|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||
|
#
31 Well, I'm back in the village after ~1 ½ months. And it's the
same as always. It's kinda like a soap opera…you can miss it for
a couple weeks & still figure out what's going on after a day or two
- only here you can miss a month or two. Two hours after I got back, a
young lady in the other Ganse died. So my arrival was not as obnoxious
as they usually make it. It's sad about the lady. But I like being able
to slip in without too much attention. Four women gave birth while I was
gone. And 2 are due anytime. Kouame's was born May 4. It's a boy! He is
sooo cute & looks like his Mama. I asked what his name was & he
said he was waiting for me to name him. He was born on Saturday, so he's
a Kouame, just like his Dad. But his second name is….Eric I tried running to the fields this morning but the weeds have become
so thick. It's trail blazing all over again. I was soaked at the end.
Then I came back to wash clothes & Badoo came over with Kouadio. Sometimes
she is very annoying - she's young - but sometimes (most of the time)
she's great. We had a good time this morning. Yes. Washing clothes. I'm
showing her how to jump rope tonight. And tomorrow she & her friends
are coming over to learn how to put on condoms. Isn't that funny? Can
you imagine that in the States? It should happen. I mean, I wish people
took it more seriously. AIDS is a scary thing in the States. But you can
be confident (for the most part) that when you get married you're safe.
Here, infidelity is so much more accepted. But they often don't protect
themselves. And, there's not much we can do in that regard. We can give
them the knowledge of protection…and try to give them the confidence
to use it - but we can't touch the culture. Last night, I slept outside
in the appattam. It was so nice & cool. You know those bugs (termites)
that were boring holes in your statue?…well, they're all over here.
That's the disadvantage of a thatch roof. They're going to town on the
appattam. I woke up in the middle of the night with a thin layer of saw
dust on me. They work fast. They're destroying my "bath" room
too. Overnight, there was already a pile in my bucket. And the heat is
almost unbearable now. Be glad you came when you did. It's times like
this that I can't wait to come home. I'm tired of being sweaty all the
time - when I wake up until I go to sleep. And if I don't sleep outside,
I sleep in a pool of sweat. I've been having a heck of a time with my
back since you guys left too. It's only locked up on me once, but not
for long. I don't know what to do for it, though. If I rest, it hurts…
If I keep moving (run, walk, whatever), it hurts. I stretch it, do strengthening
exercises…nothing. So, if you have any ideas… I may get the
Medicine Chef here to release the demons My house has become somewhat of an outpatient clinic. The stuff you brought
me has helped tremendously. I tell them to wash their wounds with soap
so they don't become dependent on me, but these kids are hopeless. You
can't keep 'em clean to save their lives. Yesterday, a young Mom brought
her 1 year old over. She had spilled boiling water on him. His hands were
swollen. His belly, penis, testicles and both butt cheeks were red/black/raw.
It was so sad. There was another lady with this huge tumor looking thing
on her arm, filled with blood & pus. She had sliced it open to release
all the funk. And now the cut is infected. I tell them again & again
- I can only help with the surface wounds. They have to go to the hospital
for anything else. If you can send some more stuff, that would be great.
It's not grave if you can't. I've still got a bit left. But if you can,
here's what I use the most: gauze, gauze, gauze! "paper" tape
(it sticks the best); bandaids. I can get soap & neosporin here. But
any wound care stuff you can send would be great. How's it going at the
hospital, by the way? Is Mary Ellen still there? Tell Bea I said hi…&
anyone else I know who is still there. Oh yeah - thanks for the crayons.
The kids LOVE coming over here to color. All the coloring books are gone.
But I've got tons of paper to give them. They love it all. Before I forget,
I've got some picture requests: roll #176721: 2, 9, 18 - 22; roll # 176686:
0, 1(x2); 5, 7, 8(x2). Also, can you send a few family portraits. So many
people have asked me for those. Thanks I took a little trip & I've stopped traveling with my letter stuff.
It's so much easier to write in the village. A bunch of PCVs came up to
Ganse on bikes - Brendan, Damion, Sky & Meridith. They spent the night
here then we all went to Sominasse, Josh's village. The next day we went
to Talahini, Damion's village, then on to Namassi, Julie's village. We
surprised her (it was only me & Sky). She was so excited to see us.
