Christmas 2008

Though nothing beats Christmas in Rochester, NY, Christmas 2008 is one that I will never forget. It is the first year that I wasn’t home for Christmas, and though I missed my family and loved ones and Christmas tradidtions terribly, it was kinda neat to do something new for a change. My parents will tell you that I always had many mixed emotions at Christmas time- the joy of the season being somewhat cluttered by guilt, disappointment with our culture’s materialism, and thoughts of what our brothers and sisters, the “have-nots” were doing. To celebrate Christmas alongside Malians and Americans alike, in a minimalist but bountiful way was a true blessing.
After stocking up on some goodies from the Western-style “supermaket” in Bamako, we made our way to Falaje, a rural Christian village about 80k outside of the capital. Dave Williams, a volunteer in Falaje, hosted 6 of us at his hut for a pig roast. Man, I’ve never seen so much work done for a good strip of pork. The guys built a brick roasting pit the two days before Christmas Eve. On Christmas Eve, they bought and slaughtered the pig (I conveniently was out for a run during that part), cut its hair, and let it marinate in a bucket of salt water over night. On Christmas day, we all took turns turning the metal pole we (the guys I should say) stuck through the pig and over the fire for a good three or four hours. The meat came out quite tasty, which is more than I can say about Chris’ attempt at blood soup (hey at least I tried it). All the gruesome details can be found on Chris’s new blog: notbalibutmalil.blogspot.com In the meantime, we snaked on watermelon, hot coco, popcorn, banana bread, Christmas cookies/candies/and fruit cakes that came from the states, and any other such things we happened to whip up. Basically, we spent two days cooking and eating, playing charades, and decorating the house for Christmas. A small, fake plastic Christmas tree was overshadowed by a chalk drawing on dave’s wall that we all “decorated” with our own drawings. Us girls made stockings out of an old teeshirt, and with decorative markers and Lindsay’s crocheting ability, actually came out quite nice. Combined with Christmas carols on the ipod and guitar, little silly presents of ketchup, slingshots, and homemade fruit jam really brought the Christmas spirit to our middle-of-nowhere corner of the world. Midnight mass in Falaje was incredible. There was a Bambara choir, singing the mass parts to traditional African beats, and I wore my new “Mary-and-Jesus compilee” that the priest in Kati gave me as a Christmas gift. On my way to Falaje, I also picked up some packages sent from you all that I excitedly opened on Christmas morning! A Christmas I’ll never forget, and my nostalgia for my family was comforted by the fact that I was among good and caring friends and that it would be less than two months before I see my parents. (FEB 16!) I’m so excited!