Running with a Purpose

It’s been over a month since I’ve been in Fatick, and about 2 months in Senegal total! The time has gone by so quickly, and it feels like I just got here yesterday and still have so much to learn. Things at work are starting to pick up, but it’s slow to the start. In the accounting department, I have done some filing and organizing, and just attended a seminar on QuickBooks. Luckily for me the software is in English, but I still don’t know much about accounting. I’ll stick to the organizing! Now that the school year has begun, the choirs are starting up again. Very soon I will get to go work with some of the choirs around the area with my supervisor in the music department! I have also been observing some of the recording that is done in the recording studio here at the center. Once I get better at speaking Serer, I will be able to record a bible passage in Serer for the broadcast! I tried to read it last week, but it was a bit rocky. I have also started back up with Serer lessons here in Fatick with my tutor, Leopold. He doesn’t speak any English, so it’s basically like I’m learning Serer and re-learning French at the same time! 

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I feel very comfortable in my neighborhood, and I love walking around and even going on runs. I really actually don’t like straight running; I prefer running when there is a purpose. In ultimate frisbee, the purpose is to get to the frisbee and score a point. At camp when we play pandemic, the goal is to chase and strike fear into the hearts of the high schoolers. I have to give myself a purpose, or else I won’t do it. Running here, my purpose is to simply move. At work, I do a lot of sitting all day long – in contrast to what my work was back home at camp. Now I needed something to get me moving, and there just happens to be a beautiful red road that goes on for a couple of miles right behind my house! First of all, running with a view like this is much easier than running at home (sorry Flower Mound, Tx). And secondly, it really allows me to turn my brain off for a second, because I’m simply too tired to think that much. I’ve mentioned before that it is hard for me to be in the moment; I’m constantly thinking about what I’m going to do next. This is especially true in Senegal, where I’m not used to the culture being very laid back and relationship-focused. Running helps me focus on the now, since I’m basically too tired to think about anything else (I’m not a runner y’all). 

I have also been searching for my purpose here on my YAGM year. My dad would say, “What’s your goal? Your purpose?” for anything I do. And now I find myself asking the same question! I have no idea what my purpose is, and I may not know for a while, and I’ve accepted that it’s okay to not know. God has shown me many things in my life, and a lot of them I didn’t learn from until much later. If I’m here and focusing on the present, then I can truly enjoy this experience. I’m now reading the book African Friends and Money Matters by David E. Maranz. I am assigned to read and teach the chapter regarding the use of resources and friendship, and it states that Africans tend to not plan for the long term, but instead use the available resources for things that are happening now. This is because they would rather have an enjoyable experience now, rather than worry about what happens next (this does not apply to ALL Africans, some do indeed plan for the future). This may seem crazy to Americans, and especially me because I’m always thinking about the future. But Africans insist this is the best way – because of the interdependent society. We Americans live in an individualistic world and are constantly thinking “what can I do next that will benefit me” and “I have to save now so I can have things for the future.” But in Africa, the “banking” system is borrowing resources from friends and relatives, and one day you can return the favor to them. It makes sense the more I about it and when I see how people here are very dependent on one another. I think I can learn a thing or two about asking for help.

Lastly, going on these runs has allowed me to become comfortable with the community and talk to people along the way. I pass a lot of people on the road I run on, usually kids that scream “TOUBAB!” But I always make sure to greet people I pass, and sometimes stop and have a conversation in French or Serer. Not only does this help me practice greeting and talking in a different language, but it helps me slow down for a second. At first, I would be slightly annoyed when people wanted to keep on the conversation because it was messing up my running. But now, especially when I’m really tired of running and need a break, I love these opportunities to talk to people along the way. I even see some of the same people now, who always say hello. It’s hard to imagine me running back home and stopping to say hello to every person I pass, and perhaps that’s why it’s easier for me to run here. Anyways, that’s all that’s going on for now! Thoughts and prayers for peace of mind and the whole running thing (we’ll see if I actually stick with it). Also, I finished reading Waking Up White and I cannot stress this enough: READ THIS BOOK!