that it can continue when I head back to the States in August.  I’ll need any and all prayers on this matter. J

3. Stella Maris’s ‘run’ of the land in Mailisita.  Not only has the P7 classroom – the last classroom –  been built, making the school larger, but Stella Maris also has begun to rent the quite large ‘hotel/bar’  and accompanying outdoor space next door!  This acquisition means even more room for guests = more revenue = more resources available for the school and the children.  Today, Teddy and I went over to check on the progress of the repairs, and it was so cool to see the expansion of Stella Maris happening right before my eyes.  More to come about this later, too. 

2. Shamila.  My goddaughter who was just a mere 6 months when I left is now walking, talking and is gigantic – for a two year old!  Inno was so kind to bring her with him to the airport to pick me up, and although she had absolutely no clue who I was – understandably so, it was still so touching to see her in my first few minutes on Tanzanian soil.  She let me hold her while Inno loaded my bags in the car, sat in my lap for the entire ride from the airport to Stella Maris AND even fell asleep in my arms – suffice to say, my heart was overflowingly full. 

1. The children.  They are so big.  They are taller.  The boys look like young men and the girls are filling out into young women. They are becoming young adults.   Secondary school, here we come!

Top Six Things that Have Stayed the Same ( in no particular order)

6. Tanzanian time.  Today, I went to visit a scholar’s family and home (more coming soon about this visit), and I was told that I would be picked up at 5pm to go back to Stella Maris.  At 6pm, I was not yet worried, but figured I maybe should call to check in on things – but, since I have not yet set up my Tanzanian phone, I was out of luck.  Thankfully, at 6:27, Schola and Inno arrived with groceries from town.  J

5. Kili.  She , I like to call the mountain a she, is just as stunning as ever.  Although she has been hiding in the clouds recently, it has been so beautiful and calming to wake up to her for the few mornings she has been visible and watch her disappear as the sun sets.

4. Hearing Swahili around me.  I just love it!  It makes me want to learn more and more and more – while simultaneously making me feel like I know nothing at all. J

3. Mama Shayo and the teaching style.  She is still tough as nails.  She still scares all of the children and most adults.  She still is ‘saving’ donations so that if they ever stop coming – which they won’t- there will still be many things for the children to enjoy.  She still demands I take tea each morning.  She still calls me her daughter.  And, she still is open to this mzungu’s crazy, American ideas about teaching, the library, etc, which is saying quite a lot since the Tanzanian teaching style has not changed from 1950’s Catholic school approach to teaching in the two years since I have been here. 

2. Teddy.  Her smile, her laugh, her jokes.  She is still so sweet and so welcoming to all guests.  While her daughters are growing like weeds, she has lovingly taken in another child that did not have a home.  She is what makes Stella Maris come alive – what gives us the special ‘feel’ that cannot be beat. 

1. The children.  Their politeness, their graciousness, their work ethic, their appreciation of the smallest gesture, their sweet hearts, their resilience – all still 100% intact.

I found it almost poetic that both my lists naturally ended with the children, for they are why I am back and what makes this work worth it.