A Slice of Life

Toast is one of the things I miss the most from home – of course there are plenty of other foods we can't get here but if I could have just one of them I'd have toast. The small baguettes baked in brick ovens around town are pretty good but there's nothing quite like a slice of toast. That's why I was so excited this month when a Swiss friend gave us a breadmaker. It had arrived in the same shipment as the loom - a gift from some Swiss people to Africa, which has now found its way to our house in Djibo along with - quite surreally - some silver cutlery and a few porcelain plates. It feels reassuringly homely to have afternoon tea here in the heat of the day!

Please understand that my aim is not to create a little England here – I want to be as culturally integrated as possible, but I will never get away from the fact that I am English and white. Every time I walk up the street, adults and children call out 'tuubaaku' or 'le blanc' to me, reminding me of the colour of my skin. The fact is that whatever I wear, however I speak or however dark my skin turns, I will never completely blend in. As the Fulani proverb goes, 'fay si leggal booyi ley ndiyam laatataako nowra abada' (even if a log stays in the water a long time it will never become a crocodile).

God created and delights in the different cultures of the world. Jesus came for all people - of every nation, tribe and tongue. As His followers I believe we are called to love and respect other cultures and not try to change them to become like more like us, but rather to encourage them to be more fully themselves - that is, the people who God made them to be.

Of course it is not easy to convey Christ's love to a foreign culture without your own culture confusing the issue. Especially when there is a burning desire to give or help people in need, it is easy to think of solutions that actually aren't in fact totally respectful of local culture and don't help in the long term. I've learnt that myself from my misguided early attempts to create work for Fulani ladies by embroidering things to sell back home. I am now discovering that there is an incredible wealth and knowledge of traditional crafts here, and this is what I am now looking into with the hope of developing something more profitable and sustainable.

Much of my inspiration to do this has come from meeting the founder of an organization called Save Our Skills (www.sos-saveourskills.org) which has recently started working here in Burkina.
It feels right to be following this path; the people I have met seem to be delighted in an outsider taking a real interest in their craft and for me it is as though I am uncovering hidden treasures. It is a little like detective work as there are so few craftspeople still practicing nowadays, mainly due to imports dominating the market and environmental change. The lady pictured is from a local Tuareg family who specialize in leatherwork; I am also doing investigations into weaving, spinning and raffia work. Who knows where it will lead.