A First Time for Everything

There really is a first time for everything…. Even a first blog post.  I never thought I would have a blog, but with my trip to Mali fast approaching, I decided this would be the best way to keep all of my friends and family posted on my whereabouts and my experiences.  For those of you who have not yet heard the details of my trip, I hope this will help.  I will be leaving on September 28 to spend 10 months in Mali on a Fulbright research grant.  While in Mali, I will spend time in the capital, Bamako, and in a village just south of there called Banankoro.  Basically, the US Department of State and the Institute for International Education award grant money to cover living expenses, travel, professional expenses, etc. so that grantees can carry out a research project.  My project will be an evaluation of a community driven prenatal education program as well as a general exploration of pregnancy, childbirth, and prenatal care in Mali.  Mali has the fourth highest maternal and infant mortality rate in the world, and my overall goal is to understand how pregnancy occurs in this developing country and to focus on prevention efforts to hopefully take successful action to curb such high rates of morbidity and mortality. 


It is easy for me to list goals and briefly explain this project to people, but when I really sit down and think about what I will be doing in 2 months, it is pretty nerve wracking.  I have never undertaken a research project of this size before, let alone by myself in a foreign country where my language proficiency is less than stellar…. I know that many of my plans for research will likely change, but I am eager to get to Banankoro so that I can assess the situation there and start to formulate some more appropriate research plans.  At this point- the plan is in motion.  I am waiting for my visa to arrive from the Malian Embassy in DC.  A lot of unknowns remain… like where I will live during my stay, who my neighbors will be, what I will eat, what I will be doing day to day, and a host of other questions…   


But I don’t want to get ahead of myself!  Right now I am hanging out at home and working at Chief’s (a BBQ type restaurant that is a 10 minute walk from my house).  I have made a couple of short trips this summer (to DC and Chicago…. And soon to Louisville and Denver!), and otherwise just spend my time visiting with friends from home.  Though I am not busy by any means, I have had a hard time motivating myself to do many productive things, including any kind of rigorous preparation for Mali.  I have found myself reminiscing a lot about my trip to Mali last spring when I studied abroad.  I have started to talk a lot about that time again (much to the dismay of close family and friends who have already heard WAY too much about Mali).  The title of this blog actually stemmed from a memory I recalled as I showed my Mali pictures to my friend Erika a week or two ago.  At the school where my American peers and I took classes in Mali, we had a great teacher named Lamine.  We joked that he was the young Yoda of Mali, as he was always offering (often corny) words of wisdom to us, his young pupils.  “No hurry, no worry,” he would often say.  This expression seemed fitting for a blog title, and honestly a great guiding principle for my time to come in Mali. 


And now—what all of you can do to help me!  I would love to have any and all suggestions for this blog (because, obviously, I’m new to this).  Additionally, I am planning to pack four small (ish) boxes with books to send to myself through the diplomatic pouch.  This is a really cool opportunity I have as a Fulbright student to send books and educational materials to my site, basically for free!  Since I don’t really have educational materials or many books, I am hoping to send as many novels and personal reading materials ahead as possible.  I would love for any of my friends to send me paperback books- ones that you have read and enjoyed or just don’t need anymore!  I will pack these books up and donate any extras or repeats to the local Friends of the Library.  Suggestions for books are also kindly appreciated! Any and all books can be sent to my home address: 209 Hillsdale Avenue, Greencastle, IN 46135.  Thanks!