So in the six days since I found out I will be going to Malawi, I have learned a lot. One is that a picture of Madonna invariably shows up on the first page of any Malawi-related Google Image search. Another is that most people respond with a blank stare when I try to explain that the only "for sure" means of communication will be snail mail. One person thought this meant that I would only have e-mail and not Facebook (the horrors!)
I bought Lonely Planet Southern Africa and a few other books, I caught the tail end of a big REI sale and got luggage and some other goodies. I spent an hour at work being questioned by two other nurses- one emigrated from Zanzibar and the other from Nigeria- about what the heck got into my head that i would want to leave America and go someplace even poorer than the lands that they themselves left. There was a lot of "You know people there are going to think you are crazy- why don't you just stay here and get married?" They also thought that I was going to be living in some ex-pat compound. I took some time to explain that will be integrating into a village, eating the same food, wearing the same clothes, etc. (They still think I'm off my rocker. )
Now comes the great trimming down time- i.e.- the purge of all the stuff I have accumulated since college. I figured I would start with my precious fiber and yarn, and put a very general ad on Craigslist offering free fiber for those who were young or beginners. Enter lots more confused people- giving things away is harder than I thought. Maybe I should try charging a nominal amount next time and see if that goes better.
I'm writing my aspiration statement and all the paperwork that goes with that today, then comes more shopping for gear, more explanations to skeptical friends and co-workers, and much, much more "purging of the stuff".
But SO, SO, worth it :-)
Grace and Peace-
Elizabeth
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