Hi family and friends. So here's what I've been up to.

Wrapping up some proposals. I've finished the one for medicinal garden. I am finishing a couple for pig raising. One was approved for a protected well. Also, we are doing some HIV/AIDS awareness activities in the villages and schools. Soon, we will be distributing some mosquito nets in the villages. We are still trying to figure out the best way to grow Moringa.

Malawi is a great place. They always say America is better. Well that is true in many ways. What I like about Malawi is that the culture is really egalitarian and everyone is free to chat with each other, ask personal questions, mock each other and joke around. Thats true in America too but I feel like we are all kind of busy with our personal lives that we get so stressed and don't have as much time and energy enjoying each other as we need to be happy. Or maybe thats just me.

I think it was Benjamin Franklin who said people need 8 hours a day working, 8 hours a day leisure and 8 hours sleeping. For some in USA life is like 10 hours working, 2 hours eating, 3 hours television and internet, 2 hours driving and 7 hours sleeping. Here in Malawi for me its like 6 hours working, 2 hours chatting, 3 hours (bathing, buying food, cooking, cleaning), 3 hours computer, 2 hours walking or cycling, 8 hours sleeping.

Its also a very relaxed place (the 2nd most peaceful country in Africa).

I love Malawi but I am most definately looking forward to being back home in USA.

A few weeks ago I went to South Africa to take the GMAT. That was the easy part. Now I have to work on applications.

I went up north a week ago to visit a friend. I went hiking up a mountain where there was a forest and it was really cool.

I saw a dead man on the road who had been hit by a truck. I won't go over the details but it was a very unsettling sight.

If I did not have any responsibilities I think I would like to run away to Ireland and marry a beautiful lady and spend half the year showing tourists the countryside and reading great literature and the other half of the year fishing. Complete freedom, simplicity and happiness... ahh yes.

Hmm... yeah just like Andy from Shawshank Redemption who goes to Mexico to start a charter fishing business with his buddy Red. That's what having lots of unstructured time on your hands will make you want to do.

I am also enjoying some Irish music from an album called:

The Rough Guide to Irish Folk."Some songs I like are "Green Grow the Rushes Oh" and also "Mattie".

I've been reading some interesting books so if you have some time and are interested then these might be worth checking out. http://www.gutenberg.org is a great place to get free books!

William Blake Poetry - Awesome. http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/authors/b#a295

He who binds to himself a joy

Does the winged life destroy;

But he who kisses the joy as it flies

Lives in eternity’s sun rise.

-William Blake

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie http://erudition.mohit.tripod.com/_Influence_People.pdf

- This book is really useful to learn how to interact with people productively. Basically the author says don't criticize, show sincere appreciation, look at things from the other persons viewpoint, when making a proposition focus on how it will fulfill their needs and not yours. Also, you will make many more friends by talking about what they are really interested in rather than what you are interested in. I think the key to mastering personal relationships and good character is how to create mutually beneficial outcomes with other people. Because then, no matter what happens both people are happy.

Joseph Campbell - http://open.salon.com/blog/simoleonsense/2009/05/24/video_series_bill_moyers_interviews_joseph_campbell_on_the_power_of_myth

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&source=hp&q=joseph+campbell+interview+bill+moyers&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

I always like to talk about this man who wrote a lot about mythology and the common themes the share. He does a great work showing how myths are connected to our inner psyche and how all cultures share common themes and motifs in their literature and myths. Check out the interviews with Bill Moyers. Also there are ebooks such as The Hero with a Thousand Faces and The Power of Myth that I highly recommend.

I wish I could go on a crazy adventure like some sort of videogame. I guess life is an adventure but just a bit more subtle most of the time. You get to choose your ragtag group of friends and overcome obstacles to define your character.

Quotes

Compared with what we ought to be, we are only half awake. We

are making use of only a small part of our physical and mental

resources. Stating the thing broadly, the human individual thus lives

far within his limits. He possesses powers of various sorts which he

habitually fails to use.

-William James

This is a really outstanding quote. Can you imagine how great our potential is if we pushed ourselves to develop fully? With regards to health, relationships, goals, personal character, values, overcoming dependencies, etc.

That quote makes me want to reach as close as possible to the greatest person I can be.

