True Nourishment

I am no doubt a lover of food, but at the same time am guilty of taking it for granted.  In the states, it is all too easy for us to just go to the store and buy what we want to eat at any given moment without giving any thought to the process involved with getting it there.  It has been eye-opening to live in a community that is so dependent on one staple crop, mahangu.  Mahangu is grown with little to no mechanization.  From the tilling of the field in November to the harvesting in May, mahangu receives the utmost human attention.  But it doesn’t stop there.  The mahangu still must be ground into the flour that is used for making the porridge and drinks, and this is a perpetual process.  Mahangu is truly loved and appreciated every step of the way.  For this reason, despite its bland flavor and sandy texture, it is a truly satisfying meal.

Village Life

My two years of service has been defined by village life. Enguwantale may not be the idyllic African village where we all stood around the community fire drumming and dancing every night, but it most certainly has that unique pace one would expect to find in a village.  As with any other part of the world, time is represented by a series of numbers, however, here those numbers hold little weight.  In fact, time is better represented by roughly pointing to the position of the sun in the sky.  This is universally known as “African Time”.  As an American, African Time is no doubt frustrating. How many hours of my life were wasted just idly waiting?  Probably enough hours to be considered a part-time waiter (and I don’t mean the restaurant type).  However, I have since learned that “wasted” is not the correct term.  It is only wasted when I was frustrated.  Once I learned the magic of African Time my perspective of the village changed.  It’s absolutely worth slowing down.  At first glance the village may seem mundane, but in reality it is very alive and there is an extraordinary rhythm that is a joy to be in step with.

Baskets for Culture

My apologies for using this blog once again as a means to raise funds.  In no way, shape or form should anyone feel obligated to donate but I feel that I at least owe this to someone who has been instrumental to my well-being here and who has taken me into her home for 2 years with no tangible return; my host mother, Beata Akawa.

Meme (as I fondly call her) approached me some time ago asking if there was any way in which the culture group in which she is active with could raise money to purchase new props.  She was going on the hope that I could write a grant like I had done for other projects, but of course this is not a development project so funding of this sort is hard to come by.  However, I asked her why they couldn’t make traditional Owambo baskets and sell them as a way to fundraise?  Naturally, she liked this idea since there are no costs involved with making the baskets and several of the women in the culture group are skilled at making them.  You can see examples below.

I want it to be clear that in no way is this a development project in which the living standard of others is enhanced.  The fundraising is only to enhance the commitment and performance of this particular cultural group.  With that said, traditional culture is undoubtedly endangered on our planet.  With advancement of technology and modernization, it is all too easy for us as humans to fall into the increasingly convenient and comfortable lifestyle that technology affords us.  I am in no position to say what is right or what is wrong, but I can say with absolute certainty that traditional culture is a beautiful and remarkable thing.  Even if we have lost our own cultural roots, the traditional culture of an entirely different people is still refreshing to see.  It gives us a sense of what we all were at some point in time and in that, I think it puts a lot of things into perspective.  In many respects, Africa may be the least developed place on this planet with economic statistics that are downright scary.  But, Africa is certainly not underdeveloped when it comes to culture.  For me personally, I don’t want to see that change.  As the drive to develop Africa continues, the people have a lot to gain but with that runs the risk that they might also lose a lot.  I don’t think we want this continent to turn into a mirror image of the western world.  We need that traditional culture fire to continue burning.

With the local market already saturated with baskets, I am now assisting her with selling them in the states.  That is all the details that I can give on this blog for reasons that I can’t even state on this blog.  If you are interested in supporting, you can send me an email for all the details.  You will find my email address in my profile at the right.

Photo Series

My time in Enguwantale is quickly coming to a close.  With just over 2 months left in the village, there is a flood of emotions and a lot of reflection.  It’s hard for me to believe that Enguwantale has been my most consistent home since I was first stricken with the travel bug in 2007.  The thought of leaving, especially when there is no guarantee I will ever be able to make it back, is quite weighty.

So over the next two months, I am tasked with finding closure.  Despite the ups and downs, times of frustration, and times of joy, finding closure may be the hardest part of my service.  As a way to help me navigate this delicate course, I am putting together a photo project of sorts.  I have been reviewing my photos and have chosen 10 that represent the things that have had an impact on me.  Further, I have let the creative juices flow.  The photos have been edited and phrases added to help put the subject of the photo into context.  With about 10 weeks before I leave, you can expect to find a new photo with a brief narrative up every week.  Some you have seen before, others will be new.  The first one you will find up tomorrow.

Eenkuwa Culture

This last weekend I had the privilege to attend the Oshana Region Annual Cultural Festival.  As the number one fan and now groupie of Enguwantale's Eenkuwa Cultural Group, I just can't avoid boasting about my beautiful dancing friends.  The festival is a 2-day event where different cultural groups compete for a spot in the national competition later in the year.  

Eenkuwa is the upper primary group from Enguwantale with girls from grades 8, 9 and 10.  I have seen them perform many times in the past but to watch them perform at this level was breathtaking.  I was amazed at their focus and energy leading up to and during their performance.   I was particularly amazed at how calm they all were and their ability to pick up a microphone and speak to 100's of people as if no one was there.  I am extremely proud of these girls and rightfully so; they took the top spot.  In December they will have the opportunity to travel to the capitol and compete against all the other regions in the national championship.  I doubt there is no one more deserving than these girls.

I decided to do something a little different this time around.  You have all seen the photos and more photos just won't do them the justice they deserve.  As a gift for the girls, I created a movie with photos and footage from their performance.  I have decided to post the movie on YouTube so that I could share their breathtaking performance with you.  Pay particular attention to how in sync they all are during the dances.  With nothing more than a drum beat, clapping, and singing they can stay in perfect unison despite the rapid movement.  Also note the crowd's pleasure after their last dance.  I hope you enjoy!

Biogas Digester Complete

After nearly a month, the digester is finally finished.  It was undoubtedly a big project that took both technical know-how, building expertise, and logistics.  Luckily, everyone involved was able to contribute something to the project and we can now say that this stage of the project has been a success.  The next stage of the project involves actually getting the thing to produce gas and cooking the learners their break-time porridge that they so desperately desire.  The learners thus far have been slow holding up to their end of the bargain - bringing cow manure.  We are still waiting for a big enough pile to accumulate before we actually feed the digester.  Also, we have a mighty digester, but no stove.  After much effort trying to track an actual biogas burning stove down in the region, we have had to resort to our friends in China.  We expect the stove to be delivered some time in August which is about the time we expect enough gas to be produced.

After completing the walls, we shoveled the sand back into the hole and formed a dome.  The sand dome acts as a cast for the concrete dome to be poured over.

With the help of a small community army, several batches of extra strong concrete were mixed and poured over the sand cast.  For having never constructed such a thing, Kavili our builder did an amazing job of smoothing the concrete and ensuring that it was at the correct thickness.

The dome had to set for 5 days while in the meantime the outlet tank (foreground) and the inlet tank (background) were constructed.

After the dome was set came the most difficult part of the build - removing all the sand from underneath.  We shoveled the sand for the third time but this time it had to pass through a small hole just big enough for a person to pass.  It was sweltering under the dome and it took us all day to remove the sand.

The completed system.  After several layers of plaster inside the dome and the piping connected, the dome was covered with sand for insulation.  A cover was made for the outlet tank and an additional tank was constructed for producing compost.  The slurry that is pushed out of the digester will be transferred to the end tank where it will be mixed with grass and other material.

The builders, Anna, and I happy to be finished.  However, with our wee pile of poop, it remains to be seen as to whether or not all of our hard work and effort will pay off.