Market Strike and Christmas Vespers

Market on Strike 
What do you do when the market goes on strike?  Not just the supermarket but the convenience stores and the minimarkets, too! No Weis or Saylors or Turkey Hill or Sheetz are open. How long can you go without buying milk and eggs and bread and fresh produce?  Longer than many folks here, no doubt, because you likely have some food in the refrgerator or the freezer, and Mac'n Cheese on the pantry shelf.
Folks here go to the market every morning to purchase the items they will cook for their families that day. Everything they need is at the local market- from soap and 'scrubbies' to produce & spices, oil & vinegar. Some of these things are coming from local gardens, and ladies go to their neighbors stalls when they can, but many items are purchased at larger markets and brought in daily. 

Every morning, our cooks wend their way thru the rows of stalls to find the items that will be needed to make dinner and supper for 25-30 people. Maybe a kilo of meat(which the butcher has brought in that morning as a hanging quarter of beef or side of mutton),then hot peppers, onions, okra, assorted vegetables, a little tomato paste (spooned into a small piece of plastic bag from the vendor's large can), sugar, oil and vinegar(poured into ½ K plastic bags, and knotted shut)are purchased and placed in the bucket they will balance on the head to carry back to the base.  Elizabeth, who lives in another neighbohood,  carries her load to our old Toyota pick-up truck which has come to pick her up after dropping the school children off at their respective schools.  

NOT today! Fanta says “sugu te!”--there is no market!  It seems the vendors are on strike.  We are not sure exactly who the strikers are or whom they are trying to cause change in, but the bottom line is that there is no market open today.  So Elizabeth will not come to cook and Fanta will cook with what she can secure from the small boutique nearby.  That also means that Fanta will not be doing her regular cleaning routine for Hawa or us.  We do have bags of rice stocked, so there will be that to eat, tho probably not the usual tasty sauce that goaes with it.  We will see! 

When I wrote my last blog about experiencing Christmas here in Mali, I was not aware that we would be having a lovely Christmas vespers service at the Avant Center last night. It was planned by the English speaking fellowship we have been a part of here, and there was a larger than usual representation of the English speaking population of Bamako there. On the front lawn, under creative Christmas lights and decorations strung from tree to pillar and post, we sang Christmas carols together. We sang Silent Night (all 4 verses)in English, and then the first verse in each of 5 other languages, representing the home lands of our gathering. We were also treated to several special Christmas numbers, readings and a devotional by members of our missionary community.  I think my favorite was the Vanderaa family singing a ballad-y piece with at least 5 part harmony.  Lovely!
  
No Christmas gathering would be complete without food, would it? After the vespers we chowed down on the excellent selection of 'sweet or savory' snacks spread out on the buffet, with a beautifully plum-colored mulled cider drink (bi-sap??).  Just like at our potlucks at home, we were each asked to contribute to the buffet, and so we had treats from our many cultures.  It was so nice to chat in our native tongue among these new friends with whom we share a common purpose! 

This week I hope to make a (mock-apple) papaya pie, finish my Christmas baking so that I have some goodies to give to neighbors in celebration of Christ's coming (thanks to Ruth and Charles Lehman for their example of this) and find a tailor who will be able to make us each a good Malian outfit for Paul & Rokia's wedding. Also on the agenda is to schedule a few dates when we can invite friends in to our apt for a meal, or at least an evening of games, tea & cookiesor chocolate fondue.

We are hoping that you are also preparing to celebrate this season of God's great gift to us by telling your neighbors and friends the good news.
Be blessed and be a blessing this Christmas.

Looking Like Christmas!

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christ-mas……! Except that the particles in the air are red dust and black plastic bags instead of crisp white snowflakes.  We have hung a few red and gold ribbons in the livingroom, set up a tabletop Christmas tree on a wooden box,  and placed the new African nativity set on the small cupboard that holds our dishes. We listen to our one Christmas CD - a Chris Tomlin CD of Christmas carols (why didn’t I think to bring more? ...next year!) and have even baked some Christmas cookies.  It doesn’t quite look and FEEL like Christmas to us yet!  But then, what does “Christmas” look like?    In reality, that first Christmas must have looked a lot more like where we are in Mali this year, than any place we have been for Christmas in our lives!!   When I look out my window, I can see small houses with flat roofs and unscreened windows, and courtyards where small fires are built to cook simple meals.  The streets are rough and dusty—one NEEDS a feet-washing after walking any distance on them.  I can hear (CLEARLY, at 4 am) the braying of a donkey that might be the descendent of the one we like to think Mary traveled on to get from Nazareth to Bethlehem in answer to Caesar’s command for a census count. There might be a few cattle wandering down the street, tended by a Fulani herdsman, like as not;  probably a few sheep are in view, and a couple of hens with a flurry of chicks scratching in the dust. There may be a neighbors’ dog, or a couple of goats in the picture as well.  [No need to seek out a live nativity scene.: )]          

Children of all sizes are out and about from daylight til well after the sun goes down.   Infants are carried on the hips or slung on the backs of sisters just slightly older themselves. (Well, maybe a little older. – But we have seen tiny babies on the back of children that look to be no older than 3 or 4, and I watch in amazement as a mother places her newborn on the lap of her 2 year old (Yes, her 2 year old!) sitting on the bench beside her, then calmly picks the baby up again in a few minutes when the toddler gets restless.)  ‘Big’ brothers  stop in at the church services and listen for a bit, then shepherd their toddler siblings back out the door and down the street to wherever it is they have decided to go that day.  [I can visualize Mary telling Jesus to take young John or James out to play, and a similar scene ensues.] 

Toys are what you make them



Toys are made of whatever is at hand:  a bicycle tire or a plastic bag on a string make dandy toys to chase down the street with a stick or watch fly aloft on the breeze.  An empty plastic coke bottle works to play kick-the-can, by your-self or with a friend. ( A recent picture captured 3such tires lined up in parking-lot fashion against the church wall, with rolling sticks balanced on top, while their young owners ventured inside to hear the Bible story, or listen to the singing and the drums. [No, I don’t think that Jesus had coke bottles to play with, or plastic bags either, for that matter.  But maybe his kite was made from a scrap of material from a worn and discarded garment, or he had a whistle made from a length of sweet grass, or bamboo.  And I imagine that his feet got as rough and calloused as these boys’ feet get as he ran and played with the other boys in Nazareth.]  In Yirimadio, donkey carts and small pushcarts raise trailing clouds of dust (and flies) as they wend their way over the rugged streets and roads.  Piles of rubbish seem to be everywhere.

Small boutiques open their doors for customers and tailors hang up their samples on pegs on their shop walls. Carpenters set their beds and cupboards outside tiny workshops  to be seen by passersby, maybe choosing this quiet morning to varnish a new piece. The crippled beggar makes his way to his spot where traffic has to slow to cross a dry waterway and then turn a corner, hoping to make enough to sustain himself another day.  Children head off to school and enterprising women sit at food booths near that busy corner.  Fruits and vegetables, eggs to be fried and served on fresh bread for breakfast sandwiches, maybe a few soaps and household items are for sale.

