peace out america - take 2

Ten months ago I was running around like crazy getting ready to leave my family, friends, and all sense of comfort and normalcy to go to the strange land Malawi. I was scared, nervous, excited, and quite frankly not sure if I could make it over there. And now almost a year later I am back at home preparing to go back again.

I was extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to come home for three weeks. Before coming here originally I hadn't really even considered coming home during my service, but here I am. Some of the highlights of my trip home include...

-meeting my beautiful niece Avery for the first time
-catching up with old friends, particularly one that came all the way from Australia!
-giving a presentation on Malawi to my Nana and Pop Pop's retirement home
-spending time with a soon-to-be-married friend (congrats Melis!)
-receiving volleyballs from the GPS Crush club team for my girls volleyball club
-catching up on all the food+movies+music+tv+books I've so missed

In my group of 20 volunteers I am the only one who came home during Christmas so I feel pretty lucky. To see my family and friends has been awesome and I'm feeling so encouraged and supported by everyone here. I can't wait to take this momentum and motivation back to my village. I've got about fourteen months left of my service and it's my prayer that I make the most of every single minute over there. I am so blessed to be doing what I am, it has been great to be reminded of that these past several weeks.

All I can think to say is that God is good, so good in fact. I know I'm only doing this because He allows me to and gives me the strength to persevere through it all. And for that I am extremely thankful. I am also so thankful for my family and friends. If you are reading this you probably fall into one of those two categories so to you I want to say a big, huge THANK YOU. I've been overwhelmed by your love and support, please continue it through this next fourteen months! Please continue praying not only for me, but particularly for the people I am working and living with. Malawi is a wonderful country with beautiful, caring people but there is still an alarming amount of poverty and desperation. Please pray that the Lord will help me to meet their physical needs as well as spiritual.

Again, thank you all. I can't wait to see what will come in 2011! May you have a blessed New Year's and beyond!

my archenemy is a goat

Do I believe in animal cruelty? Absolutely not. However, I do admit to throwing rocks and other various small objects at the goats, pigs, and chickens who like to wander into my yard and eat from my trees and garden. I don't really try to hit them, but more so just scare them away. That's what most Malawians do so therefore I feel like that's just a part of the integration process here. And if one of those rocks might happen to actually hit one of them, well then I just say "zimachitika" ("it happens"). Especially when it comes to Beardy.

Beardy is my nemesis, my archrival, my foe. And she just so happens to be a goat. I call her Beardy since I think it's strange that she is a female and she has a long beard. Not a very creative name but I think it fits. From the very first day that I moved to Kakunga she has been continuously finding ways to sneak into my yard and ruin everything. Before I fixed my fence in July I had to plant and replant everything in my garden about four different times. Needless to see I was very frustrated before I was able to have my fence fixed.

I thought that after my fence was finally repaired that all my problems would be over but alas, no. Beardy and her friends thought that since they were no longer able to enter that they would just climb on the outside of my fence and eat from my passionfruit vine, breaking down my delicate fence made of reed-like grass. And they still enter from time to time when some of my neighbor kids enter and forget to close the fence properly.

But last week Beardy really topped herself when she realized that she could climb onto my fence and get on top of a very narrow brick wall that acts as a barrier to my chimbudzi (as shown in the picture above). Who even knew that goats could climb or that they could balance themselves so well? But she has, and she has once again broken my fence in the process.

Whoever said that goats aren't smart hasn't met Beardy. And I don't know if there is some sort of moral to this story or life lesson that I am supposed to take home with me when I finish my time here in Malawi. Maybe it's that animal cruelty is sometimes necessary. Maybe it's that you know you have too much free time when you spend large amounts of your day trying to outsmart a goat. Maybe it's that I should learn to be persistent and to never give up even when facing obstacles, just like Beardy. Who knows. I just know that as long as I am living in Kakunga that Beardy and I will never be friends. I am okay with that, and I am pretty sure she is as well.

help for margaderina

Most of my posts so far have been about certain events, projects, stories, and pictures of things that have occurred during my 9 months of service so far. However, this one is different. One of my friends in my community is a 21 year old woman named Margaderina who is married with a one year old daughter. She is an active member of the Kakunga Village Savings and Loans group, a group of 13 women who lend money to each other to support their own small scale businesses. She also plays on the women's netball team, in which both groups I have been working with. She is a very kind, hard-working young woman. That being said, two weeks ago her husband died suddenly of meningitis.

