A Day trip in to Yagala

Just wanted to describe in a little more detail the pictures that were posted below about my trip to a near by village. It turned out to be a pretty cool cultural experience. As we mentioned earlier, we have become close with our nieghbour kids and their families. I have become particularly good friends with one of the daughters, Hawah. She’s 19 years old and works as a petty-trader in the market selling things like maggi, onions, sugar, salt, etc. – the same things all the other women sell. Hawah has never gone to school, so unlike most educated teenagers, her English is very limited. This is good because it forces me to try and talk Krio, but it is also so frustrating at times when you know the conversation would flow so much better if only we spoke the same language. (Hawah is the woman carrying Mariama on her back).

 

Hawah asked me to come with her to her family’s village, Yagala, so she could show me her family’s farm and introduce me to her even greater extended family. Besides just being really curious as to what even more rural life in Sierra Leone could look like, I wanted to go because I knew I would see Mariama there (Mariama is the orphan baby I wrote about in a past email. Although her health and growth has much been improving now that she is receiving formula, I have recently been worried that she is not developing cognitively as she should be – very flat affect, difficult to get to smile, looks dazed, etc.). Over the last month and a half, Mariama has been passed back and forth between family here and there, but is now spending most her time in Yagala being cared for by her father’s sister.

 

 Anyway, we set out walking the next morning at 7:30 with Asha and Sheku (3 and 5 years of age), Hawah, and myself. By 8:00 a.m I found myself eating rice with potatoe leaf sauce from a vender on the side of lonely dirt road. I told Hawah that I had already eaten breakfast, but she insisted I eat. So we shared this dish, eating with our hands – I tried to act natural without a spoon, mimicking her smush the rice and sauce into balls before lifting them to my mouth. The people around were laughing… The walk was beautiful – a windy dirt road surrounded by rice fields and dense forest and mountains on either side. The scenery here never fails to amaze me…

 

When we entered into the village our greeting was overwhelming. We almost immediately saw Mariama and her aunty who looked quite old and tired. Everyone kept saying “ten key ten key” (thank you) to me, which I’m not sure if it was just because a white person came to visit or because I had helped Mariama. I was shown all around the village including their school, medical center, community hall, and taken on a special tour of the family’s rice farm. Afterwards, we went and sat on the porch of someone’s house/hut and ate oranges and bananas. The women were all talking in Koronko which I didn’t understand a word of. Some village kids came and had an Atlas of SL and the world. I pointed out China and told them that the government there encourages families to have only one child each. They thought this was pretty crazy... Meanwhile people kept stopping by the house bringing more and more gifts for us/me in the means of papaya, cabbage, potatoes, oranges, bananas, etc. It wondered how we would carry all this back with two small kids, but quickly reminded myself that they would find a way… there is always a way.

 

After much visiting and “snapping” of photos by request, we decided to head back. We loaded our gifts into some bags and a plastic crate. I soon realized that I was a big part of the plan on getting our gifts home – I would have to “tote” (carry stuff on my head African style). Of course, Hawah took the heavy load and I only had to tote a big bag of cassava and cabbage. However, it was actually quite heavy and we had to walk back three miles. By the way, I learned that toting is definitely the most efficient way to carry heavy loads for a long distance. The combined sight of me toting and my newly planted (braided) hair proved to be quite entertaining for the villagers as we walked out of town. Even 3 and 5 year old Asha and Sheku were given something to tote, although they quickly tired and soon were bawling their eyes out because of fatigue. About half way, I ended up making an emergency call to Joe to come pick them up on the bike.

 

That’s all really. Nothing too crazy happened. It was just a really fun and interesting day in which I got a glimpse into village life and it’s friendly community vibe. Very cool.

 

 

Talk to you later, and happy holidays!!!!

 

Love,

Adrienne

Great news! (and other updates)

Happy Holidays!

First of all, some great news!  Ibrahim Turay, the class III boy who has been extremely sick for the last number of weeks was discharged from the hospital this past week, and is now home in Kabala.  When Adrienne went down with him and his mother to the hospital in Makeni, things were not looking good.  He should have had surgery, but his condition was not stable enough and there was too much internal bleeding.  They decided to treat him with aggressive antibiotics instead and make sure they didn’t feed him anything.  As a result he was extremely thin and weak.  Amazingly, the GI bleed stopped on its own.  He received some blood transfusions, and slowly recovered to the point of being able to eat and drink in small amounts.  He was in the hospital for over a month, but he came home last Friday.  When Adrienne and I visited, he was stronger, but his body had wasted away so much that he still has quite a road ahead before he can maybe come back to school.  The awesome news, though, it that this will most likely happen now.  Thank you for all your prayers for him!

 

As for us, life goes on in Kabala.  It was great to have my parents come visit for a couple of weeks!  Our friends and colleagues here were psyched to meet and, of course, greet them.  I don’t think Arnie and Janet have ever been told so often how “strong” they are.  I don’t know if this is because they used bicycles everywhere they went or because, yes, they are quite physically strong.  Another interesting moment was when a couple of my students came over for a visit.  They didn’t believe me when they asked where my father was I said “e day wash pan” (he is doing dishes).  They went in to look for themselves, and sure enough, there he was, the father and head of the household, washing a frying pan, scrub brush and all.  They had quite a story for their classmates the next day. 

