Challenging stereotypes and seeking clarity

Musana Mwane! Another full day wrapping up here in Zambezi!

Earlier this week, Kris and Jeff made the executive decision to now have breakfast at 7:30 instead of 8:00. This news hit us hard, especially those of us who stayed up until midnight chatting last night. When I hurried out of bed at 7:45, I anticipated being the last to sit at the table. However, everyone else took this “7:30 breakfast” pretty loosely, too. Kris stunned us with amazing cinnamon toast and Jeff made the switch from our usually scrambled eggs to fried eggs today.

The business team headed to the gazebo at 10:00 for class. I think we waited about 20 minutes to begin to allow for all our participants to arrive. And that’s on #ZambiaTime. Today’s lesson was about Root Cause Analysis. This lesson asked the class to look for problems in the community, identify the causes of the problem, and then find the institutional source that creates this cause. Some of the topics mentioned by our students included early marriage, flaws with the education system, lack of clean water, and prostitution.

As an outsider, it was easy for me to feel an initial shock of how foreign and large these problems appear to be. However, it challenged me to think about issues that exist within my communities. I reminded myself that if someone were to come to the United States, there would be many things that would seem foreign to them. Bella gave an example about the houseless population in Seattle and anti-homeless infrastructure. A default issue I go back to is the presence of mass shootings and gun culture back home. While it’s easy to critique others, it’s important to also look inward with a critical eye.

After class, we had our language and culture lesson with Mama Josephine. We went through our Luvale phrases and vocab words quickly, leaving lots of time for music. Thanks to Bella nominating me on the first day of lessons, Mama Josephine has me assist her with leading the songs we sing. Today, I was given an official title: Choir Mistress. Mom and Dad, you’ll for sure be hearing “Twaya Mwanta” once I’m home.

I had some free time in the afternoon allowing me to attend the health class. Today’s topic was mental health taught by Professor Ehler. Grace did a wonderful job guiding the conversation surrounding mental health and leading meditation exercises. Along with the rest of the health team, she answered some really tough questions. I was very proud of the entire team for the way they responded to the questions and challenged stereotypes. Woohoo for women in healthcare!

Many of us piled in the truck and headed to ZamCity. Grace S. taught us some fundamentals of Ultimate Frisbee before we broke off into teams. Half put on red pinnies, half green, and Jeff put on his game face. He really showed off his skills today, leading his team to victory with the help of the ZamCity kids. As for me, I had a few good moments but I’ll stick to rugby.

Kendall Adams, 2025

PS: Adams fam, safe travels to New York this weekend and have an amazing time at the wedding! Please take videos of Dad, so sad to be missing out on such a big family moment. Meg, drive up to Pacifica for me. You know where to go. Aidan, give Rafa an extra big hug tonight.