Then we went to Essikro, Cory's village (new PCV), then to Tiedio, Rachel's
village. It is so fun to see everyone in their villages. So, I'm back
in the village now and will be here for a while. I've been told some people
started their latrines. I hope they are as motivated as they sound. I
really want them to fix up their school. Hey Dad, Jo said something about
Helen Wright has cancer? How's she doing? Hope they can treat it. Tell
her I'm thinking about her & keeping her in my prayers. Well, maybe
she doesn't want anyone to know. In that case, don't say anything! I'm
gonna go say hi to everyone. Miss you guys tons. It was good talking to
you, Dad, when I was in Bondoukou. Sorry I missed you guys, Mom &
Eric. Next time Yesterday was the busiest day I've had in a while. I didn't sit down to catch my breath until 5:30. I've been running around playing nurse… We've got several nasty wounds around here. A kid sliced his foot open on a broken bottle because he wasn't wearing shoes. Most kids don't. So I told all the kids if they aren't wearing flip flops, they can't draw at my house. You can't make 'em wear shoes. But they get these small insignificant cuts that become nasty, oozing, gaping holes. I'm working on the scholarship application. There is one girl only. And I don't think there is enough money this year to give any more scholarships. There's a lot about the school system that I don't know. This girl wants to be a doctor. I asked her what happens if she doesn't get the money. She said she'll go ask friends & family for money. It's so sad. They have to take 3 big tests during the year. And they have to pay for the test & the transport to get there. It is hard for her to find the 3,000 CFA to go take a test. That's just over $4. If you don't have the money, you don't take the test. You can't continue school. I hope she gets the scholarship. Just when I start getting bent outta shape about something, I come across something like this. It puts everything in perspective. Did I tell you I've been sleeping in my appatam every night? It's so nice outside. And it's so much easier to wake up in the mornings. I even get a little chilly around 3 or 4 AM. I'm gonna go to the other Ganse to play soccer. I'll be back later. Hoepfully, today I'll have more time to write. There's not enough of me to go around! Each day I think "today I'll
have at least an hour to sit & write or clean"… It looks
like a tornado came through my house. I'm hoping today I can hang out
by myself for a bit. Yesterday, I went to Wekele with Kouame. His niece
was burned 2 days ago. She's a year old & some dumb-ass laid a burning
log next to her on the ground while she was sleeping. The log broke in
two & landed on the baby. The kids tried to tell dumb-ass the baby
was burned but he was talking to someone & didn't want to be interrupted.
The right side of her head/face/neck was burned & her chest &
belly were crispy, still black. The poor kid. I cleaned it & gave
them some medicine to put on it. Dale Farmer gave me some burn cream a
long time ago. That's what I gave them. The thing is, they don't have
a pump, only the river. So I had to tell them to boil the water, let it
cool, then use that to clean the burns. I hope it heals well. I told them
to let me know if it gets worse. They probably won't go to the hospital.
They'll just start using traditional medicine, like putting mud on it
from the river…or crushed up ants or something weird like that. After
we finished helping the baby, we wandered around to say hi to everyone
& stumbled across a dance. It was, by far, the coolest, most "African"
thing I've seen since I've been here. It was exactly how you imagine it
to be here. They were playing the drums & singing - but it sounded
more like a mix of chanting & singing - and dancing like crazy. They
would shake their bodies faster than I thought possible. It was so cool.
I was mesmerized (didn't know how to spell - sorry Meflouquine day! That's my malaria medicine. When I first started taking
it, it did funny things to my brain. Then I'd have crazy dreams. After
about 6 months, it stopped, except for the dreams. For about 6 months
after that, I'd have crazy dreams on Wed, Thurs & Fri. Now, even those
have stopped. I'm a little sad. I miss fun dreams Today was so nice. I gave 2 tests to the WID scholarship candidate. Then
I read until I took a nap at 1:30 Went to Kakpin today with Kouame to see the nurse & midwife there. I want to talk to the women about family planning. The nurse wasn't there but the midwife was. I'll tell you about it tomorrow. It's too hot in the house tonight to write. I'm trying to talk to the women here to do some kind of birth control. Condoms don't go over so well with them, especially the marrieds. But since there's no nurse here, they have to go to at least Kakpin to get BCP. And the midwife there said she started that with a few women but none came back because they "didn't have money." That's the standard response. BCPs are 150 CFA/month. That's $0.20 for one pack of pills! So, we're working together to try to find a solution. Then when we came back, Kouame started telling me about sorcery here. He said when someone dies from sorcery, the "evil" soul leaves the body & enters someone else. He said that has happened several times to the king's ex-wife. He said these souls can enter other people's bodies because the "genies" of these people are weak. Maybe it's the religious equivalent of your guardian angel sleeping on the job! Anyway, after the soul enters the new body, it causes this person to speak the voice of the dead person, saying how it was that he died. In Kouame's old village, he said this man was going to the fields one day when he saw a genie (but this genie had entered a man's body, so it appeared to be a regular man). This "man" told him he must build a house in the village with no windows. When the house was completed and the door was closed, they left the house 'til the next day. The next day they looked inside to find someone had left a fetish. My understanding of a fetish is it can be basically any object, but it has certain powers against sorcery. For example - a wooden statue or a necklace with an