Africa Hut Visit--Wow!

We got an awesome invitation to go out into the "bush" and spend the evening with an African family. We experienced their way of life, and it was crazy--a totally different world than what I've ever experienced.

This is where they cooked all their meals, and where they sat to eat their meals.

 

 In the middle of this picture, there is a fence looking circle. This was the shower and the place to wash clothes. There was a small entrance around the back side, and when you walked in, there were stepping stones and dirt. It had enough room for one person. Although it looks big from the outside, the inside was very small. They carried water from the well or river and brought it to shower in there, or wash their clothes in there. CRAZY!

 This woman was a Doctor and Missionary there in Africa. She has dedicated her whole life to Karanda and the people. She is an AMAZING woman--funny, goofy, and full of so much love in her heart.
  She was showing us how they ground corn and other items to make food.

This was the house where the family slept.

 We are standing in front of the house. That's how big it really is. (or should I say, small)

 Inside of the house, there were stucco shelves built into the wall of the house. It's only one room, so they do everything in that one room. They take great pride in their dishes or things that are considered very nice over there. So they display their items on their shelves proudly.

I couldn't imagine having to put that iron into a fire to heat it up and then iron my clothes with it!! We have so many luxuries being in the USA, and we take so many for granted.

They started cooking dinner for us, and it was so much fun to watch!

They asked if any of us wanted to try and stir the "Sadsa"--which is like CEMENT!! I was using all my muscles, and it was very difficult to stir. Plus, breathing in the smoke from the fire didn't help! My eyes were watering so bad, and I couldn't catch a clean breath of fresh air. I finally gave up after about 4 minutes!! Haha! I'm a wimp!

This is just another building---I wanted to show how small the buildings/homes were in Africa. I usually had to bend over just a little to get inside a home, so I wouldn't hit my head on the thatch roof.

Notice the shirt!!!! WJHS band--how cool is that!! She was given this shirt a few years ago from Dr. Sheets and the group that went with him. She was a sweet, sweet girl.

Snakes are a very big danger over in Africa. So to keep away snakes, they take a make-shift broom and sweep the dirt all around their homes.

As the missionary said, "Grass = Snakes, so no grass, no snakes."

The following pictures are inside the home of this wonderful woman. She only spoke Shona, so our missionary translated for us. It was the most interesting meal I've ever eaten. But such an amazing experience.

The women sat on the floor on mats, and the men got to sit over against the wall on built-in seating. In this culture, the men are the most respected, so they always get to sit in chairs/seats, while the women sit on the floor.

The meal consisted of black beans, collard greens, two pieces of boiled chicken, and a HUGE pile of sadsa.

I explained what sadsa was when I talked about the orphans. But I will explain again. Sadsa has zero nutritional value, but it expands in the stomach making you feel full. It's like taking Malt-o-meal, and turning it into a very thick paste. No flavor. It sucks your mouth dry, so it's very hard to swallow. But it's very inexpensive to make. That's why so many people die from malnutrition over in Africa. Some can only afford to eat sadsa for every meal every day. It's very sad.

This experience is one I will never forget.
Seeing how they cook, what they eat, how they clean up, how they take care of each other, how they start a fire...how they LIVE....it was so surreal.

I realize how very, very spoiled/blessed to live in the USA.