Mary and Joseph may have looked out on a similar scene, don’t you think?  If the angels did not visit you and give you a heads up—Christmas looked like any other day in Bethlehem.  Mary probably planned to go down to the market to buy provisions for the day, and draw water for the day’s work from the community well. She may have had a scarf to wear draped over her head to shield her from unwelcome stares, as well as the heat of the mid-day sun. That scarf could also be coiled to make a more comfortable resting place for the pot that she carried back to her house on her head, pregnant or no. [Plastic buckets and light metal basins substitute for clay pots around us here in Yirimadio, but I still stand amazed at the loads they can carry on their heads.]  Joseph was most assuredly dressed more like the men of Mali, with their long flowing kaftans and loose trousers, than in the Docker’s and polo shirts that you guys might see in your closet.

Living in Mali has given us a new perspective on what Christmas looks like.  It is a different, and sometimes uncomfortable picture. We still enjoy some of our traditions,and the Christmas carols we listen to.  But my material trappings of ‘Christmas’ seem much less worthwhile, and I am forced to look at this gift of God in new ways.  What about you?  How does your ‘Christmas’ look this year?
Make it a meaningful one, no matter how and where you celebrate it.  It is still a celebration of the greatest gift ever given—Jesus, incarnate/come in the weak form of a man-child- to bring new life to us all.

Have a blessed Christmas!



We get watermelon for Thanksgiving AND Christmas!



Black plastic bag transformed into fish kite

 


At market with Fanta last summer.

 

School sucess and Christmas Celebrations

The boys are doing well in school and that is good to see. Sometimes, in the past, they have not risen to the top like good fresh cream. I wrote about the daily chores and the Bible meorization that is on their daily schedule. They also have regular homework time scheduled each day after school. Undoubtedly, that scheuled time when they have to sit down and at least look like they are studying is bringing postitve results. There is someone there who can answer questions if they have them, and is also there to see that the study time is being observed. This year we have 1 that is first in his class, another that ranks 3rd and another 5th. That is a pretty good record for kids who have been on the street and not under a caring parent's protection for these formative years. We are proud of them! I think they are understanding the value of learning and are really working at it.
When Claudia came home after being gone for 10 days for her Christmas shopping trip and visit with family in Austria this week, they were eager to show her their good reports, as noted in their workbooks. Claudia asked a question about how they were doing, and I watched as Karim (who happened to be the quickest to return with his evidence) pointed out page after page with a teachers 'tres bien' or similar comment posted. Jeremie and Boubacar and Amadou and Flo were grouped up behind him with their books to show her.
We have wondered what a Malian Christmas celebration would be like, and have been told that churches celebrate with an all night worship service with dancing and singing on Christmas eve, then go home for a few hours before gathering again on Christmas day to continue the festivities til mid afternoon. No gift giving or fancy decorations. "It's all about Jesus!", I was told. I hope we get a chance to experience that kind of a Malian Christmas.
Our base celebration will be more western, it seems. Claudia brought back some Christmas candies in the guise of Advent Calendars which a few lucky boys get a chance to sample each evening. Lights have been strung in the familyroom, and a snow and Santa cloth adorns the table there. We will have to wait and see what other celebration there will be.
We have put up Christmas decorations in our apartment-- the few that we brought with us, and a few that we have bought since we are here. Our decorations are quite eclectic. While we are missing the smell of fresh pine greenery that we usually cut off our 'back 40', we do have an Advent Calendar that Mattias,our exchange student from Gernmany, brought us many years ago; a tabletop Christmas tree with a tiny string of lights and a few carefully selected ornaments from our stash at home; our new Malian Nativity set, watched over by the hand-crafted-Malian-angel-ornaments that I purchased from a ministry to girls who are being rescued from prostitution here in Bamako. We also brought some bright red and gold bows to add color to the strands of dainty pine garland we purchased in upstate PA several years ago, while celebrating our 35th anniversary with the Freys (Remember that, Wes and Lena?). We have succeeded in downloading a few carols from the innernet but mostly are playing our Chris Tomlin Christmas CD.
Not like at home but, it is where we are for this season. We are of course missing all of our families and some of the extra celebrations that we enjoyed so much when we lived in Pennsylvania--but Ray & I are having a chance to sing in an 'Anglo-phone' (read English speaking) choir of Handel's Messiah, and we will be attending Julie's school Christmas program at BCA.
We are Occupying CHristmas here in Bamako, tho in different ways than we have in the past.
Celebrate with us the birth of the one and only Son of God- Jesus, Saviour , Redeemer, and Lord.
Mim in Mali

'Chili' in Mali- (tho not so chilly as in PA right now)

This morning I read a post from a friend that was making a pot of chili. You have to know that a good bowl of chili is one of my favorite comfort foods, so my ears perked up--or is that my eyes perked up, since I was reading it?--anyway, I read her recipe. Yumm! I can make a taste-of-home-pot-of-chili here!
Large stock pot (Got it!-- I brought several good pans with me in a suitcase)"brown 2 lbs of ground chuck"(my taste buds almost started salivating. My beef comes in hunks that I watch them cut off the back quarter, or hanging side of beef at the open air market, and is so lean that I have to add oil or water to cook it well. In Home Economics class all those years ago, they called that 'moist heat methods for less tender cuts' )
"with 2 diced onions" (easy-- they are abundant here)
"Worchestershire sauce, and cumin" (yep I have those too
!)"...and drain the grease". (or NOT!)
"Add...tomatoes, and ..tomato paste". We can get large cans of extra thick tomato paste here, as it is a staple in many Malian sauces. The ladies buy it at market, a few tablespoons spooned from the vendor's gallon-sized can into a piece of plastic bag, enough to flavor a large pot of sauce. It is not the several cups that we use to make spaghetti sauce, or chili. And cans of diced tomatoes cost 3 times what I paid for them at home (6 times what I paid at BB's LOL:)) Remembering that the average Malian earns in a week less than most of you make in an hour of work, you understand that canned tomatoes are NOT on their shopping list.
"Add 2 cans of kidney beans"--(mine will be dried beans, soaked and cooked the old fashioned way. I will buy my choice of beans from perhaps 8 or 10 varieties displayed in open bags at one of the stands at market. They will then need to be picked over, to remove stones and other bits of the plant, before that are washed, soaked overnight and cooked. Not quite as simple as opening a can or two, but Hey!..>..>>..Pot of Chili!!)
..and simmer another hour, watching that it does not scorch or burn." Thats the same around the world! So is the "sit down and Enjoy with family and friends" part.
We'll be enjoying chili later this week, after I get to market again. We will also be intentionally naming out our blessings and thanking the God of all grace and mercy for His abundance in our lives. I encourage you to do the same.