animal bone or feather for a charm. Nobody knew how it could have gotten in there. It was the genie. And because this fetish is there, sorcery can not touch the village. This fetish is more powerful. And the people there are scared to death of it too. Kouame said he can barely look inside… his heart about jumps out of him. He also said he had a picture of what the fetish looks like, but it's not the real thing. If you take a picture, it won't show up. I want to try. It's so interesting to listen to them talk about sorcery & fetishes because it defies all the logic that we were raised on. But they completely believe in it. Oh yeah, another thing he said - - when these souls enter new bodies, these people become different. They develop supernatural powers & can know & see things that we can not. Remember the guy in Wekele that told Kouame about his dream? That's an example. His genie was weak & several souls entered him. Crazy, huh? No wonder people are so scared for me to be all the way back here in the house by myself. I guess I would be too if I believed in all that. I'm gonna go down to the river with Koffi today. So maybe I'll be back later. I really miss you guys. Say hi to everyone for me. ~~~ This French guy here is so cool. He's been here 2 months & he's got more figured out about this place than I do. It's his job but still… He's super interesting to listen to. He's leaving June 6 though. I tried snails for the first time today… They taste like dirt. Probably won't eat those again. OK. I'm tired…bath time then sleepy time. I was talking to Nicola, the French guy, about sorcery & fetishes
here in Africa. And how it's all so odd to us, but it really is so logical
to them. He said he was talking to the old people in a small village just
on the other side of the river, and asked them about the elephants…why
they thought they were gone… While he can probably find a perfectly
"logical" ecological explanation, the old people said this…
When the park was popular & the hotel was working, all the young people
worked there making lots of money & leaving the village. The old people
were jealous so they used sorcery to destroy all the elephants. That's
perfectly logical to them. But to us, we think "huh"? In this
book I'm reading, there's a quote that I really like… "…mystery,
not logic, is what gives us hope and keeps us believing in a force greater
than our own insignificance." I think that goes for every culture.
People always ask me if there is sorcery or fetishes in the States. At
first I said no. But there is…superstition, to name one. How many
athletes have their "lucky" something, be it socks, whatever.
Even in "religion" - - for a wedding… "something old,
something new…"…and you can't see each other the day of,
before the ceremony. That's not so different really. Wednesday, I'm going
to a big fete ("fet") in a small village near here. It's a big
fetish fete. They sacrifice animals to the fetishes, dance, sing, whatever.
I can't wait to see it. Nicola is driving, so I can go with him. Plus,
he can explain things to me, his French being better & all Yesterday, I told the guys in charge of the pump that I wanted to count
the money with them so I could see how their system works. They have a
little notebook & each day they write the date how much they collected
that day. They do this every day. And then do the books whenever they
get around to it to make sure it's all there. Kouame has been bitching
a lot lately that he wants someone else to keep the money (he has it now)
because everyone keeps harassing him, saying he's boofing the money. The
other guy involved holding the money is Koffi Huberson. Kouame says he
doesn't trust Koffi. He thinks he's boofing money. So we count it yesterday,
and guess who comes up short…Kouame. You know, I want to stick up
for him, but how can I when he does stupid s$#& like this! So of course,
he had a legit "reason" for taking the money. But he can't repay
it right now. It's only 1,600CFA, but still. I was so mad. So now, nobody
trusts anybody. And they all want me to keep it. I try to tell them "no".
That's not why I'm here. They've got to be able to do this without me.
We had a meeting today with the King and his notables (right hand men)
to decide what to do. They all just start arguing over who boofs &
who doesn't. I wanted to deck Kouame, the Secretaire. He put me on the
spot in front of all those "big wigs", basically telling me
to pick sides - him or Kouame. I have never raised my voice here until
today and in front of the King. Kouame, the Secretaire (he's the same
as Kouame #2) is such an arrogant jerk. He always has to have control
and have the last word. He thinks he's better than everyone else because
he has a brother in the States - even though his brother has basically
forgotten about them. He hasn't been here in ~4 years. And when he came,
he stayed in Ganse 2 nights. That's it. But Kouame #2 thinks he's the
best thing since sliced bread. But the thing that turns me off most about
him, besides being a hypocrite, he only approaches me because he thinks
it benefits him somehow. It makes him look better to hang out with whitey.
He keeps telling me I need to get you guys to send him a back pack like
one I have here. So I remind him he has a brother in the States. HE can
send one. But Kouame #2 says "well, he doesn't know what it looks
like…your Mom & Dad do, though." Gimme a break. Any other
time he jumps on the opportunity to say his brother is in America. Except
now, it's not so convenient because he can't get a free back pack. UUUUUHHHG!
Sorry. He's just on my last nerve right now. It started with such force
when the other PCVs came to see me. Kouame #2 is never here. But all of
a sudden - BAM - here he is inviting himself over for dinner. We had rice
and sauce…and normally we eat with our hands. Well, it's not uncommon
for village turned city folks to be "too good" to eat with their
hands anymore. So Kouame #2 tells me to go get forks & bowls. So I
bring one for him, telling him I don't have enough for everyone…&
we are eating with our hands. He just looks at me with this stupid look
on his face. THEN, he took the best meat for himself. Not that I cared.
