When I was
first asked to write this post, I had a hard time finding the right words. It
can be a depressing task to write a summary of your stay somewhere, especially
when you’ve come to love the place. Then I remembered one of the many lessons
I’ve learnt during my stay here; keep it
simple.
I’m
supposed to tell you about an experience, a moment, or the things I’m going to
miss the most when I leave Siakasipa. Before I go on to do that, I would like
to tell everyone I’ve had the pleasure of meeting during my stay here –
everyone at the organization, my fellow YSEPs, everyone at every village I’ve
visited the past nine months – you have probably changed me in ways I’m not
even aware of yet; thank you.
So what
will I miss the most? What will always be at the back of my mind when I hear Zambia? There has been countless of once-in-a-lifetime-experiences; like a
very unpleasant encounter with a lovesick zebra, or witnessing total euphoria
in Siakasipa as our football team won the International
Day of Sport for Development and Peace-tournament (do you still have any
breath left after reading that name?).
Still, as
departure day gets closer by the minute, I already miss the more everyday-experiences. Like ending a long
day with a cup of coffee in the company of my host-family under the truly
amazing Zambian night-sky. Whenever I sit like this, I think of a slogan I’ve
seen somewhere in town; who needs
five-star luxury, when you can have millions of the real thing? It’s easy
to get a little philosophical under such surroundings, and I’ve learnt a lot
from my late night coffee-talks with the Simusuka-family. Like keeping it
simple.
