How Do You Like...Dark?

Post by Lara

19^th May 2014

A few minutes ago, I finished off a toilet paper roll in our bathroom (yes, we’re a few of those spoiled-rotten Posh Corps volunteers who use toilet paper daily).  Without thinking too hard about it, I reached for the key we keep hidden under our not-hooked-up-to-anything bathroom sink, unlocked the cabinet that holds the new toilet rolls, grabbed one, took the empty roll off the holder, put the new roll on, locked the cabinet, and replaced the key, all in the darkness that twilight invariably brings to us around 7:30 PM each night.  Living in a country that’s just now setting up street lights in major cities, we’ve gotten quite used to darkness here, and boy is it dark.

In contemplating the vast differences between the US and here as far as light is concerned, I was reminded of a conversation I had several years ago with a professor, Father May.  I was planning to study abroad and had narrowed down my options to Sweden and Ireland, and when I mentioned those options to Father May, he took on a thoughtful look and said, “Sweden, eh? Tell me something…how do you like cold?” I quickly responded that I don’t mind cold at all, at which point he fired back, “alright, how do you like dark?”  Hmmm…I thought. Good point—a month of no sun is definitely a turn-off.  Ultimately I picked Ireland, and though I find myself wondering now and then what it would have been like living in Sweden, I have to admit I fell in love with Ireland and the Irish people I met, so I can’t say I made the wrong choice.  Still, though, it would be interesting to have lived in a developed country during an arctic winter, to have a point of comparison.

In provincial Sierra Leone, the darkness comes every 24 hours, forcing us to learn the layout of our houses (at least the path to the bathroom) quickly, and transforming the outskirts of our lawn into a teeming chorus of frogs, crickets, and termites.  Depending on the cycle of the moon, we may or may not need flashlights to navigate the unpaved roads after dark, and as long as the moon or rainy season clouds don’t get in the way, we see the Milky Way weaving crystal clear across the sky.  I’ve once been told that Venus is bright enough here that it can cast a shadow (although I’ve never experienced this, I will say Venus is quite bright on some nights)

We were asked a lot of questions before we came to Sierra Leone, such as, “Are you going to eat monkey?” or “Do you really want to go somewhere where you won’t have electricity or running water for 2 years?”  But no one ever asked us, “How do you like dark?”  Turns out, it would have been an interesting thought to contemplate.