ICS blog

One of the most frustrating things that ICS volunteers go through is that, despite all the effort we put into delivering our projects, we don’t necessarily get to see the impact of our work. I have been in Malawi for almost six months. I have worked with numerous youth groups, schools, and with the community in general delivering information about Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH), knowing that I might not see the end result of my work. 

For International World AIDS Day on 1 December, our ICS volunteers in Malawi have conducted three interviews within the communities that they are volunteering in showcasing strong individuals that are living with HIV. HIV is no longer a death sentence, with many people living with HIV all over the world leading a normal, healthy life. Here are their #storiesofstrength.

Zelina’s story

Zelina is 40 years old and lives in Malawi. She has been living with HIV since 2007.

For International World AIDS Day on 1 December, our ICS volunteers in Zimbabwe have conducted four interviews within the communities that they are volunteering in showcasing strong individuals that are living with HIV. HIV is no longer a death sentence, with many people living with HIV all over the world leading a normal, healthy life. Here are their #storiesofstrength.

Richard’s story

This story is based on the information given by Richard, a 46 years old male who is living positively with HIV in Mutare, Zimbabwe.

For a week the Earth seemed to be twiddling its sun in the absence of anything better to do. Meanwhile, our thumbs orbited our thumbs in a micro-mockery of the cosmic amblings. Lying in the wake of a logistical hiccup that left us without the training, which would have given us our weekly guidance, we were waiting for some benevolent hand to feed us a great big loving spoonful of inspiration. Little did we know that hand moves surreptitiously, for brewing in the primeval soup of our discontent were the ideas and will to make the project a success.

Reaching puberty, having strange things happen to your body and generally growing into a teenager is challenging enough for most girls, but within the constraints of Malawian culture, teenagers here struggle with more challenging issues; with the arrival of their 13th birthday, comes the prospect of marriage.

Zenda is 19. She was born and lives in Ekwendeni, Malawi, with her mother. She is an inspirational girl and her story deserves telling!

Quiero hablar en este blog sobre un animalito, nuestro amigo fiel que por nada en el mundo nos deja solos, Roki, el perro de la suegra de Ana, una de las voluntarias nacionales. Isabel Gutiérrez la dueña de Roki, me platicaba que este perro se lo regaló su hijo que vive en una comunidad cercana a la nuestra que se llama El Hato. Dice que se lo dieron de un mes de nacido, desconoce la raza de él. Dentro de las cualidades de Roki tenemos que es un fiel compañero y agradecido con las personas que lo cuidan, disfruta ladarle a las vacas y cerdos.

This week we decided to get our team to help us for our blog. We asked everyone in Team Chinombo for their host home experience, here is what they said:

Jac’s host home experience

Being the UK Team Leader, I knew that I’d be housed alone out here. A fact that I didn’t really think about until a few days before we arrived in Rumphi when my anxious thoughts began to strike full force - Will I be lonely? What if I can’t communicate? What if they don’t like me? Etc.

Quiero empezar contándoles la bella experiencia en nuestra feria ambiental. Fue muy divertido, gracias a las personas que asistieron al evento. Logramos vender todo lo que habíamos preparado, con los fondos recaudados organizaremos otras actividades en la comunidad. 

To be honest with you, that saying has always baffled me. I have been a qualified teacher for just over two years now and I know with absolute certainty that it wasn’t written by a teacher. Nor could it have been written by someone who was friends with or related to a teacher for that matter. It shows a very clear viewpoint that teaching is a bit of an easy career.

As a youth, I had very little understanding on gender issues. And as it is per our Malawian culture, I had roles which I was supposed to follow and be doing as a boy at home and in the society. Because of this, I was a number one supporter and very good at defining the word gender as socially defined roles for men and women and that those things should be that way.