Tomba

I’ve started a baby-weighing program in the small neighboring village of Tomba, about 6k away from Dombilia. After seeing the malnourished children during a vaccination trip and listening to the mothers say how hard it is to walk to Dombila for weighings, I decided to go out there myself. Knowing my lanuage would be a barrier in doing an ameliorated porriage demonstrated, I relied on the relay Yaya Coulibably, to help translate and run the show. relay, to help translate and run the show. . (A relay by the way, is a villager who goes around and calls people for special events, like vaccinations). And Yaya is everything the name Yaya would suggest- crazy, giggly, a little off his rocker but very sharp in his own sense. Together, we recorded the weight of 25 babies, discovered 4 moderately malnourished, and 1 severely malnourished (this one we sent to the health center). Not a great starting percentage, but we worked with the women to teach them how to make ameliorated porriage, and went over with them the basics of nutrition and child weaning. It was probably my most rewarding experience in Mali yet. These women were really listening, really understanding and I could tell as I counseled at least two of the mothers of the sick children that they were really going to take my word to heart, and were really alarmed as I told them that they need to change what their doing, or their baby is going to get worse. The problem usually is, you’ll have a baby, 10, 11 months old, still living on breast milk only. Sometimes breast milk and to or rice- plain grains that cannot be ingested in high quantities, and contain minimal protein and vitamins. Amelorated porriage can be made simply with sugar, peanut powder and a grain, and can really help combat malnutrition in a sustanible and inexpensive way. I praised the women for their work, shook the hand of Yaya and promised to return the next week to see if the women had gained weight.

The next week I returned, but I was late- even by Malian standards. There are not really hours here too much- there are four times- “Morning” “Midday” “Afternoon” and “Night”. I said I would come in the morning. It was Sunday, so I went to church first thing in the morning (which lasted longer than usual), hit the road by 10, got lost and ended up in another village, found a familiar face who directed me to Tomba. Arrived at 11- yup it’s Midday now. I’m late. I went to Yaya’s house, whose wife told me he was waiting for me all morning and had gone out to the field. I told her I was sorry, and got lost. I felt so bad, but the woman was kind. She brought me some water (which I can’t drink unless I filter it at my house) and some To, my favorite (I’ve never successfully digested it). “I’m sorry. I’m full.”
“I don’t understand you. You come here late, you don’t drink our water, you don’t eat our food. What do you want from us? Why have you come?”
And I couldn’t hold my tears in.
“Look, she’s mad now,” one of the women said.
“No, it’s just sweat. I am hot.”
“Well why don’t you please drink some water then?”
I excused myself to the negen, to get myself back together. It was like coming into Dombilia for the first time all over again. They do not understand me, and I am a million miles away from home. What am I doing here? Well, I am here, and there is no getting out of this now. It’s either put on a happy face or loose the respect of a whole village in need.
Damn, I should have at least eaten that To.
I emerged, composed, and perked up when Yaya came back from the fields. He was understanding of my tardiness, but still dressed himself in his best to go to the vaccination site and call the women. “I think we’ll have to reschedule, everyone’s already gone out in the fields for the day.”
I agreed and promised to return another day. He did tell me though, that the women were keeping up with their porriage and that he was checking on the 5 malnourished children regularly. That’s great. That day, three women did show up for the weighing. One, who’s mother is the most enthusiastic in all of Mali, and whose baby is freakin FAT. I think she just likes to show off to the other mothers. She gleamed with joy as I told her, yes her baby did gain weight in the past 6 days. What a feat.
The other two approached me with sick children. One with burns all over her body, the other with symptoms of malaria. And these women looked to me like I could save them, like I had all the answers. If there was any point I wish I had a medical degree, it was now. I’m not a doctor, I told them. But I think he has malaria, you should take him to Dombila, and I think you should clean and cover those wounds. And by the way, this one is malnourished, you can make ameliorated porriage. Haha, my one specialty. The one thing I can really explain in Bambara. So, might as well throw that out there too. It can’t hurt. Dooni, dooni.