The wheel goes round and round...

As stated in previous blogs, my Rotary district here consists of 14 NW African countries. April 16-18 was the District Conference in Lome, Togo to which all of us “Scholars” were required to attend. (Gosh, I hate being told I have to travel to another country!)
The weekend conference started with presentations of the flags that were accompanied by country specific traditional dances. The conference center was overflowing with national pride. After l’overture the conference broke into individual presentations and speeches about Rotary business. During the first morning, at the very last minute, the four of us where run up on stage, in front of 800 people and told to give an impromptu speech—in French! Gotta love impromptu speeches in foreign languages! J Rotary is really good at nurturing that life long diplomatic skill!
The weekend consisted of many diplomatic smiles, hand shakes and good eattin’! The union of 14 countries rendered the conference like none other I’ve experienced.
The one thing I took away from our time with Rotary was the feeling of hospitality. The Wolof have an idea of hospitality called Teranga which roughly translates to my house is open to you at anytime without questions asked, and you shall be treated as family. While I don’t find that this concept transfers easily to Western cultures, and Dakar is quickly becoming very westernized, the hospitality was received in Togo and by Togolese Rotarians was unparalleled.
Paul, a current Rotary President of one of the five clubs in Lome, met us as the airport with smiles and welcoming hugs and his generosity didn’t let up until we were back on the plane a week later. Throughout the conference it was very evident that Paul is a very important person, not only to Rotary, but in Lome and in Togolese society. Nonetheless, he spent hours of his busy schedule with the four of us simple students and without any feeling of rush or bother. I’m not sure I’ve ever felt that in the States, or even if I’m capable of giving like that.
(Photo: Senegalese lady scholars avec Paul during our last hours on the Togolese beach)
When we traveled to N. Togo we had no pre-arranged plans and only a 10 year old guidebook to get us around. Not to worry though because we met Rotarians on the bus who without hesitation agreed to find us a hotel and arrange any travel plans. Then to top it off they arranged a special club dinner just for us! Due to the conference, they had originally cancelled their weekly meeting but they reinstated it so we could get to know the club and vice versa. Not only did we generously eat and drink with them but most importantly, they sat and talked with us. They spent almost 3 hours with us where age, race and nationality played no part as they sincerely wanted to get to know us, like family.
(photo: dinner with Rotary Club Kara, Togo)
The generosity and hospitality that we lived in Togo was absolutely astonishing. People have asked me if I’m scared/nervous to travel by myself. I’m not by myself, I’m with Rotary. Wherever I see the Rotary Wheel I know someone will be there for me. On the other hand, unfortunately, I have found that some Rotarians hide under this same wheel and are not as willing to share such generosity. Overall, I certainly don’t believe it takes a large organization to create such hospitality. We witnessed a beautiful thing in Togo that challenges me to be more selfless and to realize that simple acts can go a long way. I really hope someday I can pass along the same selfless giving of time and sincere hospitality.