Jan 25, 2022
4 a.m. on Sunday, January 23 of the recently debuted year 2022. My sleep is disturbed by what I initially identify as drilling coming from construction on a neighbor’s house. Once fully startled from the REM phase, and after a few seconds sharpening my hearing, I clearly recognize – having heard it before on several occasions – the sound of the bursts of gunfire that set off a military mutiny that has become the 9th coup d’état in the 61 years of Burkina Faso’s “independence”
Nov 30, 2021
We are entering the final stretch of the year 2021, which has been anything but easy. The global COVID-19 crisis, again intensified by a new variant apparently resistant to available vaccines, and the expected downturn in global stock markets have been bad enough. This difficult background has been worsened by substantial insecurity in Burkina due to terrorism that has been “in crescendo” throughout the year. In the last six years, terrorism has been responsible for thousands of civilian and military deaths, and has displaced almost 1,500,000 people (7% of the population). Still, Uncle Pepe’s care from “Up There” has been unflagging during this first year without him here with us.
Oct 14, 2021
“Learning to read and write allows us to integrate into society, to leave ignorance behind and to improve our daily lives.” This is one of the answers to the end-of-year “satisfaction survey” from one of the women served by the “Mothers’ Literacy” project. It couldn’t sum up any better the greatness of this project, which is much more than teaching numbers and letters!
Aug 27, 2021
“I am very sorry to have to share the news that last evening, Amdiatou was admitted to the emergency ward of the hospital, where she passed away during the night. Tests were positive for malaria, which, though still unconfirmed, is the likely cause of death. Although we did not wish for her to leave us so soon, she has passed without suffering and has been happy once again over these last few weeks. Rest in peace
Jun 2, 2021
I’ve been short on inspiration for a few weeks. Nothing to be worried about; the accurate diagnosis being the heat of this time of year. Then, on Sunday, May 16, the World Day of Light was celebrated, and as if by magic, and appropriate to the cliché, “I saw the light!”
Apr 12, 2021
Organizing the elections for staff delegates always worries me. I’m not quite sure why, as I’ve organized quite a few without significant complications. Perhaps it is because the process involves a timetable of formalities, with meticulous deadlines to meet, or because of the difficulty of finding the candidates themselves. Yet, despite my fears, we have new staff delegates!
