Week Three (Part Two): moshas, saris, mosques, and a balcony

Week Three (Part Two):

Short (choto) Version:

Current Studies: We have now learned EVERY tense! We learned five tenses this week! Ah! J Also learned vocab. this week for family members, occupations, fruits, vegetables, days of the week..

Health: Ami bhalo achi! ( I am doing very well!) No complaints!

CLS Trip: Sonargon

Life: Lots of thoughts…

Big (Boro) version:

I am fully recovered health wise.  Despite the moshas (mosquitoes) who apparently think that my blood is the sweetest and insist on biting me no matter what extreme measures I take to push them away, all is well.  I did finally get a purple (beguni) mosquito net up, and now, two weeks later I can confirm that it has helped my situation substantially!

Week three was a whirlwind filled with grammar!  We learned five tenses (one each day) that were all to be on our next test.  I have been experimenting with different ways of studying and organization to find the best way for me to succeed! …easier said than done haha.  At the end of the day, I can practice my vocab and grammar by talking it out for as many hours as I want, but a lot of the material that I am being given at this point (ie. Verb conjugations and grammar rules) require some hard-core memorization, and this I need to do on my own.  I came to realize that while it might be fun to run around exploring the city and such, I do need to make sure I manage my time so that I can put in enough hours to drive all these lessons home and solidify what  we are learning in class.  Yipee! Learning Lessons!

…and yes, friends, and strangers, I am happy to say that my work is finally showing some tangible progress!  Things are finally “clicking” and I am able to have some pretty substantial conversations (my language partner Konica can attest to this). 

Another exciting event of week three was that I FINALLY got to meet up with some Colgate people! Hooray!  We went to a comedy club that is located just a few blocks away from me in Baridhara (I had NO IDEA that this was there) and then out to coffee.  I was not surprised, since I was the only white person at the venue I became a “target” for about half of the show, but jai hoke (whatever), it was all in good fun! It was really nice to see a familiar face and have a fun evening!

After our big trip to Sonargon the previous week, weekend #3 did not have any ‘large’ trip out of Dhaka, but we did have an exciting time nonetheless!  The director of the program, Tony Stewart, finally arrived in Dhaka! Some health complications had prevented him from flying over with us but now that he is here we are glad to have him and look forward to getting to know him.  We attended both a large welcome reception for him at his flat on Thursday and then again reconvened on Friday for a series of art showings at different studios in Dhamondi followed by a party at a artist’s home.  Of course, the girls all took this as an opportunity to break out the saris and party with style! I wore a new red sari that Konica helped me pick out. 

Weekend three also included a trip to a mosque in Baridhara for the Friday service.  I really enjoyed the trip to the mosque.  Since I got here I have wanted to attend a service, but it is not something that I felt I could do on my own.  In Dhaka it is not a standard thing for all women to attend the mosque and most woman pray at home.  When we went inside the mosque there were two separate entrances (one for the men and one for the women).  The men then entered a large carpeted room where the Imam led the service, and the woman went upstairs to a separate room where we could hear the Imam over a loud speaker.  The service was spoken in both Arabic and Bangla.  I could understand words here and there, but for the most part I did not understand what was said in the service.  There were only two other woman in the room, but they were very nice and were more than willing to talk to us, answer questions, and tell us about Islam and their own religious experiences and beliefs.  In addition, at one point of the service they helped lead us through all of the different ritualistic postures, and required hand motions.

I plan to take a course at Colgate in the fall on the role of woman in Islam, so I have been trying to have as many conversations as possible with different woman who identify with Islam.  I have found, however, that not all women feel comfortable talking to me about this and that it can be a rather delicate subject at times.  For this reason, I found this trip to the mosque especially enlightening and as a valuable opportunity for me to get an “insider’s view.”

At the end of the service there was a time for personal prayer and reflection.  I took this time as an opportunity to clear my mind, relax, and yes, smile.  So much happens every day here (as can be attested by the fact that I have gotten so far behind in my blog posts)!  For this reason, I believe that it is that much more important to remember to take the time to reflect, take a deep breath, and slow down every now and then.

I smile and laugh a lot.  I smile when I wake up every morning because it is my favorite time of day.  For those first few moments nothing is wrong, all is good, and there lies the possibility that almost anything could happen.  The fact that most days nothing of this spectacular genre happens matters not one bit; the possibility is always there.

No matter when unfortunate events a day might bring I always try to find a time to smile and be happy for what I have.  Life is short, you have to remember to look around you.  Look out a window and see something new.  Also, with each new surrounding I try to pick one living thing or space to remember and to notice.  It can be a flower, a tree, or any space.  I watch it grow, watch it weather, change, and be used in different ways.  I try to notice that which is not noticed.

My current spot is the corner of the balcony on our flat.  I love watching how it is used as a space.  Birds frequently perch and we have started to air dry some of our clothes out there.  It seems that every time I look out there, there are different types of birds in different numbers!  I find it hard not to smile as I watch these birds hopping around.  For these few minutes every day, I clear my head and simply watch “our” birds.  *Smile*, *sigh*  :  )

…And so concludes week three! A bit of a slower pace, but I didn’t mind this one bit!

PEACE,

-M

A pic with the artist!

A Group pic!

The birds on the balcony!