Final Blog Entry for a bit...

Wednesday, October 28 - Friday, November 13:
The rest of this week was spent getting excited about Halloween. It was everything I had hoped for. Great fun with the other PCVs. Sarah and I went as off duty, naked calendar models but after a few hours it was just her and I naked. That turned into other people getting naked. It was quite fun. Also, Shimon arrived in Rundu that day. He had planned on coming to visit me at site for a few months but things kept getting in the way.
The week here with him was great. I ate better than I had in a long time and it was good just to have someone around to talk to and bounce some stuff off. As I wind down my time here and the ‘reflection’ starts, I find myself leaning…ever so slightly, into that self berating thing that I am so good at. Fortunately, 2 years in the bush has taught me some things and I don’t stay in that place very long. It also helped that Shimon tends to be a caregiver and is continually lifting me up. Perfect timing with the visit.
Shimon left this past Sunday and this was a week of finalizing things. Tuesday and Wednesday were my last OVC classes. I then went to Nkurenkuru on Thursday in order to exchange some ‘sizes’ things from the OVC points and also see how much more money I had to spend for the bookmark project. My friends really outdid themselves and I have to find a way to leave the money with someone here in Mpungu so that their school fees can be paid for the next few years. Maybe Miss Shivute?
I ended up spending another 3,000 Rand and buying sweaters to go with the school uniforms, more soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, file folders and some sweets. Once back here, I spent a few hours organizing everything and moving it to the room where I will distribute tomorrow morning. It’s going to be a blast, I just want to make sure I get enough photos and video of all the kids so I can make a slideshow to send home. This project has been my favorite of anything I’ve done and though it’s not the most sustainable (except for the 3 years of school fees), it will still leave a lasting impression on the OVCs that participated in it.

Saturday, November 14 - Thursday, November 19:
The day I had been waiting for, for quite some time was finally here. Today I was distributing all the stuff that was purchased with the bookmark project monies. Of course, the kids showed up like 2 hours early. I had the morning completely mapped out and had made some last minute changes to the itinerary the night before.
We first all got together and I showed them pictures of people that had bought their bookmarks. Some of them even recognized their own handy work. I also read a personal letter from a women who had bought one from Mbundu, Joanna. We then took a group photo. I then passed out the uniforms, got individual pics, and had them go change. We then took some group photos and some individual fun ones. I then recorded if some needed different sizes. Out of all the shopping I did, I only had to exchange 3 pairs of shoes and 1 skirt. Pretty damn good if you ask me.
I then had them make thank you cards for Unity since they raised the most money. It would have been too labor intensive to have them each make cards for each person who helped in the project. I am making photo slide shows on DVDs to send back to everyone. I just wanted to do something extra special for the church. When finished, I acted as if we were through and I said goodbye. It took a moment for someone to ask about bookbags. I said, what bookbags? Lol. I then presented the bags and made them wait until everyone had theirs before opening them. When they opened, they went crazy. It seriously was like their first Christmas. They had never in their lives received so much stuff AND at one time. Their reactions were priceless.
I then took more photos and individual videos of them saying thank you. The videos didn’t turn out as well as I had hoped. Once again, I said we were finished and as they started to walk away, I said NOT YET. I then presented them with the blankets and they lost it once again. This time, I lost it as well. Their excitement really choked up me.
The rest of the day I relaxed and got read for the movie at the school. My hope was to make around 150 bucks to ‘refuel’ the feeding program monies. Well, it was a bust - for whatever reason. We only had about 30 kids show up and spent most of the night fighting to keep them from sneaking in. Almost not worth the trip.
Sunday I chilled and as expected, answered the door many times to people stopping buy asking for stuff for themselves or their child. I knew it would happen after Saturday and I purposely waited to as close to me leaving as possible. It’s fine. Pretty low key day besides that. Oh, I did also start packing - taking everything off the walls, going through papers, throwing things away, deciding what was going to be shipped home. It was such a purge.
Monday I hiked to Nkurekuru to exchange the final stuff and buy food for the party on Wednesday. It took much longer than usual to get a hike back. I came back and did some more cleaning on the flat. Also, the boys stopped by. They’ve been doing it everyday for the last few weeks. It’s been nice but occasionally I just want to be in my own space.
Tuesday I baked the strawberry chocolate chip cookies for the party and organized the games for the day. They were going to play around 10 games and earn points. Then, from highest to lowest, they would pick from prizes - the prizes being all my leftover shit, lol. The boys came by of course but I had to ward them off.
Wednesday kids showed up about 3 hours too early for the party. It made me laugh. Then of course, I kept seeing the storm clouds roll in. it has only rained a few times this season and wouldn’t ya know it, it comes POURING down exactly at 1:00 when the party was going to start. It all worked out though. When it let up a little I transferred the food over to the room, Yvonne helped me serve everyone and they loved it. Fried chicken, rice, pasta, NIK-NAKs, cookies and soda. Many had gotten used to my parties and brought containers for leftovers.
After eating, the rain had let up a bit and we went outside to start the games. They had a BLAST. We had water balloon toss, egg in spoon race, fill the jar race, a balloon relay, match 5, pick an egg. It was so much fun. The rain ended up coming back but that didn’t dampen their spirits. We got soaked and laughed our way through it.
Once points were tallied, everyone picked their prizes and seemed happy. I then presented each of them with one of my fused glass necklaces and a laminated photo of myself with my address and email in the states. I made a speech about how much each of them meant to me and what I got out of the OVC group. They then said they wanted to sing me a song. Well, that did it. I just started sobbing. I kept trying to hold it back but I couldn’t. I’m sure it was one of the most interesting cultural exchanges they’ve ever had, lol. The boys were sort of embarrassed and wouldn’t look me in the eye. The girls were fascinated by my crying and just kept staring as they were singing. When it was all over I requested a hug from each of them and they left. The last girl to leave was Katoma, Elizabeth. She is the youngest and smallest girl in the group. She walked back over to me and said goodbye and hugged me again. It was amazing. Bliss.
I sat there in the room for a few minutes by myself just letting out all the tears and emotion. I knew the boys were waiting for me just outside the door. They honored me but not saying anything and allowing me to have my space. It was a good ‘letting go’.
Today I’ve just been doing dishes, cleaning the old room, finishing up last minute typing of reports for the clinic, printing out Lonely Planet documents for the upcoming trip and watching movies with the boys. Jafet stopped by and decided to take it upon himself to steal 2 large rubber erasers. I could see him doing it out of the corner of my eye - he was being so sly getting them into his pants. I knew the perfect way to catch him and ‘punish’ him. I waited for a bit - actually longer than a bit because I got a call from the states. But I grabbed him jokingly and held him upside down. The erasers of course fell out and he was caught. I asked him why he would steal from me and he kept denying it and saying they were his. I took off his pants and underwear and locked him outside my front door. It initially was quite funny because he was laughing and SO embarrassed. But as the minutes wore on and he realized he wasn’t getting his clothes back, the laughter turned to tears. Well, I could only handle so much of that. Finally, I relented and gave him his clothes, but I did tell him he wasn’t allowed back in my house. We’ll see how long that lasts…

