2013-02-27
A mother and her child. They epitomize intimacy in our society. But what regardless of what they symbolize, our modern world has built barriers between this mother-child relationship. Not brick walls nor iron gates, but baby carriages and and diapers have created barricades in the relationship. In Senegal, the women here have not yet abandoned...
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2013-02-27
Here is a glimpse into my typical day: 7:00 AM Phone alarm goes off but I remain in bed 7:30 AM I roll out of bed and take a shower, eat my breakfast, try to look decent, etc. etc. 8:15 AM I am off to work at the local preschool, Jardin d’Enfant Soeur Marie Agathe...
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2013-02-27
The day before I left Dakar, I stopped by the local supermarket for some last minute shopping to buy what I “needed” to bring to the village, my home for the next six months. I placed that word in quotations because my “needs” differ so much from those of the villagers. At Casino, the supermarket,...
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2013-02-27
About a week ago at my homestay in Palmarin, Senegal, a small yellow bird probably made one of the worst decisions of its life. This little fellow flew into my house, perhaps out of curiosity, only to be captured by my little siblings. When my 11-year-old sister caught it in mid-flight, my initial thought was,...
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2013-02-27
Every passerby stares. Even a brief passing calls for double takes, especially with groups of children. Staring. Gawking. Examining. Even through my shades, my eyes alternate between looking straight ahead and a random object that I suddenly find oh-so-interesting. My hand adjusts its grip on my bag strap and I continue forward. Is there anything...
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2012-08-02
Fresh, raw, and unknowing of the surrounding world, we are placed at the start of the conveyor belt at birth. Yet to hold an identity or purpose, all we possess is boundless potential and curiosity. And so the process begins; each step shapes us to fit a pre-made mold, designed under society’s standards for “the...
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