Village Life

I think I may have finally come to terms with life in the village. Although I still standby the belief that this lifestyle is not for me, I do respect it and see its value. What continues to astonish me is how little it has changed in the last century. Whether that is because of peoples’ unwillingness or lack of desire for change or from a serious neglect on part of the government I will never know. More or less though, life in the bush is fairly predictable and stable, though without many commodities, and I think that has its certain appeals.

At first glance, it is easy to write off the rural community as underdeveloped and in need of a lot of aid. However, that ignores many of the inner-workings of these local societies. Mud huts with grass-thatched roofs are the norm, at least in my area. To an American, they look dismal. I could never imagine my mother or my sister living in a house that has actual dirt for walls alongside rats. However, these homes are extremely economical. They make use of the resources that are around, are extremely cheap to construct, and stay very cool in the equatorial heat while keeping you warm at night. Isn’t this the one with nature that hippies are always talking about? Now there is very often no electricity and that does inhibit a lot of growth for communities, including health and education deficits. But life is simple and people do not need a lot. Time is consumed by how long it takes to cook and clean everything, including the time it takes to walk to the local borehole and pump for water. Most of the food the family needs to eat or to sell for money is either right in the backyard or in a neighbor’s backyard whom they share with. Everyone in the community knows one another intimately, so it is like having an extremely large and close family who will all put together the little resources they have to send the kids to school or save someone’s life who is in the hospital. Everyone greets everyone else, because why not. It makes perfect sense to want to talk to people you know and catch up on what’s new in their life. When a family member dies, it is not uncommon for the entire village, hundreds of people, to come and support the family. With everyone contributing a small amount, it becomes easy for the family to feed everyone and get by for the weeks of grieving without working. Those same family members are all buried on the family land so it is easy to remember them and feel like they are close by. Local politics keeps things moving and make sure everyone does what they are supposed to. Instead of threatening people with jail, possible isolation from the entire network of support keeps crime low.

Life in the village is not all sunshine and candy. It is hard work and there is a severe lack of resources and opportunity. Most schools are poorly run, healthcare is virtually nonexistent, superstition prospers, education is extremely low, and people do not make enough money to save or grow as a family. So there are tradeoffs. But what I once saw as boring, simple, backwards, and poor, I now see a little differently and have respect for the people living there. The busyness and lack of friendliness in urban areas seems a little less desirable. Not to mention all the delicious, fresh food that is everywhere. I do feel lucky to live in a house that is safe, well-constructed, and has water and electricity. I am not quite ready to give up those comfortabilities for months at a time. But having to go weeks without either has taught me that I can survive without them, in fact millions do. And I really do appreciate my time spent just sitting with neighbors and eating lunch amongst family with food grown and prepared by their own hands. Running water is very clearly a luxury and I hope to remain aware of just how much drinking water is wasted in everyday life in America. All I can say is that if there was a nuclear disaster and we had to start over, these people would know exactly how to survive and people in America would turn barbaric.