Next week I will have returned home to Norman OK. We finished school on Thursday and my flight home is scheduled for next Thursday. I am surprised that I have been able to keep this blog going. Some weeks were pretty thin but we did it!! Please keep me in prayer next Thur and Fri as I travel.
I was walking with Dan who is one of the Bible translators here in Bamako. I saw a young lady ahead of us with a baby tied to her back and another under her arm. I made a comment to Dan about it and said that I wondered how twins were handled here in Mali. Dan came back with an unexpected answer. He said, “ Jack. You have to remember that you are in Mali now. I Mali a man can have more than one wife. Therefore babies of about the same age in a home may not be twins. If there are two wives, then one might do the cooking one day while the other cares for the children. The next day they might reverse roles.” Dan was right. I have not adjusted my thinking to this culture. One time it could be “buyer beware” or they will try to get as much from you as they can and give as little as possible. Another time they would go hungry to make sure that you are fed properly. If you know the culture it all makes sense but to me …??? Well I like the people and they have all gone out of their way to be good hosts to this old man who does not even learn their language.
I was walking with Dan who is one of the Bible translators here in Bamako. I saw a young lady ahead of us with a baby tied to her back and another under her arm. I made a comment to Dan about it and said that I wondered how twins were handled here in Mali. Dan came back with an unexpected answer. He said, “ Jack. You have to remember that you are in Mali now. I Mali a man can have more than one wife. Therefore babies of about the same age in a home may not be twins. If there are two wives, then one might do the cooking one day while the other cares for the children. The next day they might reverse roles.” Dan was right. I have not adjusted my thinking to this culture. One time it could be “buyer beware” or they will try to get as much from you as they can and give as little as possible. Another time they would go hungry to make sure that you are fed properly. If you know the culture it all makes sense but to me …??? Well I like the people and they have all gone out of their way to be good hosts to this old man who does not even learn their language.
The picture showing the big hotel in Bamako is there to try one more time to show you the presidential white house. It is centered in the picture. It is located on a high bluff on the north side of Bamako. The picture of the traffic is at the six way intersection that I have mentioned before. You can see only a couple of the roads from the camera angle and traffic was light when I took it. The third picture is close to that intersection. I see no reason why OSHA would complain about the scaffolding. After all I don't know how many years it has been since the scaffolding was last used. It reminds me of pictures of buildings in Hong Kong except they used bamboo scaffolding.
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