We wanted to mark St. Valentine’s Day as the celebration of a Saint who bravely continued to marry young lovers despite Claudius II decreeing it illegal. We admire his deep courage, which sadly cost him his life.
As you will have read, we often describe the ladies at Mulberry Mongoose as courageous for many reasons. How hard they work and the way they use strength to make snare coils, hammered snare beads and wooden beads. The way they live their lives, on average each member of Mulberry Mongoose is supporting 9 dependants on their one salary. Their daily routine might seem extraordinary too. Walking miles to get water or firewood.
I asked the ladies to tell me extraordinary stories about their every day life. At first they didn’t feel they had anything to share. I explained that, for people who don’t live in the African bush, bumping into elephant is extraordinary... that’s when the stories started to flow. Here are three and I hope to share many more!
Mirriam:
‘Last Friday two elephants invaded a maize field around 21.00 hours. When the owners found out they started blowing a Vuvuzela to chase them away! But they didn’t know how to blow it and instead it just made a strange and croaky sound. I am their neighbour and raced over to try to help. At first I couldn’t blow it too and it made a crazy sound and then it worked and the elephant went away’
and:
‘During the rainy season there is a place where a buffalo goes and stays where it’s bushy and green. One day, when my friends went to fetch water, they did not know the buffalo was there and as they were coming back the buffalo saw them and not knowing what to do they screamed. When it was about to start chasing them a man saw what was happening and took off his belt throwing it on the floor. The buffalo thought it was a snake and ran away… my friends were ok.’
Clera
‘2 of my young neighbours, 3 and 4 years old, were playing when they heard a dog bark 2 times. They found a giant python trying to swallow the dog and ran and got my father who luckily managed to prize the snake off and, with the help of 2 other men, they took the huge python into the park and released it.’