School-wise, we have just finished our week of tests, and starting next week we are on Christmas holidays.

One theme in these last few weeks with regards to our work has been “you can only do so much.”  We are finding out that it is certainly more important to do one or two things well, even if it takes more time, than it is to take on too many things too quickly. 

At CRC for example, one of my biggest challenges has been reaching those 4 or 5 students in each class who really need extra help, especially reading – wise. Because I teach computer classes to the staff after school every day, Reading Club has not been do able lately.  I then decided to try and hire and pay for an Educational Assistant to work for the school, but after seeking and receiving some advice from people with more experience, I discovered for a variety of reasons this probably would not be a good idea.  I looked into hiring a volunteer or starting a home reading program, but these too are things for a number of reasons might cause more harm than good.  I am coming to terms with the fact that 1 year is actually quite a short time to do implement any kind of large changes, especially in a new school that is already so different from other schools here.  I have to simply do the best I can in the framework of how life is here, and the fact is that when I go back, some kids in my class will still probably not be able to read, as this is a 4 – 5 year learning process.

At the clinic, this has been a recurring theme lately as well.  Adrienne is becoming more of a CITA employee than just a nurse at a clinic.  She has become increasingly involved in more of an administrative/consulting role sorting out the details of how the NGO should move forward (for example planning for and carrying out interviews for agriculturalist and nursing positions this past Monday). On the one hand, it has been really cool for her to learn part of the big picture about how NGOs work, and how they can have such a positive or negative impact on a community.  On the other hand, this means she has had to spend many hours lately at a computer and away from direct patient care, which is her strength, and the main reason she is here.  Peacemaker and Theresa were away Thursday and Friday, so she was happy to be back at the clinic screening and treating patients.  These days turned out to be very long – Adrienne is pretty sure it’s because word had spread quickly that the “white doctor” was back.  They were also quite interesting, as she saw a variety of cases – including counseling unwanted teen pregnancies, motorbike accidents, and severe skin infections. 

A recurring theme at the clinic that has been real difficult has been when a patient is extremely sick (or with a very sick child), and refuses to go to the hospital.  The reason for this is they have either had a bad hospital experience in the past, or they think they will get better treatment at the clinic (an opinion for which there is some basis).  A different reason they might not go is that they don’t have money to pay for any treatment they would receive.  So now the really sick person is sitting in front of Adrienne in obvious need of money (anywhere from $1 – 10).  Offering money for their treatment would be setting a bad and unsustainable precedent, but not paying for them isn’t easy either.  Needless to say, there’s been times where she has offered money to pay, but most of the time she has to send them away with nothing. 

 

We are really itching to do some traveling into villages, and around other parts of Sierra Leone or neighboring countries.  Adrienne had a taste of this last week, when she went with some neighbors to the neighboring village of Yagala, a 3 mile walk away.   (Details to come in a later entry – see pics below of the experience and of Adrienne “toting” – carrying something on your head - some veggies on the way back).

Thanks for reading,

Love,

Adrienne and Joe

Adrienne and Meaghan - with "planted" hair! 
The locals got a kick over Adrienne "toting" some veggies home from Yagala

A rice field - the next number of pics are all from Adrienne's village visit.

Asha and Shaku (neighbors who came along for the walk with Adrienne to the village but needed to be rescued with the motorbike part way)
A local hamburger - only without any hamburger. (egg instead)
Happy Kabalans.  boku Ten key for our box of goodies!!!!!
Adrienne with Ibrahim and Musu (his mother) in the hospital in Makeni a few weeks ago
Buying some oranges

Koromansiliai - a nearby village we visited recently
A new school building being built by Cause Canada in Koromansiliai
Over at a friend's place for dinner
Adrienne getting her hair "planted" by a neighbor

Steven B Mansaray was slightly enthused as the house leader of the winning team.
Official trophy presentation

The coveted prize - 1998 Jr. Boys volleyball trophy

The interhouse competitions have begun between the four "houses" (teams) at CRC. As minister of Games and Sports, I am the official conductor of all proceedings. This game was the final between Green house and Orange house. Note the sweet donated uniforms.

Mom at the clinic
We get boku Paw paws dem. (papayas)

Our neighbors were pumped to receive new clothes which our parents brought. (no pic of the exchange, though, unfortunately.)

A pic of the ferry on the way from the Airport to Freetown. (All these vehicles back up to exit the ferry)

From the other A and J Melissen!