I wonder what it would be like to be even 20% closer. Of course,

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.

Helen Keller

Thanks to everyone for reading my scattered thoughts. I am not quite completely insane yet. I miss all of you back home, family and friends.

A picture says a thousand words so that makes this a really long update. I will add more later.

Here is an update to some of the things that have been going on at my site in Malawi.

The owner of Fountain Microfinance, Joel Mzembe has set a target of reaching 1,000 women in the villages in 4 months around my site with small business loans ranging from $70-$150 per women. He is charging 3% interest and is using the groups they are members of as a surety. I hope it works well. This means that all of the women in the group are responsible for repaying the loans for the individuals that default. He hired my friend Mark as the field officer for the program. So he goes to the villages organizing the women and teaching them. I was surprised he is setting so high of a goal and I hope it is successful. Here is some info on the web:

http://fountainmw.eb2a.com/groups.php

Yeah baby, check out some of the entreprenuers we worked with at Chioza village!!

"Flora Manjalende, Sells Salt "The loan has helped me in basic needs for my family. I want to help my daughter in education through the money i earn in my business"

"Group Loans:Targeting rural women who are poor but have the potential in business. Loans are group guaranteed endorsed by village headman. Loans are given out to individuals according to business done. Collections are done in groups and given to group leader. Two weeks training in business provided to these women."

Also we gave some Moringa powder to some malnourished children in the villages. After 2 weeks of taking the powder, four of 17 children have recovered from malnutrition. Also, 1 child who was not benefiting from taking soy porridge or plumpy nut peanut butter and had oedema recovered from malnutrition and is now healthy. Some of the children are refusing it because its a bit bitter so maybe they can add some sugar or something?? The program is delayed a bit because its taking us a while to get the powder due to logistics. I had an idea of maybe starting an organization of cultivating and distributing the leaf powder to health workers to give to malnourished people because I read that it is more effective at treating malnutrition than the conventional methods of giving soy flour or peanut butter from the World Food Programme. In fact one of the health workers I work with said moringa powder is better than the other stuff.

Also I am working on some proposals for pig keeping and a natural medicine garden. There have been some hiccups but I'm trying to push through them.

These proposals are taking a long time because I need to find this info and coordinate with the community.

I am working with Land O' Lakes to try to help some farmers in the community to get started on dairy farming. Land O' Lakes gives away female cows as a loan and collect the loan by taking a newborn female cow from the mother. The farmers take the milk to bulking centers where they have refrigerators and sell the milk to milk distribution companies. This way the farmers make lots of money. They can make $140/ month compared to $30-$60/ month of what they might get from farming crops.

I set up a demonstration garden for growing vegetables by my house and I am planning on finishing it tomorrow with the local agricultural extension worker.

Another volunteer asked me to include some information about a 2 week girls camp they are having in august thats about womens empowerment. Here is the main website http://www.campglowmalawi.com/

If you are interested in supporting the camp to help young women become leaders in their communithy you can go here click on donate next to Camp Glow" 2010 Girls Motivation Project.

http://www.friendsofmalawi.org/grants/how_to_donate.html

So thats enough about work. I will be back July 24 until August 7th. I am so excited to see all of my family and friends. We need to find some stuff to do. Get ready! I'm thinking we should organize some basketball games, football games, swimming, video games, playing pool, ping pong, chess, watching some movies or tv series, eating pizza, etc. Don't be surprised if I show up at your doorstep unannounced asking for some refreshments! I dunno if I will get a chance to visit Buffalo but I hope so.

I have read lots of books. Here is a list of what I have read in Malawi but I may have forgotten some

The history of God by Karen Armstrong (thanks Uncle Matt and Aunt Dina)

Mountains by Mountains - Thanks Mom and Dad

A Long Way Down

Sermon on the Mount -- Emmet Fox

The end of poverty - Jeffrey Sachs - dont quite agree with everything

Creating a world without poverty - Muhammad Yunus -- nice book about microfinance

The boy who harnessed the wind (thanks xu!)

Schools from Stones promoting peace with books not bombs in Pakistan and Afghanistan- Greg Mortenson (Thanks Uncle Jim and Aunt Susan)

The Inheritance of Loss- Kiran Desai - nice writing!

