Upcountry

We’ve just gotten back from going upcountry for the funeral.  It was quite an experience!  I’d been to the area before, but mainly just with Papa Matilda’s family, not Mama Matilda’s as was this time.  Families have a big plot of land, and a garden etc which they use for subsistence farming.  Then it typically gets subdivided so that each child can have a plot within the land.  So families live close to eachother.  We stayed with Mama Matilda’s cousin, Mama Carol.  She had been very worried that she did not know how to care for a mzungu, and was concerned I wouldn’t like to eat their food, and would be unhappy.  But Mama Matilda assured her I am easy, and we had a great time!  She enjoyed showing me their life there, and taking me around to greet all of her neighbors.

The funeral took place the day after we got there, and we all got up early and headed to her aunt’s house (the one who passed away) to get into matatus (like smallish 15 passenger vans) with other family and friends and go to the mortuary. 

After viewing the body, we went to the church and they brought the casket in, said a few words, sang songs, and then took it to the house where the funeral continued.  There were speeches given, songs sung, and then different family groups called up to have their pictures taken by the casket.  People were constantly coming and going from the service, and you could go in the back and talk, eat, play with kids, etc. and then return again.  I’ve been told that the aunt was bewitched by a woman who also bewitched 4 other people in the family.  So the real excitement/drama of the day came at night, after the burial (which happens on the property).  The family was trying to decide whether to burn the woman, and/or her house.  The group of family having this meeting did indeed leave to find her, but she had left the area, and they came back again.  Apparently they went again this morning, but I’m not sure if anything happened. 

Two of Mama Matilda’s cousins and I became good friends (Janet and Alex) and it was fun hanging out with them. 

Back at Mama Carol’s house, the first night, we had dinner, then decided that we wanted chicken.  So we killed a chicken that was running around and everyone did a little bit so that by the end we had a delicious soup.  My job was to hold the legs of the plucked chicken while someone took a machete to it and cut it up.  Then I had to wash all the parts to get some of the blood off.  It was funny thinking about how at home we are very careful to wash even a cutting board that has had raw chicken on it.  But instead, I held the legs, got blood all over me, hand rinsed the parts, and then used my hands to eat the chicken pieces out of the soup.  Haha.  I see people who live in Nairobi etc be neat and tidy here, always needing toilet paper for example.  But when the go back upcountry, they slip right into the life there and a tree with soft leaves becomes perfect.  I felt similar in that I had no care about being dirty or anything, just taking the experiences as they came and enjoying the blessing of being able to be part of a different life. 

This is Mama Carol’s son, he thought that I was Paloma (a star of a recent Mexican soap dubbed into English and watched and talked about throughout the country) and was afraid of my celebrity status.  But he eventually warmed up to me, and even promised me one of the chicks of his chicken!

I’m like 6 days in and its already been quite an adventure!  I’m off to watch some rugby tomorrow, and see some old friends.  Thank you for all of the emails, it has been great hearing from such good friends and family!  I thought it would have been easier to describe the past few days, but its something totally unlike life in the US that its been difficult to do it justice.  So thanks for bearing with me, and I hope you now all have a bit more insight into life upcountry.  I’ve also come back carrying sugar cane, macadamia nuts,  and papaya (which neighbors brought for me), and lots of juicy, sweet mangoes!! 

Kwaheri (bye) for now.