First, you need to know that for Tobaski my host brother sewed me a compelet in the fabric he claimed all the neighboring women would also be wearing. I think I mentioned in an earlier post that it was hideous, but I don't think I described it.
The background is seafoam green and the battern on top is dark blue and yellow shapes that look sort of like horseshoe crabs or alien spacecrafts, except less cool. It's gross, and hopefully I'll upload photos later so you can agree. However, Amadou did an impressive sewing job, and while the earrings and shoes I bought to match don't exactly match (because seriously, nothing could match this fabric) they at least provide the eye with something more pleasing to look at.
So, now for the bulleted version of the morning of the first day of Tobaski:
- I wake up and proudly put on my Tobaski asobi that spent the last week and a half in my suitcase, untouched.
- Amadou informs me I cannot wear the asobi yet because none of the other women are wearing it. They will wear it this evening, maybe, or tomorrow. I am not to put it on until I see the others wearing it.
- I change into the peacock compelet from swearing-in, which looks better anyway
- I go over to Julia's house so that we can go together to the mosque, but the praying won't start for another hour so I spend the time watching one of her host sisters iron their compelets. The iron is actually made of iron, and you heat it by putting hot coals inside. It's awesome! Also, there's a rooster design on the handle.
- Meanwhile, another of Julia's host sister's is practicing her spelling by choosing words from an issue of Newsweek and testing whether I can tell her the word: "t-e-r-r-o-r-i-s-t" "w-a-r-m-o-n-g-e-r-i-n-g"
- Julia, her sisters, and I set off for the mosque. Lots of people are all sitting outside, the men all in the front, the women all towards the back. Julia and I find her host mom and we join her.
- The imam (I'm assuming) starts the talking and Julia's host mom tells us to start taking photos. I thought the people would be angry or secretely resentful that we were being a distraction during their religious ceremony, but instead the women were all waving us over so we would take their picture. We never walked in front of the men, so they probably didn't even know we were there. I'm not sure if they would have waved us over to take their pictures if they'd known...probably not.
- I returned home and took some pictures of my family looking all fancy in their new Tobaski outfits
- I watch Neene cook some coos as people from neighboring compounds bring over various bits of the rams they've slaughtered, because my family couldn't afford to buy a ram to slaughter. We got some stomach bits and intestine bits, a heart, a leg, and some unidentifiable stuff.
- I go over to Julia's house to help her cook, but discover that she has already finished, so instead I sit with her family and drink mango juice.
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