The Homestay: An Unforgettable Experience

“Your name is now Tiffany Mubiana, because you will forever be a part of this family and you will always have a home here in Chalala”.

These were the words uttered by my host mom, Linda, last night right before moving me into abundant life and they reflect the mutual feelings I never would have expected to experience at the end of these short, four weeks. During the course of just a few weeks, I found sisters (ones I never had) in Nandila and Thokoziele, a mom in Linda, and a place I can call home in Chalala. While we received the basic living necessities- food, water, a bed to sleep in, a roof over our heads- we were also showered with love and endless support during the chaos of the past four weeks.

I couldn’t count how many late night conversations there have been, that stretched for hours on end, during which Linda shared her wisdom on life, love, happiness, and what it means to embrace who you are. I couldn’t possibly put into words how transformative those conversations have been, especially during such a precarious time in my life. I would be an injustice to attempt to identify “the one” experience, lesson, or memory I will take away from my time with my family in Chalala- simply because every minute, every second, and every moment has affected who I am now and how I perceive things around me, and I am not the same Tiffany that walked through the door of that house just four weeks ago.

I know that sounds dramatic, and perhaps a bit corny- but it’s true. Coming into Zambia just four weeks ago, I would consider myself to have been “lost”- whether I knew it or not. The reason I can recognize it now, is because of this brilliant clarity I have gained during my time in Chalala. From (successfully) learning to cook Nshima with “the soup” and ground peanut greens, and the endless shared laughter with Thokoziele and Nandila after a stressful day at work, to listening to Linda’s wisdom and insight on everything (literally, everything- this woman is brilliant), I can say that I have never felt such happiness in my entire life.

Therefore, I suppose if I needed to put my finger on “the one” thing I will take away from my homestay experience, (although even just the term “homestay experience” completely undermines the significance of these past four weeks) it would be the intense clarity I feel regarding the direction of my life and the overwhelming happiness that the past four weeks, with my family, have brought me. Because of this, the homestay experience will also continue to serve as a reference point for the rest of my life, particularly when things get difficult, in remembering how it felt to be genuinely happy and whole- and I think that is the greatest gift I could have received from this experience.

While this is certainly not the last time I will be back in Zambia, and likely not the last time I will be staying with my family in Chalala (as Linda  is currently in the process of seeking out a Zambian husband for me and simultaneously planning my kitchen party to be at her house), I will always remember my initial four weeks as the time during which I found my home in Chalala- and that discovery will be something I will remember for the rest of my life.