While being in country my view of the importance of community has been greatly strengthened. In the daily connections with members of my village the inherent connections between strong community and happiness become clear to me. We live practically on top of each other in comparison to life in America and this brings out the…

17 March, 2012

Being without certainty of practically any demand given to me is slowly forcing me to silence impulsive behavior.  Any time I assume I know what someone is saying in Wolof or French I make a mistake. I attempt to show them that I understand by saying something which proves I am listening. By doing this…

28 October, 2011

Hey everyone, Asalam malekum, I probably didn’t spell it right but it means, “peace be upon you and upon you be peace”. There are a lot of pains made here to ensure ones individual peace and many questions in Wolof are answered smilingly with the phrase “Jamm Rekk” – peace only.  I have never felt…

04 October, 2011

Hello everyone, my name is Lukas Brenard. I was raised in Stinson Beach, a small beach town in Northern California. At home it was paradise: surfing, sun, simplicity, and comfort. I knew everyone in town and they knew me. Yet at 15 I moved to Los Angeles to study music and see the world from…

05 July, 2011