We continue to experience life with the boys (and Sarata, our one little resident girl. Fanta is her mother, and the family lives in the 2 rooms just below us, adjacent to the kitchen area.) If you have grown up in a family of more than 3 or 4, you will realize some of the interactions that we face. Big boys teasing little boys, little boys trying to mimic their elders, big boys testing each other, and all of them vying for attention one way and another. There is the normal struggle to see who will be in charge, but in addition there is the reality that many of these boys have already on their own, on the street, which is not always a friendly environment. They are wise in the ways of manipulation and coercion. But they have also acknowledged their need of a saviour and all have made a verbal commitment to follow God., however that translates into everyday life. They also are looking for love and affirmation, as we all are. It is a delicate balance to supply what they need-- room to grow and mature, while still enough boundaries to give some structure. We need to remember to laugh and play as well as do correcting.
We also welcomed another "boy" into our family group here. Mattias i a young man who comes rom Austria, and plans to be here about 3 months. THe picture of me holding a tray of banana men with mustaches is a treat I made in honor of his coming. Banana 1/2s with a squiggly pretzel mustache and peanut eyes. It was fun!
Sunday is a day with very little on the schedule. The boys need to do their own laundry sometime during the day, but otherwise they have a day to rest and play. Julie and I played a game of Quirkle with Paul and Saloum- 2 games actually. Then I went to check on a couple of new plantings that we did this week, and spread some “misibo” (well rotted cow marure) that Paul had gotten for me. On the way to spread it I got distracted by 3 little ones doing their laundry on the top of the concrete septic tank. (Sounds a little bizarre, but it is a solid concrete platform to stand on or alongside for that chore.. I stayed to work alongside 4 of the boys as they were did their washing. This weekly chore that they are responsible for, is done in rather primitive surroundings, compared to what you probably have to work with, but it is enough!. Each one is given a cup or so of soap powder and it is up to them to get the job done sometime on Sunday. There is a garden hose with a good supply of water, a large metal tub, a laundry scrubboard, as well as a (new)clothes line and various railings and concrete places to hang the washed clothes on to dry. The sun does the solar drying work.
As you might imagine, some do better than others, and so I was trying to show them ways that I have found that work to get the clothes clean. I try to use the washboard as little as possible because it is terribly rough on the clothes, but Karim showed me that it does enable him to get his pants cleaner than my hand work did. Live and learn! Another of the boys seemed to leave me to do his laundry when I had offered to help. Not so! He had gone to take a clean garment to put on and bring back the dirty pair of pants that he was wearing, so that both sets could get clean today.
Another set of blessings to count: Automatic washing machines and dryers: can you conceive of it?? Machines that leave your clothing clean, dry and fluffy! Also, plenty of clothes, so that you do not need to wash one thing and then go and change so you can wash the clothes that you have on.
Count your many blessings today. And be a blessing to others as you go.
Mim in Mali
We continue to experience life with the boys (and Sarata, our one little resident girl. Fanta is her mother, and the family lives in the 2 rooms just below us, adjacent to the kitchen area.) If you have grown up in a family of more than 3 or 4, you will realize some of the interactions that we face. Big boys teasing little boys, little boys trying to mimic their elders, big boys testing each other, and all of them vying for attention one way and another. There is the normal struggle to see who will be in charge, but in addition there is the reality that many of these boys have already on their own, on the street, which is not always a friendly environment. They are wise in the ways of manipulation and coercion. But they have also acknowledged their need of a saviour and all have made a verbal commitment to follow God., however that translates into everyday life. They also are looking for love and affirmation, as we all are. It is a delicate balance to supply what they need-- room to grow and mature, while still enough boundaries to give some structure. We need to remember to laugh and play as well as do correcting.
We also welcomed another "boy" into our family group here. Mattias i a young man who comes rom Austria, and plans to be here about 3 months. THe picture of me holding a tray of banana men with mustaches is a treat I made in honor of his coming. Banana 1/2s with a squiggly pretzel mustache and peanut eyes. It was fun!
Sunday is a day with very little on the schedule. The boys need to do their own laundry sometime during the day, but otherwise they have a day to rest and play. Julie and I played a game of Quirkle with Paul and Saloum- 2 games actually. Then I went to check on a couple of new plantings that we did this week, and spread some “misibo” (well rotted cow marure) that Paul had gotten for me. On the way to spread it I got distracted by 3 little ones doing their laundry on the top of the concrete septic tank. (Sounds a little bizarre, but it is a solid concrete platform to stand on or alongside for that chore.. I stayed to work alongside 4 of the boys as they were did their washing. This weekly chore that they are responsible for, is done in rather primitive surroundings, compared to what you probably have to work with, but it is enough!. Each one is given a cup or so of soap powder and it is up to them to get the job done sometime on Sunday. There is a garden hose with a good supply of water, a large metal tub, a laundry scrubboard, as well as a (new)clothes line and various railings and concrete places to hang the washed clothes on to dry. The sun does the solar drying work.
As you might imagine, some do better than others, and so I was trying to show them ways that I have found that work to get the clothes clean. I try to use the washboard as little as possible because it is terribly rough on the clothes, but Karim showed me that it does enable him to get his pants cleaner than my hand work did. Live and learn! Another of the boys seemed to leave me to do his laundry when I had offered to help. Not so! He had gone to take a clean garment to put on and bring back the dirty pair of pants that he was wearing, so that both sets could get clean today.
Another set of blessings to count: Automatic washing machines and dryers: can you conceive of it?? Machines that leave your clothing clean, dry and fluffy! Also, plenty of clothes, so that you do not need to wash one thing and then go and change so you can wash the clothes that you have on.
Count your many blessings today. And be a blessing to others as you go.
Mim in Mali
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