Monday, January 3, 2011

hand washing - how novel


“Does it feel like you just got here two days ago, or doesn’t it seem like you’ve been here...”
“for months, at least.” I finish Chris’s sentence for him.

We're on the same page as we savor the delicious mafe prepared by the lovely Awa in West Fouar (Chris's neighborhood). Well, I'm actually the only one savoring the new and yummy dish prepared in groundnut (peanut) sauce with beef and just enough spice. Chris devours his portion with a speed that I can't help but comment on every time we eat (he was a good sport about this; mainly i think because it often means he finishes a good part of whatever I'm eating. Portions in this country are more than I can down!).

Prior to this meal we two spent the day walking in every single quinquillarie (hardware store) in the area. Visits to the first 4 shops let us acquire a significant quantity of bolts, nuts, washers, and finally two perfectly sized wrenches with which to work on desks at the school in Palmarin. (Note to travelers: French-English dictionaries do NOT include the word wrench. For future reference, though, they call it "La Cle" as in turn key). After a few more stops, we'd also gotten all materials necessary to make and distribute Hula Hoops in Palmarin (pictured above). All but the dreaded connectors, which are NOT universally sized. It is for this reason that my hoop project has been put on hold until I can find and ship the right sized connectors to Chris - who has selflessly promised to up-hold my commitment to Annie at WorldHoopDay.org and bring hooping to west senegal!

After working up an appetite and getting significantly dirty from choosing and cutting tubing, we stopped for lunch at Awa's. Chris and our Proprietress chatted away about their fantastical future plans to visit Rome, or was it Florence?... And she set our table and brought us a hand washing kit. This is made of of a small bin with a strainer type lid accompanied with a tea kettle of clean water and some powdered soap. Chris and I took turns quietly soaping our grimy hands and then poured water over the others' to rinse them. Something so ordinary as helping a friend wash their hands was surprisingly special for me. It was a kind moment of mutual benefit, born out of necessity, and done with care.

And this began my experiences in Sengal.

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