Zebra Crossing

Yesterday, I received an SMS (a text message) from the Rwandan National Police that read, “RNP reminds you that talking & texting on phone while driving is a traffic offence.  Disregarding zebra crossing also attracts punishment.”  One hour later, I received the same message translated into Kinyarwanda.  Oh, what a country I live in!

A few thoughts on this text message…

1. I live in a country that is so small that the national police force can send a mass text message to every single person in the country to pass on information, however impertinent.
2. The Rwandan National Police disseminated this message to an entire country of 10 million people where approximately 2 in every 100 people have cars.  Some people in remote little villages, who may never have seen a car, have cell phones and likely received this message.  I can only imagine their confusion.
3. I teach American English in a country that is dominated by British and African English.  Note that being on the phone whilst driving is a traffic offenCe.  Teaching English here is a constant battle.
4. You might think it humorous that “disregarding zebra crossing also attracts punishment.”  While, yes, I do live in the middle of Africa, no, that does NOT mean you need to watch out for crossing zebras (pronounced here as if it rhymed with Debra’s).  For my American readership out there, zebra crossings are pedestrian crosswalks.
5. I appreciate the RNP’s active voice in the second sentence, but the word choice could use some help.  Eliminating passive voice is one of the skills I plan to teach my tenth grade English class next week, so I’m glad to have some additional fodder for my lesson.
6. All in all, I appreciate the reminder that "talking & texting on phone while driving is" indeed dangerous.  I drive a Scooty Pep+ around this fine town, and while I am always very aware of my surroundings, I notice that, 9 times out of 10, the people who don’t notice me on the road are, indeed, on their cell phones.  (The other 1 out of 10 is ALWAYS a woman!)

Every day I have to chuckle at the goings-on in my world.  Whether it’s a mass text message from the police or a comment from a student (“I am shizzle to be a man one day,” said one of my street boys last week, bringing back a slang word from a lesson from months ago...), I never cease to be amazed at the never-ending amusement around me.  While I sometimes envy you people who live in a land where pretty much everyone speaks your language, I don’t pity you.  You are missing out on LOTS of laughs!