Small Moments and Happy Days

Jul 7, 2024

4 min read

“You don’t speak English,” my host brother said to me with a tilt of his head and a laugh in his voice. “What?” I shot back. “Yes, I do!” “No. C’est fou.” / “No. That’s crazy.” he replied.

“Ok, je parle quoi?” / “Ok, what do I speak?”

“Tu parles le Fon” / “You speak Fon”

… alright, then. Needless to say, I don’t speak Fon, but the fact that my brother would joke with me like that meant so much to me.

I have a verbal tick. As a nonconfrontational person, I love to give disclaimers. My disclaimer of choice in French is “je pense” / “I think.” When I say “je pense” at home, I’m subjected to rounds of “Oh, elle pense”/ “she thinks.” Sometimes, my family members choose violence and toss in “je pense” at the end of one of their own sentences. It makes me want to fight them, but it means the world to me that they can tease me and I can tease them back.

I love my host parents. They fight for me when I don’t know cultural norms about pricing. They insist that I take photos everywhere I go for the memories. They rush to my aid when I need help. Already, my mother has started saying that I shouldn’t go to site in two months, I should just stay here with them. It’s a tremendous blessing to have such caring parents by my side.

This week on Tuesday, we had an amazing session on gender equitable practices! I was thrilled to be introduced to several specific programs that I’ll have the opportunity to work into. Literacy and education rates are lower for women in Benin, so it’s great to know that there are many established Beninese foundations working on this issue. This session really made me look forward to service. I have two counterparts at site, and they’re both women! I’m hoping that by teaming up with two well-established women professionals we can accomplish good work together. Time is flying, because Week 6 which felt years away is not this week but next week. I’ll meet my counterparts then at the counterpart workshop!

Thursday was the Fourth of July. Before anything else, please feast your eyes on this hot dog made from chicken sausage and a baguette.

It inspired intense patriotism within me.

Speaking of food, I miss macaroni and cheese. I miss chili dogs. I miss greasy burritos. It’s worth it, of course! But I wanted to note this for the record.

Other than food, the party was a huge success! We taught several American line dances, held a limbo contest, played Uno, and far more. We sourced all the ingredients for our meal ourselves (although Henry’s maman [thankfully] took over in the kitchen. She is an amazing cook). It was a treat to get our families together and share some American culture.

What wasn’t a treat was my clumsiness when I tried to leave the party. I missed a step and fell on the ground badly, hurting my ankle a bit in the process. Writing this days later, things are fine and the ankle doesn’t hurt anymore. It’s still a bit swollen, but nothing is wrong. At the time, though, when twenty people crowded around me and tried to help me in three different languages, it was rather overwhelming. Luckily, my friends are good in a crisis and helped get me water and ibuprofen, and manage our worried families. It is incredible to be surrounded by such supportive people. It’s hard to communicate my needs in a foreign language under duress, but I wasn’t alone. It was a tough moment, but I’m fine now! I think I’ve also learned a bit more about how to regulate in moments of personal pain, and how to better relay medical needs in French. I will say, I don’t think I’ll live that moment down. Henry’s family has remarked that the next time I come over, they’ll need to hold my hand when I go down the steps to make sure I don’t fall. Dommage / Unfortunate…

Friday was a rest day. While my ankle quickly improved, the Peace Corps Medical Officers declared that I should stay home to avoid putting weight on my foot. It was a day well spent. I read most of the day, which was soul-restoring, and spent some time with the footage for my next video project. I’m very excited about this next one!!!

On Saturday, I took another Language Proficiency Interview. I feel happy with how I performed. I doubt I tested out, but I could certainly use more support with my French language skills. After that, I headed home to do some laundry.

My host parents took me out to a communion party! Well, they took me out to seven communion parties. After we left the second party, I said I was tired and my brother laughed and said we had five more to hit. I thought he was joking. I thought wrong. That said, the communion parties were meticulously organized and decorated. They were the most coordinated parties I’ve ever been to! Each location was a visual feast, with draperies and gold decorations all around. Joyful music and dance were around every corner. I ate about three full, delicious catered meals (as well as a fish / poisson, which I misheard to be a “croissant.” Imagine my surprise). It was a pleasure to be around such joy.

The communion crawl lasted from 1:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M. The second we got back I showered and retired to bed.

I think my bike has a leak… a problem for Tuesday. Other than that, today has been lovely. This morning, I did some stretches and caught up on journaling. I dried my clothes. I listened to a podcast, and my maman brought me an omelet and a baguette for breakfast. The weather is so nice right now! While it’s certainly humid, it’s been rather temperate these last few weeks.

After lunch, I went back to the pool with my friends. It was so refreshing to spend time with the other trainees. I feel refreshed and prepared for the week ahead of me.