Homesick to a Dedza Kick

This time two weeks ago I was so home sick that I requested to leave Dedza. I didn’t feel like I was moving forward. My ankle was swollen after falling off the porch at my host home and twisting it within the first week! The UK Team Leader, Jason, looked up my symptoms on the NHS web site and sent me the R.I.C.E (Rest, Ice, Compress, Elevate) advice it recommended. After two weeks, my ankle was still swelling randomly but mostly in the evening so we headed to Dedza hospital for a check-up. The hospital had so many different departments, and finding the correct one was difficult. I was given my health passport, a small booklet where medical information is recorded and we waited for around an hour to see someone. Whilst waiting, it was upsetting to see Malawians with very ill children, some who couldn’t even walk by themselves, waiting patiently to be seen. The Doctor asked me about my symptoms and prescribed some medication. Jason suggested that I check with my own GP that it was okay to take them. I did and he recommended that not only do I not take them, but I also have an x-ray to exclude the possibility that my ankle was fractured. He also recommended R.I.C.E. The hospital in Dedza had one x-ray machine, which was broken, so I had to travel 75km to Ntcheu Hospital with my Malawian Team Leader, Ernest. Luckily my ankle was not fractured; however, this whole process left me feeling pretty down.

(from left) Sophie, Jason, Zoe and I spent the day at Dedza Pottery restaurant

After I requested to leave Jason contacted me and suggested that I would kick myself if I were to leave with only three weeks to go, especially after all the time and effort I’d already put into the project. He also reminded me of all the activities we had planned and to look forward to. The following day we met up as a team for dinner and ended up spending the full day at Dedza Pottery Lodge chatting about the different things we had achieved so far. This made me realise what an emotional roller coaster we have been on as a team, and made me rethink my decision to go back to the UK. I also received messages from family and friends saying they were proud of me and I didn’t want to let them down. 

Since Jason’s message we have taken part in activities such as planting trees with a local government organisation in the rural village of Kasumbu. It was interesting to learn about and be a part of the tubing process which happens prior to planting the trees and the community in Kasumbu aim to plant 100,000! Malawi suffers from deforestation as trees are chopped down for fire wood and it was rewarding to take part in an activity that will help local communities to mitigate this. We also took part in a team building event with our project partner, CYECE, as well as our friends from the Salima team. It was also Zoe’s birthday so we had a barbeque to celebrate! After spending so much time with the team and getting to chat about how I was feeling, it made me want to stay and see things to the end.

Entertaining children in the village of Kasumbu after preparing tubes for seed planting

We still have a range of activities to look forward to including a cultural trip to Kungoni Museum, a team picnic and a walk around Dedza mountain. We have recently spent a lot of time preparing for an open day in Bembeke where we watched traditional dancing, poetry and dramas. We delivered SRHR sessions to girls and young women and raised awareness on early child marriages. We identified on the day that across 14 schools, 367 children had dropped out. 67 had left to work on a farm, 42 due to pregnancy and 27 after getting married. There were even some students who left school due to prostitution. 

Traditional dancing at an Open Day in Bembeke

Malawian girl sending a message which translates to 'protect our girls'

These experiences have made me reflect on some of the activities we experienced at the start of the programme. A few weeks ago we were collecting data at a school in the rural area of Bembeke. Most of the locals did not speak English and this restricted the involvement of UK volunteers. Sophie and I decided to meet a group of around 50 children waiting to be interviewed. Despite the language barriers we interacted by drawing animals on the chalkboard and it wasn’t long before they got involved. They also helped us by writing the animal name in Chichewa. We also decided to perform some short dances which they found hilarious! This was among one of the many experiences over the past two weeks that have made me feel less homesick and I am pleased to say that I am now looking forward to my remaining time in Malawi. My time in Dedza has definitely had its ups and downs but I’m glad I have chosen to persevere and will learn from all of my experiences. I now feel like we are moving forward with the project and can’t wait to see what the weeks ahead will bring (my ankle is much better too, by the way!).

Delivering SRHR and anti-bullying sessions at Molima Family Home orphanage

Written by Louisa Harling