But you never do that when guests are present. I was so embarrassed by
his behavior. Last night, at 9PM, he told me we were going to Wekele tomorrow.
I said who's we? He said me, him & two other guys. He said he sent
a note last week to let them know we were coming. I said "No. I can't
go. I've got things planned for tomorrow." He asked what did I have
that couldn't be rescheduled. I said the women were weighing babies. He
just laughed, like "that's it? No problem. Do it another day."
I said no. I wish I had a picture of his face. I was choosing working
with the women over him. I said I told the women I'd be there, and I'm
not going back on my word. He said "well, I told Wekele we were coming.
And I can't go back on my word." I said you don't have to. You can
go. I'm not going! He didn't tell me until the night before & expects
me to drop everything to suit him. I may compromise for someone else.
But, for someone who shows no respect for his fellow man, no way. OK.
Happy thought I just got back from the fields. I went with Ama and her family. It took
an hour to get there & a little more than an hour to get back - on
foot, of course. We weeded for about 2 ½ hours, made lunch &
ate (boiled igname with a yummy leaf sauce from leaves we picked in the
fields). It was so nice out. I think it may rain again. At lunch I was
dying of thirst & my water was far away. Ama said drink this…it's
pump water. I took 3 huge gulps when I realized their water jug doubles
as a petrol jug. Good thing I've got an iron stomach. I'm beat. I have
to go back to Ganse for dinner. I love them & all. But when I eat
back there, it's usually 8:30 or 9 before I get back to my house. I like
to unwind some before going to bed. But they just don't get it. They mean
well. And I think I may get footoo tonight, which is a treat. So, hi &
bye. I'm headin' to a village about 18 km away - ON FOOT! It's gonna take
us forever. What else do I have to do? It's for that Fetish Fete. I don't
know the real name for it. I don't know if I told you that Badoo left.
She left last week saying she'd be back Friday. Well, I just got word
that she's in Bouake. And she's not coming back! She found work there
so she's staying. She left knowing she wasn't coming back, and didn't
say a word to her family. Fine. That's not too cool. But whatever…she'll
be back in a few months. What's bad is she knew she wasn't coming back
& she left her son here for her Mom to take care of. That's not excusable.
Can you imagine if I just skipped town leaving my kid with you?? Badoo
sent stuff back for me to give to her Mom…but her Mom doesn't know
yet. No way. Too many people kill the messenger. Besides, I'm scared stiff
of her Mom What an experience! I just got back from the "crowkeye" fete in Kape. I have no idea how to spell it - but that's what it sounds like. I wish you could have seen it. We walked there yesterday afternoon. It took us over 3 hours, & that was moving pretty quickly too. I am exhausted. We got there around 5:30, showered, and ate tons. Then the "Mask" came out of the forest. It's a man dressed up as a mask (you'll see pictures) and he chases kids to scare them. I asked Ama who's in the mask. She looked at me with this confused look & said it's not a person. It's a mask. She was dead serious. The mask was born in the forest & he comes out & "chicotes" (whips) the kids. Everyone, except the really old guys, is genuinely terrified of it. The Mask didn't stay out long. So we went back to the house, slept 'til 10, got up and danced 'til 2:30. We woke up at 6, bathed & ate & ~8AM the King's son came running to the house saying they needed me NOW. I ran across the village in a complete panic to find a guy on the ground seeming to have just had a siezure. Nicola had just shown up so he was already there with him, but had not yet found out what happened. He said he walked up & everyone was just quiet & staring. He thought it was part of the festivities at first. The young guy couldn't talk very well. It was like his tongue wouldn't move & his eyes were doing funny too. They moved him inside and he started going nuts, fighting off everyone. He was screaming & moaning & having trouble breathing too. There were 4 men holding him down with a 5th sitting on top of him. And they were still struggling. We asked if he had eaten or drank anything the night before at the dance, or if an animal had bitten or scratched him. Nothing. It was the first time it has happened, too. The Mask come out last night so we asked about that. They all thought a genie had possessed him…or maybe the devil. They were so scared and I guess they should have been. He was fine before we left that day. So who knows. But he thrashed about for a good 45 minutes that morning. After every thing settled down, we went to see the sacrifices. We walked ~ a mile into the forest to this huge tree. About 100 yards before we got to the tree, everyone had to take their shoes off. When we got there, they were sacrificing chickens & goats. I saw ~ 5 goat heads & who knows how many chickens. The goat heads, while completely severed from the body, were still gasping for air. It was weird. There was so much blood. I tried to move over to the other side of the tree so I could see it better & they practically tackled me. If I had crossed, I'm told, I would be gone forever. I would instantly lose comprehension of any language & wouldn't understand their pleas to come back. You also could take no pictures here. I was told the consequence could be anywhere from my camera burning…to me dying. On the way back from the sacrifice, they carried the King on their heads in this canoe looking thing. I could take pictures of that. They paraded him around the village then re-entered the forest to process through the village with the "stool". The stool carries so much power. They paraded out of the forest - the King surrounded by people carrying small trees as shade & adoration. In front of the King was a man with the stool on his head. The stool must appear before the King to show that it is more powerful. As they walk by, you can not look behind them. It's seen as a curse. There's an expression in French that means by looking "behind", you can see "ahead". And if you touch the leaves of these trees, you will die. At the end of the procession, any infant with a maladie