He’s an unhappy little 2-year-old. His mom leaves him alone every morning and he just wails and wails. Pattie can’t stand it, so she constantly is shouting across the village to him, trying to reason with him and console him. And, yes, we’ve even stooped to giving him candy in exchange for his (albeit temporary) silence. Anymore, he’ll come sit on our rocks and look absolutely pitiable. He just scowls.
Apparently, he sees our house as a sanctuary for all crying children, as this morning he stubbornly urged me from my room to inform me that there was a children up yonder, crying. I’m not sure I like this trend.
He called me from my room again—he speaks in this very commanding voice—to inform me he wanted to come in the house. He kept informing us until we relinquished and allowed him a place on Kimmie’s rug. I put a book in front of him. He doesn’t want to read it. I’ve given him a pen and paper. He won’t draw. He won’t even talk.
But I took him in my lap and eventually he relaxed and fell asleep.
It’s somewhat a comfort to know the children trust us.
Wee little Ellen is the belle of the village and spoiled rotten. Now that she’s walking, she’s constantly making our house her playground. She clings to Kim and I and daily charms cookies out of us. Lately, she’s been sitting in my lap a lot while I work on the video. Yesterday, she took the liberty of peeing on the floor in my room. Now that’s comfortable.
Edek is pulling at my pant leg now. He wants back up.
Did I tell this story already? Our friend Cecelia (mama of baby Andrea Ibeja no Bongi—Andrea the Runner of the White People) was in a fight with her husband. They were throwing punches and at one point I looked out to see Cecelia with a big rock in her cocked hand, ready to smash it on his head. (It was a particularly striking scene, as her mom killed her father this same way. But, it’s OK, her mom is fat and therefore respected in the community.) Abuba called to us and told us her eldest son wanted to come to our house, because he was afraid and sad. His sister soon followed. We love the kids, and I’m glad for these little moments when they appear to love and trust us.
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