Mono Chrissa

So, not a whole lot to update you on as the past couple of weeks have been pretty dull for me. I’m still getting over the mono, though as of today, I think I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, as I’m feeling a lot stronger. The past three weeks have been pretty frustrating. It just seemed like there was no progress. I’d done nothing but lie around in bed trying to sleep but I wasn’t really getting better. My sleep schedule has gotten a little out of whack in the process to the point where I’ve often been sleeping during the day and then unable to sleep at night. Mono is a strange illness in that often I would wake up and feel better, only to do something like cooking or washing dishes and then feel utterly exhausted. I went into the office Thursday morning and was pretty wiped after a couple of hours. In any case, I am really hoping that things are starting to change for the better.

I’ve had no shortage of support the past few weeks. Because I’m living up at the farm, about 10 minutes from Hands at Work village where almost everyone else lives, being sick up here can be pretty isolating. Lots of people have pitched in to bring me groceries, meals (like Jayme’s famous Old School Saskatchewan Borscht) or just come up to visit. Family and friends from home have also called often, which always makes my day. I’ve also seen a doctor who was very thorough, which gave me much needed peace of mind as not knowing what’s wrong is perhaps the toughest part of being sick over here. In any case, I don’t want to take these things for granted as they are not a given for so many others over here.

Having no TV and internet up here has given me all the incentive I need to do a lot of reading lately. Something I’m just finishing that I recommend to anyone interested in Africa is The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. It’s a novel about an American family who come to a rural village in the Congo as missionaries in the early 60s. Though it’s fictional, the author herself lived in the Congo as a child and what I’ve found so interesting about the book is how it touches on a lot of different areas in a really profound way. The book really draws you into the issues of colonialism, family brokenness, religion, and cultural attitudes without really being overtly about any of those things. Each chapter is told through one of the female family members, whether the mother or one of her four daughters so builds in these different perspectives that kind of weave together. I’ve also gotten into crossword puzzles. However, I must admit that I cheat by using the dictionary and thesaurus on my laptop. Is that really cheating??

As for other news, I’ve previously mentioned the hen and cockle-doodle-doing rooster we have up here on the farm. A couple of months ago, the hen gave birth to about twelve chicks. It was neat seeing the chicks run around, following their mother. What was not so neat was watching our Rottweiler, Boo, eat one of them in front of my own eyes. This happened shortly after the chicks were born. Boo apparently ate another before my neighbor Weston gave her a spanking. She seemed to stay away from the chickens after that but then Barney, the lab-cross puppy, who isn’t too much of a puppy anymore, chowed down. He got spanked and stopped. Then Weston and his wife went away for a week. Apparently, Barney and Boo saw this as an opportunity to have an all-you-can-eat raw chicken buffet because overnight they ate all the remaining chickens. That’s it, all that’s left is the hen and rooster. I think we’ll have to make a chicken coop if we’re going to try raising chickens again.

Before I go, I quick update on the house being built for Thembo and Eric, the two boys I stayed with back in September. Things are going well, though with me on the shelf and not able to get materials to the builders, things have been at a standstill for the about a week. In any case, the foundation and walls are pretty much done. All that’s left is the roof, floor and plastering the walls. Then we need to put the doors and locks on, install glass in the window frames and furnish the place a little. I can’t wait until the boys move in. They’ve been super excited about everything to do with the house. After school, they change out of their uniform and help the builders by fetching water, mixing cement and doing anything else.

Anyway, that’s about all for now. Talk to you again soon.

Chris