Friday, June 14, 2013

Breaking Up is Hard to Do



I love Mariri. I love my students, my neighbors, and my JUNTOS group. However, even from the start, it’s been a tough love. After recently experiencing a third security incident, Jamie and I came to the conclusion that we’re in an unhealthy relationship with our site.


Mariri has been isolating us from friends and family from the beginning by blocking access to cell phone service. With only one chapa per day, Mariri won’t let us travel whenever we want to. Mariri has gotten physical a few times, with some serious sick days.

Other volunteers have been telling us to get out, but we’ve refused to see the signs. Instead of recognizing the irreconcilable differences between Mariri and my need for access to food and clean water, I’ve focused on sentimentalities. I keep hoping Mariri will change, but eventually I just have to put myself first.

So while I’ll always love Mariri as a friend, we’ve decided that it’s time to move on. In about two weeks, Jamie and I will be hopping over one province to Meconta, Nampula, to finish our adventure.



In other news: I just returned from the capital city of Maputo, where I got some really boring dental work. I ate gelatto and pizza, got a manicure, bought souvenirs in a tourist's art market, and just generally wasted a lot of tax dollars. My flight down to Maputo was delayed for 11 hours, and the baggage check lady made me cry on my return flight, so I’m hoping not to fly again any time soon.  

This weekend, we have a province-wide conference for JUNTOS, a youth group that we sponsor in our community. Next weekend we’re going to a pig roast in neighboring Chiure to celebrate a birthday, and then hopefully moving to our new site!

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