I was warned on Saturday evening while visiting friends that mass would be extra-long as they had a lot of baptisms on Sunday. Working at the vaccine clinic every Thursday I am aware that there are a lot of babies in my village and surrounding fokontonies. I was expecting maybe 10, 20 at the most,... Continue Reading →

I remind myself to speak slow and pronounce each word carefully. There are 50 some Malagasy people seated in front of me with big eyes and bigger hopes. They entered an English Speech contest. The stakes are high. They paid $3.00 US dollars, a day’s salary for some, to participate and 1st prize is $500.00... Continue Reading →

Seriously, I would have more wiggle room as a sardine in a tin can than I do on the taxi brousse I take to and from town. These old, run down, buses remind me of the old VW Bus from the 60’s– just slightly larger. Most are held together with tape, rope and shoe glue.... Continue Reading →

I am losing the battle with the mice. It seems as if my old boyfriend, Mr. Mouse, had a slew of girlfriends and offspring. There are not enough sticky traps in all of Madagascar to deal with them. I consult and whine to all my neighbors and they look at me as if I am... Continue Reading →

A Chicken and a Dead Pig Just when I think my life cannot get any stranger, I ride to town with a dead pig and a chicken. Thank goodness, I had a good night sleep to deal with it. I went to bed the night before exhausted from the day and after turning off my... Continue Reading →

  A friend from the states who recently became a grandmother for the first time sent me the sweetest video of her grandson playing Peek-a-Boo.  I could swear he was born last week- maybe he is a genius and already plays Peek-a-Boo at 1 week old.  But most likely, time has traveled by me in... Continue Reading →

Fombas are customs or beliefs of a culture here in Madagascar. Some of them are difficult for me to wrap my head around. Witch Doctors My tutors bother-in-law passed away last month at the age of 40.  When I ask how he passed he told me that someone in the village had hired a witch... Continue Reading →

In addition to being busy “thinking” I have been busy visiting co-workers. I will be working with volunteer health workers in the surrounding villages. These villages are called “fokantanies”.   Think of my town, Manandona, as the county seat of the area and the fokantanies as the small towns surrounding the county seat.  I will be  planning... Continue Reading →

I have not posted for a while, I have been too busy- thinking.  Mostly about poverty, injustice, inequality and the frustration of all of it.  My Malagasy tutor  also teaches English at a vocational school.   This school is part of the public education through the Ministry of Education. The teachers have received one paycheck since... Continue Reading →