BE A GIVER NOT A TAKER


I recently read an article on why African women tend to marry much older African men.  The answers really didn't shock me, the most common reseason being for financial stability, and then that older men have already sowed their wild outs so to speak and should be more mature.  I don't know if I totally agree with these reasons but I guess statistics don't lie. Here is a link to help identify the reasons why this might be happening.  Why Young Women in South Africa are going for Older and Riskier Men.  

In this article it discusses the risks involved with the practice.  One of the biggest being the young woman's chances of being infected with HIV goes sky high.  I am annoyed theat there is not enough education and information for women in Africa to rise above this social stigma.  It states that younger women are encouraged to find older men to marry.  It is advised to have a "sugar daddy" to take care of meeting their needs and wants.  I think that women need to learn to stand on their own two feet, regardless of their social status.  Maybe there needs to be more preaching of gender equality and women gaining some self esteem and self worth, and then all this being exposed to STDs and HIV will eventually come under some kind of control. 

Don't say Bomb!

Okay with the recent bombing here on American soil and the media hayday, and outpour of support across our country now go across the great seas to a nation that have countries that seems to always have turmoil, chaos, and yes bombs.  http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/06/world/africa/egypt-clashes/index.html  This is just one insistance of a common occurance in this conflicting nation.  I have learned over the years depending on the group of people you keep company with there are two things you should never bring to the table.  One is politics, and the other is religion.  It seems to be the norm when searching around the internet for material to use in my blog, to find pictures of burned out buildings, cars, and lives taken in these violent attacks.  This particular story has to do with the clash of the Muslims and the Christians, apparently Christianity is the minority in Egypt(not a big surprise there) and there is constant tension between the groups. Why is it that one group is passive, and the other is so extreme or radical? Why is it things have been this way for thousands of years, and nothing ever seems to change?  Why is there such hatred amongst people for believing what they believe?  There will always be conflict and different points of view!!

I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not yet ended."  --Nelson Mandela




Nelson Mandela

I must admit I never really paid attention to international news stories in the local newspaper.  I would skim over the headlines, and if it didn't catch my interest I would just move on to the next.  Last week while I was skimming the Courier, looking for an interesting read I stumbled upon an article talking about Nelson Mandela being hospitalized for pnuemonia.  I paused, and thought about this cultural class, and South Africa, and how I really should start to pay attention more to the world around me.  The former South African president whose name I have heard from time to time, but never really learned what it is that he is so famous for....I googled, and I briefed myself on Nelson Mandela(feel free to click on the link above to familiarize yourself as well).  After 2 weeks in a Johannesburg hospital last Saturday he was released.  He is 94 years old.   I discovered that this elderly gentleman born ,Rolihlahla Mandela, on July 18, 1918,  is very popular with his people although his given name means troublemaker, he is in deed a peacemaker as he was the first black president afrer apartheid ended in 1994.  He had a very interesting childhood and was the first in his family to attend school.  His teacher actually gave him the name Nelson.  It was while in school that he became interested in civil rights.  His father passed away, and later he would be groomed for a high ranking office, he took his education endevors very seriously.  It was while he was in college that he became very involved in the anti-apartheid movement.  He preached peace and nonviolence.  He can honestly say he has lived his life to the fullest and should be proud of his accomplishments. 

http://www.nytimes.com/video/2013/03/04/world/africa/100000002098860/kenyan-voters-speak-.html?smid=pl-share
In response to the video posted above...I can't believe that with all the modern technologies in today's society that countries such as Kenya are still way behind times.  It is just hard to imagine it having never been outside the U.S. borders that there is a whole other world that is not as up to date.  The difference between rich and poor is understood.  We are spoiled with our luxuries that make our lives easier.  They are excited about being able to use a laptop, and have a more organized voting process(which still includes a plastic tote to collect the votes in)  They talk about corruption, and people dying.  I guess the last election held in 2007, thousands of people died.  I see lots of bright colored clothes, some brand names, and then dirt streets, run down struxtures, and the first thing I think of is very trashy.  Happy to see they are making progress but still they have a very long row to hoe.  I can't even fathom living in conflict and conterversy day in and day out. What impact that must have on how they view life.  I guess though if you have always been around it, you know no different, if you have never traveled or watched TV, movies, or had access to internet....you just play your cards you are dealt, live life as you know it...and believe that if you want to see change, you have to be willing to be that change.

http://www.nytimes.com/video/playlist/world/1194811622205/index.html#100000002112385

A Day in the Life....