Rare Earth didnt quite finish it

The White Man's Burden - Wiliam Easterly

Questioning the Solution

currently reading Inequalities and Infections by Paul Farmer

On the radio I like to listen to the BBC and the local station that plays American pop and r & b music. Also, some Malawian and Zambian music is pretty good.

Who is going to be watching the world cup?? USA is playing England in their first game in a few weeks!!

So, everything is good. I am happy and healthy and looking forward to visiting home. Have some maize flour ready so I can cook some Malawian food for you!

I have to go or else I will miss the minibus back to my site, so until next time...

Zikomo, tidzawonana posachedwa!!

(thanks, we will see each other soon)

There are some funny moments in Malawi. For instance, me and Mark walked into a restaurant one night and the man was sitting behind the counter listening to the radio in candlelight. Mark asked, "Do you have rice?" And the man said, "No, we don't have anything!!" without missing a beat.

And one time we were at an engagement ceremony and there were 5 of us sitting in a room. Someone outside asked how many people are in the room. So someone looked in and reported back to the person, "There are 4 people, and 1 mzungu (white person)". Another day we were meeting with the womens group and the women mentioned that they will have a drum and dance performance. I said, oh I will have to watch sometime. Then they suggested I wear a dress and join them. Another time, we were pushing the minibus to try to start the engine and out of nowhere a man ran as if he wanted to assist us and was trying to board the minibus. However, he was shooed away by a passenger. Also, the children are all black belt karate masters and fight each other daily while imitating 80's and 90's American action stars like Bruce Lee, Steven Segal, Jean Claude van Damme, etc. It cracks me up to see the smallest one taking the bigger ones down routinely. I have also taken a liking to throwing the children in the air or curling them or lifting them to work out. The kids are very helpful. They assist me with chores and even chase away people who are trying to take some of my crops by throwing rocks at them! One boy tells me that I am looking sharp whenever I put on some nice clean clothes.

It is nice to be here. People are generally friendly and shout out to me in Chichewa like "whats up!" and chat with me and sometimes show that they are happy to have me here. I enjoy it when people and they crack some crazy joke. I like that people try to talk with almost everyone and act friendly. Sometimes I get annoyed or frustrated, though. Like one time, I was in a bar to buy some airtime for my cell phone and a man said, "Steve, we love you." I said "ok, thanks". Then he said, "Steve, give me 20 kwacha." It just seems strange to me for someone to beg for 20 kwacha when they are drinking a beer that costs 140 kwacha.

Sometimes as I walk through the city, people say things like, Good life to you, or Hi how are you? It is a change for me to be in a place where most everyone is eager to chat and share appreciation for other ppl. I dont want to exaggerate but I definately feel a difference. By this I mean that when I am in the USA I usually dont talk much with strangers as I am moving about through town unless I need to ask a question. In fact I find it difficult to talk to people who are not family or close friends. Here people make it easy to chat when moving about in the market or elsewhere. Although I am annoyed by the Rastas who aggressively market their artwork to white people. They act like we are long-time friends and then try to push me to buy their stuff. When I ignore them they say, "Man this is Malawi, feel free" or "You need to find your way my friend".

I feel very grateful. I am sure it will be difficult for me to leave when the time comes. How can I forget the people of Malawi?

Anyways, I plan on studying for the GRE so I can start applying to graduate schools.

Cooking oil pressing, Moringa Oleifera cultivation, dysentery, no-interest loans to village women

Mark and I have started to use a system where we set up our own organization called MS Investments to provide no-interest loans of equipment for income generation. For example 10 days ago we went to a youth club and set them up with a machine that makes cooking oil from ground nuts using a hand crank. They can sell the cooking oil in order to pay us back and then they can use the machine to make oil for personal use, to get some pocket money or to boost up their youth club with things like soccer balls etc. We also plan on distributing 4 more of the machines to different groups in the community. We expect them to pay me back in about 3 months or so. We also hope to possibly involve a group of women from the church in mushroom farming and maybe another group in soap making.

About a week ago I got dysentery. That was not pleasant.

