September 2007 report

Again, why aren't the photos copying, I wonder.

Hello sisters and brothers!

It has been many miles (or kilometers) since last I wrote to you. I have much to share with you and have tried to keep it succinct, but be warned that this is a long update. It should be an easy read though since there are lots of pictures. Be sure to check my blog for more stories, thoughts and photos.

Figure 1 Travel is done in three main ways in Senegal: walking, donkeys and vehicles. These men are taking onions to market. There is a large area near the ocean where they do market gardening and grow onions.
Figure 2
The last time I wrote to you Chinyere and I were preparing to leave for a long weekend with one of our partners in Linguere, Senegal. It was a long hot weekend, but it was such a learning experience. I was fortunate that this was my first trip. We were in rural Senegal on a farm, talking about cattle and milk production and agriculture. While I did not grow up on a farm, I have family that were/are farmers and ranchers and quite a lot of this conversation was familiar to me. On our way back to Dakar we came into a dust storm (figure 2) the likes of the US Dust Bowl days. This was an amazing storm to watch unfold as the sands from the Sahara Desert blew from the north down upon us.

Figure 4 Jatu works for CRWRC Senegal and took the three of us out to Goree Island for a day. It rained the whole time.
Figure 5 This is one of the beaches that we went to while we were in Senegal. We paid to be at a less crowded beach. This particular one was near a hotel.
Figure 6 We did not have a washing machine and most people do their laundry by hand. We paid a woman to do our laundry but did a few things on our own at the apartment as needed.

Our time in Senegal wrapped up just in time. We had said farewell to Melissa, a CRWRC intern, a few weeks earlier as she went on to Sierra Leone and Chichi and I were getting very anxious to get to our final destinations as well. I learned so much about development from Wyva as well as how to work at helping my volunteers debrief. The last week we were in Dakar really brought everything to a sense of “ah-ha!” The dots were finally connected for me as I began to see the grander picture of development and all its intricacies. Looking back, it was such a blessing to have spent five weeks there. *To clarify: Chinyere is the same person as Chichi and she is the new Bridger for West Africa going through training with me. Wyva is the Country Consultant for Senegal/Sierra Leone.

Figure 7 Winston and Sarah took us on our tour of Bamako to orient us to the area and CRWRC Mali’s work. Winston is a Country Consultant for Mali and Sarah is a HNGR intern from Wheaton in Mali for six months. She’s doing research on excision. We really were looking at ideas for how we might be able to run our own orientations and incorporate aspects of training into areas within the city where we will be working.
Figure 8 Life is lived differently in West Africa. This is a picture of one of the markets. You can buy things in stores, but most things can be and are purchased at the market. It really is quite similar to the State Fair. Lots of venders trying to get you to buy their products. It’s colorful in every sense of the word and everyone is trying to get a bargain.
Figure 9 This is part of the new government complex being built in Mali by the Niger River. It is being financed partially by the Libyan government. Libya is very involved with Mali financially. Please pray about where that relationship may lead.
Figure 10 The younger folks from the office went out to see the night life of Bamako. Unfortunately it rained and we could find none of the live music that we had heard so much about but we had a good time anyway. Two of those pictured are short term interns and one is staff and then me and Chichi (in the center). It was the first time that the weather had cooled down nicely. It was gorgeous! We came home and I thought it was perfect. The house guard was wearing a jacket with the hood up! I guess it’s all relative, no?
We arrived in Mali on time and with all of our luggage. We spent a nice weekend with Scott and Mary Crickmore, CRWRC staff, in their home just relaxing, watching movies and enjoying one another. We’ve stayed with them our entire stay and eaten like queens. Mary is a good cook and has been teaching us how to cook using the foods available. We’ve focused on making “comfort” foods for our volunteers for when they need a break from more traditional foods. We have talked about a little of everything with Mary. She is the West Africa Ministry Team Leader and has been in Mali with CRWRC for 22 years. She is one of the people who helped create our position so we are in good hands.

We discussed medical issues to look out for with our volunteers, how to pack a non-refrigerated picnic, how to shop, where to go and what to look for. We’ve discussed how to help people debrief as well as how to orient them to their surrounding culture. We’ve also looked at changing a tire and how to plan your work day in a job with no local supervisors (which at this point, neither one of us have). Mary has had us reading a lot but we stop when the work day is over and spend time enjoying a card game, Dutch Bliss (of course), and lots of movies. We’ve had opportunities to worship in English and get to know others serving in Mali with CRWRC as well as Christian Reformed World Missions (CRWM). And, what would the trip be if I didn’t get to play Dutch Bingo! That’s right, I’ve found two connections to folks back home. Lynda, new to CRWRC, went to Dordt College with Marty C. and Dawn and Gene have stayed at Beth K.’s parents’ house in Downs! BINGO! Let me just say one thing, “OF COURSE!”

Figure 12 pots for collecting water for various needs
We spent our time doing a variety of things as noted above. Two other things that I would like to mention include visiting two different villages. It is the rainy season here so we didn’t do anything but day trips since many roads are impassable. We spent an afternoon with two women who have to use a boat for part of their trip to and from the village and Bamako when they need to travel during the rainy season.