Africa through the eyes of a child....many of us here in the USA take for granted the access to clean drinkable water.  In certain villages in Africa children have to walk for miles every morning just to get water for their families.  It is usually girls that are required to go fetch the water for everyone else.  Alot of the water is not really safe to drink and causes sickness and infections.

I can't even imagine doing this every day, let alone getting it straight from the source.

Education is another obstacle for many African children.  They are poor and often can not afford the luxury of learning to read and write.  If their parents can afford to send their children to school, the children usually have to walk for hours just to get there.  Really? In this day and age?  We really do not know just how good we got it here in America.  There are 46 million school age kids in Kenya, and only about half are able to go to school despite the fact that the tuition has been waived but not the cost of transportation, extracurriculars, and uniforms. It seems those type of things still stand in the way for many.

Something else we take for granted is internet access.  We can connect almost any place, anytime we want to.  In Africa fewer than 1 out of every 250 people on the entire continent actually use it.  All the major cities/capital cities have access.  Places like Egypt, Nigeria, Morrocco, and South Africa, it is popular.  The reason that it is not so popular is that most children do not learn how to read, it is too expensive to have, and electricity is not always readily available.

Many African children grow up surrounded by war and conflict.   In places like Liberia children as young as 7 have been found in combat.  They don't even have an understanding of what it is all about and they are given weapons.  In Rwanda, 300,000 children have no Mom or Dad because they were killed in war.  In the Congo 7 out of 10 kids die before they reach the age of 2. That is just crazy.  Instead of having the war and conflict played out on a video game like most American kids they are fighting real life battlefields. 

As I read the book Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, I became curious about the origins of the African names.  There are so many different language families throughout Africa, so that is why ethic origin and pronunciation are a major part of what is behind an African name.  North Africa is predominently Muslim, Central and South African nations speak Portuegese, French, and English, and have more European sounding names.  I find it interesting that names are often given surrounding the circumstances at the time of birth.  Things such as the day of the week in which they were born, the season, parents reactions, and desired characteristics they wish to bestow on the newborn. Also whether the name is masculine or feminine. The Language in which they are spoken is what makes the name sound so unique. In Things Fall Apart, it takes place in Nigeria, and with a particular clan or tribe called the Igbo. Some of the names and their meanings are Amara which means grace...Adanna which means father's daughter...Ekene means praise...Udo means peace.

As I surfed around today the headline that caught my attention had to do with the decline in the HIV/AIDS cases the countries in Africa.  Of the 33 million HIV/AIDS cases worldwide 22 million are in Africa!  For the first time since it was discovered in 1982 it is making declines.  That is very good news!  We are talking dramatic, like 73%  drop in new cases in Malawi, and even Swaziland(that holds the highest population of people with the disease in the WORLD) has seen a 37% decrease!  They seem to really getting a handle on it, and are optimistic that there will eventually be zero new cases among children being born with it.They are feeling for the first time ever that they are moving from despair to hope! It seems that all the hard work educating and investing money for the cause to eradicate the disease is finally showing some positive results.  Although there are several advocacy groups who claim that the fight is far from over, and worry that economic recession could take money away from funding the programs.  There are more than 5 million people on anti-retro viral treatment(ART) in Sub-Saharan Africa alone.

  ( http://www.theafricareport.com/north-africa/africas-surprising-hivaids-trend.html )