Mentalities

Some quotes:
"Here in Africa there is sorcery, is there sorcery in the States."  My neighbor and African adopted mom.

"You are weak because you are a woman."  My house-boy and another student

"Africa will never have a female president, women are second class..." a student conversing with me

"Why do you shave your legs?" My fifteen year old neighbor who tressed my hair

""We need rich countries like the United States to give money and medicine to help us.." senior class after I posed a question about how to better control AIDS..

Stating the obvious:
"Your French is bad..."  (Houseboy because I talk French in a Spanish accent and I'm American...)

"You have a fat butt."  (Family I eat dinner with.)

Things that changed me:

I yelled at my freshman class "You are acting like animals!" at their loud misbehavior.  Later that day a student told me... " You insulted Africa saying we are animals,and I am not an animal... that is not teacher is appropiate"  (He was just personally insulted..) But, choose your words wisely.

You can share a genuwine laugh with people half-way around the globe and there is language barriers. In my experiernce so far, many things are ubiquitous: arguing over religion, politics, the younger brother cries, students challenging authority...

I am utterly happy believe it or not.  This challenge is making me stronger.

A kid in my eigth grade Spanish class asked me "Senora why did you arrive late?"   He noticed my tardiness.  I interpret that as his eagerness to learn.

I have no fear in front my classes... they respond to my emittance of mucha engeria.  I'm slowly becoming a young adult.. I feel it... no more in that awkard-in-between stage.

I can kill cockroaches with a broom rapidly.


Hasta Luego,
Andrea