pcr labs and kitchen parties and loving one another :)

A lot has been going on at the lab this past week...except the electricty - haha. The power has gone out numerous times, and when that happens, and generator is supposed to switch on. There was a problem with a switch earlier in the week, which went on for a few days. For this reason, the power goes out, and everyone starts running around trying to decide what to do about the tests that are running the machines. Monday, we had only enough power for one machine to be running at a time, and since viral loads were top priority, we had to be anticipating the amount of time each batch would run for in each machine so we could try to switch off the power to that machine in place of the next one, so we wouldn't lose the samples! Needless to say, I know a lot more about the timing for each step in the machines now, and how fast you really can trasport samples back and forth! It's really fun and challenging working in the lab because there are so many things you have to try to calculate and think about in your mind, that you don't have to consider when working in the states. The people in the lab are so resourceful though, and because everyone helps eachother out, things actually do work out in the end. Everyone in the lab continues to be very welcoming, and two of the lab techs, Jeffrey and Cornwell, call me Bupe (boo-pay), which is nyanga for "gift"! Eugene continues to call me mboya, which means cousin or grandmother, he chooses which one depending on the day, and says either way it means we are related, so in this culture he can make fun of me and laugh at me and I can't do anything about it! Then he tells me that the only reason he laughs so much is to extend his life. He has been reading up on things he says, and being happy and laughing helps you live longer. Everyone is just so nice; they also express their gratitude when I attempt to speak their language and they always ask me how I am doing, if I need anything, if I'm hungry, etc.

Despite some electricy issues, we've been running a great deal of viral load and HIV tests. Both tests have three steps - extracting the DNA, amplifying the DNA, and detecting the virus at the end. Ngambo and I have been starting earlier and running all the viral loads in parallel, meaning while one batch (23 samples) is in the extraction stage, another is in amplification stage. In the beginning it's simple to keep track of, but once the day gets going, it gets really busy and it also involves a lot of timing.
Something else exciting from the lab is that a woman from the bush (about 5 hours from here) came in to ask Ngambo and I questions about the PCR lab - about the equipment used, safety precautions, procedure of tests, amount of space needed, etc. She is starting up a PCR lab out there, and there has never been one there before! She asked my boss if we could both go out there for about a week to help set it up - which would be suuuuuch a cool experience - and he said he's completely behind it!

Also, Monday I was able to visit the Kalingalinga school. This school has grades 1-9, and sees over 30 classes each day. For the younger grades, school is only a few hours, so there are 3 shifts: morning, early afternoon, and late afternoon. There are 15 classrooms, and while the rooms are small, each class has over 60 students in it! I spoke with the headmaster to see if they had a place for a library, and she said there is no room for one. Indeed, the classrooms are all right next to one another, in the shape of a horseshoe, surrounding the ground that the children play on. The rooms all face this area. The roof on top of the rooms leaks when it rains, and of the few desks in the room (picnic table size) few of them are functional (not broken and splintered, having benches) There are no books. There are no bookshelves. Since there isn't a room free for a library, I was thinking of trying to raise money to put a bookshelf in each room, with a few books for kids of that grade level. The headmaster said they are severely lacking in books for the younger children, like ABCs and simple stuff. People build and sell furniture on the streets, so I could pay them to build some shelves and I already have looked into shipping prices of books, and children's books here. One of the guys at the lab is actually starting a foundation to raise money for food at the clinics, which he is still getting approved. He hopes to be able to provide lunch a few days a week. (many people come from so many miles away and wait all day to be seen. he is thinking of doing peanutbutter sandwiches because so many are malnourished, so it would be a good source of protein.) We are still looking into the prices and the creating of the website, but I know a lot of people have asked me how they can help out, so i was going to post information when the site is up and running for whoever is interested!
A strange thing is, while the school doesn't have books, there are places so closeby that are extremely modern and obviously have a lot of money put into them. One example is the movie theatre. When you go in, it's just like home, comfortable seats, good lighting, etc.

