Hi Everyone, Wow, I can’t believe I’ve now been in country for over 8 months. These past few weeks have been, to say the least, eye opening. I’m starting to realize why Peace Corps is 2.5 years; things I didn’t notice in the first few months being here are now unavoidably obvious. I can only imagine how my view will evolve during the coming months. I’ve been trying for a couple weeks now to write another blog post. When I was preparing to depart for The Peace Corps, nearly everyone warns you to stock up on books and fill your hard-drive with movies because you’re going to find a lot more free time then you’ve ever had. But that has not been the case for me, my reality is that I am absolutely exhausted. I take full responsibility for this, but now I’m trying to recognize why this is, so I don’t burn myself out. First off; it’s college application time. The process of applying to a university from a rural village in Mpumalanaga is a combination of frustration and defeat. Many universities in South Africa only allow online applications. Therefore, the lack of computer access simply adds another barrier for the students here. When students come to use our resources at the Youth Center, it can take anywhere from a few hours to a few days to apply, depending on our internet connection, or if the on-line application itself is even working (the 404 Not Found Error page is a regular ☹ ). During the process, I am routinely begged by the student to change their grades for them. This always hits me hard. Looking at their grades, the students and I both know that they are not going to get accepted. And to tell the truth, I am tempted to change them; it’s not their fault that they were not provided textbooks, basic learning materials or assistance at school. I fear that if they don’t go to university, the cycle of unemployment and under-education will continue. My community currently has an estimated 80% unemployment rate. I’m tempted to change their grades, potentially break this cycle and give them a chance. (For the record I haven’t though). But I'll continue working to try to find achievable and sustainable solutions to help these students help themselves secure a bright future. Another thing that’s weighed on me lately is that I unfortunately had my first theft. I was losing little things here and there, which I figured was probably kids snatching them when I wasn’t looking. After some bigger items went missing I realized that someone had a spare key and was getting in my room when I was not there. I hopefully have straightened things out, but it was a bummer of a process. On the plus side, I have an after-school girls group starting next week. I want to quickly explain why it’s only a ‘girls’ group. In South Africa, girls ages 13-24 are currently the most at-risk group for contracting HIV. Currently, my community is estimated to have a HIV rate of 25-35%. The reasons for girls are more at risk in SA include the following;
I also will incorporate the topic of teenage pregnancy in this club. The principal at the school requested I incorporate this due to the increase instances of pregnancies among students. In addition, I have recently experienced someone I care about realizing they are pregnant and going through risky abortion here, without many options, which was upsetting and scary to say the least. Sorry that this post was not very upbeat, but I thought it important to share some of the challenges along with everything else. I’ll end on a brighter note; I’ve been putting together a 1-second-per-day video for the past month or so, and so I thought I’d share the link with you all in case you’re interested to check it out! ~Josie
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AuthorJosie Petersson Archives
October 2018
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