Saying Goodbye - Part II

Our headmistress and the other teachers have known for some time that we will be leaving, but we tried to keep the students unaware for a long as possible, in order not to distract them.  After their end of term exams, though, we met with our classes and explained that we are leaving, and when.  There was sadness, and a few tears, and the question, "Will you ever return?"  I had to say that I don't know.

One the last day before the students left for their month-long break, there was a school-wide assembly.  The headmistress calls these a couple of times a term to discuss various topics with the whole school.  This time, the final topic on the agenda was our departure..  She spoke about the rainwater harvesting projects we had completed at the school, and then the head of the math department spoke about our teaching, the math club we sponsor, the fact that we always show up for class on time, and that we don't beat students.   (These last two behaviors set us apart from the other teachers!)  We replied by telling the students that we'd been here 2 years, that we loved Tanzania and loved teaching them and that we'd enjoyed math club, but that we miss our families and it was time to go home.  We said, from our hearts, that we will always remember them.

Then, it was time for gifts.  Our headmistress presented Mark with a hand-beaded shirt and a wall-hanging.  He put on the shirt and executed a few dance steps to show it off---the students were thrilled and screamed with laughter!  She gave me a hand-beaded skirt and top, and a hand-beaded banner that reads,

Carol & Wilson

This is to appreciate for all

which you did to our school

Be Blessed

The hand-beading on all of these must have taken weeks to complete.  These are such valuable gifts, and the sentiment so touching, that I was in tears.

 

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The Monday after the students let for their holiday, we arranged for sodas to be served to the school staff and teachers, and told them that this was a thank-you in gratitude for how warmly welcoming they have been to us.  And, it's true, they are a very friendly bunch, and have included us in their activities and celebrations.  Everyone enjoyed the sodas (which are a treat and a mark of hospitality), especially because they usually appear in the staff room only when someone is sweetening a request for contributions to their wedding.

The next day was the school's farewell party for us with the teachers and staff.  A feast was prepared with beef, chicken, stewed bananas, potatoes, two types of rice and fruit.  After we all ate, Mark and I were directed to sit at a decorated table set up in the front of the staff room.  Our headmistress rose and made a short speech of appreciation, talking about how she had prayed for us to be assigned to her school after the Peace Corps had discussed the possibility with her in 2012.  Then, teachers representing the academic office, the math department, the English department, and the social committee spoke, as well as teachers with whom we had worked on particular projects.  They praised our helpfulness, willingness to be involved with the school community, punctuality (!), and "cooperation" -- a catch-all term they use here for what I consider behaving professionally and responsibly.  It made me a little uncomfortable to be praised for those things, as I consider they were just part of doing our jobs, but the teachers appreciated them.

Then came more gifts -- two shirts for Mark, a dress and a purse for me, and, most surprising of all, gifts for our family back home.  The good-will and generosity of our school community has been overwhelming and makes me -- almost! -- sorry to leave.

Saying Goodbye - Part I

We'll be finishing our Peace Corps service soon and going home, and we have started the extended process of saying goodbye to the people we've known here.  We've learned over these past 2 years that Tanzanians have rituals for dealing with life events, and saying goodbye is one of them.  Americans might say a few words of thanks and leave it at that, but here the process follows a more formal pattern.

Our first goodbye event came about because our headmistress told the president of the school's governing board, whom we have met a few times, that we are leaving.  He then invited her, and us, to dinner at his house.  Besides being president of the board, this man is the Member of Parliament for our district, and has been active in politics for a long time ... a "Big Potato" indeed.

I envisioned a simple, small, dinner party.  Silly me.  We went to the dinner accompanied by our headmistress and 5 of the teachers who make up the "management team" of our school.  When we arrived, we took off our shoes on the porch, as is the custom.  Then we were shown into a large, modern living room, with photos of various prominent people on the walls, interspersed with Maasai ceremonial sticks and shields.  Our dignified host and about a dozen other people were sitting on sofas and chairs circling the room.  We were greeted and we sat as well.  Everyone introduced themselves--there were an assortment of notables, the district education commissioner, political appointees, and political party members.  Over beverages, our host politely asked our opinions on education in Tanzania and conversed with us about global politics.  He mentioned that he had seen an ad on TV, paid for by "Friends of Hillary Clinton", and asked if we thought she would run for president.  He told us that he himself had had Peace Corps teachers when he was in school.   Then various guests, one by one, were invited to say nice things about us, and we responded in kind.

Dinner, served buffet-style, was well-prepared traditional food:  rice, chicken, beef in a sauce, potatoes and bananas.  Afterwards, as a closing gesture, a couple of party members brought out and distributed polo shirts bearing the words "Friends of (our host)" to us and the other teachers.  Of course, Mark and I can't wear them here, as PCVs must stay away from politics, but what a souvenir!         

A Culture in the Midst of Change

Tanzania has many tribes (72 is the number I have heard, but there may be more).  The most well-known of these by the outside world is the Maasai.  Traditionally, Maasai have been nomadic cattle herders, but that has been changing in recent decades.  Pressures from government and the rest of society have pushed more and more of them to settle down, farm, and even move to cities.  Yet, they value their culture and are proud of it, and some continue to set themselves apart from the increasingly westernized rest of the country through their clothing, language, and occupations.

Most of the students and some of the teachers at our school are Maasai.  Last week we attended the wedding of two Maasai teachers that highlighted the different ways that people have reacted to societal pressures to conform.

Both of the teachers are bright, well-educated, and fluent in at least three languages:  English, Swahili, and Maa, the language of the Maasai.  They wear western-style clothing and are technology-savvy.  The wedding ceremony was in a Lutheran church, and was as conventional as any we have attended.  We noticed that the wedding guests were variously attired in a range of clothing from very western, such as would pass unnoticed in an American church, to the colorful long dresses commonly worn by women in small-town Tanzania, to total Maasai tribal garb with shukas (robes) and layers of beads.  At the reception, it became evident that most of the people in westernized dress belonged to the groom's family and the tribally dressed people belonged to the bride's.  Mid-way during the festivities, the fathers of the bride and groom made short speeches.  The groom's father wore a tweed sports jacket, dress shirt, tie, and trousers, and spoke in Swahili.  The bride's father wore shukas and beads, and spoke in Maa.

Diverse gifts were presented to the couple.  They included a 26" flat-screen computer monitor, from the other teachers, and 10 goats and a cow, from the bride's immediate family.  This last was a very impressive gift:  the average cost of a cow is about 2 months of a teacher's salary.

The future of the newly-wedded couple looks bright in terms of economic and educational success.  They have good, secure jobs in the government school system.  Their children will be educated at least as well as they themselves are. Will the children grow up knowing the Maasai traditions?  Will they speak Maa?  Will they maintain a feeling of belonging to a unique culture?  Will the couple keep the cow and goats, or sell them and buy modern conveniences?  Only time will tell.