Village Visit

Village Visit
September 26-30, 2008
The Gesell Family

Westen (age 12)
This morning we got up in Jos at about 7:30am -8:00am, as usual (if you can call it that after six nights with MCC here in Nigeria). After half an hour of getting up, making beds, stealing some extra sleep, and eating breakfast, we (or I) were pretty much ready to take on the day ahead of us. The rest of the morning we spent playing games (soccer and Rukshuk).
Then about 10:30, Matthew, Brenda and Mark came with the big white van. Fifteen to twenty minutes later we left for our 5 day village visit. At midday I found myself standing on the road side about 10 meters away from a one storey structure that sat beside a tall looking cornfield. On the inside were low set ceilings that joined with about 10 smallish rooms. All this was attached in a square around a concrete courtyard with a deep –by my standards- a well in the middle. After it dawned on me that this would be different than I thought it might be (like large air-conditioned rooms with a tall chain-linked fence surrounding it-heck who knows maybe even a flat screen TV or two). I decided to just buckle done and see what happened.
It wasn’t bad! We sat in the courtyard under the sun. Luckily we were in the shade. We just talked for about a hour and a half. Frankly I’m amazed that people can do that. At about 2:30 pm we had a sort of stew with potatoes and fish in it. It was pretty great! During the next hour or two we wondered over to visit the pastor and the village chief. Apparently one of the chief’s cousins died. So there were a lot of people there. I think I used the term sannu (hi in Hausa) more times then I just said hello in English in the past week. The chief himself seemed like a jolly African man (who refreshingly spoke very good English). The only other people who spoke good English were Isaac (the father of the family who was hosting us) and his son and a few others who we met. After that we walked back to the church where the pastor lived and had prayers in I think Hausa. An hour later we headed back to the family building/ family compound for a bucket bath and supper before heading to bed. For supper we had a mash potato type thing with sauce and chicken on it. That was good too!
I thought that people in Nigeria weren’t as worried about hygiene. But in the village they take bathes twice each day. On our first day in the village, we went to bed at 9:30 pm, looking forward to getting up at 6:30 in the morning. The second day was great. First of all I would like to clear this up. The meals were not good. They were amazing. I really don’t think I fully realized the amount of work put into them though. For breakfast we had these beautiful greasy chips (french fries). They were cut out of potatoes in irregular slices, and if we felt like it we could put them on slices of bread. Instead of water we had a sweet tasting Nigerian version of hot chocolate. The tea was hot enough to last the meal. We had breakfast at 7 am. Isaac’s wife got up at 5- yes in the morning- to begin preparations for it. A little bit after breakfast we took a walk to the market. It was a pretty long walk, but in hindsight it did not seem like a big deal.
When we got there the market looked almost like I thought it would: with the area between the many booths packed with people. After some first impressions we walked into a cluster of low lying buildings to meet the chief of that area of the village. He seemed like a dignified 50-60 year old man who took pride in what he did. While we were walking around the market that day we were drawing attention in the form of a horde of some children. My mom was already pretty popular among them because she was giving out handshakes and high fives for the last 15 minutes or so. During our time at the market we bought a hard plastic green soccer ball. It was twice the size of my fist. It would get a lot of use in the next few days. We then headed back to the compound after buying some sugar cane and peanut/ball/rock/things. When we got back to the compound the first thing we did was play soccer for about 2 hours. After having lunch I think we played more soccer. At about 6:00 pm we took the game to the church for about a half hour, than we came back and ate supper.
One thing I noticed about people in the village, compared to North Americans, is that they take much more time to greet each other. The rest of our village visit passed by in a blur. We spent it playing soccer and eating and generally having a good time. One morning we went for a walk and found a stream running through a ravine. Finally on the last day Mark, Valerie and Greg came. Earlier that morning I ate so much that I really did not want to think about lunch. Isaac hosted a farewell prayer. About 15 minutes later we put our tiny mango tree that we acquired into the van with all our other stuff and drove back to Jos.
In conclusion I think the people in the village work a lot harder than we do. Therefore, I think they appreciate things a lot more as well. Things such as family, water and god being with them always are very important to them. I feel very grateful that they took us in so graciously.