is thought to be cured if they touch the King. It was quite something to see. Nicola knows all about these traditional ceremonies so he knows what questions to ask. And he explained a lot to me. I could take a picture of the King in the "canoe", but not with the stool - because it's the stool that's the fetish, not the King himself. We lucked up coming home, too, because Nicola gave us a ride. I had two fat blisters on my pinky toes from walking the day before. Then he invited me to dinner tonight for his last night. So, I'll be back later…or maybe tomorrow. Last night was pretty fun. We all ate at Nicola's then danced in his honor (like we did at the school, not with the bongos). He left this morning & it was actually pretty sad. I wasn't sad because it was him specifically. It was sad watching the people here. You'd have thought he'd been here 10 years. He was here 2 months. I am not looking forward to that day. And it's going to be so drawn out too because I have to wait for the badjan which comes anytime between 3:30 and 9 or 10. And sometimes not 'til the next day. I'm gonna have to figure something else out. People are already talking about that day. Tomorrow, Kouame & I are going to Diede, a village about 25km away, to do a sensiblization about AIDS. Then, we'll stop at Kakpin on the way back to do one there too. It's fun doing little trips like that & seeing other villages. ~~~ Well, I filled up my water barrel… it took 7 trips to the pump! Most of the time, people do it for me. But everyone was busy today. I can do it just fine. They just don't like me to. Today was busy…spent the morning at Nicola's, then went to fix lunch when the Global Zoo people showed up. They work on eradicating Guinee worm, a water problem here. There was an Ivorian & an American girl who used to be a PCV in Niger. They gave me a bunch of water filters to distribute to the smaller villages that don't have pumps. And we aren't leaving tomorrow to do our AIDS stuff because the mosquito guys showed up. Kouame always works with them to earn a little money. That's fine, though. I'm leaving Tuesday to go to Dabakala with Ama. And I'm meeting Sky in Nassian on Friday. We're riding to Bondoukou on Saturday on our bikes. I want to do it at least once. We'll see how hard it is. Off to bed for now. Gotta hit the trails again tomorrow since I got rained out today. Goodnight. I love you. This afternoon, I was sitting in my house talking to Koffi when Fatimata
showed up with an afternoon snack for me. (She's the little girl who sweeps
my house & appattam every morning.) She is so sweet & so polite.
So I open up the bowl to find at least 2 cups of freshly grilled termites
If one thing will never change with me, it's that I don't like making
a big deal over things. You know, like birthdays, graduations, holidays,
blah, blah, blah. I mean, sometimes, yeah. But people just take it way
too seriously & take all the fun out of it. They do it here, too.
I think it may be worse here because I have to concentrate more since
all the babbling is in French. It's funny, too, to have these "city"
guys come in & try to impress the white girl with their big French
words. Then I say I don't have a clue what they just said. They have to
talk to me like everyone else. This is where I learned to speak. I'll
tell ya', some days I'm a lot more patient than others. But I'm not promising
much when it's 1) time to eat or 2) time to sleep. Right now, it's time
to sleep It rained so much this morning - at least for 6 hours. So far, this year is much better as far as rain goes. Hope that means their crops will show for it. We're supposed to have a meeting today about the school project, and also to do a sensibilization on filtering water. We have a pump, but people still drink river & marigot (pond) water. That's what we want them to filter. You know that group that comes here to study mosquitoes? Well, the main guy, Maurice, is a super cool guy & he's always full of project ideas for villages. He's Ivorian but he'a a city boy. And he's educated. Well, he told me he could send a small amount of medicine for free - basic stuff, like Tylenol, bandaids, stomach stuff, thermometer - that maybe I knew someone who may want to take charge of it as a small business. I asked Kouame if he was interested & he is. We discussed that he should build an "addition" on the house (closet sized) to store the medicine - like a small pharmacy. If he kept it in his room, it would be more difficult to take seriously. Maurice said he would donate the first supply…and with the profits, Kouame could put orders in with me when I go to Bondoukou. He could sell condoms & BCPs too. People would need to go to Kakpin to see the nurse for medical consultations, like for the first BCP pack, but could continue it at Ganse easily. And with my help & the nurse's, Kouame could make a small treatment book - for example, what to do for headaches, fever, belly ache, blah, blah, blah…and when it's too serious for him. People probably still won't go to the hospital but it's a start. He could do really well if he's serious about it. The problem here is people say "give it to me now…I'll give you the money tomorrow." Of course, they never pay, but people continue to give credit. So if Kouame will be serious & make people pay, this could really help Ganse. And Kouame could earn a little money. I don't know if I mentioned this before, but a common sickness with kids here is jaundice. Malaria gets 'em, they don't get treated, then their liver starts to go downhill. Their bellies sometimes are even swollen from it. You can feel the difference too. The liver is actually harder in kids with jaundice. You tell the parents they need to get this treated…"Il y n'a pas d'argent" - there's no money. You can't put a price on a life, but when there's no money, there's no money. Hospitals (& transport) don't take care of indigents. I'm gonna go nap. I've written too much already. I'll give Dad a break. Badjan tag team is still in effect. I bet the ferry doesn't get fixed
for a while. All we need to do is replace the cable. Money is given to
the boss - but it has to trickle down so far before it reaches us. By
the time everyone boofs a little, there's not a penny left for us. People
here take it in stride with everything else. But it's a serious problem.
