Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Light and Beauty




There is a special light that photographers call magical—when the sun is setting and surrounds everything with a soft glow. It’s also present in the early morning hours as two of these photos attest. In one, Anita and Artimisa are clothed in capulanas to keep warm in the cool morning air. In the other, children carry rolled-up esteiras, woven mats used as bedding and floor mats, to sell in the market in a larger town nearby. The third photo is of little Alfonso sleeping in Lehla's arms, oblvious to everything but a feeling of comfort and safety. Oh, so much beauty!

Hats -- Beauty, Creativity, and a Sense of Humor





As these photos will attest, we encountered many interesting hats in Mozambique--some that made us giggle and caused the wearer to smile as well and some that struck us as adding a touch of beauty to often drab surroundings. Cereal box hats and coconut tree bark hats to protect from the sun, tall funny hats to draw attention to a seller’s wares, and beautifully arranged cloth hats to decorate the wearer—we were struck by Mozambicans creativity and inventiveness!

Monday, December 7, 2009

Strong, Steady, Radiant Women and Girls of Mozambique!





Though their lives are often precarious and full of hard physical work, we encountered joy as well in getting to know some strong, beautiful women (young and old) in rural villages in Mozambique. Women and girls here have a difficult life with little access to schooling, medical care, and basic needs we take for granted like electricity, running water, indoor plumbing, you name it—but those we met managed to welcome us with open arms, cook amazingly tasty vegetarian meals with food they harvested from their machambas (garden plots) in the early wee morning hours after an hour walk from their homes.

They also maintained spotless yards swept clean of leaves, insects, animal waste, and other debris, nursed babies while walking and reading, cooked over hot outdoor fires in wilting heat and humidity, hauled heavy water on their heads from nearby pumps, and often managed to still look radiant in colorful capulanas (traditional wrap around skirts) at the end of the hard long workday. To be fair, we saw the very human side of such misery but the women we met were strong, solid providers struggling against difficult odds, as women do all over the world.

In the middle of a heavy daily routine to maintain their households, many women still managed to visit the inauguration of the mobile lending library, as photos on our webpage will attest (see the slide show on the home page). They danced to welcome us, laughed heartily at the story we read aloud, joined in enthusiastically to tell the story, and struggled to sound out words in books to read to themselves, to their children, and to their women friends. Though initially the project was about getting children excited about reading, we realize that it is just as important to reach mothers and fathers and provide them with opportunities to improve, and fall in love with, reading. Not only can it change their lives through self-education but it can help ensure that they value, and encourage, the same skill for their own children.


Sunday, December 6, 2009

Fernando from Vinho, Gorongosa – A Young Man with Big Dreams




Fernando, sixteen years old, met us when we crossed the river between Gorongosa and Vinho, the village where he lives. He dreams of becoming a guide in Gorongosa Park when he is older. His eagerness to learn shines from his eyes and is evident in his diligent studying of English which he speaks well. He travels weekly to attend eighth grade in the town of Gorongosa, returning home to Vinho on the weekends to help his family and serve as a liaison with Gorongosa.

Loading the box of books on the back of his bike, Fernando accompanied us to the Vinho school where we presented the Books for Africa Friends of Reading Network and mobile lending library. He was so proud of becoming one of the first “Friends of Reading” in Vinho (see him in the photo with his book bag of ten books). Since we left Gorongosa five days ago, he has used a friend's phone to call me daily to let me know which books he has finished. It is individuals like this, who despite their difficult life circumstances, jump at opportunities presented to them—and getting books to their remote villages is one way of helping present those opportunities!

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Books by Four Wheel Drive, by Foot, and by Dug-Out Canoe!




We have been struck by the extreme poverty in the rural villages we’ve visited since leaving Nwadjahane, and equally struck by the friendliness of everyone we meet—it seems the more remote a community, the more friendly and warm the inhabitants! Accompanied by two jovial community Gorongosa outreach staff, Domingos and Verniz, and Muero, the driver, Lehla and I traveled over the past three days down miles of dirt roads and mountain paths by car, walked by foot, and even crossed a river by dugout canoe, carrying books and materials to share the Books for Kids Africa Friends of Reading Network with adults and children living in the area.

As in our visit to Nwadjahane, the giggles and smiles that broke the shyness and reticence of community members by Lehla’s funny animal impersonations were heartwarming. Children, and sometimes women, often handled books with unfamiliarity—holding them backwards and upside down—but all seemed eager to participate. Unlike in Nwadjahane, children here, living so close to Gorongosa National Park, did seem familiar with native African wild animals like elephants, crocodiles, and hippopotamuses. Books in the program capitalize on those interests, and include stories from other cultures, easy reading picture books, life in traditional villages, word identification books, and simple chapter books. Because books are mixed by interest and reading level, a whole family with different reading levels and interests can enjoy the ten books borrowed each week.

Along the way to one of the villages, we passed a well-built community library. The library was clean and neat with several tall bookcases but it was unattended and had few books, among them perhaps two dozen children books. As Domingos said, our mobile library where books travel directly to people in their homes has great potential. Adults do not have to travel far and they can borrow books at convenient times from the local coordinator and read at their leisure in their homes. It is a simple project but the multiplier effect has vast potential.

Sometimes it is hard to promote a project that does not directly address such basic needs as food, medical care, jobs, and transportation—but I am always struck by the eagerness that people with little schooling and desperate living situations have for learning. They want information, they want their children to learn to read so they can go further in school and get better jobs, they want to continue to learn themselves though they cannot go to school. Though we are fulfilling a less tangible basic need, learning to read and falling in love with reading and learning expands the mind and expands the imagination—these books are bringing hope and the light of knowledge to remote communities, families, and individuals.