Give thanks

"Give thanks with a greatful heart, give thanks to the Holy One, give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His son..."

In many strange sort of ways, I've been thinking a lot about being thankful over the last couple of days. I guess it started with attending church on Sunday, something I was really craving to do. The service was great and we sang many songs that touched on us being thankful for all that God has given us. One of the songs we sang was "Give Thanks," which for those of you who don't know the song, I've written one of the verses at the top of this blog post. I've have found myself thanking the people I interact with here all the time because they are so willing to help and be hospitable. One of the first words I learned in Wolof, the lingua franca here, was thank you, or jërejëf. Another fun word that shows up everywhere here is alhamdulilaay, which means Praise God in the Wolofisized version of arabic. You hear and see this word everywhere, including on the front of the car rapide buses that shuttle people around the city. Besides it being a really fun word to say, it is a good reminder of how much I have to thank God for in my life. Here, instead of saying "you are welcome", or "it was nothing" in response to somebody thanking you, people respond ñoo ko bokk, which means "we share it"; even in giving thanks, people do it here in solidarity with one another. So, in solidarity with my fellow Americans, here are 10 things I have learned to be thankful for since arriving in Dakar. What I once took for granted, I have found to be lacking here. These things are not lacking in any bad sort of way and I am not suggesting that the Senegalese people need to necessarily take my list and make amendments to their culture. It's just that the absence of these things here showed me how much I rely on them without thinking about it in America.

1. Toilet paper. The Senegalese probably have a more hygenic way to clean themselves after using the facilities. This consists of water, soap, and one's left hand; however, one thing I still don't understand is how one dries off afterward...don't you eventually need that wonderful invention called TP? (Don't worry, TP is sold in any local toubab store in the area. I just have to remember to carry it everywhere with me.)
2. Water. My body is not used to drinking the water here, which means that I have to buy bottled water and carry it along with my TP everywhere I go - I feel like a camel. Luckily it's pretty cheap (1000 CFA = $2 for 10 liters) but more than anything I took for granted the fact that wherever I go in the US, I can find a drinking fountain or sink to fill up my water bottle...and I can have ice.
   
3. Raw vegetables. Technically I shouldn't eat raw vegetables here because they are cleaned with local water; but that isn't the most pertinent problem. More importantly, families here consume very few raw vegetables. We were at a restaurant this past weekend with our group of students and almost everyone ordered a salad. Upon its arrival in front of us, we almost cried with excitement.
4. Course registration. You guys have it easy in the US! I will never again complain about course registration not working out for me. We went through the process here last week, and in many ways I am still trying to figure things out. We can take courses from three different organizations; WARC (Western African Research Center), IFE (Institute for Foreign Students), and UCAD (the university here). However, each of these organizations has separate listings of classes, most of which lack a course description, and the courses at the university are often cancelled due to student and professor strikes (one of the unfortunate influences of France colonizing Senegal). It is a headache trying to figure out what to take, how to register, where to go, and if these courses will transfer back to Colgate. But so far the classes I have attended have been very interesting.
5. Meat without bones. To keep it short and sweet, I don't know how to eat meat off the bone. I am now thankful for knowing that when I bite down on a piece of meat or fish in the US there will not be a loud crack from my teeth meeting bone.
6. Being Cold. It's really hot here and I do a lot of walking, so I am thankful for snowmen and blizzards, and negative temperatures.
7. Traffic lights and cross walks. I've only seen one traffic light since I've been here and it was broken. They mostly have round-abouts, free-for-all intersections, or stop signs that are often ignored. There are cross walks, but as I mentioned before, pedestrians do not have the right of way.
8. Trash cans. They don't exist outside the house, and even in the house there is only one main trash collection that has been elusive to most of the students in our program. I don't really get it.
9. Punctuality. I'm not very good at being on time, myself, but here I am having a hard time learning the art of being late. Sometimes it is expected that you are late and other times punctuality is the norm. I still haven't figured out how to distinguish between the two.
10. Movie theaters. Apparently not a single one exists in Dakar, which probably means there aren't any in all of Senegal. You would think that this would mean I know more about American pop-culture than the average Senegalese, but unfortunately this is not the case. I guess illegal downloading is the way to go if you want to see a movie in Senegal.

So Alhamdulilaay for these things that God blesses us with everyday in America. The next time you drink from a drinking fountain, or throw your trash in a receptical, give thanks!