If someone needs to go to the hospital, they can't. There's no way to
get a vehicle across. IF the badjan tag team is still going, maybe we
could pay them enough money to take someone. If not, the closest one is
Nassian. And it's basically what we have in Kakpin. Nothing. Which means
Bondoukou is next closest. I hope they get it fixed soon. Didn't do much
today but work on my bike & spend time with the village. So now I'm
off to the village again. It's almost time for dinner. See you tomorrow
Last night started out well enough…ate dinner with Kouame &
the guys. One of my friends even sent some more food over to me. So we
ate well. At ~7:45, I went to the house to shower & write, then go
to bed early. I'm in bed by 8:45. 9:15, I'm awaken by the sound of plastic
rustling. It's probably the lizards, playing on the plastic on the ceiling.
Then I hear it again. Damn! It's a mouse in the other room. He climbed
into a bag I have hanging on the line in the "kitchen". I got
up to get him. But he was already gone. I went back to bed & heard
him again ~9:45. This time I could see him in the bag. So I quietly got
out of bed, lit a candle so I could see, then wacked him inside the bag
with my flashlight. It made an awful racket (how do you spell that?) because
the bag is full of tin cans. He wasn't moving so I took the bag of the
line to throw him outside. Well, he started to crawl out of the bag onto
my hand. So I dropped the bag, making even more noise. (Poor Kouame I don't know if I'm allergic to my laundry soap, or if it's the bugs,
but my arms & legs & feet are itching like never before. It could
also be all that funky water I have to wade through to get to the other
Ganse. Since it's been raining, the path is under water…at times,
up to my knees. Makes going back there a little more exciting. Hoepfully,
by tomorrow morning, my back will feel better. It hurts to do anything
but lay down. Only 2 more days & I'll get to talk to you guys. It's
been a long time since I've talked to you. Say hi to everyone for me.
I'll be back later. I made it to Nassian. But Sky beat me so I owe him a beer J. It took me 5 hours & 15 minutes. I was hurtin' at the end. Tomorrow, we're headin' to Bondoukou. The road is better but it takes longer. But there's a big chopalo village ~ half way. So we can stop for "gas". There is so much sand between Ganse & Nassian. It's really a miserable ride. And toward the end, I was so tired, even the smallest bit of sand was giving me trouble. With about 20 minutes left 'til Nassian, I bit it hard on a patch of sand - then a big fatty crack in the road. Good thing we've got helmets J. Fortunately, I had pants & sleeves, so my skin is still intact. We're gonna go find some food & COLD drinks. So maybe I'll see ya later. Gonna stick this in the mail. I just got TONS of packages today - you,
Jo, Chardos, Maw Maw…so much good stuff. Everyone gets so excited
when I get mail. We had to find a bigger candy bowl! Here are 4 rolls
of film. Thought I'd take the chance & put 'em all together. (On 2nd
thought, I'm going 2 & 2.) I miss you guys & I'll talk to you
soon. P.S. The BHF (Bondoukou Holy Family) knows "Rock", "Sister
Niki", "Sister Rock"…but everyone was wondering about
"Auzibikoqua". |
.
He wanted to name him after my big bro. And Eric is a Kouame also. That
made me feel so good. Anyone can use your name here. And it's kinda neat
when they do. But when it's one of your closest friends, it means so much
more. I don't know what I'd do without Kouame. I gave him that t-shirt
with my picture on it. I told him it was from you guys. He was psyched.
He loves it. He said it'll be his special occasion shirt. There's a ton
of stuff I want to do while I'm back. And Kouame seems really excited
& eager to get started. I need to get going on the scholarships for
the girls about to go to high school. I want to do a project with Peace
Corps Partnership. I write a proposal and they put it on the website &
any "Joe" who wants to contribute, can. I want to fix up their
school because it's in really bad shape. These organizations that give
money, don't just give money no questions asked. The village must contribute
a certain percent. But since they don't have money to give, their labor
counts. Since they still haven't started the latrines, Kouame told me
to tell the village we'll fix the school ONLY if they finish their latrines.