I thought about how blessed we are in many ways. Beef is cheaper here than chicken, but the average Malian gets very little of either, while we can afford to buy as much as we want. The beef is very lean, as it is fed on what grass is available in sparse pastures,so it is also healthier for us. (THere was a reason that God said to His people that they were not to eat the fat!)

The dust has settled--but changed hearts remain.

The dust has settled.  The tents have been taken down. The crowds and Pastor Anthony have gone home. But there have been lasting changes in the lives of our boys -- and of us!  


Pastor Anthony prayed into each of our boys while he was here, many of them more than once.  He spoke truth and life into their spirits and their futures. Last night we heard testimony during family-meeting of the changes and the impact that they, themselves, are aware of in that impartation.
 One of the powerful things that Claudia has instituted here 

7th Anniversary Celebration

November 18-20, 2011 we celebrated 7 years of ministry for Central Apostolique Malian (CAM) here in Bamako.  The ministry began in the part of Bamako known as Banakabougou, where Claudia Wintoch lived and worked, and began to reach out to the boys who lived on the streets around her, surviving by whatever means were at hand. They would congregate at 'people places' like the bus station, or traffic intersections where they could beg some coins from passersby on which to survive. They slept wherever they could find a safe place to lie down.  The younger ones served the older, and in return got such protection as they could provide.
 Today we are located in the quartier of Yirimadio, on a plot of land that was given to Claudia by God's grace and the at the hand of the governing body, as a base to serve the needs of these boys and others. More than a dozen boys and young men live at this base, going to school, eating and sleeping together as a family of sorts, and learning about the creator God that so loved them that he gave His only son Jesus to provide payment rescue them (and us!).
 We have had a weekend of special services and have been blessed and refreshed by the teaching and Fathering presence of Pastor Anthony Turner, our special guest speaker from Colorado Springs, Colorado. Let me walk you thru the days- with pictures!
 The day began for us on Sunday with a knock on the door just before daybreak. The boys were ready to slaughter the large sheep that had been purchased 2 weeks ago and has been kept on base in preparation for this day. Ray's help was wanted- and I soon went down to take pictures of the goings-on.  I was more than ready for them to end the ram's marauding of the gardens we had planted - he decimated our sweet corn patch and ate tops off many of the mango plants, tomatoes and young seedlings. (Maybe that was a contribution to his tastiness!) Pastor Anthony soon came out on his rooftop to chronicle the event as well.
 The kitchen was empty at that early hour, but would soon be bustling with the cooks and their helpers and friends who pitched in to prepare lunch plus an evening meal for an expected 150 guests. A huge kettle of rice, another of cous-cous, and a pile of onions, squash, potatoes and other vegatables that would find their way into a tasty stew --along with billiba sheep, of course!
 Tents had been arranged for to provide shade and their set-up started early on Friday morning.  For awhile there were an army of scurrying helpers laying out the poles and fittings, and they quickly began to take form. The whole open area where the boys play soccer was soon covered for the event.  There was a Friday morning service in the main building, with Pastor Anthony teaching, then a full day on Saturday and the main Celebration on Sunday under the tents/ Chairs and benches were placed in the newly created shady area and mats rolled out in front of the platform to provide a place for worshipping feet to move without stirring up too much dust. 
 The Baptistry had to be filled, and a chair placed in the water for the ones who were to be babtised to sit on. Ray supervised that project and made himself useful in many places.  After our Sunday breakfast of bread and jam (this morning we had mango jam that I had made and canned while mangoes were so plentiful), Julie and I played a game of Qwirkle with Pastor Anthony and some of the younger ones.  Ray stopped for a minute to look over a shoulder, but didn't stop long when there was work to be done.  (That will surprise none of you who know him :))
 After lunch the gates were opened and people began to arrive.  Crowds of children and a few adults came from nearby. Two bus loads of people from the old neighborhood arrived in one overloaded run, and we were amazed to see how many spilled out of  it's doors when Ray drove up. A few special friends arrived on motos and by car.  The radio crew—scheduled for the day of broadcasting-- did not arrive til 4 pm and so missed much of the program.  They did interview Paul and Claudia after the service. 
 Some of our boys were stationed at each gate to welcome people and hand out a piece of candy to each child (and then later, to watch that the plastic plates that food was served on didn't go out those open gates).  Others were positioned at the dining hall doorway to hand out  bags of water. Flo tended the sound board and Jeremie played drums.    Our resident boys all had their assignments to help with serving, gathering up and washing the plates, and then handing them out again.  (Unfortunately the food did not stretch to match the crowd and some street boys went to bed hungry, with out even their customary dish of fat rice.)
 A review of CAMs history and ministry was shared.  Energetic Bambara worship, lead by Paul, was interspersed with the more familiar(to us) praise music of the guest band, led by Daouda, the boys music teacher. We had a boys choir to help with worship, and Claudia had worked with 6 of the kids to do a worship dance number. 
 A highlight of the afternoon was the baptismal service.  Four boys gave testimony of their allegience to Jesus, and were baptised in the concrete baptistry  that is a part of the concrete platform area. They changed clothes and returned to receive their certificates and a blessing from Claudia and Paul, their Pastor.
 Pastor Anthony delivered a timely message on Fatherhood, and the blessing that our children are and give. He culminated his teaching by calling all the children to come forward, and prayed a blessing over them. He then asked them to turn and stretch out their hands to their parents and the other adults and pronounced a blessing from the children. It was awesome.  A proclamation of submission and blessing was passed. 
  Ray drove the double-bus-load of people back to Banakabougou, arriving back well after dark. It was a full day of anticipation, preparation, stress, blessing, relationship, celebration... and then rest. Our boys gave us reason to rejoice.  We see such growth and promise in them.  Please pray for us and them as we live and work together.
Striving to be a blessing to those God has planted us with in this season.  
Won't you join us!?!

