I live in a very nice place. I have very nice neighbors most have jobs and good incomes. The children in my community go to very nice schools, both public and private. I was part of a conversation recently where 'school lunches' were the topic of the young moms. Each citing what their kids liked or did not like, each citing what they desired the 'lunch programs' to look like and no one quite happy with the offerings. That is our luxury though we probably do not view it in that light.
Mawawa the village community that Hands of Hope has been working with the longest is starting to thrive. The beautiful gardens that our economic development has provided are giving fresh and bountiful food for most of the families. Limited by our standards but miraculous by theirs. "Malnutrition is gone" shares a school spokesman. I saw no extended tummies on the kids and that alone is noteworthy and something to celebrate. Not all families are equal in what they can provide or own for that is the way of life but things are improving!
I have lots of things that I want to critique and change in this part of the world but that is not my task or calling. I can work within the boundaries set before me and do my best with what has been given to me. If change were as simple as my wish list being fulfilled we would not be in this remote part of the world making a difference or any other place for that matter. :)
I love to cook and to feed people. I am intrigued with food from other parts of the world. The outdoor kitchen, a campfire stove, a pot or perhaps two grace the kitchen of each hut. This is how the meal is prepared. The supermarket is foreign to most of these people, if they have been in one they could not afford to buy anything. The prices were outrageous even to me. They live off of the land and Nshima is their food.
My awesome journey to this part of the world focused in on a small, small place on the earth. Mawawa, the village where there is now a school and a well and school lunch program!
As we toured the school they proudly showed me the 'kitchen'! I lagged behind the group and was blessed with new insight into this community I am coming to love. The incentive to get kids to school is that they will get a meal! Let me show you the kitchen!
The first photo is inside the 'cook hut'. The size is probably 6 X 8. One side is for storing and 'counter' space the other side for cooking. The floor is the same sandy soil that is out side. It is very well made and the mud walls are firm and secure. The thatched roof is angled so during the rainy season the water runs off. There are windows to vent out the smoke from the fire and the 'cooks' can work rainy season or not.
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| Large Kettle for cooking Nshima! The fire is lit below. |
If purchased this how a Zambian would bring their Nshima home. Many grind their own from crops they have grown. (Another blog story) The recipe should you want to give your children a lesson in gratitude or you just want to see what a large part of Southern Africa eats daily is: |
| American Style Nshima |
2 Cups plain corn meal
Method: Pour 4 cups of water into a medium size cooking pot. Heat the water for 3 - 4 minutes or until luke warm. Using one tablespoonful at a time, slowly sprinkle 3/4 cup of the corn meal into the pot while stirring continuously with a cooking stick. Keep stirring slowly until the mixture begins to thicken and boil. Turn the heat to medium, cover the pot, and let simmer for 3 to 5 minutes.
The two men below are the school cooks. They were delighted to show me the kitchen and how they cooked the meal. :) When the food is cooked they 'plate' it and set them on the counter (above) until lunch time. Several children eat from one plate. Fingers are used to scoop it up. It is interesting that even in restaurants our Zambian guides, interpreters and even the pastors used their fingers as well. If a family is not destitute they may have one other thing to eat with their Nshima, fish, meat or a vegetable. Generally in these poor communities Nshima is the meal.
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| School Cafeteria and cooks! |
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| Daily meal. No choice options except perhaps the plate design. |
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| School Lunch Aid |
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| Dish washer |
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| Lunch time moms Anyone who sets himself up as “religious” by talking a good game is self-deceived. This kind of religion is hot air and only hot air. Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world. James 1:27 (Bible-Message Translation) |
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