as i am.

"…but soil is a refuge for dispersed seeds."

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Progress

Rainy season came and went with the disinterest of a fickle friend. Despite this disinterest, the village trudged along with endless fieldwork, transforming the surrounding countryside from vast expanses of dirt sprinkled haphazardly with shea trees to towering seas of … Continue reading


Thoughts and Events As of Late

My resettlement after three short weeks away is harder than anticipated. The existence I had carved out for myself in my first two months is revealing the naive assumptions on which it was based. The change of seasons has left … Continue reading


Travels and Tribulations

In June, I returned to Tubani So for In-Service Training. We reflected on our first two months at site, and learned more about how to be successful volunteers. It was nice to see everyone again, but after two weeks, I … Continue reading


300 Cups of Tea

Posted on by chrissy

As a peaceful country in desperate need of ‘Western assistance’, the footprint of humanitarian/ngo assistance is everywhere in Mali. Not only is Peace Corps a large, well known presence across the country, but so is USAID (our development agency) and … Continue reading


The Bugs

Posted on by chrissy

I came to Mali with a mild fear of certain bugs. Fear might even be taking it too far: I could tolerate insects in almost all situations (exceptions being perhaps cockroaches…). My strategy for dealing with bugs most of the … Continue reading


Culinary Adventures of Mali

Posted on by chrissy

The main staple of my region of Mali is millet. It is eaten at most meals in most of the small villages near me. For breakfast it is made into a watery porridge. For lunch and dinner it is pounded … Continue reading


The Family

Posted on by chrissy

The word for host family in Bambara is jatigi. Literally translated, it means guest owner. My host family is one of the most welcoming, wonderful families in Mali. They live in the compound next to mine, and it hasn’t taken … Continue reading


The Routine

Posted on by chrissy

Before the first rays of sun ponder showing their face to the world, my village raises from its slumber to take advantage of the coolness of the morning. Roosters, guinea fowl, and other unidentified birds greet the day the only … Continue reading


Solitude

Posted on by chrissy

It’s a good twenty minute walk into the brush before the symphonic whirr of village life fades into a memory. The constant crying, yelling, screaming of children, blehhhing of sheep, bleating of goats, pounding of millet that chase me into … Continue reading


Becoming Settled

Posted on by chrissy

“Time interval is a strange and contradictory matter in the mind. It would be reasonable to suppose that a routine time or an eventless time would seem interminable. It should be so, but it is not. It is the dull … Continue reading


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  • About Me:

    I am a Peace Corps Volunteer working in Mali for two years promoting sustainable agriculture and environment development.

  • Address in Mali:

    Christina Scheller
    B.P. 02
    San, Mali
    WEST AFRICA

    Click here for tips and information on sending letters and packages.

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  • What I’m Reading

    King Leopold's Ghost - Adam Hochschild
  • What I’ve Read

    High Tide in Tucsan - Barbara Kingsolver All the King's Men - Robert Penn Warren Half the Sky - Nicholas D. Kristof, Sheryl WuDunn Prodigal Summer - Barbara Kingsolver Dirt: The Erosion of Civilization - David R. Montgomery Everything is Illuminated - Jonathan Safran Foer To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee The Education of Little Tree - Forrest Carter The Rodale Book of Composting Team of Rivals - Doris Kearns Goodwin The Jungle Book - Rudyard Kipling The Lacuna - Barbara Kingsolver The History of the House of Representatives - Robert Remini East of Eden - John Steinbeck Three Cups of Tea - Greg Mortenson, David Oliver Relin The Imperial Cruise - James Bradley