Blessed by Pastor Turner

Today is Thursday, Nov 17 2011
 We are indeed blessed!  We have just made the acquaintence of Anthony Turner, a pastor from Colorado, who has come to be guest speaker for the 7th Annual Celebration here at CAM/Healing 2 the Nations base in Yirimadio.  Ray & I took him on a walk around the neighborhood this morning, to give him a taste of what it is like here. Along the way we spoke to children at play, ladies doing their laundry, shopkeepers tending their boutiques, and even a few men that greeted us as we walked by. We also got to show him the brick making process at 2 sites where houses will soon be raised, or added onto.
 We have known Pastor Anthony for less than 24 hours and are already feeling refreshed and encouraged by him.  We are looking forward to what else he will bring us, individually and as a church body this week. The theme for this time is Knowing the True Father (and the Father Heart of God),and he will teach and lead worship for us in special services on Friday and Saturday. Sunday will bring the culmination to the event, with a big fete and dinner on Sunday afternoon. 
 The main course for that dinner, biliba-daddy-sheep, has been in our enclosure for more than a week, and has helped himself to more of my garden plants than made me happy! He, with the able assistance of the much smaller young 'lion sheep' that was brought here in preparation for Paul's wedding in January, pretty well stripped the new stand of sweet corn that we had hoped to harvest in just a couple of weeks. (I get my revenge on Sunday!Um-m-m-! Mutton!) Seeing what was happening, and realizing that tying them was not working, I surrendered the patch after salvaging 1 small whole ear of sweet corn, plus 3 more nubbins that had the upper ends chewed off. We also dug what peanuts had grown (see picture of Ray & Adama)since the peanut plants went the same way as the corn. Ray & I ate the corn nubs for dinner last night before getting on our 'moto' to go to Handel's Messiah choir practice in town.  Actually, we got off our bike and got on Rokia's (thank you, Rokia) when we found we had no headlight. (We see many bikers running without lights, but we are not yet that adventurous!) Just a side note to the spirit of family care that she displayed; she returned the moto to us with the light fixed-- so we were especially glad that we had filled the gas tank for her:)) 
 The boys have filled several hundred small plastic bags with water, in preparation for thirsty attendees at the sevices, and will have a holiday from school on Friday. Shade will be provided in the open area that is just below our kitchen window, and stacks of metal chairs will be pulled out of storage for seating. There are also dozens of colorful plastic plates and plastic mugs that have been carefully hoarded from last years celebration to serve the meals. A neighbor has been hired to be an extra cook for the weekend, so that our regular cooks can participate in the services along with the rest of the base family. 
 As I write this, there is the sound of singing and music downstairs. The boys are in the middle of their weekly music lesson. They have a music teacher who comes and teaches about 10 boys, all together, for an hour.  Then they have the assignment of practice on the other days, each one taking a 15 min turn practicing on the instrument (piano, drums or guitar) that they are learning.  (American children should be so faithful at their practice!)
 Hope you are enjoying the adventure with us.  I promise to write again soon.
Take care to be a blessing this week, as you serve God and others.
Mim in Mali

October Heat

Another day that started out hot and dry, with even our white painted outside door radiating heat by 7 am. We have not had rain for more than a 10 days now. I know that may not seem like a lot in a temperate climate, but here, that means DRY and dusty as soon as the wind stirs, I can hear it gritting on our metal roof. The plants really need watered daily, and Adama has that job first thing in the morning. I am trying to get him to see the needs of the garden with his own eyes and not wait for me to tell him what to do. He also is responsible to empty the “dumuni kolo”(food wastes) bucket into the compost area and sprinkle a shovelful of dirt over it.

Both the Malian 'kaba' and the American sweet corn that we planted earlier are finished now, and he has removed those stalks and put them to rest as humus where we will be planting more bananas. We have replanted both kinds of corn, and some sweet-grass in an area near the water tower, knowing that it will need regular watering-- maybe even 2ce a day-- after the rains stop entirely. We still have a couple of eggplants bearing, and 5 tomato plants coming into their own.

It is hard to visualize what the landscape will look like after there is NO rain for 4-6 months. (Dec-Feb have an 'average' of “zero” rainfall, and the shoulder months of November and March-April only an inch or so each. We are hopeful that Ray will be able to rig a gray water tank to make use of the significant amount of hand, dish, and clothes washing water that currently just goes into the septic tank. That, along with the drip irrigation bucket kits that we have ordered should go a long way to watering the gardens during this next 6 months. We will see!

Adama, our main gardener and grounds worker, had a chance to show Claudia the gardens today, which have majorly grown while she was in the states this last trip. You should have seen his face light up when he told me that she was coming to look. He absolutely beamed! This summer we purchased and planted 5 or 6 banana plants, 5 citrus trees, 2 'sun-sun' bushes and 2 grafted mango trees that are about 5 ' tall. They are all doing well! Then there are the tomatoes, a patch of sweet grass, some mint tea, and a few melon vines under the shadow of the water tower. New corn plants are waist high, where before there was only a weeds and grasses area. Nearby we are babying about 2 dozen mango starts, a nursery bed of bouganvilla cuttings and some sun-sun that we started from seeds 2 months ago. Most recently we have started a nursery bed in the shade of the western wall near the water source. Some seed scatterings of goyo(bitter green tomato), foronton(chili peppers), and gan(okra) are coming up there, and we hope to replant them in the new drip irrigation garden in a couple of weeks. Now if we can just keep them alive and productive this winter thru the dry season, so that output gives some return on input. :)) At least it is a training school for fledgling gardeners, and will hopefully equip one or more of these young men to seek employment in the future as a tender of gardens and grounds.

Ray will be busy again working on the newest building- what will serve as main quarters for Claudias as well as guest quarters. The electricity needed some verification and review, and he did that work with Claudia this morning after the gardens tour. Tile for the floors and bath walls was delivered this week and will soon be started. Ray also showed Claudia where the ants(termites) had found a way up thru the soft, uncased concrete floor and started making dinner of her kitchen cabinets. They were moved and the hole sealed, but it just emphasizes the need for ALLthe steps to be finished during construction. Thanks to all of you who have given construction funds to keep this project moving along. It will be greatly appreciated when it is ready for occupancy. Ray has also picked up responsibility for driving this last couple of weeks, as our driver cannot drive while he is waiting for his new liscense to be issued. That has meant a lot of extra hours on Ray schedule, and he and Julie have had to adjust her pick-up time to accommodate all the school childrens schedule. (He has also used to moto to give Hama a little extra attention. Hama, a 10year old, is handicapped and the only one that does not go to school, so Ray has given him a ride around the yard on the motorcycle after bringing Julie home.)Julie is also helping with the kids at homework time.

Oh, Yes.  One more thing!  I celebrated my 60th birthday here in Mali! with a delicious chocolate cake with (real) peanut butter icing, which Julie made for us.  Paul 'distracted me' to the upstairs deck to play a game of Qwirkle while the gang prepared the party venue downstairs-- and then the game was forgotten, when they called me to come down on some pretext or another. :)) I have gotten a delighful assortment of gifts, the likes of which I never would have been given had I celebrated in the US.
We are doing well-- I think :))
It is plenty hot, to be sure, and dusty, but do-able with God's grace.

Being blessed in the heat of October in Mali.

Hope you too are being blessed and being a blessing.

<>

Our Apt Livingroom- no grass hut!

37 Degrees and Holding

37*Degrees and holding!