He's good with them. When I get all the PCP (Peace Corps Partnership)
finished, I'll let you know so you can pass the word around. We're dependent
on word of mouth to friends & family to donate to the projects. Another
thing I've got in mind is having Josh Stevenson come to the village &
paint the boutique with sensibilizations. For example, images portraying
drinking pump water, washing hands, using a condom, building latrines,
studying… I hope he will have the time to come. Things like that
are so good because they love pictures. And kids love explaining it to
each other & to their parents. It would be a fantastic thing to leave
with them. And one last idea I have is to bring in AIBEF, a family planning
organization, to talk to the women. A lot of these women don't want any
more kids but won't use birth control for whatever reason - usually it's
too much trouble. They can be counseled, take a pregnancy test, then given
BC (birth control) for a very small price. I think you can get an IUD
for ~$4. And they insert it on the spot. The women said they'd pay for
it…that they'd be willing to pay, I mean - but won't be able to until
the cashew money comes in. Usually, that's this time of year but a lot
of their fields burned so there's not much money. Can you imagine your
livelihood depending on nature? If your crops don't do well, you don't
eat well. I think Kouame is planting cotton. There's another agency that's
coming here to show a bunch of people exactly how to do it. And they give
the villagers the seeds & all insecticides & such that they need.
The village doesn't have to pay up front. When it's time to harvest the
cotton, Anader (the agency) will come weigh it & subtract what is
owed from the payout. So all the village has to lose is their time &
labor. It's been a while since I've written, huh?! It's hard to write
when I'm not in the village… there's nothing too exciting to write
because I'm usually talking ot you or emailing. I'll write more in a bit.
I'm gonna go wander the village for a while.
.
They make a bunch of slits in your back with a razor, thereby allowing
the "evil spirits" to escape. Cool, huh? OK. Have a splendid
day. I'll be back later.
.
Could I ask you for any more??? Oh, thanks for the oatmeal! It tasted
so good this morning. I'm off to a meeting. See you later.
.
And I'll get a picture of Kouame, Kossia & "Le Grand" (little
Eric) on Sunday. That's when they are giving him his name. I love you.
See ya in a bit.
).
I couldn't keep my eyes off the drummer. He was incredible. His voice
was so different. One day, I'll try to mimic it for you. And he was HUGE.
You saw how little the people are here…they're ripped. But they are
small. This guy is the kind people in prison fear. And could he dance.
He is as black as they come and had the whitest teeth & most beautiful
smile. I wish I could have captured all of it on video. It was something
else. They told me they'd let me know next time they dance so I can go
back & spend the night. They dance & dance & dance…until
the chopolo runs out… Some things are universal 
.
And the drum they had was different too. It was a huge gourd hollowed
out. It was at least twice the size of a basketball. It looked so neat.
You would have loved it, Eric. I also saw, for the first time, kids with
scars on their bellies. You saw how all the kids have swollen bellies.
Well, the parents don't realize it's worms. They think it's an evil spirit
or something of the sort. So, what better way to get rid of it? Cut the
spirits out!! The kids have lines around their belly buttons like a sun…
And they do it to heal what's inside. As bad as that is, it at least looks
really cool…along with the scars on their faces. I saw another thing
for the first time in Wekele. Kouame paid some old guy to interpret a
bad dream he had. It had something to do with his kid. And he was really
scared. The old guy had a pile of sand on the cement floor and would spread
it out, then make marks in it, then smooth it out & do it again. Kind
of like 'Etch & Sketch'. Whatever those marks meant, it told him that
Kouame shouldn't worry…that it was only a dream this time. Wekele
is such a cool place. I wish we could put a volunteer there. The Lobi's
are some interesting, crazy people. But it's 7KM south of Ganse (down
river) and their only transport is what passes by Ganse. So I don't think
they'd put a volunteer there. I'm gonna ask about it though. I would love
to have been there. It's even smaller than Ganse! I've written enough
today. I'm FINALLY alone in my house. I think it's been 10 whole minutes!!
It's almost lunchtime so I'm gonna go fix some food. I miss you. ~ ~ ~
It's 1:15 & MY DOOR IS CLOSED!!! That means I can pretend like I'm
asleep 
!)
I swept my whole house & dusted. It feels like a new place. The good
thing about cleaning here is the kids love anything I throw out…tin
cans, magazines, crayon boxes, old razors (just kidding 
),
even aluminum foil balls! It feels good not to have so much clutter. So
I think I'll just sit here & enjoy the solitude. I'm sure I won't
have another chance to write. So, I'll see you tomorrow-ish. Eat lots
of yummy homemade food for me tonight…how 'bout tacos?! ~~~ OK. So
I'm back. I ate with Ama tonight in the other Ganse. I always ate with
Badoo & her family until Ama started inviting me. Now I go back there
2 or 3 times per week. Both of them, though, try to put a guilt trip on
me when I don't eat with them. Girls are so stupid! Tonight, Badoo even
said "you're never here anymore…that's 2 nights in a row that
we haven't eaten together." How could I do such a thing to her…?
