2015-05-27
Ami’s eyes glinted with warmth as she put her hand on my shoulder “Alice, are you going to come back?” she asked. “Of course!” I said with certainty. And then I stopped. Because we both know that’s not really true. I’m not sure that I’ll ever return. As April 7th, the day I leave Sandiara...
Read More2015-05-27
I got burned on the calf in the garage in Thies. I ignored it because I wanted to get home and as I walked towards the line of old station wagons surrounded by women selling oranges to bargain for my ticket, I felt sand kicked up from my chacos dusting the open wound. The money...
Read More2015-03-27
From the moment I could walk and glue two things together, my dad and I have spent countless hours on projects together. Such projects have spanned everything from a homemade generator to chemistry experiments to perfecting pumpkin pie and to my delight my dad has approached this year as an extended one of our projects....
Read More2015-03-26
My whole life I’ve been told to “hand wash delicates” because it’s gentler. So when I found out that everything in Senegal is hand washed I thought my clothes would last forever. That was before I met my host sisters. Within two months their strong, insistent hands bore holes into all my clothes and their...
Read More2015-01-31
I heard a thud behind me and my head jerked around. A few feet away I saw a rock. I looked up from the rock and saw a young kid in a dirty yellow shirt surrounded by a pack of other kids pointing at him. “He just threw that rock at me.” I thought. I...
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2014-12-10
When CNN ran the headline “Muslims: We’re not all extremists” I was incredulous. “How is that news?!” I said to my friend Rachel who’s furrowed brow and crinkled nose betrayed the same confusion I felt. She replied “that’s like a headline saying Cats: We’re not all female.” When I try to carry in water for...
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2014-11-21
This blog first appeared on the Everyday Ambassador Blog as a part of Wednesday Wisdom. “Everyday Ambassador is a network of global citizens who believe that human connection, even in an increasingly digital world, is the key to lasting, positive social change. Everyday Ambassador visions a world in which all travelers and volunteers approach the...
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2014-11-21
A small cloud of hot sand followed my swift steps as I walked home from teaching preschool. As I reached my gate I saw sema yaay (my mother in Wolof) regally dressed in a vibrant pink and blue boubou sitting below our lemon tree in her plastic lawn chair. As I approached her, my shoulders...
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2014-11-03
My first day in Senegal, I sat with my knees close to my chest, leaning against a concrete wall, while warily eyeing my new Senegalese host brother as he lounged on a mat and invited me to join him. A lanky twenty-something approached us, placed an old rusty black stove on the ground along with...
Read More2014-10-13
If I close my eyes, I can see my home in Chapel Hill and my round dining room table with afternoon light bouncing off the light wood. I can hear my mom’s boots bounding up the steps. I can feel the last turn in the car on the drive to my best friend’s house. I...
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2014-09-08
When I saw the Philippines vs. Senegal basketball game on the TV in my families’ home, my cheeks moved into a consuming smile and happy tears sprung to my eyes. Because culture shock ain’t no joke. My life in Senegal is hard to undersand. Wolof sounds like everyone is playing a practical joke on me and...
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2014-08-16
When I tell people I’m not yet going to college – that instead I’ll be living in Senegal for a year – the response is quick and strong. Sometimes I get fearful shrieks and confused narrowed eyes. Not everyone, of course. Some people react calmly, with wide-mouthed awe, and tell me their own nostalgic stories....
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