We heard that many of you on the east coast(US) had snow and temps in the 30's at the end of October-- Julie even got to see it snowing via skype. At the same time you were having 37* there, and a load of wet snow, we were having 37* and 38* temps here in Mali, too. The difference is that here that translates “HOT!!”, because we are talking 37* Celsius, not Farenfeit!  Our weather has been hot and dry for a month, with the prospect of more of the same until the rains come next May.  That is a LOT of hot and dry, and our heels and lips are already needing extra attention. Experienced persons have warned us that we will need to work to keep ourselves hydrated and moisturized thru this next few months. (Our Malian friends already knew that, by the way.  We have seen them regularly applying shea butter cream to the face and arms of their little ones after baths. I expect they apply the cream to adults too, we just don't see that)

Just now one of the boys called up to my window, “Mimi!”...” Mimi!”...“Ji suma?”(Cold water? -literally 'shaded water':))  One of the things that we have been able to do is to give the boys cold water,and even ice from time to time.  We wash and refill coke bottles half full of water, then freeze them in our apt refrigerator, before handing them out to be filled and filled again, til the ice is all gone. I've been training them to take care of and return the bottles so that they can have ice again.  (Most of them are getting it.) Cold water is a treat for them — and us!  Depending on the time of day, the water comes out of the faucet at 80-100*F/27-37*C,a nice temperature for washing dishes.  Its good clean water, and we are all thankful to have it so available, but having it chilled is also nice. YEAH for SOLAR POWER! Another thing for which to be thankful.

I could write a whole blog on what is in my fridge or freezer. The fridge freezer has a kilo bag of 'farine ble''(wheat flour) in it right now, some cubes of 'lembuurukumunin'(little-sour-lemon)juice as well as some whole limes,  some 'misi-sogo'(beef)patties, a baggie of chopped 'foronto'(suoer hot chili pepper)and the ice bottles. The flour needs to be kept in the freezer to keep it from getting buggy (not at all nice to discover when you are beginning to make pancakes in the morning). I have sifted out the bugs and used the flour anyway, but I have not yet reached the experienced missionary stage of just using it bugs and all--”extra protein”. :)) The limes are an experiment to see if they freeze well, since I have discovered that what is in plenteous supply at the market this week may disappear and no longer be available next week.  We love to put a little fresh lime juice in a bottle of water as a refresher, so I'll stockpile some if they freeze well.  

The beef was purchased off the freshly butchered hind quarter hanging in the market Friday morning, and then ground into hamburger at my kitchen table.  That way we know what goes in it (the ground meat I purchased at the supermarket tasted of liver), and that it is fresh. I purchased the foronto this summer for a lovely red sweet pepper.  I had only seen tiny little foronto, and smallish green sweet peppers at the market, so was excited to see some red sweet peppers(I thought).  I had already learned the 'if you see it today, buy it, because it may not be there tomorrow' rule, so I bought 2 nice big ones. When I got home I proceeded to clean my purchases, wash everything in clorox that we might pop into our mouths uncooked, and sliced up the peppers for a snack. Imaginge my surprise to bite into a sliver of 'sweet pepper' only to get bitten back by the heat.  My hands were a little slower to respond, but then burned for 2 days.  Hence, frozen, chopped foronto that we use a snippet at a time.  Thanks God, for good water to drink- we had no refrigerator yet at that point, so it was not chilled but still appreciated.
Remember your blessings, and bless thos earound you as well.

New Baby and New Clothes

Babies are really celebrated in Mali, tho things are done differently than in the states. When the baby is born there is rejoicing, as there is where you live. The mother will certainly have new clothes and probably a new hairdo—some elaborate networking of looping braids, maybe with extensions. But the baby is not given a name until there is a clebration of their arrival, and that is a BIG deal. Last night (and this morning) there was such a celebration at our neighbor's house just beyond our eastern wall.

Last Friday, Fanta (our cook) told me that a baby had been born to this family, and I went along to visit, later finding out that the infant was already 5 days old. An adorable tiny girl, black as coal and wrapped up in 'swaddling clothes”, was placed in my arms by the beaming mother. This is the neighbor that shared her tree branch to make the start of my “Good Neighbor Tree”, planted just inside our gate. Fanta wanted to show me that this was indeed a 'muso', and unwrapped the cloth to show me the evidence. As I held her, a prayer of blessing welled up in me for this new life that I held, and I prayed it over her- for honor and prosperity and knowledge of our great Matigi GOD. Asking the baby's name, they answered something that I did not understand. Thankfully I heard the word 'fete' , and remembering back to baby Natanial's birth earlier this summer, realized that the baby had not yet receivec her name.

Last night we heard the fete—until 2am and later!! The music was loud and raggae. The voices rose and fell again like waves on the seashore, following the swell as the music called. We have experienced these parties before in this neighborhood, for a birth or a wedding or other special event. We have discovered that if we shut all doors and windows on the party side of the house, we can sleep without too much interuption. This was the first such party that we were close enough to see the morning after events. The festivities continued well into daylight hours, with the guests, primarily men, sitting around small tables, eating and drinking. It looked like a sidewalk cafe.

I must go again and renew my acquaintance with baby Fanta. I found out the name this morning-- from our cook, Fanta, who gave me this important piece of information. This time the popular Malian name was given in honor of a family member - the child's paternal grandmother.

New clothes are a strong cultural value in Mali and take seem to take priority over many other purchases... Many celebration events are accompanied by new clothes. The colors are vibrant and patterns bold. They may be elaborate outfits of bisan cloth, a wax polished fabric that crinkles and crackles as one walks when it is new, telling all of your good fortune. I am told that here are specific prayers of blessing to be offered with the greeting of a friend you may meet who is dressed in such finery. Several of our church ladies have had 3 or 4 new outfits since we came in the spring. It seems that everybody gets new clothes for the big party at the end of Ramadan, and the tailors are busy for several weeks ahead of that event.

Long flowing robes are cooler in this extreme heat than fitted at the waist outfits-- so I am making a kaften or 2 for each of us. Yes, even Ray will wear a long duloki- a loose tunic type garment that falls to the knees or below. (Common menswear is a shirt and loose trousers outfit that would remind you of pajamas, made with some busy patterned material.)

We continue to be blessed and seek to be a blessing to those around us. I pray that you are the same!

MiminMali.

The truck is loaded and off they go to school!.  The first day of school was greeted with great anticipation here at the Healing 2 the Nations base in YIrimadio, tho it started much later than we are used to in the US.  First reports were that it would start in mid September, but there was one delay and then another and the actual starting date was October 3rd.

Hawa had purchased supplies and prepared bags for each student before she left for her trip to the states in early September; textbooks according to their grade, composition notebooks, little blackboards, chalk and sponge eraser, pens, pencils and a sharpener. Some of the students also got a ruler or set of mathmatical instuments. 

Beaming smiles lit up faces and eager fingers reached for each bag, quickly opening them and exploring the contents.  No fancy, hi tech I phone or MP3 player was ever greeted with more excitement. Shouts of joy accompanied the discovery of such trophies as this set of simple mathematical instruments-- a compass, pencil, small ruler, and triangle--all in a little metal box with a hinged lid.  A few items were missing-- and it seemed each scholar knew just what they were supposed to have received.  Paul made a list and purchased the missing items on Tuesday.

