Anthropology

Walking along our muddy street last week,I noticed a few kids throwing rocks at my house.Band of ruffians doing harm?Nope. You see, we have mango trees.It’s mango season.Any fruit falling over the edge of a wall is fair game.It’s practically a law.But sometimes the mangoes need convincing. They chuck rocks Read more…

In case you missed it, the Snapshot series began here. My Mom used to tell me stories about her mother.The grandmother I never knew.She would go every few days to the local Beauty Parlor.To have her hair set.It became an idyllic 50’s scene in my head. Ladies sitting under driers Read more…

In case you missed it, the Snapshot series began here. Over tear-streaked cheeks, wails of sorrow ring out.Our family attends the funeral of an employee.The crowds mourn a beloved provider.Father.Grandfather.Husband.Son.In his late sixties, Obedi had the national life expectancy rate beat by 17 years.But his Mom is still around to Read more…

News spreads like wildfire here even without social media. There are only a handful of foreign families in residence.Wherever we go, people stare.White people! Mzungu! Look! It’s his wife! And children!They check out our shoes.They critique our clothes.The children touch our skin cautiously.Once, someone I’ve never met or seen called Read more…

Main street never rests in the daylight hours.It is a constant bustle of activity.Traffic can stop you.But not like any traffic you’ve ever seen.Anywhere. Women carry heavy loads of firewood on their heads 8 feet long.Young ladies chat in groups about the latest fashion, crossing the road ever so slowly.Porters Read more…

Two of the hours I normally would have spent sleeping last night were instead spent confirming myself as a bona fide Congo resident (or so I hear), as well as confirming a few things I’ve learned recently about rodents: They will stay where they are hidden until at least 90% Read more…

We hired our gardener Beleke* because of his story.(Well, we needed one too.)Tropical weeds grow fast. Everywhere. Last year, just as Beleke was beginning his seminary studies,his sending church was attacked in a far away village by the LRA.I do not know the extent of the evil inflicted there.I’m not sure Read more…

For more than three years we have lived in this fascinating place. And so many times a camera just doesn’t capture it all. I will often treasure significant moments in my heart, but not have a way to ‘keep’ them outside of memory itself. So I hope to ‘keep’ them Read more…