Monday was Richard and I’s 6th anniversary. Since there are no fancy restaurants, (though we do love the Chicken House take-away), it was a pretty low-key day. Friday was our 1st anniversary in Gumare, which was also a pretty uneventful day. Time really does fly, though.

The weather has gotten much colder, which means winter has arrived. There has been quite a decrease in bugs, to the detriment of the chameleon that has happily taken up residence on the bush in our front yard. Chameleons aren’t usual visible in winter – many believe they hibernate – so he is a welcome surprise, especially since he has stayed for over two weeks. I try to help him out by gathering grasshoppers and he thanks me by extending his long tongue. Funny enough, the UN volunteer found him in her back yard. She called me to collect him and said that it is a belief in Botswana that when you see a chameleon, it will rain. Sure enough, it rained the next day and a couple days after that, which is unusual for this time of year.

Richard has been learning to weave a basket and he is progressing quite well. He provides the ladies at the basket co-op in our village with a lot of entertainment, though they have been quite helpful and patient with him. The women in our area make beautiful baskets and Richard and I have spent a good portion of our living allowance buying them. Richard is actually helping the women assemble a catalog right now, in exchange for the basket-making lessons. The bead-making project for orphan caregivers is progressing well. There are 7 women in the group. Last week, 2 women from the Mothers-for-All NGO came and taught them how to assemble different types of jewelry. Hopefully, they will be able to start selling the jewelry next week.

June 16th marked International Day of the African Child, which commemorates this date in 1976 when hundreds of black school children were shot in Soweto, South Africa, as they demanded their right to equal, quality education in their own language. This day also brings attention to children’s rights, such as the right to education, health, lack of poverty, etc, in Africa. This day is celebrated in most schools in Botswana. Our office sponsored a commemoration in XaiXai, a mostly San village near the Namibia border. Richard attended the event, while I went to the celebrations at the Primary School and Junior Secondary Schools in our village. I keep forgetting that every time I go to an event at the primary school, they ask me and the other PCV in Gumare to lead an activity, without time to prepare. We ended up teaching (i.e. demonstrating in front of the whole school) the Hokey Pokey. I’m not sure if the kids got more fun out of learning the Hokey Pokey or watching us – actually I know the answer .