Meanwhile other things continue as nomal.  The widows who receive a monthly bad of rice arrive to pick up this welcome addition to their meager budget.  50 K of rice costs as much here as it would in the states. The problem is that their income is a small fraction of what you are making-- and I do mean SMALL fraction.  The average person in Mali survives on less pay in a week as you likely make in an hour!  No Starbucks or Pizza Hut takeouts.
Paul sits and chats with each lady who comes.  Relationship is such an important part of life here.  No grab and go!  There are extended greetings at each meeting.  Good afternoon!...  How is the family?...Are your children well?  ...And your husband?.... I have only begun to scratch the suface of the combinations that may be asked.  ("Tooro te" --"No problem"-- is usually a safe bet if I am not sure of the appropriate answer.)

Agriculture in Yirimadio-from Bucket Kits to Sweet Corn

Fruit Trees, Sho, Saba, Su-sun and Sweet Corn—and BUCKET IRRIGATION KITS!

The day started out hot and dry again, with even our white painted door putting off heat by 8 am. We have not had rain for 4 days now. I know that may not seem like a lot in a temperate climate, but here, that means DRY and dusty as soon as the wind stirs. The plants really needed watered, and Adama has that job first thing in the morning. I am trying to get him to see the needs of the garden with his own eyes and not wait for me to tell him what to do. He also is responsible to empty the “dumuni kolo”(food wastes) bucket into the compost area and sprinkle a shovelful of dirt over it. Both the Malian 'kaba' and the American sweet corn that we planted earlier are finished now, and he has removed those stalks and put them to rest as humus in the soil where we will be planting more bananas. We have replanted both kinds of corn and some sweet-grass in an area near the water tower, knowing that it will need regular watering-- maybe even 2ce a day-- after the rains stop in October. We are hopeful that Ray will be able to rig a gray water tank to make use of the significant amount of hand, dish, and clothes washing water that currently just goes into the septic tank. The good news is that at least that water is perc'ing down thru the soil and staying in the area, rather than rushing down the hill in a ditch, eroding as it goes.

TREES: We have purchased and planted 2 tangelo trees, another orange, a lemon, 2 banana plants(you know they are herbs, and not trees, don't you?), a 'su-sun' (guava),and a second medium sized mango. They needed some better ground to get started well, so we also got some manure from a local cattle holding yard to enrich our sandy soil. Thanks to Mt Rock's Discipleland children for sponsoring this fruit tree project. Our boys should be eating from those trees for many years to come.

The bouganvilla is growing wonderfully, and I have been warned that we will need to chop it back regularly, but for now it is green and provides evaporative cooling and shade for our wall.  It will also provide beauty when it flowers- I know that I have magenta, white and red blooming types.

We already have planted 3 'saba' (a vine that produces a citrusy flavored tropical fruit in early summer), a tall skinny orange (without much root, I discovered), and about 2 dozen mangoes that we started from seed. Amadou (a big 11 year old) is the one with the green thumb, coming to me on several occasions with seedlings that he had found. They are doing well where they are planted together in a 'plant nursery', and we will tend and water them thruout this next 6 dry months, before transplanting them to more permanent locations next spring.

Adama, our 18-year old gardener-in-training, picked the eggplant from our garden and delivered it to Fanta to incorporate into the noon meal. (4 plants grew + we'll probably get 15 or 20 nice eggplants). A few sho (green beans) should still be coming on the few remaining plants that cutworms or lizards didn't kill, and the Malian beans (pigeon peas) yielded a decent crop in the upper plot. They were a interesting late addition, and got planted as a result of 7-year-old Bakary coming to me with a gleaned handful of spilled seed that he had carefully picked up in the cooking area. They are a much more robust plant for this climate and did well in the small plot we alloted to them. There were also a few sweet potato plants started from sprouts cut off of dinner, 2 volunteer watermelon plants and several maize stalks in that area. We probably won't plant there again because of the distance from water, but it will get watered til the melon produces—or quits!. It is also adjacent to the compost pile, which should yield some good soil for our dry season garden.

Which brings us to the subject of dry season gardens, and how to make them work. Here is some news that got me excited today! I was just given a web link for an organization that makes drip irrigation 'Bucket Kits' Check them out!! Chapin Living Waters in Watertown NY. http://www.chapinlivingwaters.org/ . They created these in direct respnse to the need for families in drought troubled areas to raise food to sustain their family. They are a God send! Thanks to Ewein and Anco (again) for this link. I can hardly wait to hear back about starting a pilot project here in Yirimadio. In the name of Jesus, 'Living Waters' make the kits available around the world for a very modest cost, and I would bet that most of you could take the money you would spend on one dinner out, or on this month's dessert budget, and sponsor several kits to go to folks, like our neighbors here in Yirimadio, who may not have more than rice to eat for many days in Jan and February. I would be delighted to hear that some of you checked them out and found them a worthy place to support with your donations.

Well, gotta run. School is starting this week, and that is another story.

Have a great week and, remembering how blessed you are, find some new ways to be a blessing!

MiminMali

Malian Independence Day!

Today is Mali's Independence Day. Happy 51^st Birthday Mali! The “chinese bridge", so named because of the strong Chinese support and aid for it,  is to be dedicated today-- it was said to be opened on this celebration day, but now we hear that it will be a ceremonial 'opening', but not available to traffic yet. Promises that do not arrive on schedule--such is life in Bamako. We are also told that this is the 5th or 6^th fastest growing city in THE WORLD! We see that growth going on all around us, and the street scenes change day by day. That might be because of the stable gov't that is here. May it long continue!

9:30 am: Ray took me to the market on the moto this morning. and we decided to buy some extra foods to have a little feast with the boys to make it a special celebration. (Besides the 3 ladies that do the cooking thruout the week there is only one other girl here- Fanta's 6yr old daughter-- but a dozen and a half boys) So we bought a dozen big ears of 'kaba'/Malian corn, and some beef . After lunch I'll give the meat to Fanta to make Malian brochettes—charcoal grilled beef on a stick, served on a bed of tomato slices and onion slices.

Try this authentic recipe straight from Bamako Mali:

Take 1 kilo beef, carefully cut out all 'silverside' tendon-y bits and then cut meat into bite sized chunks.You may need to solicit the help of a family member to hold the other end of the meat strip.) Pound some parsley and chopped celery leaves with some salt til a paste is formed and add to beef, along with a few tablespoons of vinegar, and about double that amount of oil. Crumble 2 soup cubes, a tsp or 2 of garlic powder, a little pepper—and tosswell. Leave in marinade, tossing occasionally while slicing onions and tomato. (Cover with a lid to keep the flies off, so your hands are free to do other things). Adjust seasoning—more pepper, salt, another soup cube, a little more garlic....

Add some of the slivered onions to marinating meat, and continue to marinate.

Assign some boys to husk the corn (Malian 'kaba' is like our field corn),and put it onto boil for an hour oe so.

