The Village People

When traveling to another culture half way around the world it's interesting how quickly a person's mind adapts and the things back home seem so far away. This is one of the better roads we took Tuesday when heading out to visit the folks in the country villages.

 Although arriving in the country of Malawi is a culture shock, visiting the folks in the remote villages takes it a couple of steps further. Malawian people by nature are very friendly. They are also very community. Most tend to be passive interpreted by some to be lazy. Actually because of their culture the vast majority think no further ahead than their next meal.

Funerals are a big deal in this country and happen all the time. Most of the village folks attend and follow the home made casket from the church to a timber area where their graveyards are located. A funeral is usually held the day after someone dies.

The kids in the villages usually start out being apprehensive about seeing a white person but gradually curiosity gets the best of them and it isn't long before they are all following along chanting, azungoo, azungoo, which in chi chowa means white guy.

All the villages we visit have formed clubs. These clubs have community gardens as they call them. That is where they try the new techniques such as narrow rows, hybrid seed, fertilizer, and crop rotation.

This field of corn is the old way. They mound up very wide rows and plant three kernals to a hill spread apart. Many said they could not afford fertilizer this year because of the inflation.

This is a club field. Russ measured about 24 inch rows spaced approximently 6 inches apart. The fertilizer was bought by the club.

Crop rotation is relatively new to them however they really like raising soybeans now because they get a good price.

This is a group picture of a village club. Ken has always been interested in making sure they have milk and correctly suggests that goats would fare better than cows. So during our visit  Ken asked if they would ever like to buy a goat. They all clapped and said yes. Then Ken asked why they would like to have a goat. They all shouted in unison, manure.

It is no fun to get old in Africa. The average expected life span of a Malawian was 38 years old just a year ago.

We visited a primary school and I was so impressed with this little guy. He stood up and recited the alphabet in English.

I gave hats to many of the farmers. Jan had also thrown in my suitcase a stack of leftover Christmas post cards with a picture of our whole family standing on a combine. When Russ explained to these gals that a combined actually harvested maize as they call it they couldn't believe it.

It's sad but many gals are carrying a baby on their back by the time they are 15 and some even earlier. It is so difficult to try and change a culture that has lived life this way for so many generations. Most just work to survive. In spite of that I still come here learning more than I teach.