CORPSAFRICA
  • Home
  • About
    • About us >
      • The Model
      • Human-Centered Design
      • Impact
      • Development Partners
      • Junior CorpsAfrica
    • Team >
      • Staff
      • Board of Directors
      • Advisory Council
    • Work With Us
    • Press
    • Videos
    • Testimonials
    • Contact us
  • Countries
    • Morocco
    • Senegal
    • Malawi
    • Rwanda
    • Ghana
    • Kenya
  • Volunteers
    • Meet the Volunteers >
      • Morocco Volunteers >
        • Group 1 Morocco
        • Group 2 Morocco
        • Group 3 Morocco
        • Group 4 Morocco
        • Group 5 Morocco
        • Group 6 Morocco
      • Malawi Volunteers >
        • Group 1 Malawi
        • Group 2 Malawi
        • Group 3 Malawi
        • Group 4 Malawi
        • Group 5 Malawi
        • Group 6 Malawi
      • Senegal Volunteers >
        • Group 1 Senegal
        • Group 2 Senegal
        • Group 3 Senegal
        • Group 4 Senegal
        • Group 5 Senegal
        • Group 6 Senegal
      • Rwanda Volunteers >
        • Group 1 Rwanda
        • Group 2 Rwanda
        • Group 3 Rwanda
    • Podcast - "My CorpsAfrica Story"
    • Featured Projects >
      • Dzaleka Basketball Court
      • Kitchen Gardens
      • Coronavirus Response
    • Featured Volunteers
    • Alumni Association
    • Apply
  • Events
    • Events >
      • PROJECTing Resilience
    • All Country Conference
  • Blog
  • Donate
    • Donate to CorpsAfrica
    • Pay It Forward Campaign
    • Holbrooke Campaign
    • Corporate Council for CorpsAfrica
    • Planned Giving
    • Amazon Smile

My New Home in the Big Pond

1/5/2019

0 Comments

 
Written by CorpsAfrica/Malawi Volunteer Ms. Chifundo Soko
​
It’s been exactly 3 weeks since l arrived in my site. I am counting my days. Don't get me wrong. I am counting because I am proud of myself since I have made friends in my community. Yes, I am proud of myself!

So back to my arrival day, it was raining heavily. Luckily enough I had pleaded with my friend to drop me off in my site. It was a little adventure into an unknown place, I would say, which was going to be my home for the next six months.  Ask me how that felt. Terrifying! Why? I didn't know what to expect and that at times is scary. So you see I had - a smoothie made  up with many different feelings. Anxiety, excitement, curiosity. You too would have had the same feelings in that moment!

I arrived at my new home. When my friend left, I honestly felt alone. The only people I was familiar with were gone! No, I didn't cry. Spartan warriors never shade tears! This is where - you do self-motivation and all the motivational speakers you have listened to come to play. Humanity. Did I mention? The host father happens to be the Group Village Head himself. I mean that's a relief because that meant not arranging any particular day to introduce myself to the chief. It was a jackpot! They showed me my room and told me to be comfortable. By saying be comfortable as a Malawian girl you just know it means doing house chores. It’s not bad though, it gives me a sense of belonging when I do chores. I don't know about other girls, so don't ask me! So I enjoy doing the chores because it also meant easily interacting with my community especially when I went to the borehole.  Another jackpot! This one was gold.

There is the organisation Child Legacy International in my site, and that's where I went to charge my gadgets; it is very much engaged in agriculture. This is where I saw the big pond. There are several ponds where some include only one kind of fish species because of its nature of feeding on other fish like the catfish. The big pond includes different species that live in harmony with one another, sharing the water and the food given to them.
​
This big pond made me feel like I was also a fish in my pond (my community in this case). I was going to interact with a different culture other than the one I am familiar with. I have one option. Integrate. (I remembered Agatha our wonderful "culture" expert. Thank you Agatha!). So I have to live  with them and share the same resources because we are in the same pond. The projects that we will do will help and change our lives because we are living in the same big pond.
Picture
The Big Pond
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Support
    Welcome
    ​to the CorpsAfrica Volunteer Blog! 
    Get an inside look at the experiences of CorpsAfrica Volunteers in the field.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    December 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    August 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016

    RSS Feed

Picture