These kids... They are awesome

Teaching these kids has been a highlight of my service. 

Not all of them pay attention, there's a few in the back that usually sleep.

The form 2s, in the formal picture above, are a bit more well behaved than the form 3s.

These are some form 3s :)

But they liked having the American teach them.

They thought my lessons were both weird and interesting, I think.

And I certainly woke them up when I pulled out condoms for condom demonstrations :)

The future of Botswana, y'all.

As I'm finishing up my time with them, I'm finally understanding the true value of Peace Corps. 

Yes, it matters that I taught them and that they learned something. But what matters even more to them, and also to me, is just that I was here. 

I struggled mightily with building relationships with these guys; most of them won't talk much, and sharing feelings isn't really something that people do here much if at all. So whereas in the US, I have lots of close friendships where we talk about lots of things, I didn't have that here but with a handful of teachers. I desperately wanted that with some of the students, but it didn't really happen. 

And that's okay. The relationship I have with these guys isn't what I thought it would be coming in, but hey, isn't Peace Corps all about turning your expectations on their head? :)

We spent time together, some of them talked, lots of them giggled, a few slept, and I hope many know how much I care about them, even if we didn't have that many one on one conversations.