It is a very hot, heavy, and humid day here in Liberia. It is only 10:00 am and already I have been sweating since I got out of bed. There is no breeze to speak of. However, it is warm and there is no snow. For that we are very thankful. I don't believe that Timothy misses the snow at all. When I asked him this morning if it was going to rain, he replied, "That it doesn't matter, we will make it!" Why is it that we complain against the occasional extremes.
The election is over and the results are in: President Ellen Johnson Serlieff has been re-elected by a majority of 98%. I guess there is no question of a recount because of a very close vote. Most everyone around in the community was dancing upon hearing the results. I am very happy and hope that one day I will actually get to meet her in person. She is amazing and Liberia is progressing under her leadership. She is no nonsense person and will not stand for unreasonable actions.
Today, son Jackie, is moving back home. He will be sharing a room with grandson Koyo. It will be a bit crowded as you can barely walk around his bed, however, he will be in a better position to have some guidance from Timothy and begin to save some money as he works. He is a very good carpenter and pays his bills on time, but does not save for unexpected expenses. He often acts and then thinks later. It is not bad and only for a short time until he is able to find a place nearby.
We have discovered that everytime we do laundry, it rains. It is like those of you who wash your car and it rains that day or the day after. We did serveral days of laundry and had it all on the line. About 2 hours later, we had an unexpected rain that really came down. However, now our clothes are rainwater softened without the cost of the softener. I recall when we were here in 1998 as a workteam in Buchannan, that the guys would put on their swimtrunks when it would rain and take a shower under the eaves of the house. The water would hit the hot tin roof and warm as it ran down and off the edge. They said it made for a great shower. I mentioned it to Timothy, but he didn't think it would be something that he would try. The children do have great fun running around in the rain and cooling off, getting clean at the same time.
Timothy has gone into town today to prepare for next Friday which will be the graduation of his study group at LEAP. This is a financial management class given to men and women to teach them financial management as they enter into business. At the end of the class they are eligible for apply for a Micro-loan to enlarge their business. He is doing this as a learning experience for his Micro-Franchise project.
Grandson Luther decided this morning that he was a puppy like Rolf. He is maybe 2 years old and wanted some attention. He crawled around on all fours, got Rolf's toy rubber bone and was carrying it in his mouth. Rolf tolerated that all right until Luther thought he might taste the dog food and lap the water. Rolf decided that was a little too much and started edging him out of the space. Luther was licking his mouth like Rolf does and laying his head in my lap to be petted. It was just too funny. I was fixing morning tea and peanut butter bread and when I told him that puppies didn't drink tea and eat bread, and it was only for little boys, Luther realized that it might be better to be a little boy than a dog. Later I was getting dressed and used my deoderant. Luther raised his arms to have some put on him as well. He loves to pretend to drive a car and scoots around on a small bench, chair or water jug constantly. We have a "pickup" and a "Mustang" (old water jugs) parked in the yard that belong to him and a friend.
Otherwise, the community is about its daily activities - getting water at the well, wheelbarrow sellers coming through with their various goods they are selling (toilet paper, brushes, soap, biscuits, etc.) children playing (some are gathered and jumping up and down on a large pile of branches where a tree was cut down Saturday), laundry is doen and hung out to dry (yet again), and the honking of cars and trucks as they pass up and down the main road nearby. The lizards are running up and down the sides of the house, there have been a few snakes killed nearby as they are coming out now that it is warmer, and we have a little mouse (although here they are called rats and what we can rats are called mice) running in and out. Timothy is getting glue traps today to try to catch it.
Have a great day
Timothy and Anne
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