Today I Met Doricca Somanje

 Travel a Land of Both Poverty and Peace

      Malawi --- It is often referred to as the “Warm Heart of Africa”. It is the home of a number of tribal groups. Generally they are scattered throughout the country by regions. The North, Central and Southern regions are distinctively divided by these political and historical backgrounds. Generally there is a demarcation of the main cultural tribes by the three geographical regions. The Tumbuka and Ngoni tribes with the Tonga tribe coming in smaller numbers dominate the northern region. The Chewa tribe is the largest and they live primarily in the central Malawi. The southern region is highly populated by the Yao and Lomwe tribes. However, this does not confine one to its tribe by region or district. Each region and district of the country has patches of people from other tribes living in harmony and unlimited peace. No wonder this is called the Warm Heart of Africa. Inter tribal marriages are not prohibited, and this further enhances the bonds of unity throughout the nation.

        Built on four cornerstone principles by the father and founder of the nation, the late Hastings Kamuzu Banda, these principles are unity, peace, freedom and discipline. Although these principles are sometimes forgotten they still help to mold the nation in a friendly place both regionally and globally.

         Although this nearly 50-year-old democratic nation still falls near the bottom of the world’s economic rankings, and the poverty level remains near the top, the strides towards a brighter Malawi are still being jointly fought by all Malawians.  It is a country plagued with poverty, and few people can afford basic necessities. The lucky children may find a tablet of soap with which to wash their clothes. The unlucky ones must do without. Both are forced to walk many kilometers on rocky ground just to gather food, find firewood, and collect water. School classrooms are inadequate; and many children still access education studying under trees. The literacy rate is said to be at 62.7% of the population over 15 years and old.

Fifty-Three Percent Below the Line

                        The basic water sources remain unprotected shallow wells that supply the largest part of the population. Potable water is even inaccessible by many urban dwellers. Water taps are dry for the greater part of the year. Water authorities still depend on old malfunctioning equipment, when the precious commodity can be accessed at all. Despite the fact that 53% of the population lives below the poverty line the country’s inhabitants remain friendly and warm.

      A fuel resource for the biggest section of the 13,931,831 inhabitants of the nation remains firewood. Each day starts with the girls actively involved in household chores. For school going girls, the collection of firewood to warm the bathing water is usually the first thing they do each morning. Firewood is needed to cook the breakfast. Although the burning of firewood is done with no feelings of guilt, the fact is that deforestation and soil degradation are on the increase at an alarming rate. The need for alternative means to firewood is coming very late. The direct ‘alternative’ remains the often-interrupted power generation by the only country’s controlled powerhouse --- electricity Supply Corporation. Less than one quarter of the population is said to be electrified.

I Met a New Friend

        This afternoon, I have made a new friend. Her name is Doricca Somanje. She is a Nyanja by tribe and hails from Mtuweni Village in Zomba. At her age, she might have collected dozens of kilograms of firewood for her family’s use. I asked for permission if I could take her friendly and beautiful face for the purposes of my article. She agreed, but with one condition, “Mutakachapisa mudzandipaseko changa” (After printing, please give me a copy of the photo).

      One thing I observed from this little girl is that, without anything except freedom and peace of mind, a person is actually whole. I am not however, concluding that without the basic necessities, one is satisfied, but I have grown to realize that peace and freedom are fundamental properties for any human being, whether they are rich or poor. Despite the fact that she has almost nothing, Dorica still manages a smile that reveals the country’s warmth. Her daily life depends on firewood as a source of fuel. To her and other villagers electricity is not an alternative at all.

Such a Warm Smile

                        It is such wide smiles that Malawians are blessed with that make the country home to everyone. If one has not visited Malawi, one must be living in an incomplete ‘world’. This is the warm heart of Africa --- the nation known for her poverty as well as being a nation of friendly people.

                        Physical features are enormous in this centrally located African nation. Mountains, hills, rivers, lakes, animals, national parks, all are in large numbers. This is the nation that houses the great African rift valley lake, Lake Malawi, the great Mulanje Mountain, and several attractive destinations that are patiently waiting to be visited. But above all of them, the thing you may take home with you above all else are the smiles of the people. ~ Wilson Tembo

                                                           

Overnight at Cool Runnings

A View of Life’s Struggle

Cool Runnings, Senga Bay, Malawi ... Arriving at Lake Malawi late in the afternoon, darkness reached us quickly, and we could see little of the lake from our vantage point at the Cool Runnings resort in Senga Bay. We could hear it though, and the sound of the waves lapping on the sandy shore gave us the feeling that all is well with life. We have experienced a grueling pace during the previous month, and the time has arrived for us to kick back and relax for the next few hours. The soft cool breeze coming in from the east, coupled with the rhythm of the waves marrying the shore, seems to immediately bring a wave of relaxation over us. The warm greeting from the staff, as well as from Samantha Ludick, the owner and on-site proprietor of the resort, sets an immediate tone that this is going to be a good stay, and a very relaxed time. There were a lot of other places along this side of the Lake (the Malawi side), and the prices were all across the board, but this has more of a home-like setting (you actually stay in one of the bedrooms of a modest house that fronts right on the beach), and the food is recognized as some of the best anywhere along this stretch of beach. Add to this the fact the Ludick mingles with the visitors, whether you are staying in the main house, in the dormitory just a few yards back off the beach, on the lawn in a tent, or just down the beach at another of her locations called Toms.

