Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Sun-Dried Caterpillars (email from Jenell July 19, 2006)
It is caterpillar season now... after several weeks of eating Shea leaves they have grown to a size larger than my thumb- apparently the preferred size for making caterpillar soup. My dad and brother were here for mango season, but my less fortunate stepmother will arrive in the middle of caterpillar season. The other day I walked over to my neighbor's house. All the women and children of the house were sitting outside on a wooden bench underneath their sheanut tree. They were casually breaking apart the now crispy caterpillars and popping them into their mouths much like a group of men eating peanuts at a sports bar. As we sat there an occasional caterpillar would fall from the tree and land on the ground. The grandmother picked it up and added it to her bucket to be dried and smoked later. Eulalia handed me a caterpillar. I looked down at it and thought about its earlier form... big, plump, crawling, and filled with yellow gooey guts. I am very thankful that they don't eat them raw because I know I would have to try it, if for no other reason than to write to you about eating raw caterpillars, and I don't know if I'm ready for that yet. I try to focus on the words "sun-dried" and "smoked" which remind me of "sun-dried" tomato cream cheese and "smoked" lox. The stiff, blackened caterpillar rolls around in my hand as I work up the nerve. I look around at the family casually popping them in their mouths. I follow suit. It is crunchy and flaky and has little flavor than I expected. I might say it is similar to the hardened, crispy cheese that finds its way out of your grilled cheese and onto the pan, but I won't because that sounds like something you would want to eat a lot of. Instead, I will compare it to the dried little fish and squid I ate when I was in japan. It flaked apart in my mouth but didn't dissolve. I just chewed fast so I wouldn't recognize any parts only flakes.
These caterpillars are everywhere:
I try not to step on them when I am running because I know that someone’s grandma will be on that path later that day collecting them.
I see bigger children chasing littler children around threatening to touch them with it. I'm guessing the smaller kid hasn't put it together yet that the caterpillar he's running from might be in his soup tomorrow night.
After we have finished playing volleyball in the field behind the school, my teammates gather around to buy condoms (1/2 a penny each). We are gathered under a shea tree, most of its leaves have now been eaten. As I pull the wooden penis out of my bag to do my first condom demonstration for the team, I am suddenly very aware of the pitter-patter of small green pellets falling from the tree and hitting the ground like a light rain...caterpillar poop.
I am out of time.
peace
jenell
Note from the less fortunate stepmother: It is also caterpillar season here in Minnesota. Yesterday Mia was playing with caterpillars while we were working on our house. Perhaps I should try sun-drying them and making some caterpillar soup so Cooper doesn’t have to miss out on this important cultural experience??? Stay tuned…. p.s. I will be in Ghana with Jenell the first two weeks in August!!! Also good news about Jenell's friend who is home from the hospital and apparently busy eating caterpillars (Eulalia and Julalia are the same person :-)
These caterpillars are everywhere:
I try not to step on them when I am running because I know that someone’s grandma will be on that path later that day collecting them.
I see bigger children chasing littler children around threatening to touch them with it. I'm guessing the smaller kid hasn't put it together yet that the caterpillar he's running from might be in his soup tomorrow night.
After we have finished playing volleyball in the field behind the school, my teammates gather around to buy condoms (1/2 a penny each). We are gathered under a shea tree, most of its leaves have now been eaten. As I pull the wooden penis out of my bag to do my first condom demonstration for the team, I am suddenly very aware of the pitter-patter of small green pellets falling from the tree and hitting the ground like a light rain...caterpillar poop.
I am out of time.
peace
jenell
Note from the less fortunate stepmother: It is also caterpillar season here in Minnesota. Yesterday Mia was playing with caterpillars while we were working on our house. Perhaps I should try sun-drying them and making some caterpillar soup so Cooper doesn’t have to miss out on this important cultural experience??? Stay tuned…. p.s. I will be in Ghana with Jenell the first two weeks in August!!! Also good news about Jenell's friend who is home from the hospital and apparently busy eating caterpillars (Eulalia and Julalia are the same person :-)
Monday, July 03, 2006
"2 Days" and "My Life in Color"
2 Days!!! and "My Life in Color" Email from Jenell on 6/20/2006
Where to begin?… it's been too long. "Beraii," (literally meaning "two days") friends greet me when they haven't seen me in a while. One uses this greeting whenever it feels like too long, whether it’s been two days or two years since you've seen them. I love this greeting because it infers that friends and family should see each other at least every other day. Also, you find out who expects/has become accustom to seeing you around. These people (my "friends") are popping up more and more in Jirapa. Here someone is easily considered a friend after only a few minutes. For example, there is a woman in the market with a 3 foot diameter straw hat who will sometimes have avocados or cabbage hidden between the mountains of dried maize, rice, and smoked fish that the other women are selling. Market is only once a week but the handful of times I've stopped to buy from her, she greets me "Beraii," and dashes me a few extra.
