How Do You Say That in Liberian?

When I began telling everyone I would be moving to Liberia, there were two main questions people would ask: where is Liberia and what language do Liberians speak.  After showing Liberia on my hand-map of Africa, I would assure people that English is the official language of Liberia, and therefore language would not be a problem.  I knew there would be a fairly thick accent, but I also figured that English is English - no problem.

When I arrived in Liberia, however, I was confronted with the reality that Liberian English often sounded like a foreign language.  I could sit through an entire conversation without having a clue what was being said if people were speaking to one another in unrestrained Liberian English.  Although I would still not say that I am fluent in Liberian English, I think I have come a long way. 

There are some expressions my Liberian friends use that I have come to love, and I thought I would share some of these with you.  It's not nearly as fun when you can't hear it spoken, but at least this will give you a glimpse!

"Small" or "Small Small".  Used in place of "a little bit" or "some."  For example, "let me drink small water" or "give me small small rice".

"Take Exercise".  When I am running, people might say, "ah, you're taking small exercise" (see - another use of small!) or someone might tell me, "I'm going to take exercise"

"O".  This little letter is added to many, many things.  "Good morning-o" or "Don't bring your family shame-o" (a phrase Olu says often during testing, telling the students not to cheat more or less!).  You can add "O" to almost anything, and it sounds more fun and definitely more Liberian ;)

"Fine."  Used about as much as "good" is used in the US.  When I ask people "how is your day?" the usual response is "fine".  When having a conversation with someone, if I say something they agree with, they might say "fine!" to let me know they agree. 

"Ms. Wegman, please let me go cough/spit/urinate."  This question is asked of me almost daily by my students.  They do not like to cough in class and often tell me they need to go spit (and I almost always say no...).  It is not common to ask to go to the restroom or bathroom... they just say what they need to do - urinate. 

"My stomach is running."  I think this one is pretty self explainatory... it's code for diarrhea. 

"Thank God".  When I say hello or ask someone how they're doing, aside from saying "fine" they also often say "thank God" in response. 

"Plenty."  Still means "a lot", it's just used more often and in different ways than I'm used to.  If I give a lot of problems on a quiz and my students think there are too many, I might hear, "Ms. Wegman, the problems, they were plenty."

"Plastic."  Plastic grocery bags are just called plastic... so when we had left over food after a dinner out with the basketball girls, they were given a plastic bag with their leftovers... there's a long funny story with this, but I often heard said, "she stole my plastic!" 

"High/Low Blood."  High or low blood pressure.  "She had to go to the hospital because she has high blood."

"Big Belly."  Pregnant.  The other day I heard "Plenty cow have big belly" meaning several cows were pregnant.

Alright, I think that's a good sampling for now... I wish you all in the States who haven't heard Liberian English could come hang out and hear it... but I'll give you my best imitation when I get home if you don't make it over here :)

Merry Christmas!

Just a quick post to wish you all a very Merry Christmas!  Hopefully you all are busy spending the day with loved ones and celebrating the joy of Christmas, but just in case you happen to check my blog, I wanted you all to know I am thankful for each of you on this day!

I miss you all and certainly miss spending the day with family.  We are, however, enjoying our own Liberian Christmas.  We are staying at a hotel for a few days, enjoying some air conditioning, hot showers, delicious food, a pool, the beach, a fitness center, a spa, TV, big plush beds, etc.  It is definitely a different kind of Christmas, but a happy one all the same.  Although this might not be the best way to glimpse a true Liberian Christmas (Olu refers to our stay at the hotel as "going abroad"), we are having a great time and enjoying some luxuries for a few days :)

Merry Christmas to all... make sure you deck the halls with boughs of...

Holly

Time, Time, Time

**Sorry I've been away - internet has been down! Back in action now!**

Is everyone else in disbelief like I am that Christmas is less than one week away?  And the year 2010 - two thousand and TEN - is upon us.  It's so hard to believe.  Equally difficult to comprehend is the fact that Ricks students and staff have officially finished 3 out of 6 marking periods.  Wow, time is flying.
Although we have technically finished half of our marking periods, we are not quite at the half way point of our time here.  Second semester is actually about 4 weeks longer.  Combine that with a month off for Christmas break and a couple weeks here in June after we're done teaching, and we've got about 6 more months in Liberia.  I have moments when I feel like the next 6 months will be long, and moments when I feel like I will blink and then find myself on a plane headed home.  I know I will have moments when I feel both of these things, but I also know this will all be over before I know it. 


The other day a friend asked me if I was counting down the time until I leave or if I was feeling like it was all passing by too quickly; honestly, the answer is both.  There are things I miss about home, from the superficial (air conditioning, favorite foods) to the more meaningful (people, friends' weddings, holidays with family, etc.).  And there are so many things around me that remind me of the "countdown until home": the number of vitamins I have left, the academic calendar, the money in the bank... all these things make it hard for me not to be aware of the "countdown."



At the same time there are many things I love here and know I will miss dearly.  I feel like we are finally coming to a place where we are not visitors, not outsiders, but becoming more a part of a community, specifically the Ricks community.  We are spending more time laughing with people, understanding one another more clearly, hearing more and more stories, and sharing more of our own stories.  The other day we were talking with one of our friends and he started to refer to us as "the guests" (how all American groups that pass through Ricks are referred to), but then he stopped himself.  He said, "No, I have learned you are not guests; you are Liberian American white teachers."  I love this - and this is indeed what I am. 


