[apologies for the lack of updates: I've been busy finishing up assignments for the field school. Now that they're complete, I have two whole weeks before the fun starts again. That is, if you take 'fun' to mean long commutes, stacks of readings, and butt-numbingly uncomfortable desk chairs. I, generally, do not. But in another year I'll have a slip of paper certifying that the unfortunate loss of sensation will have been an acceptable sacrifice for the sake of my education.]
This trip was the first time that any of us had done ‘field work’ and getting into a comfortable groove took a little while. People didn’t really know why we were there, and were concerned that we’d be walking around with notepads jotting down conversations. We were new, and didn’t entirely know what our role was either. We didn’t want to impose and we didn’t want to come across only as detached observers. As we spend more time among the people at the gathering, we began to find our footing, and they began to open up to us. Our roles grew and developed out of the relationship that we established with the community. That’s fieldwork.
