Pure Peace Corps

A former Peace Corps volunteer who had finished her service in Niger wrote to me that Niger is probably the most "pure" PC experience one could have. I did not understand the depth of what she wrote until experiencing my first month in Tama. No electricity or running water, no computers or refrigerators, air conditioning or fans, no cars, no stores and no toilets. The breadth of "pure" is free from distractions, distractions that have consumed me in ther past and taken me away from living in each and every simple, yet rich moment. Although I admittedly miss some daily comforts...sometimes in a sweaty fog, I catch myself daydreaming about ice cream, ESPN, bubble baths and ceiling fans. Aside from this, I enjoy leisureley walks, sleeping under the stars, the crackling light from my lantern, planting a garden, writing letters, handwashing my clothes, bathing from a bucket and listening to the sounds of the streets. This is a life I would have never chosen. I am learning how to take deeper breaths, slower paces and smaller bites. Every morning I wake up around 630 thanks to the neighboring rooster and crying donkey. I write and read, do yoga; eat breakfast, sweep my house, then venture out for the day. I greet my neighbors and a couple of families, walk through town and go to the mayors office, where I will start to initiate projects in a few months time. Each day brings something new. One day I stumbled upon a wedding in awe of the swiriling colors dancing to the drums. Other days I sit and visit and drink tea with villagers struggling to understand their Hausa but enjoying their company. THe biggest challenge has been the herds os children that follow me each day for I am the first volunteer in this isolated village. Overwhelming initially, each day gets easier. I am like a sponge, trying to soak in every sight, sound and smell of my new home. I see women carrying water on their heads and hear songs from the kids on the streets and smell the crisp smoke of the cooking millet and corn. The purity of the experience feels like I am camping, cut off from the world that I have known so well, getting a peaceful glimpse into the valley of Tama, crested with mud huts, sprinkled with lush trees and embedded with fields of millet and corn.