Summer Insight

Well, I have been in Arkansas for almost four weeks now, living in Marvell with four other college students from Washington and Lee, Spelman, and Morehouse (From left to right in the picture: Jamila, Kat, Dionte, Me, Frankie). I am working with my roommate and newfound friend, Jamila, at the Delta Area Health Education Center. We have tagged along on a few health education outreach meetings/fairs, filled in for people at the front desk and the fitness center, and had a blast the first week hanging out with the high school kids learning about health professions. Our main task has been planning and implementing a six week summer camp for kids ages 6-15. It runs in the mornings from 9:30-11:30, although the kids usually don't clear out until noon. Our job is to give them some health education that they are not getting in schools, such as nutrition, drug use, safety, babysitters' training, and fitness. We are currently in the midst of our second week of camp. Living in Marvell is like living in another world. Jamila has lived in Jamaica and Guyana, and I just got back from India, so we joke that living here is equivalent to living in a 3rd world country. We have racked up quite a list of reasons:
1. Everyone stares at you, because they know you aren't a local.
2. There are stray dogs everywhere.
3. There are no stoplights in Marvell.
4. Street names mean absolutely nothing.
5. You can still get Coca-Cola in glass bottles.
6. There are still people to pump your gas and load your groceries in the car for you.
7. Roadkill sticks around for days.
8. Even when they are speaking English, the locals are still hard to understand sometimes.
9. You have to drive over an hour to get to a movie theater, mall, large hospital...
So that's a taste of small town, Arkansas. I hope to have more interesting insights soon.