Tuesday 20 September 2011

I've been "SKWIDDED!"


Just back from 5 intense days of "SKWID" which stands for Skills for Working In Development and is a course given by CUSO-VSO to all volunteers who are ready to go to their placements. I've learned about the profile of an Interculturally Effective Person, Power and Privilege, Advancing Gender Equality, practiced Participatory Facilitation, and met with a woman from Indonesia who was ready to answer all of my questions about living and working in her country of origin. AND, on top of all that I met 30 other volunteers ready to head out to their placements in South America, the Carribean, Sierra Leone, Kenya, Tanzania, and many other countries. What a great group of knowledgeable people with such magnificent enthusiasm.
Now for the final 5 weeks before I leave - packing up a household of stuff, helping Don decide what he wants to have with him in Toronto, making sure we have Skype and all methods of communication set up between us.
I've also loaded a photo of our group at CUSO training and the Okanogan picking peaches in August that we are now enjoying - must empty out the freezer and fridge! And the big item, how to pack no more than 50lb. and how to carry on my motorcycle helmet???
And soon, visiting with friends and making sure we can stay connected.