Today was a good day

Today was a good day. A really good day. But I can’t say that all days are good. There’s a reason Togo is considered to be the second hardest country for PCVs to serve in (used to be third, but the program in Mauritania was closed not too long ago), based on things such as transportation options, food availability and variety, and internet/communication accessibility. Why am I writing about this? Well, that’s the reality of where I am right now. Life is not always easy. But today was a good day.

I found out last week that the NGO I am partnered to work with would be holding a sensibilisation, a town hall style meeting, to inform the villagers of Tandjouaré about malaria today. There are four types of malaria in the world, and the most deadly is prevalent in Togo. It is the most common cause of death for children in Togo, and there are simple things people can do to prevent it. (Don’t worry, I wear mosquito repellant, sleep under a net and take a weekly anti-malaria pill.) Well, I’m a small business advisor, not a health advisor, so I invited two of my fellow CHAP Savanners to come. It was our first experience with this type of event, and good for all of us to see. SM arrived last night and we made a delicious dinner of American mac and cheese (compliments of my aunt PT, thank you!) and sautéed cabbage, onions, tomatoes and green beans. This morning was on the chilly side, so we had a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows (thanks again PT!). MM met us at the marché, I found a woman selling green beans and tomatoes (the first I’ve seen in my village since arriving at post), and we enjoyed some tchackpa, a local drink of fermented millet. Then we headed over to watch the presentation. There was a really good turnout and the people seemed excited and interested. I was impressed with the speakers and microphone setup that they had, although they couldn’t quite figure out how to get it to work properly. At the end, they brought the three of us in front of everyone to introduce ourselves and say a few words. My French pales by comparison to the other two, as does my knowledge of malaria, but it went well and at the end they asked us to dance. In front of the entire village. And we did.  They loved it. After, my coworkers invited us to have a beer with them and we all talked for about two hours. It may not sound like much, but days like this are the reason why I am here. It was a good day.

Many PCVs talk about the volatility that one can experience through the course of a day. Perhaps you ripped your pants or were called yovo or la blanche one too many times that day or were overcharged for a moto ride or somebody rambled on to you in local language expecting you to understand. These things happen. But then you come across a spectacular view or somebody says bon arriver and offers a friendly smile or you find green beans at your marché or a child shyly peeks around a wall and squeals with delight as you say good morning in local language and wave, and in an instant your mood switches.

I started this blog in order to share my experience with friends and family back home. It’s going to be a long two years filled with lots of new experiences. I hope you continue to read the blog and enjoy it. However, there are reasons why I am here and why Togo is ranked 220 in the world in GDP per capita ($900 USD) and why the average Togolese only receives 10 years of schooling. Life here is hard and from time to time I will share stories of my struggles or of the hardship, poverty, and despair I sometimes see around me. But today was a good day, and I wanted to share it with you.

Written August 31, 2011