stompin' at the savoy
Of the many talents these African's were given, two are singing and dancing. They can sing like angels and when it comes to dancing...there is no stopping them. Even the little kids have some major rhythm. When it comes to self-expression they aren't frugile with that either. My first encounter with all of this was on the second night that i was here, but let me back track a little first.
The week before i left colorado, while i was gathering various items for my trip, i went into REI to get some things and say goodbye to my friend Erin who works there. I found her as soon as i walked in and told her i was taking off to Africa, somewhere in the middle of the conversation it came up that i was looking for new and used clothes to take with me. I asked her if she had any ideas where i could get some. She said to hang on a second and that she'd be right back. She came back about a minute later with a smile on her face. One of the supervisors said i could take some of the clothes and shoes from their year-end gearage sale, so we went back to dig around. We looked through the boxes and i pulled out as much of the summer type clothing i could find. I brought what i found back to my apartment and had enough to fill up my large army duffle bag.
It was too late to unpack the first night i got here so i waited till the next evening. I brought Clemencia into the room and showed her the clothes for her and the students. She was like a kid at Christmas going through the clothes and shoes in the bag, she pulled out a few things for herself and then started to separate the other items into piles for various others that i had yet to meet.
After she had separated all the items she picked up a shirt and zip-away pants/shorts along with a pair of sandals and walked into the main room, she motioned to me and said in her thick spanish accent, "Choo come." She had a look of mischief in her eyes like she knew something was about to happen that i was completely unaware of. If i thought she was excited going through the bag of clothes, i was about to learn another definition of excitement. She called for Victor, an 18 year old student and worker here at the school. He appeared in the doorway leading to the back hall. She spoke to him in portuguese and had him sit down on the step of the split-level living room/dining room and handed him the shoes. He tried them on, they fit perfectly. Then the show began; he jumped up and down, screeched, yelped, danced, ran up and down the stairs a few times, banged the sandal on his forehead a few times (apparently that means you really like something) and basically turned into a one-man circus, complete with a finale of an eye-popping squeezing hug for me. The show was repeated for the shirt and pants. I believe the pants got the biggest production. It was later translated to me that he had dreamed of owning a pair of pants like these for a long time and saw them in some store but would never have the money to buy them. The zipper didn't even work and yet he acted as if i just given him the winning ticket to the jackpot. You'd be hard-pressed to find that kind of excitement in the states. I can just see it now...a woman buys a pair of pants for her son she hands them to him out in the parking lot of REI and the store has to call security 'cause he's so excited he's climbing the light posts.
A few days later a pair of merrel walking shoes and shorts was given to Eduardo, our driver. He tried them on, they both fit perfectly too. He is a bit older so his joy was contained to a Bill Cosby jig, which was still entertainment enough for me. He came back a few days later and with the few english words he knows and said that his wife couldn't get him to stop dancing in his new shoes. He also proudly showed me that he got the zipper on his shorts fixed, (they really have no boundaries here).
I gave Clemencia the bag of clothes for her to give out as she saw fit, she would know what would fit who. It seems that every day someone new comes knocking at our gate to talk or visit with someone here at the school and they usually leave with something from the bag. Each time she gives someone something new she calls me into the room where they are trying the item on. Each person has their own way of showing gratitude: a dance, a hug, a " muito obrigado" ("much thanks" in portuguese).
A big thanks to Erin and the folks at REI for their contribution to the happiness of these dressed and dancing natives.
The week before i left colorado, while i was gathering various items for my trip, i went into REI to get some things and say goodbye to my friend Erin who works there. I found her as soon as i walked in and told her i was taking off to Africa, somewhere in the middle of the conversation it came up that i was looking for new and used clothes to take with me. I asked her if she had any ideas where i could get some. She said to hang on a second and that she'd be right back. She came back about a minute later with a smile on her face. One of the supervisors said i could take some of the clothes and shoes from their year-end gearage sale, so we went back to dig around. We looked through the boxes and i pulled out as much of the summer type clothing i could find. I brought what i found back to my apartment and had enough to fill up my large army duffle bag.
It was too late to unpack the first night i got here so i waited till the next evening. I brought Clemencia into the room and showed her the clothes for her and the students. She was like a kid at Christmas going through the clothes and shoes in the bag, she pulled out a few things for herself and then started to separate the other items into piles for various others that i had yet to meet.
After she had separated all the items she picked up a shirt and zip-away pants/shorts along with a pair of sandals and walked into the main room, she motioned to me and said in her thick spanish accent, "Choo come." She had a look of mischief in her eyes like she knew something was about to happen that i was completely unaware of. If i thought she was excited going through the bag of clothes, i was about to learn another definition of excitement. She called for Victor, an 18 year old student and worker here at the school. He appeared in the doorway leading to the back hall. She spoke to him in portuguese and had him sit down on the step of the split-level living room/dining room and handed him the shoes. He tried them on, they fit perfectly. Then the show began; he jumped up and down, screeched, yelped, danced, ran up and down the stairs a few times, banged the sandal on his forehead a few times (apparently that means you really like something) and basically turned into a one-man circus, complete with a finale of an eye-popping squeezing hug for me. The show was repeated for the shirt and pants. I believe the pants got the biggest production. It was later translated to me that he had dreamed of owning a pair of pants like these for a long time and saw them in some store but would never have the money to buy them. The zipper didn't even work and yet he acted as if i just given him the winning ticket to the jackpot. You'd be hard-pressed to find that kind of excitement in the states. I can just see it now...a woman buys a pair of pants for her son she hands them to him out in the parking lot of REI and the store has to call security 'cause he's so excited he's climbing the light posts.
A few days later a pair of merrel walking shoes and shorts was given to Eduardo, our driver. He tried them on, they both fit perfectly too. He is a bit older so his joy was contained to a Bill Cosby jig, which was still entertainment enough for me. He came back a few days later and with the few english words he knows and said that his wife couldn't get him to stop dancing in his new shoes. He also proudly showed me that he got the zipper on his shorts fixed, (they really have no boundaries here).
I gave Clemencia the bag of clothes for her to give out as she saw fit, she would know what would fit who. It seems that every day someone new comes knocking at our gate to talk or visit with someone here at the school and they usually leave with something from the bag. Each time she gives someone something new she calls me into the room where they are trying the item on. Each person has their own way of showing gratitude: a dance, a hug, a " muito obrigado" ("much thanks" in portuguese).
A big thanks to Erin and the folks at REI for their contribution to the happiness of these dressed and dancing natives.
Sing like nobody's listening, Dance like nobody's watching, Love like you've never been hurt before...
(...or if you're from mozambique, sing and dance anyway!)
posted by jessy at 9:28 AM
1 Comments:
footloose,
Thank you so much for that post. Your vivid descriptions transported me there! Suffering is good, if it is eventually rewarded. Don't you think? Those people who have so little are so appreciative for just a little. Difficulty has forged them into something Americans have forgotten about many generations ago. Sadly, we are like Israel, spoken of in Bible language, "Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked."
But enjoy and learn and have a great day.
David
Post a Comment
<< Home