May God strike me down for eating somewhere else. And last night, I wasn't
even at Ama's… I went to Wekele to help her burned cousin. I would
so much rather eat at my own house. I eat with them to be sociable. Sometimes
they can be a real pain in the rear. All I want to do tonight is chill,
eat a little, & go to bed. No. I have to eat at 7:30, hang out 'til
8 or 8:30 (and even then I get grief for going home), then go shower &
get ready for bed. Maybe even read a little. Now, Badoo follows me home
& writes or draws until at least 9. I know it sounds petty, but I
like to go to bed early…and by myself, not with Badoo here 'til the
last minute. All I want to do is unwind, get out of French & Koulango
for just a few minutes before I go to bed. Nope. It's Ganse & everyone
in it from the minute I wake up 'til the minute I go to bed. It's a good
thing I love these people 
.
I went to the garden today for the first time in a long time. Lass planted
squash & some of it was ready. So I fried it up for him. He loved
it! Another thing that makes me crazy here is when people come up to me
and don't say hi, but say "where's my _____ ?" The blank is
whatever gift they want. Today, someone told me I had to buy him 2 bags
of cement. Why? I asked. Because he doesn't have the money. Oh. OK. Let
me buy you 3 or 4. Hell. I'll buy a house for you…you can't afford
that either, can you? They really, honestly think they are being original
by asking me to help them with their problem. They think no one else thought
to ask the white girl - - what a fabulous idea! I'll get to her before
everyone else. That way, she'll for sure give me money. The people who
do this, though, are people who only talk to me when they want something.
That's enough to make me always avoid them. I'm going over to the French
guy's house tonight. He invited me over for dinner. He's super nice. And
he speaks English really well. He's leaving June 6 to go back to France.
Then I'm back to being the lone broni. I don't see him much anyway. It's
going to be too long before I see you again. I'm gonna go take a nap…
I have to jump on it before I miss my chance. ~~~ That was a great nap.
I slept for almost 2 hours. I think it was 11:00 before I went to bed
last night. And I get up at 5:30 to run. I know. That's so pathetic. I'm
a village girl. My body tells me it's time to go to bed when it gets dark.
That is, at the latest, 7:00. So, if I wait 'til 9 to hit the sack, that's
LATE! I love waking up that early though. It's so cool in the morning.
And peaceful, too. Tonight, the French guy invited me over for dinner.
We had salad! My body forgets whet veggies are. Then I came back to the
house with Badoo again… She's leaving tomorrow to go to Dabakala
to see her man. I told her I wanted her to practice using a condom tonight.
She seemed really relieved when I said that. I guess she wanted to ask
but didn't know how. She did pretty well for never having used one. I
hope she'll actually use it when the time comes. That's just what she
needs is another kid. She said when I come back from Blondoukou she wants
to practice again, but with her girlfriends this time. I'm glad she's
showing interest. (In protection. Not sex.) It's bedtime. That's 2 nights
in a row it's been 11:00! I can't wait to talk to you guys again. Oh,
before I forget… rumor is that the lady who died a week or so ago,
died of AIDS. She was really young…used to live in Abidjan…and
her husband died 2 years ago. She was so so thin. Of course, we'll never
know. But it's scary to think it may be here. Scary for the stupids who
screw around without protection. Anyway, love you…goodnight 
.
! What more
could a girl ask for?? I have to say, though, they were quite tasty. It
rained like mad 2 nights ago, so they are all over. There's another thing
the kids eat here…it's like a beetle on steroids. I think I'll leave
that to the kids. I draw the line at termites. It's amazing the things
people eat - or, really, the things we won't eat in "civilized"
areas. They work their tails off & never earn a penny. But you can
always find something to eat, even if it's bugs. You know I told you Badoo
left? Well, her Mom knows now & she's pissed. She never speaks French
to me - she can, but never does - but she said "when is Badoo coming
back?" I said I didn't know & she started going off saying how
Badoo just left without saying a word, leaving her kid here for Grandma
to take care of. I'd be pissed too. Badoo is very immature & irresponsible.
She hates to work & I'd put money on her coming back pregnant. They
all knew she was leaving. But they all thought it was for a week. They
gave her money to buy clothes & rice & some other things. She
took off with the money. Her older brother is leaving in a few days to
go look for her. Her Mom is going to beat the snot our of her. You've
got a lot of typing to do, Dad. Do you want me to just stop writing? You
let me know when you get tired. I'll start cutting it short 
.
So nighty night.