Jun 22, 2023
I told Melvin that I had a surprise for him. I told him I was going to put candy in a bag, hang it from the clothesline, and he could hit the bag with a stick while blindfolded. “Like a pinata?” said this super-smart 7-year-old. I have no idea where he learned the word. Emmanuel, his older brother’s buddy and the kid who cleans my house, blindfolded Manzi and then spun him around clockwise and counterclockwise a bunch of times. Manzi, true to form, instead of being dizzy, cracked the bag open on his first try. He really wasn’t clear on what to do next, so I had to pick up the candy and give it to him and others gathered around. I hope to do another pinata with my students at the TTC on Saturday, but my paper mache skills could use a little help so I’ll probably just put the candy in a paper bag.
Jun 20, 2023
As our school year wraps up, construction has already begun on buildings that will be in place for the opening of the next school year in September. Going, going, gone are fields of corn, beans, cabbage and peppers that dotted our campus. Right now, the staff room for teachers shares a roof with the principal’s office and secretary’s office, the dean of students and dean of discipline’s office, the library, the bursar’s office, and faculty/staff bathrooms, so growth is definitely needed. I’m not sure if they are building additional dorms. TTC Kabarore is a residential college, so even if the students are from Kabarore, they must dorm at the school. My two cents is that if they let “commuter” students (those who live within a half-hour walk of the school) go home every day instead of forcing them to stay, there would be a lot more room on campus and shorter lines in the dining hall.
Jun 18, 2023
Sometimes I have to work on Sunday. Today was Parents’ Day at TTC Kabarore and about 250 parents showed up for the event. The school said that the meeting would start at 9 a.m., but I knew better, so I got there at 9:45 which was in plenty of time. We all met in the dining hall where the principal, dean of students, dean of discipline, the bursar and two representatives of the parents’ council addressed the parents. One of the things on the agenda was the new school uniform for next year, which includes a necktie for boys (not a great idea in my opinion, as the school day is too long to have to wear a tie all day). We also had beautiful singing by a student gospel choir and a mini-theater. The moral of the skit was of the evils of social media and the bad guy was carried out of the dining hall by the police. We processed out of the dining hall and then the parents had time to visit with their kids on the school lawn. I introduced myself to several parents, but was not feeling well, so I excused myself and went home a little after 2 p.m.
Jun 17, 2023
Surprisingly, Rwandans celebrate Mother’s Day on the same day as we do in the U.S., so I’m assuming that tomorrow is Father’s Day. I say surprisingly because these holidays are celebrated on different days in Thailand (August 12 – Queen Sirikit’s birthday and December 5 – the late King Bhumipol’s birthday), so I assumed each country would choose a suitable date for their own celebrations. Anyhoo, my sister, an ace family researcher, recently sent along this photo of my father at age 17. It might be earliest photo I’ve seen of him. He is working on a boat on the River Shannon (we guess) loading fish to be sent to England (we guess). His brother Tommy (we guess) is in the photo with him along with someone else. Happy Fathers’ Day!
1937 – John Hartigan age 17 and who else – in Limerick Docks by S. Flynn Limerick
Jun 12, 2023
Peace Corps life isn’t posh, but I did have one perk in my little town – the Cactus Hotel. I had a good meal there about every other day and the staff was friendly. However, it has been closed for several weeks. I’m not sure of the reason. People have said that its reopening is imminent, but the security guard there today said that it will be two months before it opens again. This is not good for someone who doesn’t cook at site. Now, I’m forced to eat cornflakes and eat peanut butter on toast to get by. There are a couple of other restaurants in town, but nothing like the Cactus. Today I went to the East End Hotel, which has a gorgeous view of the Kabarore valley and surrounding mountains, but I have to walk my bike up a steep hill to get there and the food just isn’t up to the level of the Cactus.
Jun 11, 2023
My landlord’s son, Manzi (Melvin), had missed some school lately with some sort of illness and was definitely not himself. He’s back in top form now. This morning when I returned from mass, he was there to help himself to a Nutella sandwich (he puts the spread on both slices). He also came back this evening for a second helping. I can’t say that I blame him as Rwandans eat dinner very late. He’s happier now that his mother has returned to Rwanda. She’s a police officer/peacekeeper who had been working in the Central African Republic. She did her service there through the African Union. Manzi said that he loves his mother more than chocolate sandwiches, which says a lot seeing how much he loves those sandwiches. Here’s another photo of him balancing a walking cane on his head, which shows he’s back to his usual 7-year-old antics.
