The Goal: 100 Books

Many people who join the Peace Corps set a reading goal for themselves over the course of their 27 months of service. Like many volunteers before me, I set the goal at 100 books. A little over a third of the way into my service, I have only completed 25 books. It looks like I’ll need to get down to business in the next couple of months to make up for lost time!

My completed reading list thus far:

1              Cloud Atlas—Liam Callahan

2              Of Mice and Men—John Steinbeck

3              The Old Man and the Sea—Ernest Hemingway

4              Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas—Hunter S. Thompson

5              1984—George Orwell

6              Sex, Drugs and Coco Puffs—Chuck Klosterman

7              Sh*t My Dad Says—Justin Halpern

8              Something Wicked This Way Comes—Ray Bradbury

9              The Last Lecture—Randy Pausch

10           Lord of the Flies—William Golding

11           Moster of Florence—Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi

12           Slaughterhouse Five—Kurt Vonnegut

13           The Alchemist—Paulo Coelho

14           A Wrinkle in Time—Madeleine L’Engle

15           Outliers: The Story of Success—Malcolm Gladwell

16           The Stranger—Albert Camus

17           Stuff White People Like—Christian Lander

18           Brave New World—Aldous Huxley

19           Rosebush—Michele Jaffe

20           Freakonomics—Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner

21           Super Freakonomics—Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner

22           Metamorphosis—Franz Kafka

23           An Object of Beauty—Steve Martin

24           The Sun Also Rises—Ernst Hemingway

25           Catch 22—Joseph Heller

Rewriting the Meaning of Meaning

 

The real voyage…

 

Homestay (Weeks 1-4)

One of the most interesting cultural experiences I’ve had in Madagascar took place during Pre-Service Training in Mantasoa. Malagasy people have a very unique way of viewing death, and thus have very interesting traditions which at first I didn’t understand.

In Malagasy culture it is very important to respect your elders, especially your ancestors. When a person dies there is first a Fiandrasam-Paty, or a death watch for three days. During this time the body is typically laid out in the home, where community members can visit and pay condolences. At this time it is also customary to give a small monetary donation to help the family cover funeral expenses. Then during Famonosana the corpse is covered with the traditional silk cloth called a lambamena. Next is the traditional funeral, or Fandevenana.

The funeral is not the conclusion of ceremonies regarding death, however. Malagasy people believe that if you treat your ancestors well in the afterlife, they have the ability to transcend into a Razana, or powerful spirit which guards over living relatives. Therefore it is customary in Madagascar to participate in a celebration called Famadihana, or the turning of the bones. In this tradition, every three years people will go to the tomb of their loved ones and remove the bones of the deceased. During exhumation there is a congregation of people who sing, dance, and drink while parading the body between their home and the tomb. At the conclusion of the ceremony, the participants carry the body to the tomb, where they rewrap the body in a new cloth – the turning of the bones.

The first time I saw a Famadihana was when I went to visit a friend’s house during homestay. The parents were fairly wealthy and thus had a TV and VHS player. Our language skills were still quite poor at this point, but my friend’s host mother seemed excited as she ushered us into the television room and started a home video. I was in shock to see a parade weaving through the country side to a tomb and my shock only increased when I saw them take out the body and proceed to dance with it in the air. Unaware of the vast cultural differences, this seemed so wrong, almost like a degradation of the body and memory of the deceased.

Near the conclusion of PST, however, our group of volunteers was invited to attend a Famadihana and experience the ceremony first-hand. This experience was very unique, as the family allowed us to not only take pictures (which is typically fady or taboo) but also to enter into the new tomb. Being a part of this celebration made me truly appreciate the beauty of the tradition and the love and respect with which it is executed. Most families will save up for the entirety of the three years in order to have the most spectacular Famadihana and thus show their deceased family members how deeply they are loved, respected and missed.

Famadihana

One of the most interesting cultural experiences I’ve had in Madagascar took place during Pre-Service Training in Mantasoa. Malagasy people have a very unique way of viewing death, and thus have very interesting traditions which at first I didn’t understand.

