The
sun shines over the mud-brick wall and crawls
over the three cows, the chickens, then finally wakes me. Hamidou is
already up and is rolling up his
mat from the ground and putting it back inside the house. I join him
and Neal soon follows. It is around 7:00 and already the heat is aggressive.
The sounds of the morning are all around us; the cows bellowing
as they are being milked and driven out of the courtyards to graze,
pots and pans being clanked as the thick, sweet millet "bouillie" is
being prepared for breakfast and the roosters wake any late sleepers.
I quickly rinse off with a bucket of water Hamidou had fetched from
the well and we walk a mile or so to rejoin the rest of the Calvary team
along with our guides: Yagadjou, Moussa and Hamidou. We are all in good
spirits and all had slept well (except Cindy and Missy who had been attacked
in the night by a curious bat) so after we eat our bouillie we chat
happily as we wait for the truck that would take us to the Tuareg people
and our camel rides. We
had decided to go to Djibo about a week ago since it is the largest
Fulani village in Burkina Faso and we have been studying the Fulani for
around five weeks. Here everyone speaks Fulfulde and we are able to observe
their lifestyle and sense their values. The Fulani have proven very gracious
and generous hosts. As we visited families throughout Djibo the only criticism
they had of us is that we failed to warn them of our coming so that they
were unable to prepare us a meal. As it was we have been eating five
or six meals a day of tot (toh) or rice with sauce. The days with them have
been largely spent sitting on mats under the cooler shade of a tree sipping
hot tea, playing cards and talking or napping. The
Fulani are herdsman and have a deep love for their cattle. Their cows
are the measure of their wealth, their subsistence and the common thread
that binds their culture and has allowed it to remain largely unchanged
over 17 countries and 10 centuries. They drink her milk and sell many of
her by-products. They raise goats for meat and trade goats and occasionally
cattle for other necessities. Because of the harsh climate of the Sahel,
the need to always find new grazing grounds has caused the Fulani to become
the largest nomadic people in the world. They have thrived in the desert
and today number well over 10 million. 99.9% of Fulani
are Muslim and are proud of the part they have played
in spreading Islam throughout Africa. The last week of October through
November, nearly everyone in Djibo will be taking part in Ramadan and will
be fasting from all drink and food all day. But today we eat well. Our
truck arrives to take us deep into the rough bush to find Mohammed and
to mount our trusty camel steed. We
take turns riding around on the huge beasts and eat a quick meal of
rice, butter and chicken before heading back to Djibo. We arrive to discover
large pots filled with more rice and tot. We spend the long afternoon hours
drinking tea, playing cards and talking. Since there is no electricity, when the sun sets the village quiets
and grows dark. We carefully make our way to Hamidou's family house
to eat
(again!). We eat rice and tot there to the light of a small flashlight.
When we are finished, Hamidou brings out a melon shell bowl, flips it
over and uses it as a drum (Calibas) and the family erupts
in song and dance.
We join in and we share a magical evening full of music and laughter. When we retire, the
stars are so brilliant and distinct and the sky so
black that as I lay on my mat outside I can do nothing but gaze and wonder.
My vigilance was rewarded every so often by a star shooting slowly and
brilliantly across the sky. Looking at this beauty, I understand why Muslim
Fulani friends believe that Allah (God) is untouchable and is uninterested
in a relationship with man. Tonight,
under the stars, I am able to share my testimony with Hamidou and he listens interested. He is most impressed by the fact that Allah
(God) spoke to me and that He loved me enough to forgive all my sins to
guarantee me a place in His eternal Kingdom. Even though he is interested,
there are still many barriers to overcome before he will be ready to become
a disciple of Christ. Beyond the teaching of Islam that Jesus could not
have been God, could not have resurrected or cannot forgive sins, there
are many social barriers with which Hamidou will struggle. When he becomes
publicly protestant, his family will ostracize him and he will no longer
be included in family decisions and will not be able to marry within his
tribe. Some Muslims have even attempted to murder their family members
who converted. Hamidou rolls over and falls asleep. I lay awake another moment and say
a silent prayer that the Fulani will soon know how vast and deep and wide
is the love of God for them, more brilliant and beautiful than the heavens
above Djibo.
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