Africa: Not Fit for Man nor Beast

Even though Rainy season ebbs nearer, hot season still gnashes it’s violent teeth at me. I am now even happier then before that I do not live by the lake because I would truly melt. Today is blistering hot. Period. Water sitting in my room isn’t warm, it’s hot. Chocolate melts in the shade. And I’m in a constant state of gleam with a thick layer of sticky perspiration.

Have I mentioned before that even the Malawians complain about the heat? Well, they do. “Kutenta kwambriri!” Which translates into “Too much hot” lol. George is constantly keeping bottles of water in the fridge at the health center so his family can have cool water. Most of the day is spent in the shade sitting on reed mats, wishing the wind will stay a constant breeze and keep us cool. Even staying indoors is not usually an option since our mud-brick, tin-roofed homes act as human ovens in this otherworldly sun. I, myself, write to you now from the almost comfort of the shade of my lone tree in my back yard; however I may need to relocate since the ants are already encroaching on my space. ugh.

Speaking of ants: it is SO insanely hot here that if you sweep a small swarm of ants from the shade to the sun they died instantaneously. Seriously. I must admit I enjoy doing this since I loathe ants, but c’mon, that’s some heat! Poor Nzelu sleeps most of the day inside on the concrete floor with a steady panting breath and any time we walk anywhere he is done walking within 2 minutes and flops down the next time we pass shade. He whines when we walk too much in the sun because the ground scalds his tiny padded paws. I noticed none of the other village dogs are out during the day either, if they are they are sleeping in the shade. It is only in the evening when the sun is setting that the dare tread on the once wicked, hot ground.

It is truly amazing that people live here and have lived her for so long. It is truly amazing that –I- live here!

The last week has passed lethargically. The heat makes every bone in your body ache with warm tingly fatigue. Even my appetite has decreased dramatically,  mainly because food is usually served hot and when your already on the verge of heat stroke, hot food is the last thing you want. The heat has made me even more unproductive than before since leaving the house entails going out in the sun. I’ve read 3 books in the last 4 days, if that’s saying anything! But soon, I am finally going to do some real community assessment work. George is setting up a meeting for me with the HSAs so I can find out who is willing to help me with a village meeting. A meeting to have a meeting! I’m also hoping that of the people who volunteer to assist me will also be viable candidates for my counterpart, as I have still yet to chose one. If they volunteer then they are obviously motivated and willing to help me, I just also hope it’s someone who hasn’t already been a counterpart for one of the previous volunteers since I’m technically not supposed to chose them. Wish me luck!

With such an unproductive, heat induced coma-like week, sadly that means it has also been rather uneventful and therefore I do not much to report on.

I thought maybe I would take this time, then, to answer some of the questions you have been asking:

Q & A with Ashleigh

1. Have you had any GI problems with the food you’re eating?
 Not too much. For the most part the food here is really simple: nsima (the bane of my existence in Malawi), beans, dark leafy greens among a few other veggies, and meat. Honestly compared to some of the things I ate in America, the food here is doing wonders for my GI system! hahaha in fact I’m more ‘regular’ here than I have been in my whole life! There is just the occasional bout of diarrhea and of course that intestinal bacteria infection I got a couple weeks ago, but otherwise I’m in tip-top GI shape!

2. Whatever happened to the eggs the chicken laid in your banana tree?
Gladys came over and took them and I’m pretty sure we ate them because some time has passed since then and there are no new chicks running around. *shrug*

3. Do you go to church on Sunday with the people? And if so, what is it like?
Sometimes I do. My friend Helen takes me to her church on occasion which is called CCAP, I can’t entirely remember the acronym, but it’s Presbyterian. It is definitely interesting to go, but it is all in Chichewa so I generally have no clue what is going on unless Helen writes down little notes for me and shows the the passage they’re discussing in her English bible.  At CCAP there is singing, but not a whole lot of dancing. It seems very similar to church in America, expect its not as flashy, just simple people, using the primary school so we all sit at desks, worshipping God and singing his praises. Very simple. Once a month they have a special day called “Paper Sunday”, when it’s a big celebration. Sadly I haven’t been to this yet. Not because there hasn’t been one to go to or that I haven’t been invited, but because the entire celebration is about money. It’s similar to the money dance at the wedding. You have to take a bunch of small bills and the people call you up to give your donations to God. I know this seems harmless but there is so much emphasis on money and how much money you give. Being the “azungu” here, naturally I’ve been invited to several Paper Sundays even from other villages, but have turned them all down because I know they just want me to come to give them lots of money they think I have. I’m just not very comfortable with it. Maybe one day I’ll go just to at least see the whole thing once, but I’m still not sure.

4. Are the stars also brighter? Can you see the South star?
The stars here are incredible! Yes when the moon is out it does create light pollution and blocks many of them out, but when it is not out the stars are quite a sight to behold. I am not sure whether or not I have seen the South star. I’m sure I have but I don’t even know what to look for. I actually didn’t even know there was a South star! lol

5.  How is your dog? What does he eat?
My puppy is great! He’s very ornery and has a small biting problem but otherwise is pretty well behaved. He eats a wide variety of things but mainly I feed him usipa, which are tiny fish. I fry them up in cooking oil and sometimes add an egg. But sometimes I’ll feed him left over nsima and bananas when I have them. There is dog food in the city, but getting it here is the issue. I’m going to look into it on my next trip tho. Another volunteer said they mix dry dog food with rice to make it last longer, which is a really good idea, so I may try that.

 

Well I think that’s about it. Let me know if you have any other questions!

On a new note, clouds have just rolled in! *fingers crossed* for rain! Other exciting news: I had another bundle of bananas ready this week so George came over and cut them down for me *happy dance*. I already gave a bunch to Helen since there are easily 80-100 bananas and, well, just plain too many for one person to eat. I also am happy to announce that my spinach seeds have started sprouting! Nothing else yet, but I am in mild shock. I’ve never really grown anything in my life so I’m all giddy with the possibilities of have fresh produce from my own yard and own hard work.

I’ll close with a few pictures that are a little old, but that haven’t been posted yet! Enjoy!

Helen and her husband have gardens in a near by village and she has been taking me with her to water them, which really means watching her water them hahaha, here she is watering along with the man and his son who live next to the plot:
 

And me and Nzelu are being productive by watching from the shade:
 

The man and his son again, hold guinea pigs. Yeah I was surprised too, apparently they eat them here! Helen cracked up when I told her people in America keep them as pets.
 

A gigantic praying mantis that was on my house the other day. He looked ready to kick some butt if I got too close! There are A LOT of praying mantis here tho, huge ones like this, that I’ve also seen as green, as well as teeny-tiny ones and every size in between! It’s crazy.

My love! Nzelu! With a piece of duct tape stuck to his chin! hehehe
 

Ok it’s starting to rain!! *happy dance* gotta run!

Tiwonana!