Better Than

~All I know is sometimes things can be hard
But you should know by now
They come and they go
So why, Oh why
Do I look to the other side
Cause I know the grass is greener but
Just as hard to mow

Life's not about what's better than~

It's hard not to feel nostalgic when I think about all of the blooming flowers and beautiful weather that spring in America is currently bringing!  All is dry, dead, and hot in The Gambia right now, but the dry season is coming to a close and greenery will soon return.  Unfortunately so will the spike in mosquitoes, temperatures, and humidity.   The purgatory that is rainy season is just around the corner!

I've been keeping busy lately with work, fun, and travel (more on that later).  Sustainable Management Plans for Sole Fisheries and Mangrove Oysters are wrapping up and I've been engaged in associated mapping activities that will soon produce some nice outputs for publication.  Work has been very exciting lately!

For fun I've been spending a lot of quality time with my family.  My neice Sally likes to come to work with me at the fish market in our village; it works out great because we both like to touch and inspect sea creatures!  None of the children know how to swim, but they like to come to the beach with me anyhow.  There are many crabs to be caught and sand castles to be built!  Our most recent exciting outing, however, was to the reptile farm in a nearby village.  I took Sally, Njaka, and Daat.  Although most Gambians are terrified of snakes, the children were very adventurous and held pretty much everything!  It was a great day!

Although I cannot experience the joys of springtime in America, I'm enjoying the daily grind in the motherland.  And most importantly, savoring these nights of sweat-free sleep that will soon fade away.  I've been missing family and friends tremendously lately, but all of the support and good vibes sent my way have kept me truckin' on.  And everyday I try to remind myself that 'life's not about what's better than'.

The World is My Oyster

The new year has been busy thus far and much has been happening in the world of bivalve molluscs.  Oyster  season has just opened and the women are busy harvesting and selling oysters.  Dr. Rice from URI came for a visit and we explored the potential of cockle harvesting in Kartong, a border village that is situated on the mouth of the Allaheim River that divides The Gambia and southern Senegal. Oyster and cockle harvesting have many social and economic benefits such as providing jobs, a source of income, and contributing to food security and diet. 

The women identifying harvesting areas

Dr. Rice talking to the women of Kartong about cockles

Cockles!

The women of TRY (association of women oyster harvesters) have also been working on other income generating projects to supplement their income, such as weaving, soap-making, and tie dye, and have received training in micro-finance and are learning to save money.  This is truly one of the most essential areas of need in this country, as savings and management of  finances is virtually non-existent.  

Along with Dr. Rice, I recently had the privilege of meeting with our new U.S. Ambassador and discussing the Ba-Nafaa Project and some of our current activities.  She has an extensive background in development work across Africa, and was interested to find out more about the happenings at the TRY center and meet the women oyster harvesters.  Just before the harvesting season opened, the Ambassador paid a visit to the women and expressed her support and encouragement and the event made its way into the local newspaper!  

The Ambassador spoke in English, while the Ba-Nafaa Project Manager translated for the women in Wolof

Checking out the micro-finance setup

Can you spot the toubabs?!

For more information on TRY, please visit their newly constructed website: http://try-oysters.com/

I have really enjoyed collaborating with the women through my work on the Ba-Nafaa Project and I have never experienced so many motivated and hard working women who truly want to better themselves while protecting their resources.  The world of bivalve molluscs involves many different shareholders and I feel blessed to have the opportunity to take part in the process of creating a sustainable management structure for these creatures.

Circle Game

~And the seasons they go 'round and 'round

And the painted ponies go up and down

We’re captive on the carousel of time

We can’t return we can only look 

behind from where we came

And go 'round and 'round and 'round in the circle game~

The African Baobab, or tree of life, is capable of storing large amounts of water, has medicinal properties, and is an important food source.  Thus, this ancient tree (~2,000 yrs.) has contributed to the survival of many Africans throughout time.   This is one of my favorite trees in The Gambia, and I have the pleasure of boating past Baobab Island once a month when I go out for fieldwork. 

The other day I skimmed through the journal that I have sporadically written in during my time in The Gambia.  On 24 December 2009, I wrote:  "...I think that I'm finally having the "wow, I'm in Africa" moments.  I've been so busy since arriving in country, and focused on adjusting here, that I don't think the enormity of it all has really set in.  The spatial distance is surreal too!..."  It is now 26 February 2011, and I still have the "wow, I'm in Africa!" moments.  It was neat to look back on what I've experienced thus far, and I thought you might enjoy some random glimpses at what I've documented.

14 November 2009  "...Proof that our western culture has trickled down: today's sightings included a Lord of The Rings t-shirt, 50-Cent t-shirt, a Dora the Explorer nightgown (worn during the day ofcourse), an air-brushed Barney t-shirt, and Playboy bunny flip flops on my very Muslim host father."

20 November 2009  "...Learned a couple of cultural taboos here- do NOT speak of pregnancy, and do not ask how many children one has.  It is considered to be bad luck!"

29 November 2009  "...Today we travelled to Soma, a town about an hours drive from Bumari, to go to the market.  The "toubab store" or Soma Mini Market, was rumored to have off brand American items that we would get excited over.  I was looking forward to the fake pringles and cheese, but unfortunately they had neither.  I did however buy cookies, fake swiss cake rolls, and crackers.  Later this afternoon, our PC driver Peter brought over bush pig and we cooked it up!"