Charlotte
This was quite a journey. We have felt so honoured by the hospitality of our host family Isaac and Elsina and their son Longji. From the moment we arrived the respect and awe we received was quite humbling. The greetings one receives and then gives in Nigeria is such that we are all special and equal in god’s eyes.
Our first day was spent meeting the local people and neighbouring church. Although we share the same curiosity in one another I would hope that we would leave the same high esteem they bestowed upon us. The reverend at the local COCIN(Church of Christ in Nigeria) church and members shared their prayers of our safe journey and visit in their village. We also visited a village family where a funeral was held. Custom is for sympathetic friends and family to arrive soon after the death of the member and then to stay for weeks after.
The next day was a visit with the women fellowship. What fun it was to listen and watch them sing and dance with praise to god. Soon after, we walked to the village market with many special greetings along the way. The children were a special treat with many smiles and curios eyes. We met the village chief-what an honour, we were graciously received. On our return back we stopped at the big rock with a panoramic view of the surrounding area. We could see many vegetable plots, corn and neighbouring villages. Longji also showed us his own corn crop with pride. The girls then had their hair braided with about 15 children watching-what a sight, while the rest of us went for a walk with Isaac and Longji to see a near- by pond- created from mining rocks.
The next day we attended the COCIN church. The service was filled with singing, dancing and many prayers to god. We were honoured as guests by sitting at the front of the church with the pastor and elders throughout the 2 and a half hour service. This gave us a good view of the many choirs and singing groups from the young mens’ band to the old lady’s choir. After the church a blessing was given to a motorcycle bought by a local man for safety. Motorcycles are used as taxis in Nigeria. The owner then gifted us with rice and Kunu (a fermented corn drink). After church we journeyed by van to a near-by village and saw a crater-filled lake caused by an old volcano. On our drive back we first stopped at a local hospital where patients were treated by a bone setter. Most of the orthopaedic injuries were caused by motorcycle crashes. The patients were grateful for our visit as we listened to their stories. In Nigerian hospitals family brings the needed items such as blankets, clothes and food for their sick ones as they stay in the hospital. The clothes and food are hand washed and made on the grounds of the facility. Next we stopped at a village where Isaac was born. We witnessed groups of men playing checkers and an indigenous game with small rocks. Randy took pictures of them with the digital camera and they were surprised to see themselves in the image screen.
The following day we drove to another village. On the way we stopped at the side of the road next to some soft rolling green hills. At the village we went to the market and bought some bananas and peanuts. Our kids also liked chewing on the sugar cane. When we returned we visited a neighbour family member who showed us their grain storage bin and some old huge slabs of rocks where their forefathers would sit in their leisure time.
The last day we travelled to another village with a local taxi. There were about 12 of us piled into a small station wagon that looked like a smash up derby car. We visited a local Health Clinic where they had a recent newborn delivery over night. Many people sat outside waiting for blood tests, meds for ailments such as TB, and other health concerns. We then stopped again at another market where we saw many items being sold such as clothes, shoes, grains, oils, dried crayfish, fermented corn, school supplies, fabric, fruit and vegetables. After our last meal we expressed our gratitude for our stay with many thanks. The village in return brought many bags of Irish potatoes just harvested from their gardens. We were richly blessed with their kindness.
Although our lifestyles are worlds apart, I was struck by the wealth in their hearts, and beauty in their simple every day existence. These people truly lived off the land. The village visit gave us a kick start to Hausa language and culture. We saw how the women and men shared household chores and worked the land. We watched how they provided a means for their family in selling their crops, making food items or materials such as rope from okra plants for sale. We listened and watched how they celebrated life with Longji playing drums, Happy (a cousin) singing songs and many of us dancing to Nigerian music. I was struck by how strong the women are in carrying their children on their backs along with huge tubs of water on their heads. Watching old women walk for miles on the street in bare feet, and daily chores of hand washing clothes and floors and preparing and drying local crops for the season. Many of the young children would also share tasks such as peeling potatoes, plucking feathers of a dead chicken or like Kernan(age 6) throwing laundry on the cactus plant to dry.
Our family experienced new sights, smells, tastes and sounds. Our children were well received by the local children-playing soccer, skipping rope and laughing together in learning a new language. We greatly appreciated our hosts Isaac and Elsina and Longji for a wonderful village visit and can now call this place our village.

