June 3rd, 2008 (written by Jason)So I just finished a wonderful book called The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell. Now this is not a book that I would recommend to everyone. This book is really just for people who want to understand how society at large works. This can be useful in a number of contexts. If you are in business, it can be helpful understanding how social epidemics can be created or sustained in any number of fields. For common people, you can see how you fit into the schema of this complex world and how you can be part of the next major revolution.
I am saying this because that is where I am most interested. I am interested in finding how normal people play into starting social epidemics. What I mean is how are we, you, me everyone going to be part of the next major revolutions of the world. The revolutions I am talking about are the renewable energy revolution, the expansion of peoples in developing countries, and the openness and interconnected nature of our societies. It is by thinking about these things and getting the right people at the right time that we will see the threshold tip on a number of these issues and many more I don't have the energy or knowledge to discuss.
I do think that you should all start thinking about how you can affect change on a daily basis. I know for many of you, you feel trapped in your daily existence and that it can difficult to think about anything other than just day to day issues. However, if you do just a little analysis of your situation, invest a little time and energy into yourself and your education into something that interests you and then you use that to the best way you know how you may be the start of something big. I guess all that I am saying is don't forget to dream. If you are young or old remember that it is the dreamers that change the world. Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream that we would one day walk hand in hand white and black. JFK had a dream that we would see a man walk on the moon. Steve Jobs has the dream that each person on the planet might one day own and operate an ipod. Whether you dream is financially motivated or socially or based on a social imperative that you feel called to change, then think realistically about how you will achieve this.
Make connections. Utilize friends and families. Think big and who knows. You may have thought that you were done but really you were just getting started!I know I haven't really said anything about me or Janeen but this is what we are directly going through. We have to be the ones who push for this country. Many people here have lost that ambition to dream and change. It is part of the mission of Peace Corps to spread an alternative to just eating the same thing everyday or changing the way that you see yourself as part of the world. I feel that I am doing that here, but I also feel that we need to be reminded of this ourselves as we have been known to fall into complacency as well.
I hope I have inspired you today to to the best with what you can, where you are. If not, I hope that I haven't bored you too much!
All the best,
Jason
May 30th, 2008 (written by Jason)So it is cold again. It isn't freezing yet, no snow or anything, but it is definitely cold. This means that we are once again back to eating lots of soup, drinking lots of tea and wearing lots more clothes. It is funny how the weather has such a direct impact on whether or not we will stay up past 7 p.m.
It also doesn't help that the electricity has been really inconsistent. It has been going off at nights due to the energy shortage that South Africa is experiencing. He is the hilarious part. Lesotho generates enough energy to meet its needs. However because of agreements that were made when the damns were being built, Lesotho must buy back the energy from South Africa that they are generating. Does this not seem absolutely crazy to anyone else? Therefore, when South Africa is running short on energy, which they are a lot lately, they pull from our grid.
It makes for long nights especially when the sun is usually fully set by half past 5. This has really affected our sleeping patterns too. We had been getting used to staying up at night watching DVD's and avi files that are swapped around Peace Corps, on our laptop. However, if you have ever tried to do anything on a laptop on battery alone (especially one that is 5 years old) it doesn't last very long. This week we were pleasantly surprised that on Wednesday night we were able to watch a whole movie and stay up past 9. This is a really big deal when it comes to sleep.
Seriously, think about it. If you sleep 8 hours a night and go to bed a 8, you wake up at 4 a.m. This being my normal waking time lately. Now, 4 a.m. in America and 4 a.m. in Lesotho are to totally different things. At home, I could get up make a cup of coffee, turn on the computer or TV and veg out until it is time to jump in the shower. All the while being nice and cozy warm in a heated home. 4 a.m. here entails laying in bed tossing and turning waiting for the sun to come up and provide the smallest amount of warmth so that your unheated house becomes slightly more bearable.
Now I know I am embellishing a little bit but really there is nothing to do at 4 a.m. that would not be absolutely freezing. I could go out and hang out with the herd boys as they take the cattle, sheep, donkies, etc. to be watered and fed. This would not be all that great though as they usually only know enough English to ask for money or if I have some cigarettes (which I don't. I quit years ago.). Those boys also tend to be pretty stinky because they use their blanket as their sleeping blanket, handkerchief, and a number of other things I would rather not think about. On top of that they very rarely wash those blankets. I know this as I have sat next to, walked by, and seen the green fog that comes off things in cartoons, coming from those blankets. Blech!
So needless to say I am a little sleep deprived. SO this is probably just ranting and raving but that is cool. Sorry if I offend anyone. I am seriously just telling it like it is. Life here can be stinky and hard. This is the truf!
All the best
Jason
So we have officially started the renovations of Phechela Primary School. Here is a small flavor of what it is that we are working on. We have painted 2 out of 5 classrooms, we have repaired a sidewalk in front of the office, we have begun to paint the outside of the std. 6 and 7 building, we have repaired and extended the floors in the the std. 3-4 classrooms and we have completely painted, cleaned and organized the office. This was all in just the first week!
