When I grow up, I want to be a Burkinabe Woman

I could have made this post all about my site placement (which I got last week and will share at the end of this post), but I’d really like to talk about the Burkinabe woman. She is a powerhouse. Most in village, I’d say, are bigger than the men—bigger hands and arms (flashback to Seinfeld anyone?), broader shoulders, tall stature. And my God, I can see why! Her day starts somewhere between 4 and 5, when she’ll begin sweeping the compound, pounding millet, washing her children and feeding her husband. All afternoon she’ll spend working—in the fields, pounding more millet, preparing foods, washing clothes of a family of 15, carrying ridiculous amounts of large, heavy objects on her head over long distances…typically doing all of this WHILE carrying and tending to at least one small infant child (also, sometimes, while riding a bike….I’ll remember to take pictures next time). At night she’ll wash her children, cook for her children and husband, and do all the dishes. She is the nurturer, the disciplinarian, the provider, the brawn, the farmer, the seamstress. Her breasts have endured over 10 years of constant breast feeding…and don’t even get me started on how she must be feeling after birthing 10+ children! Day in day out the Burkinabe woman does this, and as tired as she looks at the end of the day—staggering across the compound with eyes half-closed—she gets up and does it all over again.

Now, I’m not trying to say here that I want to do all these things when I grow up. What I’m trying to say here is, these women are freaking strong in every single sense of the word. Drop them off in the middle of nowhere and they could build an entire village if they had do. The men really better watch out, because if they ever piss off their wives enough, they are in for a world of pain and suffering. Because I highly (I emphasize, HIGHLY) doubt that a man here would be able to feed himself or care for himself or his children the way the women here do. During the day in village, I typically see the men in their typical gather places, shooting the shit, praying, whatever, while their wives are sustaining the welfare of the family. I’m not trying to bash the men here either—that’s just how it is culturally here. I think by the end of my time here, I will be just as blown away by these women as I am today. Incredible.

So my site! BF PC staff displayed a huge map of Burkina and had two boxes full of slips of paper—one for Health volunteers and one for SED volunteers. Someone would read a description of a site from either box while the rest of the PCTs would guess who would be living and serving there for the next two years. With each site, I’d shake in anticipation. But once it was all over, I felt so incredibly relieved and excited. So here it is:

Site: I emailed it to you, so I don’t think I’ll make it public on my blog for security reasons. If you don’t have it, let me know and I’ll send it to you!
Population: 2500
Location: South! Only 20K from Banfora, known for their beautiful cascading waterfalls—a big tourist site in BF. My site is actually in the BF tourism book for waterfalls as well. My village is also 60 K from Bobo, the second largest city in BF and a beautiful city (from the 2 hours I’ve spent in it…)
Perks: My house is HUGE according to my APCD. It has 5 rooms and an indoor shower. Its located in the chief’s compound, but has its own private latrine and courtyard. So I’ll have privacy and protection! I have no idea if there is a market in my village, but there is cell phone reception and a strong sense of community according to my APCD.

This is a first generation site, which means I am the first volunteer here. This has its perks and challenges. I see it right now as building the foundation for future volunteers—which will be very challenging. For a village to get used to a ‘nasara’ in their village could take an entire two years. But, I have the opportunity to make a positive first impression on a community and set the bar high for future volunteers. I know its going to be the most challenging job I’ve ever had to do, but I know its going to be such an incredible experience!

My mailing address will be changing in the next month—to what I don’t know…but when I find out I will certainly make sure to let you know! I’ve already gotten some letters, packages, and padded envelopes from friends and family (shout-out to the bro for sending me a post card all the way from China!!)—so thank you, thank you so much. I didn’t realize how special it would mean to me until I came here.