We did not expect to have any visitors today because today is the celebration day for the Muslims after finishing the month-long fast. A new orphan was brought to the Center by her grandmother. The grandmother said that the little girl was 5 months old and that her mother died 20 days ago. The mother’s only complaint was a sore throat. The little girl has 3 siblings with whom the grandmother is trying to care for too. The baby was in very good shape and happy.
The mother that has 3 albino children also came to Yendi today so she picked up a couple months’ worth of sunscreen. The children do not usually come with her; they are all in school now and able to stay at home by themselves.
Because today is a special holiday everyone tries to prepare something special for their meals. Sharing of food is a common practice. Nazo’s wife sent a couple young girls to the mission house with banku (fermented corn dough balls) and peanut butter soup. The food arrived at 9:30 but we saved it for our lunch. It was delicious. Traditionally if someone sends you a gift of food you in turn put the food in your own container, wash the dish and put a little monetary gift in the container to send back to the cook. We also included a bag of lollypops for the kids.
We went to town this afternoon to look for some sort of air freshener for that van that the cat died in! Please the stink is no better! We found some canister air fresheners and moth balls. I hate the smell of moth balls but at this point it would be preferable to “Dead Cat”!
While we were in town we could not help but admire the new clothes most of the people were wearing; especially the children. A family will buy a whole bolt of cloth and make outfits to match for their children. Even grown women that are best friends will buy the same piece of fabric and make matching outfits. The style of the outfits will be different but the fabric will be the same.
We spent the bulk of the day hauling and burning leaves! At one point Steve said, “This is the job that never ends!” and then he said, “I think these branches are multiplying!” We made a dent in them but it will take a couple more days to clear the yard. Steve is still out there.
Thank you for the love, prayers and support.
In His service,
Steve and Kandie