This blog entry is coming from Kabala, but from the senior A & J Melissens. We have been spending time with Joe and Adrienne, and it’s a wonderful experience. We have so enjoyed following them through their neighbourhood to the shouts of “Saio, Saio” (Adrienne’s Sierra Leonian name). It’s fun to see the relationships they have built in the community through the school, the clinic and the market. The people they are working with are appreciative of the skills they are bringing to the school and clinic and we have enjoyed shadowing them as they worked. Joe’s class is indeed rambunctious, but they are a great group and like being with Joe. Today I spent the day at the clinic with Adrienne and was impressed with her ability to get the information she needed and to work with the clients and the staff. The clinic is very basic, but I got a tour of the new clinic which should be open before Joe and Adrienne leave Sierra Leone.
The neighbours stop by the house by regularly – the children just to chat and hang out and the women to bring some plantains, papaya or other fruits or vegetables they have in their gardens, and then to chat. I don’t think that a day has gone by when there has not been a guest sitting on the porch visiting. They are all quite happy to meet the “mama and papa of Joe”, and are looking forward to meeting Adrienne’s parents.
Let us report that Joe and Adrienne are doing very well, looking healthy and happy, they are being blessed by the experience and are being a blessing to the folks in Kabala.

Dry Season has arrived

November 13, 2008
Time is sure flying by. Tomorrow, me Mama and me Papa will by arriving into Freetown, and we are pumped to show our first official Kabala visitors around (of course, they have far more Africa experience than we do). The weeks are just starting to blend into each other a little too quickly. Nevertheless, we are excited to have visitors, and our friends here are looking forward to meeting our parents.
Last weekend we had a relaxing and fun couple of days in Freetown. We stayed with some friends at the Cause Canada guest house which was quite fun. The first day we went shopping downtown to the "PZ" market. I have been to large outdoor markets in big cities before, but this was like nothing I had ever seen. Street vendor after street vendor for as far as you can see. Busy, packed, loud, general sensory overload, and roasting hot. We were able to find some items in the market for the hand washing facilities at the school. A big highlight of the weekend was the food. Some excellent bakeries and restaurants that we ate at….Adrienne was in her glory…the pinnacle of which coming while enjoying a cheese croissant, fruit salad, and fruit smoothy with her morning coffee. In true Loewen fashion, she couldn’t stop talking about how good the food was.
The second day we drove about 1 hour south of Freetown to a beautiful beach called River #2. We grabbed a couple of umbrellas and tables, drank coconut milk, and soaked in some rays to pass the day before heading back to Kabala the next day on the public bus.
Prayer request: Ibraham Turreh, a class 3 student at CRC, is very sick. We had heard he was very sick with what had started as Malaria and was now severely constipated, so we decided to go visit him last Friday after school. When we found him, his abdomen was grossly distended with severe pain, he was anemic, and had peripheral edema (fluid in his hands and feet). He had also been vomiting, and running a high fever. Adrienne thought he possibly had a bowel obstruction with underlying complications which could be fatal, and wanted to get more information regarding an official diagnosis and treatment plan from Dr. Conteh, who is the hospital’s doctor. However, he had been out of town for a week, which meant there was no doctor at the hospital at all. So Dr. Samura (an awesome guy and very good doctor who we just met who has been running a private in and out-patient clinic in Kabala since April) had been seeing him. We visited Dr. Samura at his clinic, and decided over the weekend that Ibrahim needed an x-ray and blood work asap. Since Adrienne was quite invested in Ibrahim by this point, her and Dr. Samura thought it best that she accompany them to a private hospital in Makeni to have the tests and then return to Kabala afterwards for treatment. So, Monday morning the mother, Ibrahim, a nurse aid, and Adrienne journeyed via public taxi to Makeni. Long story short, the XRay and blood work showed that he had an "acute abdomen" and possibly a perforated bowel and internal bleeding. They decided to treat Ibrahim with aggressive antibiotics instead of performing surgery because he was too unstable to have surgery. He is admitted in Makeni (Adrienne came back to Kabala on Monday night), and needs a miracle if he is going to survive. The family was extremely grateful for all the ways that Adrienne helped out, like initiating a plan for him, finding out what is wrong and acting as a trustworthy middleman, and helping out financially for an extremely costly trip for the family.We are hoping to visit him in Makeni on our way down to Freetown tomorrow.
On a positive note, Sobie Shaw (the class 1 girl who suffered large burns to her chest and arm), came back to school on Monday! Other than some significant scaring, she is healthy and in good spirits – and has regained full use of her hand. She healed remarkably fast – I couldn’t believe it was the same girl that I saw at her home 3 weeks prior.
This week marked the grand opening of the new latrine facilities at CRC Primary. Adrienne was at school all week teaching kids about Jerry the Germ Bug, and why we don’t like him. After this, she took small groups of kids out the new latrines for a lesson on how to use the buckets, and also the new latrines. Because the holes are smaller than what they are used to, Adrienne got the kids to demonstrate how they would squat over the hole to do their business. One grade 1 boy took this request to a little too literally, so he ended up being the first to poop in the new latrine, with everyone watching.
Thanks for reading – will update soon.
Joe and Adrienne

Nadim, Travis, and Joe (the Kabala male expats)

The beach at River no. 2

Lumley beach in Freetown

Nadim and myself - Nadim is one of the workers for Cause Canada in Kabala

Lumley beach