As of late we have been distributing Moringa Oleifera seeds to members of the community to grow at their homes. We want to do this because the leaves are extremely high in nutrients. The tree grows very fast even in poor soils. It really is like a miracle tree that could be used all around the world to help people suffering from malnutrition and various illnesses. The leaves have 7x the vit C of oranges, 4 times vit A of carrots, 2x the protein of yogurt and so forth. So we believe this can help malnourished children, pregnant and lactating women, the elderly, people living with AIDS and anybody in general. The seeds can also be used to get cooking oil and can also purify water. We hope that in a couple years almost every household in the area (about 12,000) can be growing the plant and maybe we can convince the government or other organizations to distribute the seeds throughout the country.

Back in September or so I started meeting with a village women’s group of about 30 members that had been doing savings and loans.Then as we were walking through the capital, we saw a building as if it just fell before us from heaven. It was called Fountain MicroFinance. We walked in to check it out and talked with the owner about our program. It turned out that he had never actually done something like microfinance but loaned mostly to businessmen. However, he had read about Grameen Bank and was interested in being involved in a microfinance project to see the social benefit. But he was skeptical about the reliability of villagers. So Wednesday he came to the village and provided the loans. We are all a bit nervous to see if the women will manage to pay back the loan. The man joked that the women were all happy today but maybe they will run away next time when we start to collect payments. When one of the assistants was saying the will come take goats, roofs etc as collateral if they fail to pay back, one women asked, “Will you take our children too?” The man said no, only Madonna does stuff like that. It was a great day and we were all happy to see the women receive the loans. If they work properly and no major problems come up they will be able to change their living standards.

Thank you very much to David, Minh and Brian for sending me the package. I enjoyed its contents very much.

Also thanks David and Shen for calling me. Best wishes to everyone.

At an engagement ceremony. The one in the middle is the one being engaged. I stayed with his family for 6 weeks in the village when we first arrived.

Nowadays Im doing the same stuff but also trying to introduce Moringa Olefeira as a nutritional supplement.

December 9th 2009

Hi everyone,

It is really really hot.

Today I had to dispappoint a womens group because their loans will have to wait a week or more because someone from a finance company couldnt show up.

My Dad visited a couple weeks ago and we climbed a mountain and saw the lake. He was also kind enough to buy toilet paper and some other luxuries for me. I am working on starting some projects like a library, microfinance with a womens’ group, some small businesses like mushroom farming and beekeeping, English speaking clubs, improved pit latrines, small items for needy children to encourage school attendance, getting a nutrition book for the village health committees, a protected shallow well etc. I am a less busy than that sounds though. I am still trying to get some materials for the business projects. I am trying to do as many things as possible at the same so hopefully at the end I will have some nice accomplishments (in spite of failures) because there is a lot of waiting time in between steps of projects. It is frustrating some times when you want to do something but it’s difficult to arrange a good time, or there is a funeral and everything stops or someone doesn’t come through etc. I think small businesses owned by villages can really make a huge difference in the lives of people like just having enough money for soap, cooking oil, school fees, nice food etc. I think that there is a big gap in access to information and services for the poor so a lot can be done just by bridging those gaps like assisting them to access markets, equipment and financial services.

I have been here for 6 and ½ months now in Malawi, the warm heart of Africa. It is a country that is very very poor with an average lifespan of 40 yet has somehow managed to have a stable multiparty democracy and is one of the safest countries in the world. Also, they manage to have more food security than some other countries and it is the 2nd fastest growing economy in the world. But there are still so many health and poverty problems. Also, there is some class separation between the rich and poor. That is something that I struggled with because its’ not nice to see the separation. It seems the poor don’t reap the benefits of economic growth as quickly or as much as the rich but it still helps. Also, women have to work very hard and are treated less that equal sometimes. I have enjoyed Malawi so far but I am really ready to get some things started instead of just talking about them. I hope some successes come soon.

A few days ago something funny was said. Mark was asking a boy why he doesn’t go to school anymore. The boy said he stopped going to school because he started praising the Lord.

Children here love to pretend that they are beating each other in martial arts. They watch American action movies and they like Jean Claude VanDamme, Arnold Schwartzenegger, Bruce Lee, Sylvester Stallone, Jackie Chan etc.

The chief asked my dad to send him a fat cow from USA and a tractor.

Michael thanks for the book. I saw it online a while before you sent it and it looks interesting.

