Guest Blogger Week

Goodnight! A special welcome to Ben, the guest blogger for this week (additionally, my brother). Ben found his people here. So much so that he spends all day trying to look and speak just like a Dominican. The results are inconclusive. Here's Ben:

Howdy guanobloods! (thats how we say gringo in Dominica! (not really! We either say whitey or are too polite to point out ethnoculture differences!) Its guest blog.j. BenJamin spinnning your yarns coming live at ya from Delice. Id like to say a big O.K. To all folks in salisbury country and all up the west coast EXCEPT Paul. You know why, Paul.

We here at jungle bay looking at the sea and some coconuts. And some lizards. Alright alright. Early on today Israel Moses take us up to victoria falls and Bondye (pronounced BO! DE-YAY!) what a sight! Ate some soup took a walk. Its nice.

Anyhow on a more reflective note, when George Gervin and Abraham lincoln first set eyes on this fair isle they were right to dub it "Thine fairest paridise thyne world to see. Oh mine eyes the waterfalls and the people and whatnot so nice...(sic)! I think my minds totally blown and I can never go back to both of our wives who are coincidently both named Mary Todd Lincoln at Fort Sumpter."

They were mostly right! But I suspect may have gotten too far into a bottle of snake rum (a real thing! Here at least.)

If there were ever a place to inspire this many exclamation points and this much pride, its Dominica. The natural beauty is unparalleled and the citizens take selfless joy in sharing it.

Oh, one more note. If you like food at all, especially fresh food, this is probably the best place to be. Try the fruits or meats. Or sweets. Or juices. You really cant go wrong.

O.k.Soup


Jelly
Tiger
Moses

Snake Rum

Week Poetry and Broccoli

In my favorite movie of all time, Drop Dead Fred, Fred, the main character’s childhood imaginary friend asks her (I’m not sure the first two lines are direct quotes):

Fred: Snotface, what’s wrong?
Elizabeth:Nothing.
Fred: You just put a piece of broccoli in your mouth and said, "Mm, what a lovely piece of broccoli."

I thought of this while sitting at a retreat for my village Parish Youth Ministry (quite another story). Earlier that day I was having trouble putting my feelings into words. On the bus ride up I thought, “Why don’t I write a poem, isn’t that how people share emotions?” So I wrote a poem. Not as an assignment, not as part of a funny birthday card, as a legitimate outlet for my emotions. What a lovely piece of broccoli.

Before I joined the Peace Corps I wondered if this would happen. I read a book by a volunteer in Africa filled with poetry. I thought, do people start writing poetry once they join Peace Corps or do all the people who join the Peace Corps already write poetry? I never got an answer.

Please don’t interpret this to mean that I have something against poetry or broccoli. I like both of them. In fact one day recently I almost bought broccoli at the grocery store for $30 a pound because I missed it so much. Then the (choose the best answer: environmentally, locally minded volunteer OR ethnic/religious stereotype) in me chose the $5 a pound locally grown cabbage.

I just never had the urge to write poetry before. It has crossed my mind to share my feelings through poetry exactly zero times. At least it answered my question: being a Peace Corps makes you want to write poetry.

Headline News: Ben is arriving in Dominica on Saturday afternoon. I am beyond excited. He is going up to the garden and hopefully out fishing with a real, live Caribbean fisherman.

Dominican Phrase Book: Directions. Most directions involve “so”. Make sure you attach it to the end of any statement in which you are giving directions.

Erin: Excuse me, where’s the hot sauce?
Store clerk: (points down the aisle) Over so.

Erin: Where does Mister stay?
Guy sitting on the side of the road: (motions with his head up the road) Up de road so.

Erin: Where’s the bus stop?
Old lady cutting her front lawn with a cutlass: You will find. Keeping going down so.

You (when you come to visit): Where’s the white lady staying?
(Hopefully) Anyone in my village: Just so.

Next time

Happy New Year!

Welcome back loyal readers! I’m ready to take 2012 by storm and post every week. I made it a New Year’s resolution and tattooed it on my leg so there’s a pretty good chance it will happen.

I’d like to start by thanking all of you who made my trip home incredible- and a shout out to those I couldn’t see but would have made it incredible if I did. I think I missed some people and I’m quite sorry if it was you but I’ll catch you next time I’m stateside.

A special thanks to all the people (Edith, Gedo, Mom, Mr. Evans, Aunt Debbie & Uncle Larry especially) who fed me the delicious foods that I had been missing so much. Thanks as well for all the hugs, beers, champagne, cheese, meats, Friday Night Lights, real coffee, warm wishes, requests for my return to the US and good sportsmanship in absurd Hanukkah competitions. You made it hard to leave again.

Luckily Dominica made it very easy to return. I got off the plane and ran across the runway into the tiny two-room airport thrilled to be done with my 13 hours of flights. My friend was waiting for me outside the airport to take me back to Salisbury and after I climbed in the wrong side of the car, reached for the non-existent seatbelt and ripped the shoes off my already sweating feet I knew I was home. As we stopped by a roadside bar for a quick beer to “free-up the ride home” (which is an incredibly long ride and many thanks to Chris for driving me) I remembered how confusing and hilarious it is to live here.

Dominica phrase book: I’m going to give you a two-fer because you’ve waited so patiently.

In the alphabet the letter “z” is called “zed”. I tried to bring this back to the states with me to avoid having to say “z as in zebra” but no matter how many times I angrily said “ZED!” to people they didn’t seem to understand.

Another phrase I had great trouble not using at home was “good night”. Many of you are thinking, we say good night in the US, you faux-worldly Peace Corps! But in the states good night is not a greeting. At least two dozen times I saw someone and greeted him/her with a cheerful “Good night!” and then caught myself. When you come to Dominica plan on having people say “good night” as a greeting all the time.

My neighbor's goat got loose. She's a good goat though and dragging her rope with her.

A rainbow for my homecoming!

Just kidding, there are rainbows every day here.