In addition to Youth Day, last week also had other adventures and laughter. Last Sunday I visited my friend Franklin's family. I met Franklin when I was in Bafut and now he is preparing to enter seminary. Every year I give him a little bit of money to help with his school fees. His family lives just behind my house in Kumbo. When I met his mother she kept repeating, "You are welcome! You are welcome!" and "You are there!" I wasn't expecting to be so well received. She thanked me for the support I'm giving to Franklin and said that I should consider her my African mother. She has such a beautiful smile and excitement to her voice that I'm honored she would consider me to be another daughter.
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| Franklin's brother, mother, and two cousins |
After the exchange of greetings multiple times, she served me the Northwest specialty of foufou and pumpkin leaf.
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| Eating foufou and pumpkin leaf with my hands |
And then I was quite surprised when Franklin's mother brought me a fowl! Considering all the work that goes into raising a fowl this was quite the gift. And of course ironic since I'm vegetarian. After she gave me the fowl she insisted that I hold it and take a picture.
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| My fowl. Haven't thought of a good name for it yet. |
The other adventure of the week was visiting a rural primary health center. My house is located on the compound of the Life Abundant Primary health care (LAP) training center that is operated by the Cameroon Baptist Convention Health Board. Each day a nurse goes out to visit one of the rural primary health centers to provide vaccinations and check on the trained birth attendants and health promotors. I asked to go along on one of these visits and Wednesday I went with Nurse Winfred and Driver Joe to Kouffassam. This is one of the closer health centers to Kumbo and it took about 2.5 hours to get there because our Land Rover had car problems and we had to come back to the LAP center and change vehicles. We finally got there at about 10:30. When we got there kids were playing in the field nearby. I don't think any of them had seen a white girl before because as I approached them they all started screaming and running away. Some finally were brave enough to touch me and then others joined in and it became a game to touch the white girl and then run away. After that fun, I accompanied Winfred in seeing patients. The first was a mother who wanted her 2 week old son circumsized. We were in a delivery room like the one below and I was trying to soothe the crying child when I started feeling hot. The next thing I knew I woke up and on a cot in a different room. I had fainted! I was quite embarrassed by this as I came to assist and then had to be the one assisted.
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| Maternity room with trained health promoter |
But Joe the Driver held my hand as I woke up and was very understanding and told me that it happened because "I wasn't used to" and "Such things don't happen in America." I appreciated his sympathy and a little later managed to give my Pidgin nutrition talk to the mothers who brought their children for vaccinations. Unfortunately because of the confusion with the health center staff, there were no vaccinations available that day and the white girl attempting to speak Pidgin was the only thing they received after a very long walk to the health center. Too bad I didn't have my fowl to also offer them.
The list grows of those I want to meet and greet--the chicken, but most of all Franklin's mother--my sister mother, since she's also your mother and I'm also Franklin's mother. I love the way people become family in Africa.
ReplyDeleteOh man, you're such a trouper!!
ReplyDeleteI can't help but think of how we will totally laugh about this story when we get to talk about it in person....and by the way... LOVE your fowl.... :)
I love your blog! I like being able to see what you're doing and not have to imagine it. :)