Goings on (external and internal)

External...
**Things are going just swell here in the village. We had another stakeholder meeting about a week ago and i am feeling pretty posi, as Masha would say, about the event. We presented the business plan, talked about our concerns with time, and put it to the stakeholders to decide whether to carry on with the full event. They were all very responsive and agreed that we should have the event on one day, and we would all take responsibility for it. So we've split up all the tasks and everyone is on board and i think it could be a success! We have our next meeting coming up next week where we will all report back to one another on the progress we've made, so Ill keep you updated.

** Things are also going splendidly with the lay counselors. I have missed some meetings what with promoting the health carnival event to other stakeholders, but we have started holding committee meetings, where I teach them about strategic planning. We had our first meeting this week and they were quite receptive and keen on learning and taking the necessary time to create a well thought out strategic plan. We are all looking forward to getting trained by Childline in July.

** and things are moving right along with opening the youth centre on Saturdays! We just got six new volunteers at the centre and they have some great ideas. We are hoping to start a debate team, a kickboxing class, sports, and ultimate dancing on Saturdays. Yaebo!

** my lovely flush toilet is currently out of order because the water keeps going out so often. So now i have the pleasure or keepin' it real like all the other PCVs. By this, of course, I am referring to the incredible opportunity to poop in a bucket after dark and disposing of it in the pit toilet when the sun shines through my window in the morning. I suppose this 'goings on' could fit in either the external or internal category, depending on your viewpoint... Ill let you ponder that...

internal...
** My holiday vacation is about a week away now, and I am incredibly excited about it, but when breaks come around, I always ask myself, "why do we need breaks?" If we feel like we need breaks all the time, ie, if we are so stressed with our lives that we need to escape, then somethings gotta change.. our perceptions, our attitude, our life, our job, something. So i started asking myself , ' why am I stressed? what part of living is making me feel so uncomfortable right now that i feel like i cant do anything but squeeze myself through some crack in the wall and escape? " I was so focused on taking a break that every person, everything in between me and that crack in the wall was incredibly bothersome and annoying... oh, man, what an awful way to let yourself go on feeling! So decided to that that not be so and change my perception. Ive been meditating at home, but i started walking meditation on the way to and from work. When i meditate, i focus on breathing in negative energy, transforming that into positive energy, and then breathing that right back out. It has changed my interactions with people and all of my surroundings. It has helped me be more aware, more relaxed, more open to the experience of the moment, whether or not i perceive it as positive or negative at first, because i know I can decide how the experience enters my senses and effects me. Instead of blocking things out avoiding situations, this has allowed me take everything in. Try this at home, kids!

oh, and you know that there really is no external and internal, right? Those are just illusions, boxes made out of nice, neat, straight lines that we think we need to create in order to understand things. I'm just being silly, talking about things external of me and internally within me. Everything is onething.

Much love,
Bontle