Friends, family, and other things

On Monday of last week I left Gamboula for Congo. Since Roy and Aleta already had a trip planned to go be with family, I decided to take a break as well. I managed to make it all the way to Kikongo, DR Congo by the end of the week! Even though the distances between stops are not that far, this trip can sometimes take a long time, so I was happy that flights and road trips worked out just right without a lot waiting between them.

Kikongo is the village I grew up in. I still have a lot of friends and even part of my family here. After being away from Kikongo almost 4 years, it is great to be back and see all the familiar hills, houses, roads, plants, and buildings. Since I got here I have had people of all ages yelling my name, and running up to shake my hand. The older men and woman especially seem grateful to see me, “a child of the village come back home.” Many of the boys I use to play with are no longer around, but their moms are all happy to see me and shake my hand. I have already received gifts of fresh peanuts, Corn, caterpillars, and other kinds of fresh fruits welcoming me back. This is the time of year peanuts are being harvested, so I have been out to the fields with friends to collect and eat fresh peanuts.

There are many small kids who do not remember me when I was here last, but who know me from my videos. I have been sending weekly 2 minute video clips on agriculture tips to my dad to project here. These younger kids know me from the moves, and while walking through the pastoral school the other day, I had about 20 kids all around the age of 5 hanging on to my fingers as I walked.   

All my young plants and seeds also made it here safely. Among  tons of flower seeds for my mom, I have 6 new kinds of fruit trees to introduce. Many we planted in sacks the first afternoon I got here, while others are waiting to be put in the ground.

My mom and dad take care of all kinds of crazy animals here at the house, so I am getting my animal fix. Gamboula does not have a single cat that I know of, so I was very happy to see that Pursue, our mother cat, was still here. We have had her for years, and she is the sweetest cat and can’t ever seem to get enough attention. She is not as active as she used to be, and no longer has kittens, but she is an extremely friendly cat.
             The day I got here my mom asked if I wanted to go pick up a package with her at the pastor’s house. The package turned out to be a long haired calico kitten to keep Pursue company and add a little more energy to the house. So far this little ball of fuzz enjoys warm laps, playing, and following feet. I think it will be a good addition.

The two twitchy blue diker antelope are still here, along with a whole herd of hairless bunnies and a guinea pig. The bunnies were supposed to have little ones by the time I got here, but they started losing all their hair a few weeks back, and it looks like they will not have any babies this time around.

Bill the kamakazi horn bill who used to dive bomb and peck my parents is no longer around, and Kamiya, the Congo Clawless otter has also returned to the wild. The cowardly jackal, however, is still here though. This fox like animal is quite beautiful and even mysterious. She materializes out of the shadows after dusk to eat, and hangs around until just after dawn before disappearing back in to the grassland. She is extremely shy, constantly moving, and when spooked disappears, only to re appear as quietly and quickly as she vanished. After seeing her a few times, she has finally approached close enough for me to touch her shoulders.

And then there is the miniature monkey, a comedian. This little guy was raised by a Congolese, but became extremely malnourished, sick and lost all its hair. It was brought to my mom for rehabilitation, and has now been nursed back to health. He is now as big as he may ever get, which is about 1/3 the normal size, but makes up for his size with his personality. I just had to run out the door to rescue him from a mother hen whose chicks he was harassing. The hens are not his only chicken problem. He is afraid of the big red rooster because of a previous encounter. Because of this, anything red is a threat now. If someone walks up with a red shirt, or flip flops, he will screech, and climb up high. Like the jackal he is also quite insecure. He often shakes his head in circles, or grabs his right leg or tail for security, if he is nervous about something. He is quite cute, and the most well behaved monkey I have ever come in contact with. He provides endless entertainment and laughs for anyone sitting on our porch.

The internet system here is down, but there is one computer at the hospital that has internet threw another system.  I managed to get a time slot where it was not in use when I could get this out. Our internet should be up and running soon though, and I will try to get some photos up.