Last
week we set out to Arusha for a retreat with the Dar volunteers. Our
nine-hour bus ride from Dodoma was prolonged when our bus overheated,
probably from the overzealous acceleration it made up the steep
inclines of the mountains we passed over. Arusha was filled with
green. Trees, bushes and grasses fill the countryside and add more
brightness to the already colorful city. Plant nurseries line
sidewalks and roads, giving the feeling of a year-round springtime to
the area. As you know, I lived in Arusha last year when I traveled
with a service-learning program. There was some time to walk around
the city again during an afternoon outing and the eight of us snaked
our way through the shops, hotels and markets lining the downtown
area. Arusha is the hub for tourism in Tanzania, as it is centrally
located between the major national parks, the most well-known of
these being the Serengeti and Mt. Kilimanjaro. As a result, Wazungu
abound in Arusha and many businesses, like cafés
that sell avocado milkshakes and bookstores filled with classic
novels, cater to the normalities of many Western lifestyles.
Retreat center in Arusha |
Nearly
everywhere we go, people graciously welcome us to share in their
experience of living in Tanzania. Polepole (slowly,
slowly), I am becoming quicker at initiating and responding to
greetings in KiSwahili to people who pass me in and around town.
Greetings are quintessential to Tanzanian culture; they reflect the
ideology of Ujamaa (familyhood)
that the first president Julius Nyerere instilled in the people of
Tanzania. He attempted to unite the many tribes here, believing that
by joining together and working for the common good the country could
overcome poverty and achieve economic sustainability. The importance
placed on greetings- taking time to both greet and respond, often an
exchange that lasts several minutes- appears to be one of the ways in
which Ujamaa is still
carried out.
Two
weeks have passed since arriving in Tanzania and each day our JVC
community in Dodoma becomes a little bit stronger as we learn more
from each other. In our own way we too, are striving for Ujamaa
so that we may share in this
experience of Tanzania together. The retreat in Arusha enabled us to
share personal reflections and begin our first conversations of how
we can live in community together. Creating an intentional community
is not an easy task. It requires the sacrifice of personal time,
patience as we learn about each other and gentleness with ourselves
as we reveal and realize the monsters that are not always so hidden
in our own selves. But with community we can challenge long-held
beliefs and values to help each other learn a new perspective and
become more culturally sensitive to the belief systems that create
Tanzanian culture. Dorothy Day, a co-founder of the Catholic Worker
House in the United States, understood the importance of community.
She wrote,
The only answer in this life,
to the loneliness we are all bound to feel, is community. The living
together, working together, sharing together, loving God and loving
our brothers and sisters, and living close to them in community so we
can show our love for Him.
My running/reflection route during retreat. |
MLS
P.S. I promise to post pictures soon. We are in transition of simplifying our lives by means of giving up our convenient, though usually weak, internet access at home. The parish office nearby has a reportedly stronger connection and should make uploading photos a less tedious task.
P.P.S. Pictures finally posted. Enjoy!
P.S. I promise to post pictures soon. We are in transition of simplifying our lives by means of giving up our convenient, though usually weak, internet access at home. The parish office nearby has a reportedly stronger connection and should make uploading photos a less tedious task.
P.P.S. Pictures finally posted. Enjoy!