Mamas With Their Wares

During the conference, handmade items are displayed on the second floor of our library. These items, made by the Mamas from our partner communities, include painted gourds to eat porridge from (porridge is very much like the grits we eat in the American South, but porridge is slightly, but only slightly, more soupy), painted terracotta pots, woven baskets, homegrown Soya beans and rice and a rattan basket for cooking. This last item is especially interesting because it saves fuel. When cooking beans or rice, the Mama will cook them for 10 minutes, drain them, then pour the food into a cloth-lined woven basket with a cloth-covered lid. The food sits for three or four hours and is ready to eat.

A large cooker, handmade with a leather-covered lid, cost 250 shillings, or about $3.50 USD. I bought the smaller cooker that looks as though it will hold three or four quarts. The cost was only 150 shillings, or about $2.00 USD. Amazing. Handmade, attractive, practical and it's only about $2. When it's not being used for cooking, the lined basket acts as a container for household items. I cook on a two-burner, countertop stove and will certainly use the basket for beans and rice, to conserve fuel. The woven cooker is becoming one of my most treasured possessions and I hope to take it with me to the next country I live in, maybe India or somewhere in South America. (But before taking up residence in a new country, I'll spend a few months with my family in the U.S., perhaps taking a cross-country trip with my Mama and children to enjoy smooth highways once again!).

During the conference, the Mamas sell all their goods. I buy a pack of Soya beans, which seems to be Soy beans. They suggest the beans should be cooked just like other dried beans; soak them for several hours in water before cooking. It's also possible to roast the Soya beans in a pan, then grind and brew them, like coffee. The beans are said to have a unique and quite good taste. Maybe I'll try that, too. In the photo of the Mamas with their wares, woven baskets are seen on the table behind the ladies. These sell for 60 shillings, or about 80 cents USD. The painted gourds are about 40 shillings (50 cents USD) and terracotta pots are 100 shillings, or about $1.25 USD. Amazing and amazingly beautiful.