Raj and Lois in Timor

One of the chief blessings of the new (temporary) home is access to a lush, tree-lined compound (it feels like an acre for 3 houses). 9 of us volunteers live in two houses at opposite ends of the compound. The week we moved in, someone suggested volleyball. As always, I am amazed by the speed and execution of sporting facilities construction* here. T and the other guards grabbed a machete and went to work. In an hour the volleyball net was up. These lockdown days. As the blazing afternoon sun fades, we abandon our laptops and head to the garden. I marvel at the dexterity with which my neighbours and housemates set and spike and dig, with arms, with fists, with foreheads, with the lateral edge of a foot. I have long felt that ball games are not my forte (a suspicion first engendered by playing tennis with my 5-years-older, kinesthetically-gifted brother, and fossilized by a childhood entrenched in books and craft and musical dabbling). Experiences of activities requiring hand-eye coordi...

 I have not written much because much has happened that is difficult to blog about. Executive summary: - We are in the middle of a 1 month lockdown, which might extend past one month, due to clusters of COVID19 outbreaks in Dili. - Many changes have happened in MT, and it has not been easy for a lot of people. - I have been kept busy with: Activities of daily living (A, the sprightly lady who helps with chores between her university classes, can't come because of the lockdown), sporadic productivity from home (Moving FMP online was not really my worst nightmare, but perhaps it should have been), interviewing and recruiting online, developing language strategy for MT (teaching Tetun to malae, English to Timorese, and Medical English to the health workforce) - leadership transition end of this week.

 New Things encountered in the last 2 months since my last proper update: - A deep-end introduction to Human Resource Management - Intense meetings in Tetun (I can follow and contribute but it is like holding a crunch for a long time) - A really interesting consultative workshop on Aimoruk Tradisional (Traditional Medicine) - Realisation (this surprised only Lois) that I avoid conflict and tend towards people-pleasing (All my close friends: Erm... I could have told you that.) - Hence, decision to practice more assertiveness and nurture more indifference to dislike, anger, sarcasm or resentment. - Completed and handed over the text content (non-exhaustive and imperfect as it is) of the Village Worker manual (Aiming for publication in May this year!) - Attended a medical conference online (generously sponsored by A) and was very surprised at the talk that most moved our Clinician Educators by the end of the conference. - Had my first-in-Timor encounter with (most likely) a conman - L...

Lemo Rai, traditional Husi knua, lao to’o vila Oan kiak halerik beibeik  Walking from the village to the city The orphan always walks alone. Husi foho lao to’o tasi  Oan kiak harohan nafatin.  Walking from the mountains to the shore The orphan is always praying. O keta tau todan ba ema seluk  O keta sura O nia kole  Don’t put the burden on someone else Don’t recount your exhaustion. Hametin O nia ain tuban  Lao haksolok hananu nafatin Strengthen your heels Walk happy, sing always. Lemo, lemo rai  Lao lemo rai Sura loron sura kalan  Wandering, wandering, wandering the earth Numbering the days and nights Oinsaa susar nee bele hotu How will these troubles come to an end?   Tan sa O tanis beibeik  Tan sa O halerik beibeik  Why do you weep always? Why do you wail continually? Hamaran O nia matan been  Oinsa susar nee bele hotu. Dry your tears No matter how difficult, these troubles will come to an end.

Today for the first time I slapped myself on the face (to get a mosquito). I failed. Notwithstanding, I believe this graph represents my current progress. Practice makes perfect...

 R and I spent the holiday in Atauro, an island north of Dili. Officially part of Dili district, its geographical isolation has been a mixed blessing-- it separated islanders somewhat from political violence in the past, but also from water, building materials, reliable electricity and an urban economy. It was often pressed into service as a corral for political prisoners and exiles. We came here with JB and their family to spend the holiday (Heroes Day and Feast of the Immaculate Conception).  This was a good decision. The stories I'd heard about crystalline waters, dramatic drop-offs fringed by reefs so shallow you could cruise over coral just inches from your belly; the inky night sky full of sparkling constellations and the odd nebula; the sun rising before your eyes, adding brushstroke upon brushstroke of rose and amber to the swirled cloudbanks... all true.   At the Eco Lodge that we stayed in, the food was delicious, the staff prompt and friendly and the toile...

 If you're jogging along a pavement... and you violently slap a passerby's hand away because you thought  his hand was coming a bit too close to your hip at midswing... and you turn back midstride to see instead a rather decent and shocked-looking gentleman looking astounded at you... In such a situation, do you say " Lisensa!" (Excuse me) or  " Deskulpa!"  (Sorry)? I said both. And jogged away rapidly.