Prepare the charcoal in the brazier, a sheetmetal grill about 18” square, that will be topped with a grill rack. You may neeed to need a little help to get a good start-- just borrow a lantern, tilt it and sprinkle some kerosene fluid from the resevoir over the charcoal. :))

[Meanwhile, one of the boys brought a 5'stick of 'sweet grass'(sugar cane) and whacked off several 6-8”pieces to give me and others. Fanta saw my attempt to bite into the unpeeled stem, and helped me out by taking my piece and peeling it with her teeth, revealing the more tender inside part that you chew, then spit out the fibers after the sweet juice is sucked out. Now I know!]

It's now 3:30 pm: Rosalie, our evening cook, just arrived with a helper, (a 12 or 14yr old neighbor or perhaps extendedfamily member) who has Rosalies infant son strapped to her back in the traditional way. Rosalie and her husband, who is our day guard, live a short walk uphill from the base here. Their 5 children are some of our 18 nonresident children, who are sponsored and have schooling and medical needs provided for. Rosalie will prepare the evening meal which consists of skinny noodles to which oil, some soup cubes and a little diced tomato has been added for flavoring. This 7pm meal was already planned and purchased for before we decided to make the addition to the menu. We all had a bite of meat in 'jaba-ji' an onion sauce served over white rice for lunchi.

I smell the meat grilling, corn is boiling, and I hear something frying in oil just now. Flies are buzzing over and climbing on the scraps of onion and tomato peelings that are here on the paving near my feet. A larger than usual crowd of boys is milling nearby--they have a vested interest – tasty food will soon be available:)) What a hive of activity; a game of connect four, multiple conversations, a little one brandishing the remnant sweet grass stick, the cooks about their business and older boys just sitting nearby. Ray has been working on some project at the shop and has just arrived as well.

Well, gotta run. Food is ready!(I have a vested interest as well:))

Happy Independence Day!-- along with Happy Birthday wishes to my sister-in-law, Linda Heisey

Mim in Mali

Tidbits and Shorts

I find that time flies by and i haven't been on to post for 2 weeks:  Here are some notes to give you a flavor of what we have been doing these last 2 weeks, with some explanatory notes to you all in(  ):

(from an update to Claudia 2 days ago)

There surely must be elastic available here, and zippers for the boys pants. But Paul has not yet been able to get the elastic at wherever he went to get it. That is something that I will ask you to get to bring back when you do your shopping in Calif at the end of your trip. I now have had several items that are needing elastic, but have given them back to the boys to keep til we are able to find some. I will try today or tomorrow to get some used clothing that have good zippers to replace on 3 pr of boys' school pants from last year. I have found the cost for an item of clothing to be 200-500cfa(US $.50-1.00) and if it has 2 or even 3 zippers that we can use, that is a good buy.

Both Bakary and Sarata did get money (for doing chores and learning memory verse each day) this week as Boubacar has done a great job helping them learn their verses. I hope that Flo does as well this next week. He helped (3 yr old) Jonathan learn a very short verse yesterday :)) I thought that we were going to be able to celebrate all the children learning their verse, AND doing their jobs yesterday (even if some needed remnders so did not get money for their job)- then, at the end, (18yr old)Joseph did not even try a verse. Disappointing!

We will have corn from the patch of American sweet corn today-- I hope to have enough for each one here on our base to have an ear. (I had given Eliz the few ears we picked earlier, to take to her family, since there were only the few ready. That way all will get some- just not on the same day.)

The #1 truck is NOT running. Truck #2 is back from the garage, with a not-good report, and cost 170,000cfa. We are still driving it, but it is sounding worse and worse. A new vehicle, or vehicles are certainly needed soon, it appears. Perhaps someone else will also be inspired to help with that project.

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(From a note to one of our missions team at Mt Rock) We are sending  (in a box with Claudia, who is traveling to the US this week) some early Christmas presents, as well as some of the small vehicles, like you've probably seen, that African boys make out of trash.   Our daughter Virginia is going to be conducting a fund raising for a newer vehicle for us to use here at the base.

 Ray has purchased a "moto" for transportation for himself and potentially for Julie to get to school. (not a Harley!-- a little 110cc Power K) and already we are facing an unforseen issue with it.  "Do we allow others to use our scooter?"  It is a hard issue and we will need to give it careful thought. Paul asked to use it, but, when Ray hesitated and said that he had not decided about that, immediately backed away from the question and said he didn't need it that day after all.  If one, who?  If one, who else?.......Our experience is that they are not careful with the machinery that they have-- but that is not surprising as they have no investment in it, or direct consequences when it does not work.  We HAVE seen careful driving and care in local individuals with their own "bought and paid for by themselves' scooters! ) This, as so many things, is not an issue of 'culture' but of training and learning by experience. When you get handouts, and just wait for the next handout when something is broken....! Part of the mentoring that we hope to do here.)

Claudia will be there at Mt Rock on Tues for a service and reporting at 7pm.  I  hope that there is a good turnout in the evening for the service.  Be ready to ask questions about what we are doing here and the things she sees that are helping.  

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An example of communication- not perfect English, but understandable, and very encouraging. From anothere missions organization here in Kati, Mali
Hi all,
Thanks to everyone who is praying for the ministry at Kati's hospital God is answering our prayers. Doctors,nurses and patients are acceptig joyfull the sciptures and some gifts we are giving them.Some of them witness the effecient of prayers also testimonies did for them, praise Lord!
so, we need prayers for;   Our team's unity,love,faith,courage,etc.  The ministry's need,because as we all know it's another door that God opened for the gospel here in Kati even around the world.
For Kama Dembélé,an muslmans' prêher(ulemas) from Kita who gave his life to Jesus last sunday.
Solo Diarra 10years old with one leg and Sidibé both two legs cuted off after road's accident,and for an musulman family from Mauritus who accepted prayers and the sciptures we gave them.

These and other events occupy our time.  Yesterday, I was sent for to join Paul who was talking to a lady. She had come seeking prayer for a marriage crisis, after a friend had told her they received a positive answer to a problem, the same day after we had prayed for them. She wondered if ther was a price to be paid for our prayer, and Paul was able to say "No.  We have received a free gift from Jesus, and it is because of Him and by His power that we ask to the Father, God, for an answer."  We prayed and she went on her way.  It will be good to hear the results of that situation. 
I have been sewing things for the boys, both our residents and the street boys who come to our base in the evenings to spend the night. They listen to a Bible Story and get something to eat then sleep on mats on the floor.  Ray continues to fix things, and Julie has now started her 11th grade school year at Bamako Christian Acadamy, which is about a 20 minute/12 km drive away, so her day is full as well.
Continue to pray for us as we are brought to your mind.  Your prayers are the lifeblood of continuing ministry.
As always, be blessed and be a blessing to all with whom you are in contact.
Mim in Mali

Sundy Breakfast and "Kulu" Excursion

 The day dawns bright and clear, with only a few puffy white clouds sailing high like full masted schooners on a clear blue sea. Bright sun and clear skies are not a given in Mali's rainy season, so we are thankful for that provision for our special excursion today.  

