village life

Each day was something different. Day 2 the Abusa (reverend) was coming to the village for prayers so we stayed to pray. He had a short teaching and then took the “spiritual temperature” of the village…asked each if they owned a Bible, hymnbook, if they go to Wednesday services, if they tithe and if they are a part of the appropriate church group (women’s guild or mens)…he demonstrated the temperature by putting a pen under his arm as a thermometer but then shook it before he took the “reading”…odd way to read a thermometer I thought…then Amai Chigaga and I went out to the maize field to harvest maize—chop it down, take it off the stalk, carry it back to the house, and put it in the storage bin (kusenga, kukolola, kusenza ku nyumba, kuthira chimanga munkhokwe). Then next day was gathering the black dirt that they use for their floors and remudding the step outside…kind of a cement.
Carrying things on your head takes amazing balance. They also will make nkhata which are the round mats made of grasses to give padding and more of a flat surface (I think). It works pretty well and is definitely helpful as padding…but I’ve notice that my hair comes loose very quickly from its ponytail and causes more slip on my head…maybe this is why we don’t carry things on our heads…
I got to cook nsima for the first time…I’d watched many times but this was the first time I was an active part of the making…and it was over the fire. Malawians have hands of asbestos or something beause they just seem to pick up the pots off the fire very easily…so I left that to Amai most of the time. To go with the nsima (really needs a relish) we had gone to the field to pick pumpkin leaves…sauteed up with onion and tomato…pretty good if I do say so myself. The next day we “baked” a cake (chakonda moyo) done in one of the pots with coals on the top like a dutch oven. Not enough sugar in the recipe for my liking but with tea it is pretty good.
And then it was time to thank the mfumu (chief) and take my leave! Time passed so quickly! I had to learn a thank you speech about how helpful it was in her village and that I learned a lot…then when we went by she wasn’t home! All my preparation for nothing…but then walking home that evening I passed her coming back from the market (msika) so I tried part of the speech and flubbed it but then corrected myself…and they are a very forgiving people—especially knowing that I was trying.