How are you doing? I learned something new this week. I have noticed that under and around some of the homes here in Guyana the dirt seems different. It looks more smooth and soft. Well, I have learned the secret. The secret ingredient is. . . . cow poop. We had just arrived at Vicky and Popo's house. They are two deaf brothers. I saw that Popo was walking back with a bucket full of something. He proceeded to dump the bucket out a few feet from us, fresh cow dung. He then fetched some water in the bucket, came back and started mixing in cow dung by the handfuls. Elbow deep in the bucket, kneading the special concoction. The smell, sound and sight of it was almost to much to handle. I know its just cow poop, but that's nasty. I controlled my urge to dry heave, and continued the study. Popo then dumped the bucket out and started spreading the cow dung paste around with a broom. Cow dung mixture flinging everywhere, getting closer and closer to us. I made sure Popo kept his distance as now he was pretty well covered in the mixture. The deaf sister I was with said it was making her feel sick. So we finished up and left. I guess I am no country boy.
At Memorial we had 98 in attendance, of which 54 were deaf. So we fell short of our goal of 100. From our side of the river 14 deaf and 8 hearing went. We were stressed about getting everyone there. We hired a bus, and called over and over again to make sure they were still going. We had so many that wanted to come that we had to ask one of the students, Imran, who has a car to drive. We were relieved that he was happy help out. Well, picking everyone up went well. The only hangup was that one deaf man wasn't ready, which didn't surprise us because we don't think he ever learned the calendar. We had tried to call his neighbor to tell him to get ready. But when he saw us, he hurriedly got ready and jumped in the bus. The Memorial started at 6 pm, so we started picking up people at 3:30. We had the goal of having everyone picked up by 5. That worked out perfect. But there was one problem. To get to New Amsterdam, where the Memorial was taking place, you have to cross a bridge. Everyday, this bridge closes for an hour and a half to allow boats to pass. It was scheduled to open at 5:20 pm. That would be fine, great we would arrive by 5:45. Well, the bridge opened late. It stayed closed waiting for a tug boat. It finally opened at 6. Needless to say, we were late. As I was the speaker, everyone waited for us. That makes for a rushed, stressful feeling as I was trying to deliver the most important talk of the year. Oh well, the deaf all seemed to enjoy the Memorial.
Jaide brought snacks to give everyone on the bus so they would not be tempted by the bread being passed. She fed everyone cheese crackers and banana bread. After the Memorial, they got oatmeal raisin cookies.
Guyanese word of the day: dhol. In a sentence, "get a dhol with me." What does it mean? No, it is not a foreign Barbie. It means to quarrel or get in a argument.
Love,
