stories, from africa: Rising Above

While I haven't traveled anywhere this holiday season, I have had a steady stream of unlikely visitors. Not family, and friends is a bigger word than I would use to describe them---I am not sure there really is a word. The first was my business partner, though it seems we are less in the process of creating a business, more like a social enterprise. We're still working out where the profits are going to come from.

The second was our nanny from Abidjan. I just got a little side tracked reading old Abidjan posts looking for a link to share. She has been there for us since before Mbalia was born, making her more like a second mother.

Back when I thought I might be visiting Kin for the holidays, I invited her to come and stay with Mbalia, feeling secure with her in the midst of my Bamako nanny woes. In the end, I have found a pretty amazing nanny and I didn't go to Kinshasa. Christine was still really looking forward to coming and what's more festive than out of town visitors? Nabih and Mohamed are both off in Dakar and the house has been feeling a bit empty. Christine's presence was sure to spice things up.

It has been a fun week, not at all awkward, though Christine and I are not exactly friends. We have always managed a good exchange, however ,and Mbalia is delighted to see her. She spent the first few days literally attached to her side and even now, after a whole week together, she still keeps close tabs on Christine. It's going to be a hard goodbye.

Christine and I have had a chance to swap stories and learn a bit more about each other. It turns out she didn't actually grow up in the lettuce fields of M'Puto as I had imagined. When her father died, Christine was just 6. There are four girls in her family and all but the youngest were shipped out to 'relatives.' Christine ended up in the cacao fields with someone she thinks is her uncle. I didn't press her on this point- but it is curious that she is not sure of the relationship. I think it points out the lack of closeness and comfort. Surely, it didn't feel like home.

I asked her what that meant- working in the orchard. The men would chop the cacao and she would gather. She also chopped away weeds and things, keeping the area clear. We'd been walking through the park during this conversation, having brought Mbalia out to play for the day. I took a look around at the botanical gardens, so neat and pristine in the National Park.

It hit me that Christine was likely one of those children, the kids who work on the cocoa farms. At 18 she left for Abidjan, joining her older sister there. She still has scars from her work as a child.

I couldn't help but imagine the memories she holds, and the path that has taken her from that life to the present. She is still trying to find her way, a single mother without many prospects for employment. She makes juice and sells it in the market when she is not cleaning houses. It's an inconsistent income. A difficult path from challenging roots.

We try to brainstorm solutions. She is pretty talented at braiding hair. I've told her to start taking and saving pictures of hairstyles she creates. She admits there are things she doesn't know about adding mesh and creating some really complex styles. There's a lot she could learn.

Her inability to read and write gets in the way. Even though she has been attending night school for several years, I sense that the progress is slow. She tells me she ranked third in her class during the last evaluation. When I ask her what kind of things she can read, she tells me she can read the text that they use in class. It doesn't sound like a very practical application.

I am all too aware of the language classes that result in students who 'read' excerpts of text and fill in blanks responding to what they've understood. It is a rudimentary system at best. I don't have a lot of faith in it, but maybe patience is what's required. It takes time to learn to read. Honestly, I am not sure how long it can realistically take a grown up to learn to read. This study suggests even six months can make a huge difference.

But reading needs to be relevant in order to be applied. We talked a bit about how it is still possible to be an entrepreneur, even without literacy. It takes time and a little bit of capital to get a business going. In a small way, Christine is already running her own business. She makes and sells juice. But she is faced with problems such as not having consistent electricity to keep things stored properly. She could expand to making the milk drink popularly sold in the market, but this spoils too quickly without refrigeration.

Christine is still just under 30. There's time and she is pretty determined. It only takes one good opportunity. But then again, it takes at least one good opportunity. It's not easy rising above our childhoods.