Friday, November 20 to Saturday, November 28:
Friday I held the last movie at the church. I decided it would be a free one - what the hell. Saturday was our final HIV event that I was going to be a part of. It went well but we didn’t have the attendance we had hoped. Afterwards I said my goodbye to the group. It wasn’t nearly as emiotional as saying goodbye to the kids. I think the adults were mainly waiting for me to give them something - how Namibian. That evening was supposed to be the second attempt at my going away party at the clinic. It was cancelled once again. Oh well. I hung out with the boys.
Sunday, I went to church to say goodbye. It as well was uneventful. I said all the things I wanted to say but then the pastor came later to inform me of the things I SHOULD have said, lol. Sunday I spent finishing up packing and cleaning. The boys hung out most of the day. That evening I cooked dinner for Ruben and I and we hung out.
The day I left wasn’t as emotional as I thought. A few people stopped by to say goodbye and see me one last time. My ride to Nkurenkuru fell through twice and I ended up having to find my own. The strangest - yet most intimate - goodbye was when Ruben left. We were hugging and he wouldn’t let go. He kept telling me how much I meant to him and how much he would miss me. Then he leaned in and kissed me. Passionately! It wasn’t just a kiss on the cheek. I responded in kind and we macked for about 15 minutes. No words were spoken. I was a bit confused but the kiss felt good and right so I just kept going. I’m not sure if it was his way of coming out to me or maybe he figured me out and thought it was what I needed to say goodbye. I just don’t know. But, do I really need to?
Monday night was spent in Nkurenkuru with the Stephens and Sarah. It was really nice. Didn’t sleep that much that night and got up early the next day for the long haul to Windhoek. It took about 9 hours because of various stops. I arrived at Shimon’s around 4:30, exhausted and wiped out. I showered, had dinner and slept.
The last couple of days have been running around accomplishing PC stuff. Exit interviews, closing bank accounts, paperwork, etc. I did manage to get everything done in 2 days, so officially I am done with PC service. Unfortunately I am still stuck here until the 3rd which is my COS date and then stuck here until the 9th cause that’s when the next big leg begins. I won’t be updating my blog because I won’t have my computer. I will be forced to handwrite in my journal…what the hell? Lol

Sunday, November 29 to Sunday, December 6:
The past week has just been hanging in Windhoek, gathering a few visas from embassies and saying goodbye to PCVs. This past weekend, Nick and I went to Mariental to spend some time talking about the trip with Eric. It’s f’n hot there! I’m so glad I was not stationed in the south. We are back in Windhoek until Wednesday and then the journey begins. Not sure how often I will be able to log on and update you guys, but I will try my best. For now, this is me, signing off.