Pope Francis and more transitioning

This past weekend Pope Francis came to Antananarivo along with about 2 million extra people. This caused both mayhem and strange calm, depending on where you were.

I’m currently volunteering with the Catholic Relief Service (CRS). They have major amounts of USAID funding for food security projects that I’m going to be able to observe and help with over the next three months. I’d heard about the pope’s visit at the office, as a few people were going to meet the pope and attend the mass in a special seating area. I’d also heard about it from my host family- the helper is Catholic, and she was excited for the mass. It was so strange to be a part of both worlds- the one who was privy to the fact that the pope got stuck in an elevator last night for 30 minutes, and the other who would leave for mass at 4 am to get a standing spot among millions of people.

My temporary desk in the office is with three other friendly people, all Malagasy. They each speak some English and told me on the first day that my presence gave them a good reason to practice. When noon rolled around that first day, they invited me to eat lunch with them. I accepted, but then realized that they all had packed a lunch. Even though I had brought nothing, they insisted that I eat with them anyways. They all opened their lunches and pulled out small portions of carrots in vinaigrette, eggs, seasoned beef, rice, and steamed vegetables. They found me a plate and a spoon, and we all ate lunch from this communal potluck. It was so nice! They do this almost every day and are a close-knit group.

I’m now preparing to transition down to the “deep south” of Madagascar, where I will spend 1.5 months in the town of Beloha (pronounced bell-ua).

Beloha is in the Androy region of Madagascar, which has been in a major drought for over four years. CRS has an office there because it’s a major location of annual food distributions due to emergency-level food insecurity. I’ll be able to help with a food distribution scheduled for early October. I’ve also been tasked with writing “success stories” for specific projects while I’m there. I’ll get to go out with CRS field agents and gather stories about how the projects have altered people’s livelihoods.

I’m super excited for this transition and to share what I learn soon.