(This is a picture of Margaderina during a peanut butter demonstration with the Kakunga Village Savings and Loans group)

Taking care of a family in Malawi is difficult, even with two parents. But now as a single mother it's even more challenging. Since most Malawian families rely on agriculture for food and as well as income, she will be forced to do the work of farming herself. It's incredibly labor-intensive, and coupled with the day-to-day responsbilities of women (see my past post, "kakunga women's netball team" to learn just how hard Malawian women work every day), it will be an almost impossible task.

That's why I have decided to fundraise some money for her. I am hoping to raise at least $200 for her and her daughter. $200 is roughly equal to 30,000 Malawian kwacha, which will be enough to see her through this next year, particularly until the end of the hunger season. The hunger season starts in December and lasts until just before the harvest which is in February/March. It's during this time that people begin to run out of maize as they wait until the time when they can harvest and sell their maize, tobacco, groundnuts, etc. It can be a very difficult time for families since if the food runs out they have no cash to buy food or other essentials. This money will help Margaderina to buy vegetables, fertilizer for her crops, soap, medicine, or any other necessities.

The plan is to set her and the rest of the women from the Kakunga VSL group up with a bank account at Opportunity International Bank of Malawi. Any money donated will be put straight in her bank account so that she can access it when she needs to. Since most people in my community do not have bank accounts, I will be working closely with the women, particularly Margaderina, to make sure they understand how to bank properly. So you can be rest assured that the money is safe and will be used only when she needs it.
Therefore, if you are a friend or family member reading this, PLEASE consider donating. I don't care if it's $1 or $5 or $100, anything honestly will help this young woman out a lot. If I will see you when I am home for Christmas feel free to give me then, or else email at kkutzner@gmail.com for more information on how to give.
Again I am asking you to please consider giving to this woman and her child. I know that typically Americans are inundated with requests to give to charities, special causes, fundraisers, etc. But just know that 100% of what you give will go directly to this woman and her child. Think about it...help a family in need!

Thank you!

moringa moringa

Ever since arriving in Malawi I have heard about this tree called Moringa, which in Chichewa is referred to as “chambwamba”. Many people call it a “miracle tree” because of the many benefits of it. Since nutrition, working with people living with HIV/AIDS, and tree nurseries all have been a big focus of the projects I am doing so far, it only seems natural that I include moringa in what I am doing. So, here is a brief description of moringa and the many benefits of it…

Origin:
It comes from Asia and has been around for centuries, although it is fairly new to the United States. Although there are many species , the tree I am referring to is Moringa oleifera


Different parts of the tree and its uses:
Leaves- contains a variety of important vitamins and nutrients
Seeds- can be used for purifying water, making soap, cooking oil
Roots- has some medicinal purposes
Branches- cuttings from the branches can be taken and planted and will grow into a new tree!


Other advantages of Moringa:
Easily intercropped with other food crops and trees
Fast growing, tolerant of droughts
Very good agroforestry tree (can be used as a live fence, it fixes nitrogen into the soil)
Potential income generating activity from leaf powder, oils
Wood can be used for firewood
Leaves can be used for animal feed


Nutrition of 50grams of leaf powder:
7 times the vitamin C of oranges
4 times the calcium of milk
3 times the vitamin A of carrots
2 times the protein of milk
3 times the potassium of bananas

The potential for using Moringa in projects is practically limitless and I hope that as these trees mature and more people are aware of this amazing tree I will be able to do more projects with it. But for now these are the ways that I am currently working with moringa…

1. Tree Nurseries- I am working with a variety of individuals, groups, and one primary school right now on planting several tree types, one being moringa. Most of the tree types will be used for reafforestation, however I am incorporating nutrition and food security as we are also raising moringa and fruit tree seedlings. What each group does is plant several seeds into a small plastic tube and after much care, watering, weeding, etc, the groups will plant the "seedlings" into a designated area (ie- woodlots and homes) after about 10-12 weeks. Most of the groups are raising between 2 to 6 thousand seedlings.

