PST

Fun Moments of PST

Where shall I even begin? Pre-service Training (PST) has been like summer camp and school in all actuality. The two months while in training I’ve only been thinking about getting to my permanent site, unpacking my suitcase for good, and starting my real job. But now looking back, PST has been pretty fun. There was that time I killed a chicken, the time I went to a cultural village and saw the dancing as well as monkeys! There was also that time when we went to Ngonini and learned how to garden, then about 20 of us had diarrhea for a week. Then there were only 10 of us that had it… and then we all bragged about how much weight we lost. No connection though… I don’t think! Lol Oh I guess this is a good time to mention my recent 3 day encounter with a fever of 101 while trying to study for my final exams. On a healthier note, there was the time when Swazi took on USA in a soccer match—naturally we won, just don’t ask about the rematch. There were also the other various soccer tournaments in the community that always had my attention for one reason or another.

I’ve actually had some pretty cool experiences that have been on my bucket list. Our training village in the Manzini region is surrounded by all these beautiful mountains. In our free time, which was few and far between, a lot of us volunteers went mountain hiking. I’m a sucker for a good view, and boy did I see some! I once hiked to the top of a waterfall and was able to see Mozambique and the Indian Ocean.  I say this a lot, but God is amazing. If I had to go home tomorrow, I would still be ok, because I have been able to see more and more of His beautiful creation. I serve a creative God. This is the #1 reason why I love to travel, because I feel like I get closer to God each time. As Christians there are many ways to feel close to God, praying, fellowship with other believers, reading the Bible, evangelizing, and being in nature. Doing the latter has really strengthened my relationship with God while I’ve been here.

Another thing that I’ve been able to try out in PST that will carry on over the two years is my interaction with food. I actually cook it now. Really I do! Now I didn’t say I cook well…. But I cook well enough to eat it which is a great leap for me! Every time I cook a meal that looks good, I take a picture of it as evidence for the day after. A few of the things I’ve made have been scrambled eggs and spinach with roasted potatoes, stir-fry several different ways, tuna salad, alfredo and marinara sauce from scratch for my spaghetti, and my own vegetable soup.  Once I get set up at my house I plan on cooking a lot more adventurous things.

The best part about PST though has got to be the friends I have made. Granted I’ll be with the volunteers the whole two years (God forbid anyone ET’s), but this is the one time where we’re all close together. Now we’ll have to take 3 hour bus rides to visit each other. Not only did I make friends with the other volunteers, but also my host family. I truly do love them to death and will miss them dearly. I’m kind of happy that I won’t have a host family at my new site, because I would hate to compare. I know that I will always be a Magongo.  

Acceptance 8.19.2012

PST is closing and we’re starting to say goodbyes to our families in the training villages. This past weekend we had our Host Family Celebration.  Typically volunteers do a skit, a song, dance, slide show, or whatever. I’ve been learning some Swazi dance moves since I’ve been here and I really wanted to come up with something to show the families. On Wednesday I choreographed a dance to a South African song, and taught the dance to about 12 volunteers. On Saturday we performed it at the event. Before I was a little apprehensive that the attendees may find this dance horrible, offensive, and everything else; to my delight they loved it! This definitely wasn’t a super serious dance or anything that I typically perform, but a dance is still a dance to me—it’s my passion. It meant everything to me that not only did the Swazis enjoy it, but that they personally came up to me afterwards giving their appreciation and “acceptance”! The performance was mid-way through the ceremony, so as I sat in the audience for the remainder, I was overwhelmed with joy. This may sound silly or over dramatic, but honestly at that moment, I really felt like I was a part of their culture… I was no longer a mere observer.

Deep down inside we all want to be accepted. If someone says they don’t care about what people think, well they’re lying. With acceptance comes the ability to make change.

Personally I don’t need anyone’s approval except God’s alone, and for the longest time I didn’t really pay any mind to man’s opinion. However, now that I am living in a different place and a completely new culture at that, I really want to be accepted by my new home—Swaziland. No one can or should generalize a culture; in fact that is one of the PC goals—show the host country that American’s are not what you see on the TV, but that we are all different and unique. And by me sharing with you what it is like here in Swaziland, I am helping complete the 3^rd goal of PC, which is to educate Americans about another part of the world. So with that said, I can’t say that all Swazis are ‘this or that’. What I can say is that people will be people no matter where you are.  One of the many things I’ve come to know is that if you are unhappy in your current location because of the people, you cannot pack up and move thinking that a new city [or country] will have better people. Where ever you are, all cultures aside, there will always be the good and the bad.

As I mentioned earlier I don’t need man’s approval; and the main reason is because if I tried to get everyone to like me, I would be miserable! The two years I spend here in Swaziland will be wasted all because I wanted people to like me, rather than spend that time doing my mission. Alongside the PC’s 3 goals, my personal goal is that the people here will see Christ in me.  So if people reading this blog know their Bible, then they’ll know that the Word says, “we will be persecuted because of Christ”. Not everyone loved Jesus while He was here [and He was perfect!] so how can I expect that everyone will love me?

My objective as well as PC’s is to let Swaziland know that I’m not just some other US volunteer from the multiple NGO’s here in country; but rather that I am really trying to understand their culture, their language, and their life, so I can better help them. I want to assimilate myself into this place. In fact, this week I finish PST, and start my 3 month integration process. If I want change, progress, and sustainable development to happen here, it has to come from their people, not from the Umlungo who only knows the western way of doing things. This is why I want them to see me as a Swazi, this is why I want their acceptance into this culture. After last Saturday, I really feel like I am getting there.