May 5

I got woken up late, so this email might be slightly short.
Yesterday we went to the clinic for the first time. It was pretty
incredible. We weren’t really planning on writing wills that day, just
observing and figuring out the dynamic of everything. But the clinic
had different ideas. First of all, one  of the staff workers there,
Sam (the same guy who came to meet us the first day) gave us more
training on will writing. It was another example of how different the
culture here is. Once again we were all going crazy about how
inefficiently everything is done. Sam gave us a copy of the will form
that we each studied for about a half an hour. Then, instead of asking
if we had any questions, he went through each line one by one. It took
literally three hours. Every time he said anything he would stop and
say “Do you understand Karen?” Yes, Karen understands. “are you with
me Savannah?” Yes, Savannah understands. “Are we together, Mark?” Yes,
Mark is together. “Is it clear Stefanie?” Yes, It’s clear. And on and
on and one, for each section of the 15 page will.
After all of that training, we still weren’t very clear on all the
finer points (Sam is a social worker, not a lawyer) but the clinic
didn’t care. They started bringing in people who wanted their wills
done and off we went! I learned as I went. There are students who are
studying social work at the colleges nearby who work at the clinic,
and they are the ones who translate for us. It really was pretty
intense. Even reading through the will, I didn’t realize it would be,
but then all of a sudden I was facing this AIDS victim, asking her
where she wants to be buried.
WE HAVE OUR LUGGAGE!!! I have showered and shaved my legs and washed
my hair and have clean clothes and I feel like a new woman.
The food thing really isn’t too bad. Mum has SAVED MY LIFE with all
the granola bars she bought me, but for the most part there is a
vegetarian option wherever we go. We buy food from this little street
vendor that makes this thing that is like a cross between an omlette
and a burrito, but with no meat. It is delicious.
I wish I had time to respond to all of your emails individually, but I
absolutely loved them all. Thank you so much!!! Yay & brides for 7
brothers! Yay for dad and cole biking! Yay for lettering in drama! And
sorry about being smothered. I love love love you all. We may (MAY)
get phones today, so I might be able to call you sometime.


Love,
Stefanie