Kezia (age 8)
In the village we stayed at a family compound. The people at the family compound spoke Hausa, but after a couple of minutes some other people came that spoke English and their names were Isaac and Elsina and Longji. We stayed there for a couple of days. The next day some people came and braided me and my sister’s hair. In the morning I took a bucket bath with warm water. The next day we went to Isaac’s church. At the church we met lots of people. At the church we got to sit up at the front. There were about 150 people. The church service was about 4 hours long, but we only went for the last 2 and a half hours. One morning we went on a walk to a valley and saw a big centipede. What I enjoyed was playing with some friends, going to the market, playing with the skipping rope, getting my hair braided and dancing to Nigerian music. How I felt when I got there was kind of scared because I did not know any of the people. But after a while I was having lots of fun and it really was not that bad. How I felt when I left was sad because I was going to miss all my friends and the stuff we enjoyed. That was my village visit.




Riana (age8)
We arrived in the village at 12:00. When we got there we unpacked. Then we saw our rooms. They were very nice. After a couple of minutes we sat down on a bench. We learned how to count to 100, but I could only count to 30 in Hausa. After a while we met Isaac and Elsina. They have 1 kid named Longji. After we met them we had lunch. After we had lunch I met some friends. Isaac and Elsina are taking good care of us. While we were there we learned how to take water from the well. After one day me and my sister got our braided it took 2 and a half hours to get our hair braided. Then we went to play football at the field and then we came back and had supper. Then we went to bed. When we woke up I was writing in my journal. After I was done writing we went to church. A lot of people greeted us by singing. It was very nice singing. Then my dad introduced my family to the church. We were invited to sit in front of the church for the whole church service. After church we went back and had lunch. After lunch we played football again. We had supper after we played football. After we ate supper we went to bed. I had a great sleep. While we were at the village we went to many markets and other villages and health centers. The best part was eating sugar cane from the markets. We also did a lot of walking and saw some lakes and hills. When I woke up, in the last morning I helped my dad and the family peel potatoes for breakfast. Before we had breakfast me my dad and my sister went for a walk to a valley.

On the way there saw some pigs. After awhile we came back and had breakfast. That night we danced to music, it was very fun. Before we left a lot of people from the village gave us a lot of potatoes. I had a great time at the village.




Randy
Our family was hosted by Isaac and Elsina and their 16 year old son, Longji, and nieces Happy (16) and Kernan (6).
This is a farming village Isaac estimated to have about 5-6,000 people including the surrounding area. A few generations ago Isaac’s people moved to this area and he was able to show us the locations where their family had lived during the last couple of generations- Near the top of the big rock, across the valley, and finally near the main road for easier access. Although the tie to the land and people is strong, Isaac said he would still move to Jos (as would and do others) for better job opportunities.
The family compound was built just off the main highway in the 1990’s and they had some extra significant upgrades done in preparation for our stay- pouring concrete floors in the rooms previously used for storage and running wires for lights into these rooms. One side of the compound contained rooms that had been meticulously swept and washed before our arrival for us to sleep in, along with a room to store potatoes. Last year they had also added a septic tank (one of 3 in this part of the village) and an indoor squat latrine/bathing room. Isaac said almost no one has pit latrines and people just use the bush. The interior courtyard had been paved over with a tree left to provide shade and the leaves were used in cooking. A well in the courtyard provided water for the family and neighbours, although drinking water was obtained at the COCIN church a 5 minute walk away at the community borehole/pump funded by MCC. It was a picture of grace watching the women arrive each morning to fill their oversize enamel basins from the well, pairs of women bending and lifting the basins onto their heads and then smoothly filing out. The family’s sleeping rooms and parlour were housed to one side, with the adjoining side containing a kitchen room plus a room keeping the goats, chickens and firewood. No electricity runs to Bwonpe yet, although poles had been placed some years before but wires not run when the project faltered. The family has a small generator that they ran after dark, making bedtime preparations easier.
We arrived amidst prayers and we left with prayers. Given my expectations of our having very different theologies, it was an unexpected and joyful gift to feel such a spirit of connection in God. The earnestness and clarity of the prayers of thanksgiving for our safe arrival, and hearing of the prayers offered for us since their hearing of our planned stay in the village was very moving.
