I’ve been here just over a week and it’s time to introduce my Zambian family.  You’ve met Chrys – the awesome SmartCare training lead who got me involved with this project.  She’s from SoCal and has a long illustrious background in technical training and content development.  She came to Zambia a few times on short term contracts to help with SmartCare, and is now here for a few years managing this whole end user training effort.  An avid animal lover, she’s adopted more than a half-dozen cats and the same number of rabbits (they live in the back yard) who keep her company when us “ex-pats” aren’t invading!  The house she rents is a two-story “flat” that is in a neighborhood called Rhodes Park, one of the nicer sections of Lusaka.   Chrys has been kind to have me stay in an extra bedroom upstairs…I have two nice windows that look out on her backyard, a comfy double bed, and the oh-so useful table fan (we got a few of those for around the house when the weather was so darned hot last week and they are a lifesaver at night).  An occasional cat comes to visit so it’s hard to be lonely.  If you are wondering what the thing is hanging over the bed is – that’s a bed net.  We haven’t been using them yet since the purpose is to protect you while sleeping from mosquito bites (you spread the netting around the entire bed as the center hangs from the ceiling) – with the dry heat the critters aren’t around. Let’s hope it stays that way for at least a few more weeks.

Chrys’s Mom  – Karuna Dhar – is staying with us for another couple of weeks. She arrived before I came and departs about a week before I do.  She is very well-traveled and has a fascinating background in interfaith activism as well as being a Buddist. Her plan is to stay with Chrys for a few months each year that Chrys is living in Zambia, and this is the first big installment.  It’s obvious that Chrys loves having her here – they have a very sweet relationship.  Because “Mom” (she lets me call her Mom, too – no offense to MY Mom) had a stroke a while back, she has some paralysis in one arm and some limited mobility – so Janet, a totally cool Zambian woman, is her caretaker for the time she is here. Janet does cooking for us, runs errands, and tends to Karuna – and has the most hysterical sense of humor.  Janet shares the downstairs living room with Karuna as a sleeping area. 

Josephine is a housekeeper who takes care of keeping the house clean and doing laundry. She is the sister of Marjory – Chrys’s business partner and neighbor.  Josephine is incredibly sweet and giving, and has made me feel very much at home, as have the other ladies.  Marjory lives just a couple of houses away with her five kids…her husband died in the last year or so and it’s been tough on her and the family – but she obviously has a deep friendship and respect for Chrys, and they help each other out as needed.

I have been made to feel totally part of this family – I am “sister” to all of the women as they are to me now.  I couldn’t really ask for more on this journey.

Till next time….