Heri ya Pasaka!

Greetings and welcome again to the latest edition of my long-overdue blog. Since I’ve last written Lent has come and gone, my students have taken mid-term exams, and we’ve celebrated the glory of Easter. I truly do apologize for taking so long; as much as I love taking time to reflect and share it’s sometimes hard to use a few free hours to write instead of exercising, planning lessons, preparing exams, visiting a friend, or simply resting for a while. I’ve been lucky to feel lots of consolation and confidence lately that this is where I am meant to be and this is what I’m meant to be doing. I feel at peace with my surroundings, friends, students, and work while still looking for ways to understand the culture, language, and challenge of teaching on a deeper level. In this post I’d like to share some updates and reflections on the last two months while trying to affirm that life is good and God is great.

As the first mid-term period came to a close at the end of March, the students at St Peter put on a talent show to show everyone their skills in dancing, singing and different club activities like fashion, art and, yes, German! I’ve been leading the German club this year and we’ve really enjoyed ourselves, growing closer each week as we learn greetings, songs, numbers and phrases in German. Our talent show presentation was simple but fun; we introduced ourselves in German and sang a song for beginners in the German language (“ich bin Auslaender und spreche nicht gut Deutsch!”) which is the first song I learned in German class at Seton Middle School (Vielen Dank, Frau Koskinen!). Now we are writing, planning and recording a video project where students play out scenes they wrote about life at the boarding school (dorms, chapel, computer lab, discipline office, football pitch, clinic, etc). It has been a lot of fun so far and I will definitely post the link to the video once it is finished.

Morogoro na Arusha

Once students were done with their talent show and mid-term exams they packed up and headed home. That meant we had two weeks of break to travel and visit some old and new places here in Tanzania. Becca, Alison, Barbara and I returned to Morogoro to visit our teachers and friends at the Swahili school there. It was so nice to be have the confidence to travel on our own and reflect on how far we had come—in terms of language and cultural know-how—since we were last there in December. We enjoyed seeing our teachers Chuma, Beno and Bestina while also spending time with neighbors and fellow students around the beautiful, lush town of Morogoro.

After just a few days in Morogoro we left for Arusha where we would meet the second-year volunteers to celebrate Easter with the Jesuits at the East African novitiate. There we were able to reconnect with a few novices who spent time teaching with us at the high school in Dodoma. The atmosphere with all of the novices is very fun and real; we all enjoyed sharing fun stories, skits, performances and impersonations while also engaging in deep conversations about life and faith. These men are remarkable in the way they are following God’s will and working hard to become Jesuits; their daily schedules of work and prayer are demanding and they do it with a smile, knowing it is bringing them closer to the level of discipline and obedience required to live life as a Jesuit priests. We spent two days with the 17 novices in Arusha and whether we were cooking, hiking, chatting, performing or praying with them, we enjoyed every minute of it.

Tafakari Kwaresima

After our time with the Jesuit novices we crossed the road to stay at a Conossian Convent where we stayed a few days on retreat to reflect on a number of things: our Lenten experience of Passion, our experience of Resurrection over Easter, and how this sense of struggle and triumph can relate to our experience as international Jesuit volunteers. Father Jim (from Wisconsin!) was kind enough to come up from Dodoma to lead our retreat, helping us guide our reflection and offering daily Mass. He did a remarkable job of offering sessions to give us things to chew on while also giving us free time in silence to rest and reflect. One thing I’m still chewing on from that retreat is a paradox Fr Jim presented as the theme of the week: God loves us into life—God created the universe out of nothing such that we could come to be—and, at the same time, God loves us to death—God came to earth in the form of a servant and died out of pure love for each of us. These ideas are past, present and future; God is continually creating, evolving and loving us. Fr Jim’s expertise in astro- and geophysics really gave us some unique insights into the science behind the creation and evolution of the universe and mankind’s role in it. The fruits of that retreat have changed me and given me new appreciation for the God that gives and forgives while all I do is get and forget.

Shuleni

Coming back to school after the holiday had its ups and downs. It was so great to see the students again and reconnect with all the teachers. On the other hand, some unexpected guests to the school—government inspectors—caused a lot of stress and really threw off everyone’s focus on teaching and doing what’s best for the students. The inspection week was probably the toughest time I’ve had since coming to Tanzania because of the external pressure to conform to rigid syllabi and handling their skepticism about having foreign volunteers and teachers working at the school.

After that week I have been more and more at ease and finding my groove as a teacher and member of the St Peter Claver community. Speaking Swahili is a real joy of mine, I love to greet and chat with the teachers, neighbors and fellow parishioners. At school we speak only English with the students but last week the parents of my students visited campus and we spoke mostly Swahili. I got to visit with the parents all day and update them on their childrens’ academic and personal progress while also learning about their family background and dynamics. Most of the students were surprised that I could speak Swahili and I’ve noticed a lot better discipline and focus in class since then. The parents’ visitation day was really special to me; using the local language to connect with the students’ parents and bridging the home-school gap that is so vital to a solid education.

Famalia ya Upendo

Before I close, I’d like to tell you more about my host family. Since I wrote last I’ve visited for Sundays here and there to attend their Pentecostal church service (4+ hours of beautiful singing and passionate preaching) and enjoy the afternoon. This past weekend I visited for another overnight, the first since my initial visit in early January. During this time together we really solidified our bond and communicated so well; it’s amazing how much I’ve learned from them in terms of cultural values, language, and being present to people in the moment. Naftali and his wife Ester are like parents to me, giving me so much love and support in my ministry here and their kids are like my little brothers and sisters. Freddy, Baraka, Deborah, Dorkas and Seleman are so fun to be with and they let me be free and happy. Seleman is a new addition to the family; he is the family’s four-year-old cousin who stayed with Grandma until she passed away in February. He and I get along great and I’m so happy to be with little kids like him from time to time after spending week after week with high schoolers. The neighbor kids are also great; they range from newborns to teenagers and they are great teachers of Swahili because they never get bored of teaching me how to say things they see around their homes and neighborhood. The level of welcome and generosity this family shows baffles me every time I visit; they open their home and make me feel like part of the family while asking for nothing in return. We did show our appreciation and friendship to the family before the break by having everyone over to our home; we shared a big meal and played with the kids and chatted with the parents all day. I really appreciate how the Tanzania people and culture appreciate presence so much; it is a huge gift and sign of friendship simply to come to one’s home and spend an afternoon or evening (most often, both). Simply sitting and chatting about the news of home, church, work, family and life are the most cherished gifts, far beyond any material things one could give.

Asanteni Sana

I’d like to thank you again for keeping in touch with my life through this blog; I hope it’s helpful in understanding where I am, how I’m feeling, what I’m doing, and why I’m here. Please don’t hesitate to shoot me an email or connect on skype or Facebook; it makes me so so so happy to hear from people from home. I pray that you are well and aware of God’s blessings, especially the ones that are hidden or disguised.

Peace & love,

-Ryan-

p.s. for my next post I will be sure to include some photos and maybe even links to videos! For now you can check facebook for snapshots of life in TZA