The days in the lab are really busy, but I look forward to going into work as much as I look forward to getting home and cooking and doing my own thing. I love the first few minutes when I'm off of work because we hop on this pick-up truck like vehicle that makes a few stops around town. I sit in the back with other lab techs and just let my hair blow in the wind and the only sound I can hear is the air whipping past. I watch the sun setting as the truck speeds through town and when my stop comes I jump off and then walk home :) The days are getting so busy and packed and it's really hard to get to the market for food and what not during the week, so all these errands get saved up for the weekends.
This past saturday, Laura and I went to an orphanage called Mother Teresa. We walked a few miles and then caught a bus the rest of the way there. The kids were so adorable and the babies just wanted to be held forever! We wrapped fabric chetenges around us so we were able to carry a baby on our back and then hold two in front. It was a lot of fun and it was so cute because they are trying to train some of the little kids to go to the bathroom on the toilet, and you walk into this room with these tiny kids all lined up on these tiny boxes, and they look so bored, and about 5 were actually asleep!
Later, we went to a kitchen party, which is what people call a bridal shower here. One woman my friend works is the cousin of the groom. As you have probably figured out, you don't have to know anyone there to be invited! Only women attend and there were well over 200 people there. I have never seen so many pots and plates in my entire life. Someone even gave her an oven and a table with chairs. The bride's family sits on one side of the room and the groom's family sits on the other. To ask for the woman's hand in marriage, the grooms uncle must go to the woman's family and ask and negotiate a price. The groom's family pays money, and throughout the entire ceremony that side of the family just keeps giving her money. Once they are married, the groom must pay again to be welcomed into the family.
In the beginning they had a lot of drumming and laura, alanna, and I held the babies for the women who were drumming. (this was my idea. the babies were completely fine on their clothe, but i was on a roll after the orphanage and they just looked so huggable!) Then everyone gets food and the bride's group of friends escort her in with singing. She is covered with fabric, and she walks slowly to the front. Everyone is singing and dancing around her and finally the groom's best man uncovers her. The bride must be completely silent and have no facial expression during the entire event as a sign of respect, even with people right in her face! (yea, i've already determined I would make a horrible zambian bride!) The groom then walks up and presents her with money. Then he sits down a little bit away from her and she gets up slowly with the other woman, kneeling and standing back up as she goes and presents him with flowers. Then they both kiss, and the hostess of the party separates them, and they are told to kiss again and the hostess again separates them. All the while, people are screaming and singing! Next comes the point when the hostess opens each present, one at a time, and the person that gave that present must come up and dance or sing about the gift, showing what the bride must do with it. For example, the woman who gave an iron, danced around with it and was moving the iron around her shirt as she did it. We gave a casserole dish but had to leave early (we stayed there already for over 3 hours and we had dinner plans) We tried to just walk out and they were like no no no you MUST dance, you must you must! so they pulled us on stage and we had to do a dance in front of all of these people. it was a little bit scary, but really really fun! we were trying to move our hips like they do, and i tried to simulate a caserole dish in my arms hahaha. people were screaming like crazy when the three of us americans were dancing, and afterwards everyone was hugging us and telling us they love us and saying how happy we made them. Lisa, the woman we went with, told us it didn't matter that we didn't know what to do, but that all of the women were so happy that we were embracing the culture.

Looking around and seeing all of these people who are so grateful for what they have is really so beautiful. I went to the same church today as last week and this one church member's story was told today. This woman and her family came from the Democratic Republic of Congo. They were refugees and her husband was killed on the way. She said that she and her son had basically no money and were starving when they got to Zambia. She attended a service last year but did not plan on going back or staying in contact with any of the people she met. But she said the women she met that day had something different in mind. They never stopped visiting her house and praying for her. She told us that they would not allow her family to fall. They said they would not let her family go. A few months ago she began coming to church again and actually a few days ago she got a job. She is very involved with the church now and her son actually is in the hip hop youth group that danced today, which was really really good.
I remember thinking, I don't even have to listen to the sermon today to feel the difference being in the room. Sitting with these people all around me, coming from these lives so so different than mine...hearing their voices sing and praise God, their voices are deep and rich....seeing them cheer eachother on - it's exactly what I think God calls us to do, to truely and deeply love and care for one another. We sang this song afterwards, all of the zambian people holding hands, and holding hands up in the air, eyes closed, happy and singing:
I stand in awe of you, Holy God to whom all praise is due.

Anyway, it was truely a beautiful day, and I look forward to the week! much love and God bless