Pictures above (Not sure of the order): Boys and girls at the district cultural fair. They danced and sang and did well. My firepit looking back on the mountain and peach blossoms. Kemelo working on bookends. Some other Form As working on bookends. The class posing for a picture after watching Planet Earth.
Thursday Mike and I were finishing up some bookend for the library when Ntate Mokhosi dropped by to see what we were doing. We told them and he was happy to see that the library was getting organized and such. He is a language teacher and takes students into the library fairly often. Mike said that he’d heard a lot of drums and singing the previous couple of nights and asked Ntate Mokhosi if he knew what was going on. Mokhosi said he didn’t, but he was going up to the chief’s place and said that he’d ask.
Later that night Mike and I were boiling some lentils for lentil burgers when Mokhosi dropped by and said that if we went up to the chief’s they would sing and dance for us. So, we put on our coats and trudged up the hill to the chief’s place.
We knocked at the kitchen door and entered into the room with 13 people huddled around the wood fired cooking stove. Greetings were exchanged and we said that we were told to come up to see some dancing and singing. Some talking in Sesotho ensued and one of the ladies stood up and left the kitchen. She returned a few minutes later dressed in a red sweater and red skirt and she put on a string of triangular shakers around each ankle. Then the drum started along with singing, clapping and the woman in red danced. Hard. Everybody in the candle lit, wood stove warmed room was smiling and singing and clapping.
This continued for at least 45 minutes with different women in the family jumping up for different songs and dances. Eventually the woman in red indicated that she was exhausted and she was dripping sweat. Mike and I said our thank yous and headed back to make our lentil burgers. It was probably the most warm and cultural experience that I’ve had in Lesotho so far.
3 comments:
your story warmed my heart too. is that your generator? good use. neat pix. aunt ruth is biking for ms this weekend. in the 7 years she's done this she's raised over $10k for ms. doris and lisa are going to bike with her. lisa is into road racing; has a nice bike according to jeff. i have motorcycle pix on facebook.
Hi Phil Well I did bike but really got pooped! Seems like my brake was rubbing! After that was taken care of things went better. Lisa is into doing Iron Man's she is signed up to do the one at Penticton next year. I went camping at Cougar Rock near Paradise on Mt. Rainier. Just one night but it was great. Had a good time with Larry and Barb LeFevre yesterday. Met up with your Mom and Dad at one Winery and then out for dinner. Found out that Larry and Barb had been at Krakow shortly after I was last year and they had eaten at the Farina restaurant too! Love, Aunt Ruth
so, you were in my dream last night, and here was the plot: you were home for like 2 days and then were going back to Lesotho, and so you didn't tell anyone, but you got a job at an airport. I went to said airport to fly home for something, and you checked my passport and I knew it was you (despite the fact that you had a huge bushy beard) and I started crying and I was so happy you were there, and then everyone in the airport line behind me started yelling at me to keep moving. Your thoughts?
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