Hello everyone,
I know it has been a while but the village where I am staying at does not have internet.
I walked almost 2 miles to the next village to get access to the internet to send this post. I have a lot of photos but I cannot post them until Saturday. (My mom, as a former Peace Corps Volunteer in Sierra Leone '73-'76, has access to recent photos taken by former volunteers visiting here this summer and will post a few here today. Like this one --this is how a walk on the road to another village looks.)
I have met with a local doctor and we will start doing diabetes and cholesterol screening on Monday. With permission, I will also start going to villages to talk about diabetes, high cholesterol and stroke prevention. I have met several Peace Corp Volunteers who are stationed in villages around mine and they have informed me that there is very little knowledge about strokes in this community. So with the help of my leader I have added this to my program so I can be more helpful toward meeting needs in this community.
I have made several friends, especially the little children! They always chase after me when ever I am walking around. The kids here gave me a local name--they call me Kona. A few days ago I walked a half mile to pump some water from the village well and carried it back to my house on my head, along with other women and children. It is very hard work and it strains your neck. I am learning to speak a little of the local language which is Mende. "Bua. Bisse. Bisse weh? Bo bi gohwen?"
As I visit schools, I have been giving out a few soccer balls I brought for kids to play with. I have never seen kids so happy and excited! (This photo was taken about 2 weeks ago, in another village, by a former PC Volunteer when he gave a soccer ball to the students at the school in his village. Just a soccer ball.)
Yesterday I went to an all-girls high school and talked to the the girls to encourage and motivate them to stay in school and work hard. Teenage pregnancy is a problem in this community.
Well, I must go. I have my 2 mile walk back. I'll be posting more stories on Saturday!
