I was just taking a bucket shower outside with water I warmed up on the stove. As I was washing my dusty self among the ash fallen from the annual crop burnings, I heard the FIFA South Africa Football Cup Anthem in the distance… “Give me freedom, give me fire, give me reason, take me higher.” The young kids next door are playing and the pots and pans are clamoring in preparation for dinner. The roosters are posturing themselves as to who crows most cacophonously. The goats cry loudly always lending themselves to the crying baby or goat game that Benin volunteers often play. Despite the soap and suds, dirt still remains. It’s caked on and it will not come off. I am literally a dust bunny. I stay ‘clean’ for maybe 30 seconds until I see more ash from the most recent crop burning falling from the sky and landing on my skin. Welcome to the life of the Peace Corps volunteer in West Africa. As funny as some of these things may seem, this has become home. And when some things happen, all I do is smile and chuckle to myself.
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