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Published: September 21st 2012
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Boy From Ikwiriri
This guy was so intrigued to see an old white guy. He just stood there smiling. Traveling to the field affords me the opportunity to see and experience so many different things. There have been a lot of "firsts" in the 15 months that I have been here.
One of the best things about visiting the out-of-the-way places is the the children I get to see. For the most part, I don't spend a lot of time with them but they are beautiful. Whether they are curious, shy or unhibited when it comes to strangers, these kids grab my heart and wring it out every time.
Usually the encounter goes like this....
I get out of the vehicle and they stop dead in their tracks, staring at me. For some of them it is the first time they have seen a Muzungu. I say hi to them in kiswahili (
"mambo") and they respond with,
"poa" (rhymes with boa). Some keep their distance as they hide in their mother's skirt. Others will hang back with their friends to see what I will do. Others will run over screaming,
"Muzungu" at their top of their lungs. Usually that is follwed up with,
"How are you?"... a saying they learn very early here. I answer them with,
Young Boy In Karatu
Met this young man on our scouting trip for Ruka Juu contestants. "I am fine. How are you?". They only know how to say,
"How are you?" because no one taught them how to respond to the question. Our conversation goes like this...
"Muzungu, how are you?" "I am fine, thank you. How are you?" "How are you?" "I am fine, thank you. How are you?" "How are you?" "I am fine, thank you. How are you?" "How are you?" You get the picture... It could go on all day.
In Tanzanian, kiswahili is taught in the primary school. It isn't until the secondary school where english is introduced. As a result, if a young girl or boy drops out of school after primary school (which is quite common), they never really learn english. If they should have children, they do not have the ability to teach english to the kids.
In the rural areas, there is very little need for english. If they learn it in the secondary shools but don't use it at home, they revert back to kiswahili. I imagine it is like us with our second and third languages. If we don't use them, we eventually lose them.
There are debates here on whether Tanzanian children should be learning english in grade schools. Some argue that english is the language that is used for trade & commerce in most countries in the world, so everyone should know it. Others say that not everyone in the world need to be Westernized. At this point, I am unsure where I stand on the issue. I can understand both points of view.
Somehow, the these kids and I have no problem communicating in our simplistic ways.
When I take their picture, I immediately show them the shot on the digital camera. They look at themselves and their friends and the laughter erupts. They point at the picture and speak to one another at a crazy pace of kiswahili excitement. The laughter stops and they look at me and say,
"Picha?". This usually means that they want more pictures taken. When this happens, we start the whole process all over again... very much like our inital conversation of
"How are you?". Like all kids I have met, Tanzanian children love to have their picture taken.
The TV Team stand there and shake their heads when they see how
well the kids and I communicate with only a handful of words.
Here, a child may belong to one person, but the attitude here is that everyone is responsible for raising or helping with her or her. I could be riding on a
daladala (public bus) and someone could put their child in my lap. The mother may need a break or is simply tired of holding the baby. If this happens, the child becomes your responsibility for the duration of your ride or until someone else takes the baby away. Usually, the locals think it is funny when they see a Muzungu holding a Tanzanian child so no one is in a rush take it away from you.
Children here listen to their elders. If anyone older than them tells them to do something, they listen and obey. There is an automatic respect for anyone older in this society. In the western countries, kids would say, "
You aren't my parent. You can't tell me what to do!" Here, children do what anyone older than them tells them to do... A 10 year old could tell a three year old to do something and the 3 year old
actually does what he/she is told to do. It is quite interesting to see "respect" in action.
These pictures are of some of the faces I have met on my travels here.
I swear, if I could bring these children home with me, my mom would have hundreds of new grandchildren.
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Amit
non-member comment
LOL imagining the look of shock on your face the first time you were on a bus and a mother placed a random Tanzanian child on your lap.