So I just got back from PDM/IST in Pagala. PDM and IST are two separate conferences which have now been combined into one four day meeting for volunteers after their first three months at post. The first, PDM, is a project design and management workshop that’s goal is to teach us how to implement, budget for, and organize large projects. The second, IST, is and in-service training which gets into the technical details and ideas of our jobs as GEE volunteers.

Now I don’t know if I am just not used to work meetings or something, but this conference was painfully long for me. I think it has a lot to do with the Togolese meeting style. In America, speakers work very hard to write very dynamic presentations that keep their audience awake and engaged. In Togo, this is not really the case. The style is just complete lecture with very few breaks or movement to keep the audience participating. This same style is used by Togolese teachers and in the work place.

I realized this difference three days in, as I was frantically drawing circles in my notebook to keep awake, and my Togolese counterpart was still going strong: listening, asking questions, and taking notes. This conference definitely made me appreciate American meetings and lectures so much more. I am not saying that I think one way is better than the other at all, I am just merely pointing out the huge difference in style, which I had never even thought about before.

Despite the loooooong meetings, I actually did learn a lot and got re-motivated to start new projects in village with my homologue. It was also really nice to see all of my friends again and hear what everyone has been up to during their first three months at post. I have to say, I was so impressed with my training group and all the work we have already accomplished. It made me really proud call this group of people my colleagues and friends. And, as always, it was really great to see the Togolese training staff again. This group of Togolese professionals never ceases to amaze me. It’s no wonder the volunteers I work with are doing so well.

So, when I got back from Pagala, I planned out my calendar for the next several months and I am actually getting really busy! I have a big even planned for each month now all the way through August which is great! I sometimes worry about my tendency to over commit, but I also know that I am so much happier and more productive when I am really busy so this quickening of pace in my schedule was definitely welcome. A couple of the projects I am working on are: teaching Life Skills, running a club of Peer Educators, three summer camps (Espoir, UNITE, and Informatique), and I just got elected to be one of the editors of a Togolese publication for girl students.

So, that’s all that’s really going on here in Tiny Togo. I just finished my first six months in Togo AND the hot season is almost over, so you know what that means… you can now come visit!!! I have a feeling you all will be lining up to get here, given how cheap and easy it is to come to Togo, so please let me know when you would like to come so your visit doesn’t coincide with another eager friend or family member’s time. As always, I miss you all.

Oh, P.S.! Congratulations to Lizy and Bob! Lizy, I miss you so much and wish I could have been at your wedding, which I know was beautiful. I hope my gift that I sent you gets there some time in this century…