As I bid farewell to the first semester and look toward the next 6 months, I am grateful for all this experience in Liberia has already brought me and look forward to all that this journey holds for me in the future - both the things I expect and the things that will completely surprise me.

And Just Like That, Some Things Come to an End

Hello friends and fellow Liberia-enthusiasts :)  I hope you all are well!  Sorry my posts have been a bit scarce lately.  As mentioned, this period in school has been a short but busy one! 

You know, time is a funny thing; in some ways I feel like we have only just arrived, and in some ways I feel like we have been here forever!  I know our time is starting to add up, however, when we start to experience endings along with new beginnings.  This past Friday marked one major ending - the ending of teaching for the first semester.  We still have to proctor exams next week, but I am done with instruction for the year 2009.  Wow.  Second semester is a little longer than first semester, but it's in moments like these that I feel like I am going to blink and then find myself on a plane bound for the US.  It is unbelievable. 

This past week has also marked the presence of the first large group from the States on campus since our arrival.  The group from Green Acres Baptist Church in Tyler, TX (in addition to a couple folks from Texas Baptist Men) arrived last week and left yesterday (Friday).  During their time at Ricks, they did so much wonderful work: they painted the outside of the school building (a big job!), worked on improving the campus water system, distributed backpacks to almost every student in the school, gave out shoes to some of the younger kids who desperately needed them, taught nightly Bible studies, visited a local orphanage, and helped train elementary teachers in using a new Bible curriculum and resources. 

In addition to all the work this group did for and with the school, they also ministered to Ann Elizabeth and I through their friendship, fellowship, and food!  They invited us over to their house each night to enjoy a home-cooked dinner prepared by the team cook; we enjoyed cheesey potatoes, chicken macaroni, butter chicken, rolls from scratch, cherry pie/cobbler, brownies/cookies, and so much more absolutely delicious food.  I know it seems superficial, but sharing food - especially familiar food that reminds you of "home" - really can be a powerful ministry.  We enjoyed sitting with them each night, eating our meal and hearing their stories from the day.  It was fun to feel like we had become the experts on life in Liberia and at Ricks specifically.  We were sad to see them leave - another ending - yesterday.  There will be more groups coming throughout the year, and we look forward to sharing in their experiences in this amazing place we have come to call home. 

Liberian History: Part 1

I think I have promised about 5 times that my next blog entry would be about Liberian history, and so far I have been a liar in this respect.  I have been intimidated by my promised Liberian history blog entry because I am fairly certain I will get some details wrong.  However, I get the feeling that even after living here in Liberia for a year I would still not be able to write a flawless historical record.  So, without further ado, here is a little bit about Liberian history.  I'll start with the early years and slowly work my way forward in time. 

The history of the Republic of Liberia begins, in large part, in the United States.  That's right - to discuss Liberian history, we have to start in America.

Time: Early 1820s.  America is still in  a pre-Civil War era, and slavery is still an active industry.  By this time, however, some slaves have earned their freedom through a number of different means.  How the freed black slaves will fit into the larger picture of American Society is not clear... but the American Colonization Society (ACS) is formed with an idea: let's send the freed slaves home!  The intentions behind this idea are not entirely clear.  Perhaps it was a suggestion that only had the best interests of the freed slaves in mind - sending them back to Africa could be seen as the benevolent thing to do.  Or, perhaps it was a suggestion that was intended to get the freed slaves out of the picture so that those people who were still enslaved did not see them and get any ideas about deserving their own freedom.  Whatever the motive, the ACS was founded with the task of establishing a colony back in Africa where all the freed slaves could be sent "home."

So, a ship set sail carrying a little over 80 freed slaves and 3 white ACS members.  They first landed in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, a colony established by Britain for the similar purpose of having a place to re-settle freed slaves.  The ACS did not want to settle there - they wanted their own colony.  They continued south and eventually landed on Providence Island (in present day Monrovia).

There were, however, a few problems with the ACS's brilliant plan.  First, although the freed slaves did indeed come from Africa, none of them were actually from this region.  Many were from the Congo area (further east and south).  In other words, this is like picking me up here in Liberia, telling me you're sending me home, and flying me to New Hampshire when, really, I should be going to Florida.  Second this boat of eager settlers was not arriving in an unoccupied land.  There were many people already living in the land we now call Liberia, and they were not looking to give their land away to this boat full of 80 strangers. 

It wasn't until after months of "negotiations" between the ACS and the indigenous people (the ACS basically held a gun to the local chief's head and forced him to accept some meager compensation in exchange for a large amount of resource-rich land) and eventually a battle between the settlers and the indigenous people (which the settlers won with a cannon blast) that the ACS had a piece of land to call their own.  But getting a piece of land was not the only struggle they faced; people were dying at alarming rates due to diseases like Malaria, Yellow Fever, TB, and Cholera.  In fact, the first 3 ACS members died before they could even leave the ship; it was actually a second round of ACS representatives sent over with additional freed slaves that handled the "negotiations" with the indigenous people living in the land.

The presence and efforts of the ACS, however, did not last long.  About 20 years later, in 1847, the Republic of Liberia was founded without the banner of the USA or the ACS flying over it.  Liberia was Africa's first truly free, independent republic.  And that's how Liberia began... more to come later!