(The community members of Kamera where we are trying to get an under five health clinic built, they are raising seedlings to replace the many trees that were cut down in order to burn the bricks needed to build the clinic)

(Nkumbi Community Based Organization- a group of volunteers that work with orphans, people living with HIV/AIDS, elderly, and the youth - they are raising moringa, papaya, and several agro-forestry trees)

2. People living with HIV/AIDS- since nutrition is a critical part of staying healthy for those who have HIV/AIDS, I am working with an HIV/AIDS Support Group in encouraging traditional/natural medicine.


If you are interested in learning more about moringa and how it is changing people's lives in developing countries here is a couple helpful links...

1. http://www.janeemo.org/ - I HIGHLY recommend clicking here to learn more about this innovative NGO operating in Malawi. They use moringa and two other useful trees (jatropha and neem) to encourage people living in rural activities to use moringa as a natural medicine and income generating activities as well as some other really cool projects. Please check them out!

2. http://www.treesforlife.org/our-work/our-initiatives/moringa - another cool NGO that does work all over the world

what you've all been waiting for...

Maybe not all of you have been waiting, but I have received some requests for pictures of my house. The reason why I have waited six months to share pictures of my humble abode is because there was very little to be desired about the house when I first moved in. It was messy and there was a ton of work and cleaning that needed to be done, so to be honest I felt a bit ashamed of the place. However, my attitude quickly changed when I realized that it simply meant there was a lot of things I could do to make it my own. That's a big deal for me since I have never lived by myself before. The whole idea seemed very intimidating, especially knowing that I had to have a new bathing area built, a new pit latrine built, to replace my roof, to fix my fence, to replace my outdoor kitchen roof, plant the garden, and the list goes on. So I kept figuring that I needed to wait until ALL of those things were done and until I could finally be proud enough of it to show my family and friends. Well, I now believe that's a silly idea, especially since each different home project takes a long time to do, I know that I will be repairing and maintaining the place right up until I leave Malawi. And just like everything in this country it seems, things take a while and it's all a process, so you might as well get comfortable and, as my blog title so appropriately says, love the journey. Yes, it's something I am learning every single day here and I am very thankful for that.

So, just click on the link below and you will get to see where I live, laugh, cook, cry, sleep, and everything else in between. Hope you enjoy!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2024770&id=170100061&l=68e81ea457

mwayi vs. the chimbudzi

I don’t have many rules at my house but I think from now on I will always live by at least one… ALWAYS cover your chimbudzi properly. My “chim” is a pit latrine that acts as my trash pit and toilet. It is about 8 feet deep and all waste that can’t be composted goes there. It’s good to cover it because of flies and any unpleasant smells, but as I've learned it's also good so that one of your beloved kittens doesn’t fall in.

Two weeks ago I was returning to my house from a meeting and I could hear some faint cries coming from the chim and to my horror I realized that it was one of my 4 week old kittens who fell in and was crying for help. Unfortunately the hole to the chim is only about 10 inches in diameter so it made it nearly impossible to see him. That made recovery efforts quite difficult, but thankfully after about 2 hours and many failed attempts by myself and my neighbor kids, we were able to rescue the little guy.

The kitten was miraculously not hurt, although very dirty and smelly, but I think he was just happy to be alive. After the incident I gave him the name “Mwayi” which means lucky in Chichewa. The other two kittens do not have names yet, I think I am just waiting for the time when they get to earn their name like Mwayi did. And “mwayi” he is indeed!

witchcraft

In my first month at site I attended a witchcraft trial right in my village. One lady in her 60’s was being accused of practicing “juju” and therefore a trial was held to decide whether or not she was guilty. At first I was shocked to even hear that the trial was being held, in training we were taught that witchcraft is practiced in Malawi but it’s not the sort of thing you expect to possibly happen in your very own community. The trial was held at the GVH’s (Group Village Headman) house which is less than 50 meters from my house, and this man oversees many villages in the area as well as the chiefs in charge of those villages. I went with my neighbor and as soon as I sat on the ground with all the women and children (men of course sit separate from the women), a man came up to me and directed me to some chairs in front of all 100+ people who were attending. I soon realized that I was sitting on a jury of ten people which included the GVH, some of the area chiefs, and…me. I have no idea why I was included in the group, maybe because I was still new to the community, maybe to make the trial more interesting, but most likely because I am the only white person around.
The trial began with someone stating the charges and then there was the testimonies which came from 3 girls who claimed she was teaching them at night, from the chief of the woman’s village, from the parents of the girls, and from several other witnesses. After they explained their stories they called forth the woman to defend herself. She denied all of the allegations and said that it was unfair that she was being accused in the first place. She was being accused of teaching children to use a “witch plane” to fly to Lilongwe and Johannesburg during the night. Throughout the entire hearing the jurors, particularly the GVH, were asking her questions. I of course did not ask any questions since I was struggling enough just to understand what everyone was saying. And since the meeting lasted several hours and still no decision was reached, the GVH decided to postpone the rest of the trial until the following week.

