"Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real" Africa Style

http://www.likemotherlikedaughter.org/2014/08/pretty-happy-funny-real-18/

Pretty:

During our weekend in Njinikom, some of us went for a hike down to a small stream to go "swimming." The hike was pretty, the children were pretty, and the destination was pretty. 

Unfortunately, the recent rains had turned the quiet swimming hole into class 4 rapids, so the swimming turned into wading. All in all, it was a good morning hike. Everyone had a good time, and there were berries along the trail.

(As a side note, we heard a crazy story about the trail: it is a cow path, and the cattle go down and up each day to graze. One day, a pregnant cow slipped, fell over, rolled down the hill, and broke her legs. They thought they would have to slaughter her in place and hump the meat up the hill, but she crawled all the way up on her elbows (or whatever cows have instead of elbows).  That's ~1000 ft elevation gain on muddy, slippery, steep ground. She "put to birth" a healthy calf a month later. All's well that ends well!

Happy:

Well, the rooster did his job, the hens did their job, and now we have chicks! Eleven of them. They make pretty much everyone happy, and are more fun to watch than television. 

Funny:

Sally came up to us before she went to bed and she said, "I love both of you guys," in the sweetest toddler voice that just made the whole thing funny. I'm glad she loves us, and I have mixed feelings about the use of the word, "guys." (She is also developing a very adorable pout, as you can see in the picture.)

 Real:
 
 So, one of the downsides of living here is the insecurity of our property. That means to protect our chicken investment we are compelled to keep them living in our compound with us. (We have been told by many trustworthy people that an exterior hen house would be raided by thieves.) This means that the fowl have easy access to our kitchen, dining room, and courtyard. You can use your imagination to fill in the "real" part of this situation. Shoes are required wear in our courtyard now. 

-Eric