My New House in Sinyea Village

February 27, 2014

My New House in Sinyea Village

After living in a hotel for over a week, The Women’s Organization of Sinyea located me a new house in the village. It has two bedrooms, a living room, bathroom, and kitchen; all rooms are bare walls including the kitchen. The floors are bare concrete. There is no electricity or running water.

After a few days, curtains are on the windows, a new mattress serves as my bed. There are some tables and chairs, and water barrel to store water for toilet and bathing. I have what they call a nurse, who is a local young girl to daily clean, wash, and haul water from a distant well. Here family cooks meals for me. The cost is modest, but it is nice to be settled.

The biggest adjustment is adapting to the continuous sounds of lots of people living outside and very close together. Children cry, pots clang, and adults argue from before dawn and continues into the night. It is an abrupt change from my campus house, but it excites me to be among those I hope to serve.

The native dialect is Kpelle which everyone speaks. People are trying to teach it to me which generates lots of laughter. It always amazes me how native speakers think you should just be told once about a word or phrase, then find it amusing when you can’t remember or mispronounce.

Some of my support group starting the morning with a buzz.

The homemade drink is called palm wine. People start to drink it early in the day, by noon many are looped. It helps to overcome the poverty and drudgery of your life. Those with more money buy beer. As the day progresses, slurred songs emerge.