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Sidney Stevens

Sidney is passionate about health and human rights. She is a member of Best Buddies, where she works to ensure equal inclusion for individuals who have intellectual and developmental disabilities. In high school she was also on the crew and ultimate frisbee teams. Her goals for the year include establishing a sports program for girls in her host community, learning a local Senegalese language, and tasting every new food possible. She also hopes to meet people who challenge her perspective of the world. My favorite quote is from "Le Petit Prince": "'It is an act too often neglected,' said the fox. 'It means to establish ties'"

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Meal Time

Sidney Stevens

2017-04-01

Food, a central component of social and family life in Senegal, has been one of the significant features of my immersion experience. It’s no coincidence that the little Wolof I know consists of basic greetings and the phrase suurna – “I’m full”. Most social interactions center around or culminate with a meal or a round...

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Dogugol – Run

Sidney Stevens

2017-03-17

The neighbor’s rooster sounds my first wakeup alarm. I snooze until the morning call to prayer warbles its way from the mosque and through my window. Rubbing my eyes I leave my room to drink from the communal cup which sits atop the family’s clay water sion. My host mother already kneels outside on her...

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Attaya

Sidney Stevens

2017-01-18

Abdul comes running down Mako’s main road, swinging a clumsy haze of flying ashes and embers. In a hurry to get back to his friends’ soccer game, he sets the little stove down at an angle beside me, and hot charcoal tumbles out. Eight years old, Abdul does not hesitate to scoop up the live...

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Attaya

Sidney Stevens

2017-01-16

Abdul comes running down Mako’s main road, swinging a clumsy haze of flying ashes and embers. In a hurry to get back to his friends’ soccer game, he sets the little stove down at an angle beside me, and hot charcoal tumbles out. Eight years old, Abdul does not hesitate to scoop up the live...

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Taken out of context.

Sidney Stevens

2016-09-01

I spent the past week at Pre-Departure Training, an experience almost as hard to fully process as it is for me to picture the year before me. The week, split between Alliance Redwoods and the Stanford campus, was simultaneously camplike – with all the dynamics of 18-year olds shoved tightly together – and a uniquely...

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