Its easy to make friends here. I hope I am successful. I have been playing a lot of chess lately. The last book I read was Mountains beyond Mountains and it was good.

Congratulations to Nadine for getting married.

All the best,

Steve

NO FOOD FOR LAZY MAN

-Bumper sticker commonly found in Malawi.

Hi,

A lot has been going on and I have been busy trying to get some things started. Its still moving slow but it seems like things are starting to progress. There is so much stuff I would like to work on but the challenge is seeing it through. In the USA Im used to things happening quickly but things move at a different pace over here. I am enjoying learning to farm, practicing the language, learning about the area, riding my bike into villages, laughing with the kids and other people and other stuff.

On a sad note, a 2 year old child died after months of malnutrition and malaria. Some other children also died from malaria. When I looked at the baby's health book I realized that I had weighed the child a couple months ago at the weighing station. Although pregnant women and under 5 children receive free bed nets at the hospital, not all of them go to get them or use them properly. Malaria is a big problem here and it is dangerous if a child or pregnant woman gets malaria.

In the past few weeks Ive been working with some youth groups and a womens group. It seems like the womens group will now be able to get small loans from a company in Lilongwe to start small businesses so I am happy about that. I hope after the 2 week training things will start picking up.

In the meantime I am enjoying the community. People are very friendly and like to joke around with me. A few weeks ago someone invited me to sell small minnow like fish at the market and people thought it was funny. Yesterday some boys taught me how to farm and their skills were pretty impressive. Also the kids yell out greetings to me so that is nice. I am really enjoying Malawi. However there are many challenges related to poverty. Although the country is moving in a positive direction, it is a journey ahead to overcome hunger and disease.

Hello Everyone!

I have been staying at the health center from almost one month. There will be two more months of observing and then I will get started on work but it feels like I am already starting. Maybe my dad will visit in November if it works out.

I came to the capital Lilongwe to do some research today and I was pickpocketed after getting off the minibus. doh! They did the trick of pretending to have a conflict and started pushing each other as I was exiting and took it from my shirt pocket. I noticed about five seconds after it happened so I started shouting hey at the ones who did it. They got nervous and pointed fingers at each other and then slipped away. They were discussing with each other and didnt think I had noticed. I got some of the money back. I caused a bit of a commotion because I was angry. Someone slapped one of the pickpocketers. Someone in the crowd recognized me as a PCV. All in all, I only lost the equivelant to $1.40, but which can be worth a bit more here. I still feel pretty safe in the area but now I will be a bit more careful. I think in Lilongwe there is more crime.

The staff at the health center is very friendly and welcoming. I have met many great people. People have been helping me cook, clean and get around. I have made friends with many people including some my age. In the community people are usually friendly also. I like hearing the songs and stuff. Some people call me Ambewe because a man from that clan gave me that name to be nice. Its the tradition to call someone that once they are an adult to give respect. I am near a busy trading center and I go into the villages a few times a week. The environment is so beautiful. I have met a few chiefs. They are very welcoming. The only thing is that sometimes people in the village expect me to bring large sums of money. That is what they sometimes think when they see an mzungu like me. Dependency is an issue I understand because of the history.

I am looking forward to getting started. There are many opportunities to address problems such as HIV/AIDS education campaigns, microfinance, social business to provide nutritous food like yogurt at a low cost which would reduce malnutrition and diarrhea (it is an ambitious idea but maybe it can be possible if social investors lend the money and there is help from different organizations), sanitary platforms on pit latrines to reduce diarrhea, youth groups etc. Many problems could be prevented through simple things like handwashing.

How is everything in USA? I'm interested how the economy is doing and whats going on with all the programs the new president is planning. I hope the economy will turn out okay. I have felt very grateful for everything I have been given living in USA.

Books Ive read in Africa so far:

Dead Aid - This was an interesting book. The author was born in Zambia and has worked at the World Bank and studied at top-notch universities. The author said that aid is creating too much dependency and corruption in Africa at the expense of economic growth and self-sufficiency. She said Africa should work on manufacturing and producing more and that the governments need to work on using capital from international markets such as bonds to fund their programs and grow the economy. Also she recommended trade with China to promote economic growth. I think the book had good insights for long-term macroeconomic growth. But of course I am a bit wary of books that are very forceful with a certain idea.

