Last Tuesday, 17 guys and 1 girl started a five month course in Photography. In this group of 20 people, myself and my translator included, there are 4 countries represented (Malawi, D.R.C., Burundi, U.S.A), 4 different heart languages and an age span of 10 years!
One of There is Hope’s most popular and ever growing programs is our Vocational Training program. Formal employment opportunities, outside of farming, are difficult to find in Malawi. As a refugee in Malawi, there are certain laws that prohibit them from working outside the refugee camp. The idea is that by receiving basic training in a particular area, people would be better equipped to work in that field and develop a skill they can take with them anywhere. Over the last couple of years, There is Hope has taught carpentry, tailoring, and brick laying courses. This year, we welcomed our first class of photography students! What a crew.
I got my first DSLR camera, which I called my “Big Mama” camera for years, in 2008 – my junior year of high school. I played around with it and picked it up off and on over the years. I brought it to Malawi to, well, document Malawi and use it however I could for There is Hope. Little did I know, it would quickly become an almost weekly necessity for me. I didn’t expect photography to play such a big role in my life here, but I have learned heaps in doing so and stretched my creativity.
I’m a hands-on, learn-by-experience, figure-it-out-as-I go kind of person and I tend to teach the same way. The first day of class, I sent them out for an hour to shoot whatever they wanted, whatever they were drawn to and each lesson since then they have practiced what they’ve learned. My computer is now full of pictures of my co-workers, their cars, goats (alive and… not), meals being prepared, other students, guys carrying impressively large things on bicycles, signs, ME, and a million other things. And I love it. I love seeing things through their lens. I love seeing the way they’ve interpreted what they’re learning. I love that teaching the class allows me to continue learning with them!