Operation: Leaky Straw [Roof] or Barn Raising Mali Style

I've been thinking a lot lately when I'm sitting at my site, between reading countless books that I should have read in high school (but didn't), about what I should write about it my blog. I think, ' Self, what would you want to know about Malian life if you were in America', and then I take notes. Or rather, photos. And now that I've been able to post some of them, I'm able to introduce you, the reader, into the fantastic life of Peace Corps volunteers...

As can be seen from a previous post my house is made of mud and straw with a mud wall and a papaya tree. The joy of using these materials (other than finding peanut shells in your wall when you're cooking) is that every two years you've got to go back in - in American theory, more on that later - and fix all the holes and cracks and leaks that develop over the monsoon rainy season.

As a result of being a second volunteer, the house I live in was comfortably broken [in]. So, this hot season - when villagers can actually work around the village rather than go to there fields - my entire town, males that is, came to my house to fix it all up new and shiny. Oh, and too, I had a family of mice living in my roof/walls. I, having so much time on my hands, decided to name them. The first, and largest, was named Gerald D. Comupance IV. The rest were named similarly - and accordingly.



So the first step in Mali Home Makeover is to remove all the old straw from the frame of the roof - as can be seen in these two photos. (Up and Below)

This involved a couple guys jumping on my hut - rather climbing up it - and just ripping it all apart. It was actually quite amazing to see because the hut is 12 feet tall and there is this guy tight rope walking up the bamboo shoots and just going to town.

Following, everyone gathers around and pulls the frame of (see photo about) and brings it to the ground where they remove termite ridden beams and retie the entire thing up.

They then wrap up some more straw on it - nearly four layers - so it gets super large and heavy and then...

Everyone gathers around to lift it back up. These things are massive and incredibly heavy so 25 men have to lift. Wow.

So then, when all is said and done, you get these super cool looking huts with nice new yellow straw. And then, the best part really, is that the mouse family previously evicted, moves back in.

And then you get Madu and his slingshot to spend sometime on the prowl. The papaya he earned was most definitely worth it. (Or the fact that he took the mouse, cooked it up and ate it. Mmmm)