One challenge for all Peace Corps Volunteers is how to best spend the holiday season. It is easy to get nostalgic and homesick when Thanksgiving and Christmas come and go like any other day. Some volunteers travel home, but the rest of us make do and celebrate in other ways. While we can not substitute spending time with family and friends, we have had a surprisingly great time here in Mali, and we’d like to share a little of that with you.
First was Thanksgiving, which we spent with 80 other volunteers in the Malian city of Sikasso. The region is known for its agricultural diversity, so some volunteers organized a massive Turkey-day feast that included everything you could expect from the meal, including pumpkin and apple pie! With the exception of the turkey head I tried to eat, all of the food was delicious and spending the weekend with other volunteers made it very fun and memorable.
Of course, something we do not get in Mali is snow, which is really hard when you come from Michigan. However, our village did recently collect and sell this year’s harvest of cotton, which was almost the same thing. :) Also, since Mali is in the northern hemisphere, the weather has gotten noticeably cooler, meaning that Malians wear cotton hats and puffy jacket while Joye and I can finally get some sleep at night. So far, the “cold” has been the equivalent of Michigan weather in August and September, which in our eyes is ideal. It has helped us work harder, and would be perfect for friends and family who wanted to travel to Mali but avoid some of the intense heat (wink wink nudge nudge).
Being in a different climate also means that sometimes we get stuff that Americans don’t, including this year’s harvest of watermelon… in December! Not only is good watermelon almost non-existent in Michigan this time of year, but Malian watermelon is seriously the sweetest and freshest watermelon we have ever tasted. The day that these succulent fruits appeared in our market was the highlight of our month; we downed two full watermelons and have had plenty more since.
Another advantage to being somewhere else for the holidays is getting a unique perspective on Christmas. In Mali, there is no Black Friday, Santa Claus, or non-stop Xmas radio stations. Instead, in village, you are faced with surroundings much more similar to that in the Christmas story. People often travel by donkey. There is no room at the village inn since it’s only a one room mud hut. 10-year-old shepherd boys run their flock through your yard without cleaning up the droppings. In short, elements of story jump out at you in ways they never could because you can see (and smell) them right outside your house.
So this year we celebrate Christmas in the following ways. At Tubaniso (Peace Corps summer camp) we held a candle-light pre-emptive Christmas Eve service with 12 other volunteers. I even bought a $1 coniferous tree for the occasion at an agricultural research center. Then, just last night we opened our wonderful Christmas packages, baked a pizza, and watched a movie. And for Christmas Day, we will be at our village, celebrating with our local church and taking time for silent reflection. Certainly it is different than Christmases past, and we don’t deny that it will be difficult, but it has the potential to be a very lovely day indeed.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Years!
-Jim (and Joye) Allen
Wonderfully said! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you two as well. Love you both very much!! M&D Allen
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