I am back in my current “home” of
Liberia as opposed to still on vacation.
After a very full and busy ten days, I
was happy to return to a place where time seems to move more slowly.
I needed a break from the going, going, going.
I spent Christmas in a friend's village
for multiple reasons including the fact that it was faster and
easier to get to from the airport (compared to my site). I also
needed a bit of a break from my boring, extremely loud and intrusive
community life.
On Christmas morning, a neighbor
brought over 2 bottles of palm wine --which I've never tasted before! So rather
than opening presents and making a fancy breakfast as is the normal tradition for my family on Christmas morning, we drank the palm wine and listened to music. It was chill and the palm wine was alright. It was milky colored, smelled a bit like sour milk, and was frothy... but it does the trick of getting tipsy on a cheap mans dime. 
We
had a small group of PCVs here on Christmas, one of whom had planned a
Christmas party with the ladies at the NGO with which she works. We
all got together in the afternoon after some beers—gotta celebrate
like the locals ya know! We made sugar cookies and
snickerdoodles in a local oven. The ladies all mixed together the
ingredients and found an oven in the community that we could use, which was like a giant standing
charcoal-powered heater, and I assisted with the icing (one of my
favorite jobs of course). We stuffed our faces with more sugar than
I've had in quite a while.
All throughout the afternoon of cooking making and celebrating, people wandered outside to do their Christmas “bluffing” aka take posed photos to share on social media.
Bluffing is ubiquitous throughout Liberia; it's like the thing
to do when you've dressed up and look nice. I watched as one woman
posed with plants, trees, and benches in a variety of positions—but
usually one that shows off dat booty—and the other snapped photo
after photo. Then they giggled together as they looked through them.
We did a little bluffing as a group of volunteers (had to get that
Christmas shot!) and then retired for the evening when it started
getting dark and the mosquitos came out to feed.
Overall it was a
very relaxed day with good company. From my perspective, it seemed
like the most popular thing to do on Christmas day in the village in
Liberia was to dress up in new, clean & fresh clothes, wander
around and visit people, and drink alcohol and dance at one of the
many spots blasting local music through giant speakers. A
quintessential day for bluffing, I'd call it.
The day after Christmas this year was run-off election day! What a strange turn of events. From celebrations and endless libations to serious, down to business political drama.
The school in my friend's front yard
was the nearest polling station, so we were able to see the turn out.
It seemed like a pretty steady and even stream throughout the day. A few
women set up shop selling rice and soup and other snacks just nearby
for voters. Last election, voters' pointer fingers were dipped in ink
to show that they had voted; this time they dipped the pinky finger.
It's so fascinating how countries with limited access to technology
and mechanical voting run their processes.
We have heard preliminary results that
Weah, the famous football star running with a former
warlord/president's wife, has won, but there's no confirmation yet.
Not sure what either candidate will do for the country, as all we're
hoping for is just a peaceful transition of power—something that
hasn't occurred here in over 70 years.
As the days trickle down to the new
year of 2018, I've done some introspective thinking and
reflecting on this year. A few weeks ago,
I probably would've said that it's been the worst one of my life,
but that seems unfair to say. Yes, it's been a challenging year and
one that has presented me with more than enough difficulties and
emotional fireballs. I've felt purposeless, lost, confused, and
helpless more than I can ever remember in my life. But, looking back,
I've also learned a lot about my priorities, values, and desires. I
have tried a lot of things and learned that I didn't like them, clarified what my basic needs are in order to be happy, discovered
what I should look for in my next endeavor, and was lucky enough to travel to
some new countries as well.
Over the course of 2017, I feel like I grew immensely as a person.. with lots of growing pains. And I hope that 2018 brings with it a bit more direction,
productivity, and purpose.