A View of Lake Malawi

One of the Guest Rooms

Morning on Lake Malawi

Dugouts Challenge the Surf

Lawnchairs watch the action

Breakfast is nearly ready

Fishing Village Nearby

Longboat Challenges Surf

African Decor Favors the House

After a dinner fit for a king, one which Ludick herself actually helps prepare, and after the conclusion of an interesting dialog with the lady herself, concerning Malawi, Africa, her pick of the greatest grand prix driver, and a number of other interesting stories that seem to encompass the world, we determine it is time to head into the house for the night. True to the African decor that favors the house, and village area in which we are now immersed, we note the three bedrooms are named after neighboring countries. Inside each room the decorations favor the country for which the room is named.

Inside our room we light the mosquito coil, and slide in under the protective mosquito nets. Can’t be too careful you know. Malaria is a real problem all over the sub-Sahara and no need to be careless. Malaria is little problem during the day, but at night it can be a serious threat to your health and well being. It seems like I have just closed my eyes when the sound of a mosquito is heard. I listen for a moment, unable to detect if it is on the outside of the large net, or on the inside with me. I slowly reach for the flashlight that I wisely have under the net with me. Flashing it to the on position in the direction from which the sound seems to have been coming, the sound seems to instantly stop. I can see nothing, and the sound is gone. There is some consolation as I cannot feel any bites, and on top of that I know the mosquitoes I need to be concerned with, the ones that can bite me and give me malaria, do not make a sound. So, to hear the sound of a mosquito is the sound you actually want to hear. That one is the safe one. I close my eyes, and listen to the sound of the waves just outside the house. The cool night breeze seems to gently press me down into the soft mattress, and in moments I am sound asleep again.

Morning Calls Me Outside

Morning comes early in African villages, and even before the sun comes over the horizon in the native fishing villages that surround us. The people are up, out and working by the time the sun announces its intention along the eastern horizon. The sounds of children laughing, and playing along the beach, women washing the family clothes and chatting without abbreviation with each other, and the clank of wooden oars against wooden boat planks are clearly evident as we crawl out of the warm bed. Some people like to sleep in when they come to the lake, but the excitement of seeing the fishing boats being launched into the heavy surf has a draw all of its own. I gather up the camera and head toward the door to see what I can see from beyond the low fence that leads to the beach. The staff has already opened the curtains and doors, and the beach chairs are spread across the lawn as though they are planning on spending the day visiting with each other, and looking off into the distance at the beauty of puffy white clouds sliding effortlessly across the sky above the blue, green surface of the lake. 

Camera in hand I move quietly out through the sitting area, and around the vine covered walkway, and then down through the yard and over to the gate. Off to my left I can easily see a number of fishing boats, with men straining and struggling against a 6 to 8 foot surf in an effort to get the boats beyond the surf and off to the distant fishing fields. For a few minutes I watch them with such fascination that I almost forget my camera. There are the larger boats with gas engines and 4 or 5 men trying to push through the surf with a great deal of labor. Mingled among them are the dugouts that seem to hit the giant waves at just the wrong time and are quickly flooded. Whether large or small the push of nature is too much for many of the boats. The men, some of them only 12 or 13 years of age drag at swamped boats in an effort to get them back to the shore so they can bail out the water and try again. Men wading in the chest high surf struggle to right them, and get both kinds of boats beyond the surf that seems bent on gluing them to the shore permanently and without mercy.

Capturing the Struggle

Finally I realize the scene before me is a classic, and I raise my camera to capture their struggle against the elements. As I snap away I realize the sun is coming over the far distant water horizon, and its rays are beginning to dance across the scene in front of me, as though laughing at the human struggle that is taking place. From time to time one of the boats breaks loose and makes it beyond the surf. As I watch, after long desperate struggles, the dug out logs get past the surf as well. My camera clicks and clicks as I try to catch the majestic scene in front of me, but I am fully aware there is little that can catch the beauty of what I am experiencing. Too, the camera is certainly not capable of imaging the full experience of the men who are trying to “go out to sea in these tiny hand made ships.”  Persistence pays … in time, and eventually most of the boats and boatmen have made it outside breaking surf and are disappearing far out in the lake. The danger will last the entire day. Fishermen die on this lake, every year, but they must fish to survive. The surf cannot win.

Before I realize it time has slipped away and it is time for breakfast. Another excellent meal and I head back to the room to pack up and head back toward Lilongwe. As I check out I make a mental note. This was just too short a time for such a great place. I have to do it again, and real soon. There are just too many pleasures here.