While sitting at an egg, bread, and tea kiosk one morning while waiting for my tro-tro to fill, a student asked me, "how will you describe Ghana to your people?" my first response was "colorful." Everything is so vibrant... the music, dancing, colorful clothes....
My Life In Color
RED- Bright red flower petals from the flame tree in front of my house litter my courtyard whenever the wind blows. A frequent occurrence now that it is rainy season.
- the brick red mud puddles in which I taught the neighbourhood kids how to make a really big splash.
ORANGE – My fingers (right hand) and corners of my mouth are stained orange after eating Light soup (palm oil, tomatoes, peppe, garlic, onions, ginger) and fufu with the 16 year old girl, Julaalia*, who lives across the road/path. I am finally eating from the same bowl as friends. A fairly big deal… this means I'm no longer a guest but family.
YELLOW – an 11 y.o. boy wearing worn, yellow plastic sandals just started running with me the other day. Feeling somewhat like Forest Gump, I asked, "Can you run 5k?" "Maybe," The only thing said to me for the next half an hour. About half way it became understood that this was a race… it even ended with a 200m dash where my long legs, days of practice, and seniority were only able to carry me a few paces ahead of him. He now smiles extra big when he sees me and greets me, "Beraii."
GREEN – I suspect that dark olive green bean leaves are wedged between my teeth every Sunday as I go through market and greet. On market day, I go to the same Kosi (fried bean cake) woman and eat a huge 10 cent bowl of kosi, bean leaves, tomatoes, onion, and spices while sitting on a wood bench in her smoky lean-to and people watch.
BLUE – My knees have reoccurring big blue bruises from playing (and coaching) volleyball every afternoon with a group of guys my age and younger. They are a mixture of Secondary School graduates who are waiting around for the next year to hear back from a university, farmers, and part-time teachers. They all have a lot of time on their hands (especially during dry season when they don't farm), so I am trying to keep them occupied with volleyball (to keep them out of trouble). They don't know it yet, but next week I'm bringing condoms to practice and will be talking about HIV prevention. Aside from being a Peace Corps project, these guys have become my friends. Last week they told me I was a man. They meant it as a compliment because of my volleyball skills, but really this just confirms my theory that being a white woman here is like being a strange middle gender.
PURPLE – I saw my first birth! The baby was Lavender when it came out, and made for some interesting contrast with the Fuchsia lipstick worn by the sassy Cuban doctor who was also wearing heels and a jean skirt in the delivery room.
BLACK – "C'mon Ghana Black Stars! We're goin' straight to victory! Victory!" the song plays over and over during the football match. It is in my head constantly… my nightly lullaby. Every time Ghana scores there is cheering in the streets and horns honking. When the Black Stars are playing, every television in the country is tuned to football. I can't imagine what Kumasi and Accra are like during the matches. There is so much excitement in the air here. The men of Jirapa gather in the street to celebrate, make predictions, and give unsolicited coaching advice to "our boys" (the common reference to the players). I'll be travelling to Wa to watch USA vs. Ghana match with other volunteers from the Upper West… this Thursday at 2pm (GMT)! If Ghana wins, there is a good chance they will be advancing to the next round. A major achievement being their first trip to World Cup. Go Black Stars!! Wooohoooo!
*Julaalia – her hair is cut down to a few cm as required by schools. Her hands are large and rough from cleaning and farming. her smile is favoured by the right side her mouth and accents her front tooth with a large diagonal chip missing. She almost died last month. They were able to save her in the Wa hospital by completely removing her uterus. In a place where a woman's primary function is to make babies and food, she has given up all hope to ever marry. I've yet to see her cry. She just accepts the fact that she will become a nun. I continue to stress education with her. Today is her first day back to school after the surgery, so starting tonight I will be trying to help her catch up. I don't know when it happened but she has become a faithful companion and a friend. She invites me to eat with her family and I teach her to cook strange foreign food. Last night she was completely fascinated with the concept of potholders and cookbooks when I was teaching her to make Chinese fried rice. The way I see it, Ghanaian women have super powers… they grab hot metal pots right off the coals and never measure their ingredients.
UPDATE BY LHS BASED ON JULY 2 PHONE CONVERSATION: The BlackStars beat the US 2-1 to advance in the WorldCup but then lost to Brazil. Jenell is doing well (I go to visit her in the beginning of August- yippee!). Her friend Julaalia, however, is in the hospital with an infection and very ill. Keep her in your prayers... Lisa HS
Where to begin?… it's been too long. "Beraii," (literally meaning "two days") friends greet me when they haven't seen me in a while. One uses this greeting whenever it feels like too long, whether it’s been two days or two years since you've seen them. I love this greeting because it infers that friends and family should see each other at least every other day. Also, you find out who expects/has become accustom to seeing you around. These people (my "friends") are popping up more and more in Jirapa. Here someone is easily considered a friend after only a few minutes. For example, there is a woman in the market with a 3 foot diameter straw hat who will sometimes have avocados or cabbage hidden between the mountains of dried maize, rice, and smoked fish that the other women are selling. Market is only once a week but the handful of times I've stopped to buy from her, she greets me "Beraii," and dashes me a few extra.
