Simply Sunday in Lusaka

It will be two weeks tomorrow that I arrived back in Zambia for another stint with Pact and to enjoy time with my new circle of friends here.  It is Sunday in the late morning here, breakfast is digesting, little Nicholas is reading his Archie comic book on the couch and I have decided to write.  Outside, the wind is blowing and it is overcast, a marked change from the past two weeks.


The trip back to Lusaka was uneventful but damn long.  There was a 7 hour layover in London and I thought to get a day room to rest, shower and have a change of clothes.  I made my way to the Sofitel Hotel in British Airways' Terminal Five at Heathrow to find a day room would set me back $180.  Living the life of a volunteer (though it is never a problem to justify being comfortable) I decided not to get the room.  Instead, I was told there is a spa in the basement of the hotel.  I went there immediately and for $100 I was able to stay for my entire ground time where I soaked in a jacuzzi, re-hydrated, rested in a meditation room, sat in a steam, took an hour long massage, showered and changed clothes for my flight to Lusaka.  It was very civilized.  I had the spa to myself.

I had a great transition back to Zambia when I arrived on the 12 April.  Tim's driver, Moses, collected me at the airport and dropped me at Jeannie and Mike's where I was greeted by Blessed (housekeeper extraordinaire) and Davies ('3G' guard, gatekeeper, gardener extraordinaire).  The dogs, Marely & Scooby and the little kitty, Valentina were also on hand for my welcome.

I unpacked and got organized and by 11:00 AM found myself curled up on my bed telling myself 'maybe I'll just take a little nap'.  I know better but couldn't help myself.  Within moments I was crashed out and did not gather myself until nearly 18h00 (6:00PM).  Not good.  Al came by to collect Nicholas and I for dinner at his and Kathleen's place.  Jeannie had gone to Paris to meet her mom and sister for the week and Mike was in the second week of his trip to the States to visit his kids in North Carolina. 

I was Uncle Tom for the week getting Nicholas up and ready for school, making lunches and dinners and administering the 'no screen days' on Mondays and Wednesdays when TV, DS, wii and the computer are off limits.  Nicholas is quick to say this only applies if 'his mom isn't here'.  Good kid.

I spent most of the first week back working from home on the Semi-Annual Report due to Pact HQ and to USAID by the end of April.  I felt good about the progress I was making between short slumbers next to the pool under the warm but intense fall African sun.  I ran each morning and felt like I was getting back into the rythm of life here.

Mike arrived back on that Friday night to a house full of people.  Al had come for dinner and was going to pick Mike up at the airport.  His wife Kathleen and Kate, a CARE UK program manager, joined us for a glass of wine after their movie.  Their daughter Mariel (16) and boyfriend Scott joined us after hanging out at 'Arcades' (the 'mall' here in Lusaka) too.

The only two times I have golfed in my life have been here in Zambia.  Denver, a US Embassy employee on temporary assignment in Iraq who is home for a visit with his family still living here in Zambia, joined Mike, Al and I for an early morning 18 holes.  I can't decide whether I like golf or hate it.  On the one hand it is difficult trying to get all the elements down of a good swing (without which the ball goes nowhere near the green) and constantly having to look for the ball in the rough.  At one point someone said 'hey Tom, you're on the green...of the last hole!'  On the other hand it is nice to be outside at a peaceful time of the day walking the course with friends.

Jeannie was stranded in Paris because of the volcano eruption for five additional days.  We kept in touch by email and Skype trying to determine when she might finally make it home.  Mike and I spent our evenings making a dent in the 'West Wing' DVD set.  How did I ever miss such a good series?  I am not one to watch TV, but this is the best TV series I have ever seen!

We all settled in to watch the movie 'Up in the Air' a few nights ago when we saw the kitten jump up from seated position on the floor close to the TV.  She started batting something about on the floor.  That something started to move on its own in a slithering manner "SNAKE!" "SNAKE!".  If you could have seen Mike and I.  We were like cartoon characters portrayed as trembling and hugging each other after seeing a monster.  Jeannie started to use her foot to push the snake toward the door.  'Careful!, what if it is poisonous?'  Mike kept yelling 'Jeannie!, Jeannie!' I went back and forth between laughing at Mike and laughing at Jeannie taking charge to get the snake out of the house.  Mike wanted the snake dead, I kept saying 'no, no, you can't kill it!' as Jeannie got the snake to the grass and it slithered away into the night.  They say they haven't seen snakes at the house before.  A couple of days later I saw one crossing the path between the house to the pool.  Needless to say, I have not told Mike about my sighting. 

I have returned to Zambia this time with a different outlook on my future in the international development field.  This outlook is based on remaining 'present' each and everyday I am here and not future tripping into areas and issues out of my control.  I had placed a lot of pressure on myself during my last stay here insisting that I had to find a job immediately and when I couldn't secure anything doubting my abilities and dreams.  That frame of mind was disastrous for my morale and totally detrimental to my happiness.  Recognizing this, I have taken a step (maybe several steps) back to re-evaluate, re-focus and re-commit myself to 'happiness, first'.  This came to mind when I was on Skype and I quickly used it as my profile statement.

I have learned a lot about life and work in international development since arriving in Africa back in August of 2009.  The ideas I had about living overseas, working in this field and doing my part to help the human condition were based more in fantasy and what I 'thought it would be like' rather than the realities that define international development.  International development is big business with organizations vying for government and private funding.  The field is staffed by highly intelligent, trained professionals who know the nuts and bolts of development from programmatic, monitoring and evaluating, grants and finance, among other, perspectives.  There are strict contractual requirements (reporting) to meet to keep donors happy and tedious site visits to ensure local partners are complying with program requirements.  All of this far from my initial idealistic desires and fantasy induced notions to 'do good' or 'make a difference' in the world by feeding a hungry child or protecting an abused woman.  I am still not certain where this whole experience may lead but I am enjoying the journey now more than focusing on where it may or may not lead.  I know I can do this work and I hope someday I have an opportunity to do so.

I've also recognized how fortunate I am to even be here and writing this story.  How many people can take months away from a career while still being fully employed and seek out new opportunities and a mid-career change on another continent?  For my friends and colleagues at Alaska who have listened to me complain about my job I can imagine their surprise at this recent revelation of mine.  I have it good.  In fact, I have it great.  'Chrissy, can you hear me"?

Jeannie returned to Lusaka with news that there are major organizational changes occurring with Pact.  In the course of these changes she has been promoted to interim VP for Africa.  This means, she will be overseeing all Pact offices in Africa.  She is so deserving of this promotion.  It comes at a time when the Pact office in Zambia is preparing to close out its operations permanently and everyone on staff is busy looking for a new job.  I am in awe of Jeannie's knowledge, energy and commitment to her work.  She is a hard worker who spends nearly 11 hours a day at work and is often working in the evenings from home and occasionally on the weekends.  She immediately assumed her new role last week after the announcement which now means she is focused on her duties as VP but she still has to remain as chief of party of the Zambia office through the close out.  I told her I would help her anyway I can during this big transition.

I will continue to apply for jobs on the multitude of development web sites, enjoy my time here, day-by-day, and plan some weekend trips to see more of the country in the event I find myself leaving here in July.  My life is rich and filled with interesting, loving people around me in a place where I learn something new everyday.

Thanks for reading.