Sunday's special breakfast of “nbuuru”(baguettes or french bread) and hot cocoa is on the menu today, as opposed to the regular weekday breakfast of millet porridge, of one kind or another. Contrary to the usual pattern of sitting around a bowl and eating out of it together, Sundays are different. After morning devotions are finished, a kind of organized may-hem reigns around the table as some of the boys tear the 8-10 loaves of bread for individual portions and others begin to make hot drink. A large kitchen knife has been used to open the can of sweetened condensed milk and it passes from hand to hand as they pour some into their plastic mugs. A container of Nestle's Quik equivalent is grabbed by first one and then another for the couple of spoonfuls of chocolate powder that will make each a cup of cocoa. Using an empty cup, boys begin dipping the water from the large bowl of almost boiling water that has been set in the middle of the table and then pour it back and forth between cups to “stir” it and dissolve the sweet, sticky milk syrup that clings to the cup bottom, before taking their bread and moving away to eat their breakfast. 

Depending on the preciseness of the bread-tearer, there is a quick jostling and grabbing to get the larger 'halves' (a “half” loaf for each “big” boy, and “half of a half” for the 4 littlest ones.) It has been very telling to see who takes care to get for themselves, and who looks out for the little ones while getting their own breakfast. There are one or two who seem to always be the first to take their portions, and one or two others who can be counted on to help the littlest members of the family, and the rest fall somewhere in between. Paul, our Malian second-in-command, is an unusually servant-hearted leader, and provides a good model of manhood for them to see and emulate, if they will.

Julie and I requested to have our breakfast upstairs so that we could complete the job of assembling supplies for the special hike and cookout on the 'mountain' that was planned for the 7 oldest boys. “Let's see! Army rations, bananas, bread, firewood, matches, kettle, tea pots, water....” The boys had been told of the upcoming event early in the week, with a few of the details, and I was surprised to hear that not all of them wanted to go. I thought that it must be a communication issue, but when Claudia announced that anyone who stayed home would finish everyone else's laundry while we were gone-- there was quick turnaround, and no further explanation was needed. :)) We had told them that we would make a fire to heat the food and make tea-- and by this morning there was a mounting anticipation and they were ready to go, backpacks in place, before our preparations were completed. (I expect that all you parents who have prepared for an outing or vacation understands that phenomenom.)  

Our band of nine, Ray & I and 7 boys aged 11-18, started from our base at 9:30am. On the way out of our neighborhood,  several ran ahead and stopped at the home of Rosalie and Dami, our non-resident cook and day guard couple, to tell where we were going-- bragging rights, you understand.  Before we got to the top of the ridge we had picked up two tag-a-longs, Dami and Rosalie's son, Daouda, and a friend followed us and made a day of it with us. Shouldn't have been a surprise to me but meant that the food had to stretch a little further. :) Ray asked me to lead the way so as to set the pace, and I did for a while, claiming my option to take a breather part way up the first steep hill. I soon dropped back as eager feet went ahead, and took advantage of the opportunity to share my camera with 15 year old Karim, who took some really good pictures — some of which I have posted. 

Up over the rock face of the ridge immediately behind the base, along the rock strewn flat, across a stream of water spilling over huge, flat rocks of rusty red, up another rocky incline and thru brushy scrub. (Do you get the theme of 'rocks' here??)   Ray, as lead “hunter”, carried a stout stick to beat back the tall grass and encroaching branches and, hopefully, discourage any snakes from making our intimate acquaintance (with great success I might add. 'Nary a creepy-crawly was seen the whole day.) There were soon a couple more sticks pressed into duty as rifles or snake chasers as we moved on, and the scent of the plentiful "mosquito plant"(citronella) surrounded us. 

We came unexpectedly on a simple track that ran along the top of that ridge, and chose to follow it north and east before cutting up thru a large field of grass, chest high in places, to yet another ridge.  My photo buddy, Karim, was one of the young men who took particular care of this 'kooroba' grandmother.  At one point I noticed that he was taking extra effort to step the grass down to both sides so that I could see, and wouldn't stumble over, the frequent fist sized rocks that could be serious ankle twisters, hidden as they were in this thick grass.  Further on, he got down and moved forward swiftly on all 4s, smoothly plaiting handfulls of grass into a flat rope on the ground under him, announcing as he did so “path-marker”. Obviously, he had done that before!  Ray warned me to try to avoid grass cuts from this swaying field of green that reached almost to my neck, and said that when Christian Spindler introduced him to this terrain back in early May, it was just a rocky field, bare and forlorn looking.  If I understand correctly, it can reach well over our heads before the rainy season evaporates in October's heat.

What a delightful day we had! God provided the canvas of grass and flowers, rocky ridges and cliff-like bluffs that yielded panoramic views of the Niger River- all under a sunny, rain-free sky. We peopled it with energetic 'hunters' (“Lion...monkey”) who were on an adventure. The boys were a delight to watch as they put into practice skills that I didn't know they had. (D-U-H-H, Mimi! These ARE native African BOYS. They grew up in villages and have been on the streets of the city. Of course they know how to cope and make do!) As soon as we chose a spot to make lunch they scattered and brought back an assortment of branches to construct simple, effective shelters to shade us from that same bright, noonday, African sun,...and had a grand time doing it, too. Army rations and accompaniments were parceled out to 9 hungry boys, Kings and warriors as the mood struck them. Kings Darius and Daniel, David and Solomon (from Bible stories thay have studied) ate chunks of bread, grilled beef patties and bananas. Mighty lion hunter, with stick rifle, detected and shot at a lion that lurked in a brushy spot as we trekked past. 'Massake Darius', resting in the shade of an overhanging bush while his 'subjects' scurried about making additional shelters, got out his books and did some studying while waiting for tea. (The tea maker, Flo, got special privileges-- getting to use the rice bag that had served as our buffet table for shade, since fire, and hence the tea, was in open sun.)  Amadou was the first to discover a tree that had enticing branches to climb and peer out above.  Several others soon joined him and Ray wondered how many boys that small tree could hold before they would all tumble headlong to the ground. As it happened they scrambled up and down a few times over the next hour or so that we camped there, and no one seemed the worse for wear, except perhaps the poor tree. The water that we took along turned out to be inadequate  for the tasks assigned to it, but we all survived.

We returned home to the sound of a chanting call, apparently well known as the reply came back strong and clear from the line of marchers ahead.  Later, a worshipful song of praise erupted from the trailing warrior. I started taking video of the trekkers ahead, so as to capture the song without scaring off the camera-shy singer.

 

 

  

What a good day we had!! Thank you God! Bridges built and relationships stengthened.  Perhaps we can so such an excursion again- but next time we will be sure to take more food AND more water.