One of our visits was a “first contact” to a village just past Fana. Through a series of events, Mary had found out about a group of Fulani women that were interested in literacy classes. We went there to see what level their interest was at and make sure that they understood what our level of involvement would be if something were to happen. The meeting happened in French, Bambara and Fulbe with a little English thrown in for our sake. There will be a follow-up visit shortly to see if they are still serious and discuss how to begin the process.

The second village visit was to meet and interview a Christian cotton farmer. Part of my job is to encourage people to engage in advocacy on all levels. This takes many forms and Mary is working on a video about the US Farm Bill’s cotton subsidies that are adversely affecting the lives of cotton farmers here in Mali. Chichi and I will be starting work on an article that came from our interview. The man was well-informed and taught us a lot. He is a man of God who until recently was the president of his church district for 19 years. If you are interested in learning more about the US Farm Bill and its effects on Mali cotton farmers, please contact me. I encourage you to learn more and contact your US Senators soon, as they are scheduled to vote on the farm bill this month.
Figure 13 Our interpreter with Etienne, the cotton farmer, talking with Mary and Chichi outside Etienne’s home. We connected with Etienne through a CRWRC partner.
Figure 14 This women is the wife of Etienne’s oldest son. She is standing next to a large pestle in the yard. The pestle is used to pound millet and leaves into edible forms. This size is one that many women would work in at the same time.
Figure 15 This is how food is cooked in many villages, over an open flame.

After 2 ½ weeks in Mali, six people from CRWRC traveled to Niger for the West Africa Ministries Team biannual meeting. Here we had leaders from Senegal/Sierra Leone, Mali, Niger and Nigeria. We did a site visit, took a leisurely boat ride up and down the Niger River, worshiped, exercised, ate, slept and prayed together as we learned from one another and our various ministries.
Figure 16 The Mali Team: Chichi, Sarah Callicutt with Wheaton College’s HNGR program, me, Mary Crickmore, Lynda Dykstra and Winston Bosch wearing our matching outfits. It’s typical for groups to match for special events so we decided we should follow tradition for our meeting. Each person chose their own style and we’re all different. It was fun!
Figure 18 The site visit that I mentioned previously was to a Muslim village where one of the Niger partners is working. We met with many involved in the micro-credit/savings groups. Mary had been there in April and taken some video and it was so different since it is the rainy season right now. This is one of the villagers standing next to her hut.
Figure 19 We had all just settled down for the gathering and it started to rain so we moved into someone’s hut. We, the visitors, were all in and then the men came in and they said that we needed to wait until the women came into the hut as well. Most people take off their shoes when entering a house and certainly before sitting on a mat. It began to rain quite hard while we were in there and the area outside of the doorway was semi-flooded but the rain had stopped and the water receded by the time we moved to another spot for a bit of lunch.
The idea of the work of CRWRC is community transformation. We heard a lot of things that were outward signs of that transformation but discussed later if true transformation was occurring. Just because a husband allows his wife to be a part of a micro-credit group, does it mean that he is thinking about women and his wife in a more just way? Or is he just happy to have her earning money to contribute to the family? How are we to judge that and who are we do so? Sometimes work and learning don’t provide answers, only more questions in which we must struggle to see what God desires in His Word.
Figure 21 This woman and I share the same name but they referred to me as “old Amy” since I am older. While she looks older, she already has 12 children. I told them that I have none and the husband said that he would pray that I would get married in the next year, God willing. This is a totally Muslim community. In the West African culture it is very important for women to be married and having children. You have less value as a woman. Your value is even less if you are unmarried and/or barren.

Figure 22 The rainy season comes with many blessings and difficulties. The blessings include that crops can finally be planted and harvested and it’s a bit cooler. However, travel is more difficult during the rainy season. One of our vehicles got caught in the middle and had to be lifted out of the flooded road.
Figure 23 This is Sarah, Lynda, myself and Chichi on the boat ride up and down the Niger River. It was a cool and relaxing ride and we saw a hippo! Add that to my wildlife list: camel, monkeys, lizards and bugs galore, hippo!

It was a really beneficial week and I was welcomed wholeheartedly as a part of the team, even though I will be a part of the East Africa Ministry Team in less than a week. I praise God for all of the learning that I have done over the past two months. I feel better prepared for the task ahead, but I understand that there is much more learning to do. Thank you for all of your prayers. I hope that you can see how you have blessed me, how God is answering your prayers. I have remained healthy minus a cold and a serious mosquito attack and I praise God for all of the traveling mercies I have been granted.

Forgive me for the length of this update. I hope that you made it through it all. I have cut it several times and deleted several photos. This has been a tremendously busy time and I really wanted to share it with each of you. The next month will be crazier still perhaps as I transition to Nairobi. I fly out of Mali on the 14th, arriving in Nairobi the night of the 15th. I have my first Discovery Tour of six visitors arriving about three weeks later. There is much to do between now and then to say the least, but I hope to keep in touch and send another update before it gets to be five pages long! I promise that there will be wildlife photos in the next update as well.

Thank you, brothers and sisters! I praise God for each of you and long to hear how you are doing.