Bambey, every day

So the last few days have been productive but mostly uneventful. My counterpart has been taking me to meet people and everyone seems really excited to do work. I know that doesn't mean they're actually excited to do the work but it's nice to have a whole wide range of possibilities.

A few days ago my hfdad told me that his sister's husband had died and then didn't bring it up again so I let it slide to the back of my mind. Then last night I saw my hfsisters plucking chickens and I got really excited, chicken for dinner! Awesome! Then people started arriving at my house. By the time dinner (two chickens) was served there were 14 of us - not that I'm complaining most volunteers never get chicken. I was starting to realize it probably had something to do with the death so I made sure I got up early this morning, put on Senegalese clothes, and went downstairs. I found my hfmom and asked, quite bluntly and very un-Senegalese (but there are somethings you just can't beat around the bush) "what's going on? why is everyone here?" She explained how 3 days after a death everyone gets together to offer prayers but that wouldn't be happening at our house! They would be going to the sisters house! They would just be eating lunch here.

By the time I got my bean sandwich and came back everyone was up and starting to get moving for the day... then more people started showing up. I'm not really sure what was happening at our house and what was happening at the other house, but around lunch (we had chicken again) there were about 30-50 people here. But backing up a little...
I'm a big fan of helping in the kitchen, not only because I enjoy cooking and grew up helping in the kitchen, but I feel like it also earns me points with the women in the family as well as helps me with my Wolof a little. Almost every Senegalese dish involves onions which is a task that I had previously been forbidden from because (mom and all the mom's out there reading this blog don't freak out) the Senegalese way to cut an onion goes against everything I was ever taught about kitchen safety. You basically let the peeled onions sit in water when you're not dicing them (so they're slippery and wet when you pick them up) then you hold the onion in your left hand and, with a horribly dull, flimsy knife, you slice towards your other hand to make cuts across the onion, then you slice through the onion, again towards your hand. Obviously, the first time I tried I cut my finger and have since been forbidden from helping. I was given easier tasks like pounding spices until today when I was DETERMINED to actually help. I explained (mostly through gestures) that if I could use a flat surface, I could cut the onions and they let me! A small step for cooking but a large step for me gaining respect, or at least not seeming like a total idiot, with the women!

Other than that I've been a bad family member and I've been kind of hiding in my room for most of the day. My language skills still aren't good enough to even follow a conversation and there isn't really much to do. I've started studying for the LSAT, we'll see how that progresses. Oh, speaking of language skills, I was able to say "I'm tired so I'm going to go drink coffee" that was really awesome.

And in one last bit of news, I think I made my hfmom amazingly happy today because I was hungry. Yep. I didn't even do anything, just be hungry, but she was so happy she was telling everyone. I'm guessing it's because I rarely eat a ton ever and the fact that today, I was hungry, made her overjoyed. So excited she walked up next to me and said "she's hungry!" and patted my butt/side.

That's it for Bambey, tomorrow I'm supposed to see the schools. Oh, one more thing, I REALLY can't wait until I can speak Wolof because I think my hfmom's pissed she has to cook dinner for everyone, I think that's what she was muttering about to some of the other women, but I'm not sure and I wish I knew!

KO