In Malagasy culture it is very important to respect your elders, especially your ancestors. When a person dies there is first a Fiandrasam-Paty, or a death watch for three days. During this time the body is typically laid out in the home, where community members can visit and pay condolences. At this time it is also customary to give a small monetary donation to help the family cover funeral expenses. Then during Famonosana the corpse is covered with the traditional silk cloth called a lambamena. Next is the traditional funeral, or Fandevenana.

The funeral is not the conclusion of ceremonies regarding death, however. Malagasy people believe that if you treat your ancestors well in the afterlife, they have the ability to transcend into a Razana, or powerful spirit which guards over living relatives. Therefore it is customary in Madagascar to participate in a celebration called Famadihana, or the turning of the bones. In this tradition, every three years people will go to the tomb of their loved ones and remove the bones of the deceased. During exhumation there is a congregation of people who sing, dance, and drink while parading the body between their home and the tomb. At the conclusion of the ceremony, the participants carry the body to the tomb, where they rewrap the body in a new cloth – the turning of the bones.

The first time I saw a Famadihana was when I went to visit a friend’s house during homestay. The parents were fairly wealthy and thus had a TV and VHS player. Our language skills were still quite poor at this point, but my friend’s host mother seemed excited as she ushered us into the television room and started a home video. I was in shock to see a parade weaving through the country side to a tomb and my shock only increased when I saw them take out the body and proceed to dance with it in the air. Unaware of the vast cultural differences, this seemed so wrong, almost like a degradation of the body and memory of the deceased.

Near the conclusion of PST, however, our group of volunteers was invited to attend a Famadihana and experience the ceremony first-hand. This experience was very unique, as the family allowed us to not only take pictures (which is typically fady or taboo) but also to enter into the new tomb. Being a part of this celebration made me truly appreciate the beauty of the tradition and the love and respect with which it is executed. Most families will save up for the entirety of the three years in order to have the most spectacular Famadihana and thus show their deceased family members how deeply they are loved, respected and missed.

It’s almost time!

4 – The number of days until I fly to Philadelphia to meet my fellow Mada Peace Corps Volunteers.

5 – The number of days until I begin my journey to Madagascar, complete with a stop in South Africa.

0 – The number of bags I have completely packed and ready for departure.

Now might be the time when panic should begin to creep its way up my spine, but thankfully procrastination is an old college friend I have not yet forgotten, and I feel certain that it will not lead me astray now.

I’m not exactly sure who or what first introduced me to the Peace Corps. All I can recall are the countless times I visited the PC website throughout high school and college, each time imagining what life would be like somewhere far away. The thrill of people, sights, sounds, tastes and adventures completely different from anything I’d ever known or experienced appealed to a part of me I could never quite identify. In a few short days I will no longer have to dream and speculate – I’ll have a new home halfway across the world where I can explore, grow, and love.

I have no clue what this experience will entail, but I would love to share it with my family and friends. Please be patient with me (I’m not sure how much access I will have to the internet!) and rest assured that I’m safe and smiling at any given moment. After all, the Peace Corps has instructed us to inform loved ones back home that “no news is good news”!

Since internet may be sporadic or nonexistent for extended periods of time, the best way to stay in touch is via mail. Below is my address for the first three months of training – I will update it with my new address when I know it (although I can receive mail at this address any time during the next 27 months). If I don’t see you before Tuesday, I look forward to seeing you in 2015!

Andrea Brunner, PCV

Bureau du Corps de la Paix

B.P. 12091

Poste Zoom Ankorondrano

Antananarivo 101

Madagascar

My Assignment

“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”

-Walt Disney

Country:     Madagascar

Program:    Education

Job Title:     TEFL Teacher and EFL Teacher Peer Support

Staging Dates:      July 09-10, 2013

Pre-Service Training (in Madagascar):      July 11-September 21, 2013

Dates of Service:     September 22, 2013-September 23, 2015

Blue Envelope!