Simbas? Check. Cold Drink? Check. Giggly girls? Check.

It's been a long time since I last wrote and there's a ton of stuff to catch up on. I'm not sure how I'm going to swing it... if I'm going to back date a couple of blogs or what... but one thing's for sure (Esther always says that), if I write about last night right now... then I won't be SO behind.
Ok... eating some Reese's Peanut Butter cups and oh yeah, we're gonna talk about a birthday party...
Last week, around dusk, just as the rains were coming in for the night, Phenyo called me to the front fence in my yard to receive my invitation to her birthday party. On the 3rd of November everyone was supposed to show up at 4, there would be cake and singing, and the celebrating should wrap up in time for everyone to walk home before dark... or that was the plan anyway. Yesterday I came home from my office at the usual time and was very much looking forward to escaping the heat by lying on my bed, in the darkness of my room, with my fan pointed directly at me. I ended up doing this long enough to finish an article in a Newsweek that's a good 3 months old and then there was a knock at the door... Phenyo and Berlina all dressed up asking where I had been. Uh, yeah. Party foul. It was party day. It was 4:45. Mmapula was nowhere to be found... and yes, everyone was waiting. I scrambled to put on shoes... to gather up her birthday present... to follow the dress code of black and white (didn't have anything white so we went with a baby blue shirt instead)... and we headed next door to start all the festivities. We walked through the gate and I was greeted by about 6 or 7 kids ranging from 8 to 13. We shook hands. We greeted. Hello, how are you?, I'm fine and you? And then we walked in the house. Nothing was really ready... no one was really stressed.. and it became a group activity to decorate the table and put the candles on the cake. Tsebiso spelled out "Phenyo, 11 yrs" in pineapple candies. MmaLebu opened bags of Simbas (chips) and sprinkled them onto plates. Apples and oranges were arranged all around the table. Mma Rapola sat with me in the living room and we talked about America. Sweat poured down my back, inbetween my shirt and skin. The air was still and hot. Little girls giggled and tried to figure out the seating arrangements. And then there was the party, with MmaLebu, age 10, who was the MC for the evening and led us through the party program..it went a little somethin like this (with Mmapula sitting to the left of the birthday girl):
*We started off with a welcoming prayer and then listened as Rra Rapola read to us from the book of Genesis and explained that. on this special day, we were not only celebrating Phenyo, but also God... for God gave us Phenyo.
*Then it was time for a speech from Phenyo's parents. Mma Rapola stood up and praised God for his gift to the world, thanked Sesi Mmapula for coming and celebrating with the family, and thanked Phenyo for being such an imaginative, strong, and creative girl. Phenyo means "victory" in Sotho and the family felt as though they had come into victory when the last born was born.



*Then the guests were asked to stand up and each give a little speech. Mmapula went first. I used to think things like this were awkward.. but after finding myself in so many situations where I've been asked to talk... I think I do awkward rather well. I stood up and thanked Phenyo for allowing me to celebrate her special day with her family and friends, thanked her for her friendship, and said that I most certainly agreed with everyone when they said that God had given us a gift.
* Then the candles were lit and everyone around the table counted to 11 while Phenyo blew them out.
* The first slice of cake was cut with Phenyo and I both holding onto the knife (just like we were gettin married)... and while Phenyo tried to fit as much cake as she could into her mouth, we all counted to 11. And then, with a full mouth, she stood still as MmaLebu took icing and smeared it all over her face and then did the same to the rest of us sitting around the table.
* We prayed over the food we were about to consume, then cold drink was brought out, Fanta Pine and Coke, and everyone toasted to Phenyo. To 11 years. To God. To friendship and family. And we ate and drank all the sweets and Simbas and Coke and watermelon and cake until the table was pretty much cleared and we were stuffed.
* What was left of the party food was divided amongst the guests... kids got empty Simba bags and put little marshmallows and sweets and chips into them for take away.
* We prayed and thanked God for such a nice party and for everyone to go well.
At 6:30, we started the walk home. Although I live right next door, I walked with Phenyo and her mom to all the other houses before stopping off at mine at the end. Lightning was lighting the sky, the mountains were aglow every few seconds, all our bellies were full of sweets, and the sugar rush was starting to hit. A breeze was starting to pick up... the temperature had dropped a little, things weren't as still. It was a nice walk. We made a big square, dropped 3 little girls at their gates, and then walked up the main tar road in Metz. The street lights hadn't come on yet and it felt freeing to be walking around at such a quiet time.
I got back into my room and within the next 15 minutes the wind began to pick up. Lightning was a little more frequent. Rain looked to be on its way. Yes! 10 minutes later there was a full on thunderstorm... and 10 minutes after that, after I thought it couldn't get any louder in my room with the rain hitting the tin roof, it started to HAIL. HAIL! What?! There's a first time for everything.. and last night was a first for hail in good ol Metz while I've been here. Hail! Geez. For a good hour it sounded like golf balls were coming down from the sky...the wind was howling... my roof was shaking.. and dirt was flying around coating everything in my room. I thought for sure there was a good possibility that my roof would just blow off (the tin doesn't lie flush with the walls so air can get underneath it) and then all the sudden the wind died down and the noise just turned back to rain. It rained and it rained and the lights flickered and finally the lights just went out. Electricity was out. I climbed into bed and listened to the frogs and the still and finally drifted off to sleep in a pool of my own sweat. When the electricity goes out, the fan goes off....
This morning I woke up with it cool... a nice 70 degrees compared to yesterday's 95.. at 6:30 the sun was covered by clouds and a mist hung heavy on the mountains. The cool very much worth the sweltering still of last night. Welcome to the rainy season! The time when we all pray (and I try to pull some strings,because, after all, I am the Mother of the rain) for rain in hopes that crops will grow plentiful and December and January will provide us with plenty of mangos to eat straight off the tree, mealies for all the meal needed for bogobe (porridge) and the cattle, bananas, guavas, papayas, tomatoes. With the rain comes new life.