The family and community welcomed us in a manner that added an entirely new layer of meaning to the word “gracious”. I am quite sure that I have never in my entire life been (and am unlikely to ever be again) greeted so many times. Indeed, the warmth and sincerity of a single greeting would cover those of an entire week in Winnipeg (not an unfriendly place, but clearly on a different level when it comes to greeting). The gift of opening themselves, their home and community was so openly given it was almost overwhelming at times. On occasion I found myself neglecting to make greetings with the sincerity that was deserved, with some people likely having made long walks to come just to greet us at the family compound. The first morning people were already arriving to greet us at 6:30 as I came out of the latrine! An element of suspense was added to latrine visits by virtue of its being set just off the family courtyard, shielded only by a hanging piece of cloth. The first afternoon I had arrived in the village already feeling the effects of a case of giardia and the courtyard had been steadily filling with neighbours and children coming to greet us. I decided to wait until people had left, a poor decision in retrospect given that the only times the courtyard would ever be empty would between 9:30 PM and 5 AM. The courtyard continued to fill, as did the intestinal pressure. I will only say that complete disaster and injury to innocent bystanders were only averted by an exceedingly gentle and controlled peristaltic release timed to the hearty laughs Charlotte was eliciting as she attempted some Hausa greetings. In retrospect perhaps there is something to be said for just using the bush toilet, public health concerns aside.
One of our first visits was to the pastor of the local church. Midweek prayers had been rescheduled to Friday evening (I suspect for us) with the topic surprisingly being “stress management” where people were encouraged to take time for themselves from their busy daily schedules. The services were in Hausa with Isaac giving a synopsis afterward. We also walked to the local chief’s house to join in the community’s condolences for the loss of a family member. Other greeting visits included another village head, the pastor there and Athanasius’ father. (Although we did not catch him the two times we tried, he later came to greet us at Isaac and Elsina’s home.)
Isaac and family were willing Hausa teachers and we did our best to learn the greetings (although there always seems to be more to learn) and some other basic language skills like counting. Our greetings often caused great laughter. All the children learned quickly and Tanner became a community favourite with his willingness to engage in greeting, always ending with a “Yauwa” delivered with a dramatic flair.
Markets are held every day it seems at different villages. We enjoyed them all- lots of new sights, sounds, smells and tastes- exciting and usually (but not always) pleasant. The children especially enjoyed the sugar cane and I tried some Kola nut. (I’m not yet sure the bitterness is worth the slightly sweet aftertaste it leaves behind.) It was fun watching Charlotte shake hands to lots of grins and laughing with all the children who always followed our course through the market. Inevitably one would run away, afraid of Charlotte’s offered hand. Isaac admitted that parents will sometimes tell the children that if they don’t behave, the white people will take them away. On the way back from market Isaac pointed out the long grass marking where his grandfather was buried- Isaac said that the possibility of spirits returning keep people away from graves generally. An exposed solid rock hilltop provided a breathtaking view of the valley below, filled with homes tucked between cultivated plots and natural land formations. Although I had assumed that the land was naturally fertile enough to support such intensive farming, I was told that fertilizers are very necessary and quite expensive. Apparently the introduction of non-indigenous maize (corn) has exacerbated this. Isaac did show me how they plant different crops together, with potatoes being planted between the maize stalks and beans planted to climb the stalks (half-remembered facts of “nitrogen fixing” come to mind). Isaac also pointed out the thorn trees that are left in the fields to enhance the soil quality.
Sunday service had us honoured up front on the raised dais. The singing groups were fun, with the youth band getting everyone up dancing while offerings were paraded up front. I just hope that the smaller children were not too traumatized from seeing an overweight Mennonite bature (white person) “grooving” up front. I was honoured to offer the congregational blessing to the potatoes and maize that had been laid at the altar as an offering of first fruits of the harvest season. A blessing ceremony was also held after the service for a machine (motorcycle) that had been purchased by a congregant, praying for safe use and service to God. I was very happy to see this very practical “public health intervention”, given the extremely dangerous nature of the combination of poor road conditions, active and varied roadside activity, aggressive driving habits of Nigerians, and motorcycles and cars constantly weaving in and out of each other. I love to see theology and health mixing it up. One village woman was particularly happy to see us with four children (a “Nigerian family”), going on at fair length about the western practice of family planning being imposed/adopted in Nigeria. I wasn’t sure what to say.