The History of God (thanks Uncle Matt) by Karen Armstrong- Very interesting book on the history of religion and monotheism. It covers so much of the history of religion in an interesting way.

Creating a World without Povery by Muhammad Yunus still reading - 2006 Nobel Peace Prize Winner who developed the system of microlending to allow poor people to start businesses to achieve self-sufficiency. Also he developed the concept of a social business which runs like a business but does not seek profit. Instead it seeks a social goal such as improving like nutrition or health care. He has helped millions of people in Bangladesh and around the world.

The Bottom Billion was also an interesting book that I read back home.

There might not be pictures for a while because I have lost the adapter to my camera.

I have to go but thanks for all of your comments and emails. I am doing fine. As the kids say, BAYI BAYI (bye bye)

Love

Steve

PS Thanks Grandpa and Grandma, I just received the package!

Phone: 00265993559962 Using the computer program skype is cheap like 12c/min.

stevekaraga@gmail.com

Hello!!

I hope everyone is doing well in America.

I have been in Malawi for about 7 weeks now and it has been great. We stayed in a village for about 6 weeks with host families. We've been learning about language, culture and history. The history is very interesting. The country was called Nyasaland because some missionaries asked Yao tribespeople by the lake what it was called and they said nyasa. The country was colonized by the British and they made the people work very hard on tea estates and sugar plantations. John Chilembwe is the man who led the fight against the British. They won their independence in the early 1960s and called the country Malawi which means "flames of fire". The people needed a well educated person to lead the country so they called Dr. Banda from Ghana. He was an authoritarian leader. In the 90's the multiparty system started and they elected Muluzi. Currently the leader is Bingu who is an economist. Many of the people are farmers and the staple food is nsima which is corn porridge. One of the reasons its so popular is because its dense in energy. The population is about 14 million if memory serves me correctly.

In a couple weeks I will be staying at my site which is near the capital. I will be working at a health center. For the first 3 months I will be observing for a few months and then I can start projects. There are many health challenges in Malawi such as HIV/AIDS, malnutrtion, cholera, TB and malaria. Although health care is paid for by the government, it is difficult for many people to travel to the health centers and hospitals. Also, Malawi is working to diversify its economy.

The people here are very friendly and I am having a great time. The host family was very hospitable. I am learning the Chichewa language. The Malawian trainers have been awesome and we learned a lot about culture and health in Malawi. We attended a wedding, funeral, talked to a chief, learned about permaculture, tradional healers, talked with people from the NGO'S CDC, UNICEF and Concern Universal.

I feel very fortunate to be here and I am impressed with how smooth things have gone. I am learning a lot and gaining new perspectives. I will be able to access internet about once or twice a month. I will try to post some pictures.

BYE

Hi and welcome to my blog.

I am departing May 28th for staging in Washington D.C. After that I will be flying to Malawi to work as a community health advisor. I will be staying with a host family for 2-3 months during training and then live by myself as I start work. I will be working on HIV/AIDS education and prevention programs and secondary projects such as community development and youth initiatives. I am also hoping to be able to work on entrepreneurship and microfinance programs.

I want to give a shout out to Project Peanut Butter which looks like an amazing organization. "The average child remains in the program for 6 weeks, or 4 follow up visits, and consumes about 11 kg of RUTF. In today’s dollars the total cost of the food ingredients to save the life of one child is only $15." http://www.projectpeanutbutter.org/

Malawi is a relatively small country in southeastern Africa with a population of about 14 million. It borders Lake Malawi which is the 3rd largest African lake and has a diverse fish population. Colonized by the British in 1891, the nation gained independence in 1964. They have a democratic government and a Western-friendly foreign policy. The country is densely populated and among the least developed although it seems progress is being made. From 1990 to 2006, the proportion of people living below the poverty line decreased from 54% to 40%. Malawi faces some challenges to successful development including high infant mortality rates, prevalence of HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases and dependence on agriculture exports and foreign aid.

English is the official language but local languages are most widely spoken, notably Chichewa. The majority of people are Christian (80%) and other people are Muslim, Hindu and practitioners of traditional African religions. The culture is conservative and the people are known for being warm-hearted and generous.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malawi