Living in the Sasa

I wrote this as an update for my family, but it can be an update for you too! By the way, the Sasa is the immediate past, the present, and the immediate future. Aka, living in the moment!

I am in high spirits right now because it's Friday and we took our midterm this morning. It wasn't bad at all, for which I am greatful! Then most of us went and "snuck" into the Gaborone Sun, a luxury hotel, where we layed by the pool for the afternoon. I got the kids order of chicken nuggets-- delicious. Stewart actually gave us the idea by saying he didn't think it was wrong to use our "whiteness" to our advantage at times. Anyway, backtrackking, Tuesday we went back to Mokolodi. We drove around forever looking for the rhinos and then we got out where their footprints were, followed the chewed grass, and found them! I felt like we were very close, but I trust the guides. There were 3 of them, and after a while 2 lay down to take a nap. Then we headed back for a 1 1/2 lunch break (you have to not worry about time...) and then back into the "field" for a "community ecology" lesson. We staked out a 10 x 10 pace area and then recorded everything in that area and reflected on the implications. We found dung from wildebeest, hares, and impala, and recorded many plants and insects. For such a dry place, there are still a lot of living things! Tuesday night I went with my family back to Molepolole for a House warming/Independence Day celebration on Wednesday. The party was fun and I helped prepare food, entertain onlookers with my attempt at dancing, and meet lots of interesting people. We were there from like 1 pm to 12:30 pm! Then Thursday I did almost nothing, which was frustrating. I did learn how to sweep dust though. At first I thought it was just to make it look nice, but then I was told I was supposed to be cleaning the trash, haha!

You would be happy to know:
-I'm getting really good at ironing. Everyone in my family irons their outfits everyday, so I do the same
-I gave Hilda (the 5 yr old) a bouncy ball and we've been great friends ever since. I love her imagination and her accent ("twinkle twinkle" is ADORABLE with a little Botswana accent!), although at times she's like any annoy 5 yr old ("where are you going? what are you doing?")

-I tried to get a tan and ended up with a huge pink stripe accross my stomach. When I tried to get sympathy from my family I don't think they could relate :)
-You meet people here for just a few days and then it's so sad to say goodbye! Mpho, who's house we were warming, was so sweet to me. She would lead me by the hand and hug me and give me tea. She took a video on her phone of me singing the 3 setswana songs I know.
-My "Mme" here speaks to me in a very different way than I'm used to. Basically she TELLS me what I am going to do. It feels like I'm being commanded, whether it's to bath or to a plate. I know it's a cultural difference, so I try to forgive her!
-We never know when we will get out of class. Leatile, my 15 yr old brother, and I had made plans to go get me a Gaborone Unitedn shirt on Tuesday but it took me forever to get home (and I wasn't too pumped to go back to the village when everyone else was celebrating Independence in Gabs) so it was too late. My mme asked me how my day was and I just started tearing up. I'm sure she thought I was crazy! But if that's the only time I've really cried since being here, then it's not so bad. One month has come and gone already!