Isaac used the church van and a driver to transport us on a couple of sightseeing outings. The surrounding country with its winding roads, steeply climbing hills covered in green, and deep gorges carved by rushing water were very beautiful. I was impressed when we stopped to greet some Fulani (Muslim) friends of our hosts along the road. Isaac said that relations are very good during times of peace, but can become strained during times of conflict when it is easy to become suspicious of neighbours, particularly those that are nomadic and with whom connections are not so good. After visiting a nearby volcanic lake and hearing some of the many stories surrounding it (e.g. the medicinal qualities of the water) we went to visit a traditional bone setter compound. A couple of dozen patients filled the rooms, with family members coming to support them until they recovered enough to return home. Some had accompanying X-rays showing severe breaks, most caused by motorcycle crashes. Isaac reported that results are very good and people come here from very away to receive treatment. It felt a long way away from an orthopaedic floor in North America. When we visited the COCIN church clinic later, the community health workers said they do work with the bone setters to help with pain meds, labs, and antibiotics when necessary. It was interesting discussing the treatment of TB patients at the COCIN clinic, and we were able to greet a young mother who had just delivered at the clinic early the morning of our visit. They do a lot without a doctor present at the clinic.
The difficult moments I remember include understanding that men and women usually eat separately, dark rooms, worrying about our children being too rambunctious at times that might not have been appropriate, being afraid that our hosts would be offended by Charlotte and I having disagreements (i.e. feel that they had somehow let us down), often wondering how our hosts were feeling about our stay, and learning to accept being constantly and graciously served while doing very little ourselves.
The most enjoyable moments include refreshing bucket baths with water drawn directly from the well, morning and evening; awaking to the sound of the courtyard being swept, Happy softly singing, and the smell of the kitchen wood fire; the sound of rain on the metal roofing; the amazing display of stars and milky way in the dark night sky (is it possible for the sky to be bigger here than back home?); watching our children play football, jump rope, dance and laugh with the other children; trying new foods, chips (french fries) for breakfast (everyone knew the children loved this); market visits; learning Hausa phrases; and the sense of community life. (Charlotte and I have often enjoyed and been challenged by living in community.) The greatest benefit was the unexpected friendship and connection to our host family and community. We were told repeatedly that we are now to consider this our Nigerian village home, something that all Nigerians have. Just spending so much time hanging out with folks adds a level of ease to being here. The small glimpse into village life also broadens my understanding of how most people still live in the country.
Although we had discussed our upcoming village visit with the country reps, we had not heard other village visit stories at orientation and had not actually given much thought to the visit ahead of time. In some ways it was kind of nice to go a bit naively, as well as not to have had heavy expectations placed on us by the CR’s. This worked for us since our visit was well prepared and organized. We were well cared and provided for, with our hosts trying to put us at ease in every way possible. The duration was fine with the five days certainly never leaving us bored- maybe a day or 2 longer would also have been fine given the number of things that Isaac wanted to do and see. (We were lucky to be in the village at a time when Isaac and Elsina had most of the days off from work anyway.) I am very grateful to the MCC staff and host family and community for having provided this opportunity.
One of my favourite memories of our time in Bwonpe will be the many people coming into the compound the day of our departure, bringing us gifts of over 200 pounds of freshly dug potatoes. Now we can enjoy chips for breakfast long after leaving and remember our new village.


Tanner (age 11)
My trip to the village was really fun. The first thing we did was eat lunch. The lunch was very good. Then Isaac showed us around the village. After that we had supper. For supper we had mashed potato stuff with a stew. The next day we had a hot chocolate mix thing and chips for breakfast. We met some more people and had the same lunch and supper. I liked everything that we ate. The next day we had the same for all the meals. We met some more kids and me and Westen played soccer/football with them. On Saturday we went to the market, I liked the sugar cane the best. On the way back we stopped and rested on a huge rock. I really liked it. On Sunday we went to church. Church was 2 and a half hours long. The next day we went to a lake. On the last day we went to another market. When I first came I felt shy and when we left I did not feel shy at all. I learned a lot of Hausa there. I especially liked the greetings and learning how to count. I liked everything.