13 December 2009  "...As part of our cross-cultural work, we had to visit a fortune teller.  Ours happens to be Matt's father Jeta.  Jeta also happens to be the Imam (religious leader), the traditional healer, and the husband of our cook.  I was apprehensive of the encounter because of witchcraft and spiritual practices of people here...I'm not even sure what I actually believe about this realm, but it seems mysterious, manipulative, and penetrating.  But once I found out who the "see-er" was, I felt relieved.  The whole ordeal was sort of humorous.  You had to pay 5 Dalasis, it only lasts a minute or two, and you don't even get to ask questions.  He told me that I'm stomach sick and that i will be better after i give away two kola nuts (one going to him), and that I will have a peaceful two yrs. here and greet my home people in peace.  I hope I find all of that to be true!"

27 April 2010   "...I'm growing fonder of Sally by the minute.  I don't know how I would manage without her!  She helps me around the house, keeps me entertained, and lets me be myself.  Today we danced to Grateful Dead together-so cute.  So yea, my best friend is a 3-yr old."

7 May 2010   "...Mom went to see Van Morrison last week with Hunter and Lauren!  I'm so jealous!  This was the first time that he's EVER played in Alabama.  I'm really happy that Mom got to go though!"

8 May 2010   "...Lienje and Sally and I went to the futbol game last night...Sally peed while sitting in my lap, so we had to leave early.  It looked like i wet myself!  I'm sure that's what everyone in the village thought..."

13 May 2010   "...So I was able to reclaim my head of hair!  Got all the dreads/tangles out, and now it's looking good!"

28 May 2010   "...Wow, can't believe it's almost June!  In 5 days it will be 7-months since I departed the U.S.!  Considering I was so incredibly sad to leave and didn't know if I could do it or not, I'm very proud of myself for making it this far!  I hope that the remainder of my time here will coast by and be as successful and fulfilling as it has thus far."

29 May 2010   "...So, either my days are becoming less pleasant, or my attitude is becoming negative.  Maybe it's a little bit of both.  Being here is so emotionally and mentally draining.  Sometimes it just sucks."

30 June 2010   "...Last night was my first storm in village.  Started around 11 pm, lots of lightning, thunder, and rain.  The rain sounds insane on the corrugate roof!  It makes me pretty anxious/nervous, but hopefully I will grow to find it soothing.  Just tough not knowing if your roof will blow off or not."

"...I would LOVE to put on a mini dress and some funky platforms and go out!  However, I'm sitting here in a dirty linen dress with braided hair, cooking instant pasta over my propane stove, and watching the termites eat away at my house."

17 July 2010   "...Dad called last night.  Apparently a cap has been successfully placed on the leaking oil well!!  Guess that's good news for now that there is no more oil spilling into the Gulf.  The dispersants and oil already present have probably damaged the Gulf Coast for my lifetime at least."

"The rains have been steady and everything is sooo green.  The banana trees in our compound are growing tall and the fields have been prepped and cassava, maize, and groundnut planted.  P.S.  There was a beautiful rainbow this evening while I was bathing."

30 July 2010   "...Today it rained sooo much.  I went to the beachside to work and about 20 min in it started pouring.  I ended up waiting several hours for the rain to ease up so that I could leave.  It was kinda nice hanging out with all the guys sitting under the shelter though. I liked watching the boats roll in, unphased by the storm."

31 July 2010   "...This morning at the market I was overcharged-so I didn't end up buying.  So discouraging.  As I was leaving I was thinking evil thoughts about the uncivilized, ignorant, and racist ways of some people here.  And then I tripped an cut my shin on a concrete block.  Guess it was karma keeping me in check."

21 August 2010   "...Sitting under the mango tree, good breeze, beautiful day!"

3 October 2010   "...So, after feeling completely depressed and miserable after work Friday, I stopped for pizza and beer on the way back to village.  That helped quite a bit!"

10 November 2010   "...This morning I hitched a ride up to the city on a dump truck.  Usually it's a lot faster than taking a gele gele, but today it kinda took forever because they had to stop and dump their load of sand on the way.  Free ride nonetheless."

20 December 2010  "...Just fed Sally her first bite of chili!  It was out of a can, but nonetheless tasty.  We sang some songs together, and I discovered she knows the words to "Jenny Jenkins"...well, she knows the version that I sing- I replace Jenny Jenkins with Sally Kunta."

11 January 2011   "...First entry of 2011!  The year has been off to a good start so far.  Spent the New Years holiday in a treehouse overlooking the ocean.  It was really nice."

19 February 2011   "...Took the kids to the reptile farm today...so much fun!  This afternoon my little brother and his friends came knocking on my door.  They said Njaka told them that he held a snake around his neck today and asked me if it was true.  I showed them the pictures and they were blown away and so excited!  Njaka was definitely looking like the cool kid in the village.  Then they asked me if I wanted to go chase goats with them.  I had nothing better to do, so they handed me a cassava stick and off we went."

Sometimes it's nice to take a journey through the past and remember where you've come from and what experiences have shaped you.  I'm 17-months into my service and not a day passes that I don't look around and feel in awe of what's around me and the way I'm living.