To make matters worse, two days before the second hearing a young girl who claimed she was being taught by the woman suddenly died. The gossip in my village of course ran rampant, and people were saying that this woman killed her through witchcraft. And what’s more is that they said her brother, who was suffering from some physical and mental problems, became that way after falling out of a witch plane that was flying at night. Now the truth of the matter is that the girl died of cerebral malaria and that her brother was suffering from tuberculosis. The real tragedy in this situation is not that people were gossiping about the use of witchcraft on her but that her family refused to take her to the hospital when she first started to shows signs of having malaria. Because the closest hospital to Kakunga is private and therefore you must pay money to go, the family decided that since they didn’t have enough money that they would just wait. It wasn’t until the malaria had gone to her brain that they decided to take her to get help, but unfortunately it was too late.

The funeral was held the day before the trial and to my surprise the hearing was not postponed out of respect to the girl’s family. After further testimony from several people the woman was again called before the jury to defend herself. When she finished the jury met to discuss the hearing and to make a decision. After that the GVH made his decision and declared the woman guilty of practicing witchcraft and also of teaching it to children. Her sentence was simply to stop practicing and teaching. This was very unexpected since it is custom for the accused to be exiled from the village. But, that was it, and everyone went on their way and the gossip slowly died down after a few weeks.



Almost every time that I read the Malawian papers I find at a story about witchcraft. One that struck me came not too long ago in the southern region in Blantyre. Here is an excerpt from the news article published in The Nation on September 10:
“Confessions by child-witches in Blantyre North have led to two months of captivity for nine people at the home of a witch-doctor who is administering herbs on the group to exorcise the suspects of witchcraft. [The Village Headwoman] said that the process is commendable, acceptable and necessary to get rid of witches and wizards whom she claimed are ‘terrorizing’ her village…The nine people are under the surveillance of witch-doctor Yakobo who claimed they were referred to her by traditional leaders following some children’s confessions that they are students at witchcraft ‘academies’ run by the suspects. The nine comprise of three old women… four boys aged between 10 and 12 and two men aged 25 and 27...The three old women told The Nation that they were being held against their will and that they have denied the allegations several times…At the witch-doctor’s compound, the nine are allocated ‘admission rooms’ where they take a herbal concoction three times a day and bathe in waters treated with herbs twice a day, in the morning and evening…Witchcraft confessions by children have dominated media reports in recent times and have invariably led to the arrest and conviction of suspects in the country although the Witchcraft Act of 1911, as revised in 1926 and 1946, rejects the notion that witchcraft exists”.

Witchcraft has been very detrimental to the development of Malawi because of several reasons. First, it usually involves jealousy on the part of the one who accuses someone of practicing. Often times when someone makes a little bit of money, has a nicer house, does well in business, etc. , then other people in the community assume that they used witchcraft to help them to improve their status. Secondly, there is no proof to judge whether or not someone is actually a witch, it is completely based on suspicion. Witchcraft is supposedly practiced at night, and in the case of the girl who died there was no physical evidence to prove that the woman killed her. So, the village headman must often make a decision largely based on what he hears from other people. Another reason is that the traditional leaders often go beyond their powers and the laws of the government. Just like the case in Blantyre, there was no jurisdiction for the village headwoman to allow them to be taken captive. Lastly, there is no clear consensus as to how to deal with this issue. Witchcraft has been around for a long time and even though the country continues to develop, it seems like this problem is not going away anytime soon.

People here all the time ask me if witchcraft exists in America. I usually say no although I am sure it does to some extent. Even still it is a strange and uncomfortable thing to encounter and I struggle greatly in finding ways to deal with it. I want to tell people that it’s ridiculous and that they shouldn’t be afraid of it, but I know it is deeply ingrained into their culture. And whether or not people choose to believe that it’s real, we should understand that it exists and that it can be a huge obstacle to progress in developing countries. The next step is to find ways to fight against it and to preserve people's basic human rights.