Lighting the Stove

Once again raising the question… how many people does it take to light a geko oven? Well, in this case, five, it seems. That’s Maria (Davitica’s niece; cousin to baby Pattie), Cassia (Davitica’s second youngest), a mystery child (forgive me?) and Night, Mary’s girl and a constant help to us.
I’ve since given up on lighting the geko from scratch—it really is a pain—and taken to one of two alternatives.
Sometimes I simply take my tongs and hold a piece of coal over my gas stovetop until it’s lit, then I use it to light everything else. Yes, I just admitted that. I’m somewhat ashamed, but somehow very proud of my brilliance.
Then there’s the better option. I noticed that folks ‘round here often send their kids to other huts to grab a piece of hot firewood or coal; then they light their own fires with it. Perhaps equally brilliant to my over-the-stovetop idea. (… Perhaps…) So now I just run up to Lodina’s with my oven mitt and pan lid. They laugh at my “clothes for my hands”—they just carry the stuff on a flat rock or lid. They have the amazing ability to touch and carry ridiculously hot pans and stuff. (As in, they pick up a pot of boiling water with zero problem… and wonder why we can’t.)