While sitting at an egg, bread, and tea kiosk one morning while waiting for my tro-tro to fill, a student asked me, "how will you describe Ghana to your people?" my first response was "colorful." Everything is so vibrant... the music, dancing, colorful clothes....
My Life In Color
RED- Bright red flower petals from the flame tree in front of my house litter my courtyard whenever the wind blows. A frequent occurrence now that it is rainy season.
- the brick red mud puddles in which I taught the neighbourhood kids how to make a really big splash.
ORANGE – My fingers (right hand) and corners of my mouth are stained orange after eating Light soup (palm oil, tomatoes, peppe, garlic, onions, ginger) and fufu with the 16 year old girl, Julaalia*, who lives across the road/path. I am finally eating from the same bowl as friends. A fairly big deal… this means I'm no longer a guest but family.
YELLOW – an 11 y.o. boy wearing worn, yellow plastic sandals just started running with me the other day. Feeling somewhat like Forest Gump, I asked, "Can you run 5k?" "Maybe," The only thing said to me for the next half an hour. About half way it became understood that this was a race… it even ended with a 200m dash where my long legs, days of practice, and seniority were only able to carry me a few paces ahead of him. He now smiles extra big when he sees me and greets me, "Beraii."
GREEN – I suspect that dark olive green bean leaves are wedged between my teeth every Sunday as I go through market and greet. On market day, I go to the same Kosi (fried bean cake) woman and eat a huge 10 cent bowl of kosi, bean leaves, tomatoes, onion, and spices while sitting on a wood bench in her smoky lean-to and people watch.
BLUE – My knees have reoccurring big blue bruises from playing (and coaching) volleyball every afternoon with a group of guys my age and younger. They are a mixture of Secondary School graduates who are waiting around for the next year to hear back from a university, farmers, and part-time teachers. They all have a lot of time on their hands (especially during dry season when they don't farm), so I am trying to keep them occupied with volleyball (to keep them out of trouble). They don't know it yet, but next week I'm bringing condoms to practice and will be talking about HIV prevention. Aside from being a Peace Corps project, these guys have become my friends. Last week they told me I was a man. They meant it as a compliment because of my volleyball skills, but really this just confirms my theory that being a white woman here is like being a strange middle gender.
PURPLE – I saw my first birth! The baby was Lavender when it came out, and made for some interesting contrast with the Fuchsia lipstick worn by the sassy Cuban doctor who was also wearing heels and a jean skirt in the delivery room.
BLACK – "C'mon Ghana Black Stars! We're goin' straight to victory! Victory!" the song plays over and over during the football match. It is in my head constantly… my nightly lullaby. Every time Ghana scores there is cheering in the streets and horns honking. When the Black Stars are playing, every television in the country is tuned to football. I can't imagine what Kumasi and Accra are like during the matches. There is so much excitement in the air here. The men of Jirapa gather in the street to celebrate, make predictions, and give unsolicited coaching advice to "our boys" (the common reference to the players). I'll be travelling to Wa to watch USA vs. Ghana match with other volunteers from the Upper West… this Thursday at 2pm (GMT)! If Ghana wins, there is a good chance they will be advancing to the next round. A major achievement being their first trip to World Cup. Go Black Stars!! Wooohoooo!
*Julaalia – her hair is cut down to a few cm as required by schools. Her hands are large and rough from cleaning and farming. her smile is favoured by the right side her mouth and accents her front tooth with a large diagonal chip missing. She almost died last month. They were able to save her in the Wa hospital by completely removing her uterus. In a place where a woman's primary function is to make babies and food, she has given up all hope to ever marry. I've yet to see her cry. She just accepts the fact that she will become a nun. I continue to stress education with her. Today is her first day back to school after the surgery, so starting tonight I will be trying to help her catch up. I don't know when it happened but she has become a faithful companion and a friend. She invites me to eat with her family and I teach her to cook strange foreign food. Last night she was completely fascinated with the concept of potholders and cookbooks when I was teaching her to make Chinese fried rice. The way I see it, Ghanaian women have super powers… they grab hot metal pots right off the coals and never measure their ingredients.
UPDATE BY LHS BASED ON JULY 2 PHONE CONVERSATION: The BlackStars beat the US 2-1 to advance in the WorldCup but then lost to Brazil. Jenell is doing well (I go to visit her in the beginning of August- yippee!). Her friend Julaalia, however, is in the hospital with an infection and very ill. Keep her in your prayers... Lisa HS
