CrystalFromIowa

Wanting to be respectful of the village as its mourned the death of one of its members and knowing that we would unlikely return to build on Friday as anticipated, we worked hard to finish everything we could on the two houses. We completed most of the walls, though the builders completed the very top when it became more complicated. Since the top of the walls tended to be peaked, the strings that served as our levels needed to be moved more frequently. As a result we had extra downtime. We used part of that downtime to ask the Habitat staff and village leaders questions. One thing we learned is that for people's birthday, they sing "Happy Birthday" in English. They do not have any native song or tradition beyond using our simple ones. This topic ... read more

On the way to the build site we stopped at a local market along the street. I spent a good portion of my kwacha (local currency) on two items for myself: a carved Noah's Ark and a carved nativity scene. The nativity scene has Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, an angel, a hut, a tree and a couple lambs. The Noah's Ark is a wooden ark that has a top that can be removed. Inside were lots of carved animals (in pairs) and Noah. Very happy with my purchases as I collect nativity scenes from around the world and love Noah's Ark. While not a fan of it because I am always afraid of not insulting the vendor, I did haggle on the price. Trying to secure a lower price is part of the culture so was ... read more

We split part of today between the build site and visiting other places near the village, which provided us a deeper understanding about life for the community and the challenges the people of Malawi face. Our hosts and the leaders of the villages never seem to grow weary of all the questions we ask of them about their culture. I am humbled by their honesty and vulnerability as they share the challenges the people face and the stigmas that they have to battle. We stopped first thing at the local primary school. Children receive free primary education from kindergarten through 8th grade. The curriculum covers 9 subjects, including learning English. Our arrival created a a bit of a frenzy as the kids rushed to see us. The crowd grew as they started singing a song to ... read more

After a hearty breakfast, which is a necessity for my malaria medication, I purchased some trinkets from the vendors along the shore of Lake Malawi. I ended up getting several paintings and keychains. I will receive the keychains tomorrow as they are being hand-carved on one side with the names I provided and one of the other side with an animal found in Africa. I am not the greatest at negotiating for lower prices and was trying to purchase items from several of the vendors instead of just one. Before heading to the build site, the team started the morning with a devotion on what it means to be an observer versus a participant. We discussed how we view and interact with those we come into contact with each day, ... read more

A 32-year old widow, Pelepetuwa raises five children ages 17-8: Mary, Essaya, Stella, Weston and Veronica. Heavy rains destroyed the family's house so they current reside with Pelepetuwa's oldest daughter who has 3 children. This means 10 people live inside a small single roomed house, built with unburnt bricks, a dirt floor, no windows and almost no ventiliation. In addition, Pelepetuwa and one of her children are HIV positive and receive ARV medication from the government. Pelepetuwa shared her dreams of homeownership, "Getting a Habitat house would mean the world to me, I would have my privacy as my kids are getting older every day and its gets uncomfortable at times as there are boys as well sharing the same space and not only is this true for ... read more