Liberia, Day 5

Hi Ruth! I'm still in Liberia. Today, I went to Brewersville, which is a bit outside Monrovia, to go to a school graduation.

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We were invited up by the same woman who invited us to Thinker's Beach yesterday. The school, in fact the whole village, is run by a woman named Mama Tomah. She's a Zo, which is a kind of priestess in a local religion called Sande. Many people who know her probably believe that she can do magic, but why she's important to Liberia right now is that she's helping rebuild a whole town. For instance, she runs a workshop where they do traditional weaving to sell, and she has people who work there - both men and women, which is unusual in Liberia, where men don't usually do things like make clothes, or knit, or cook dinner - who she lets work only part of the day so they can also raise their families and go to school. Because of the fighting, many people in Liberia, even grown-ups, have never been to school.

Here're some of the weavers, getting the loom ready:

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And here's Mama Tomah, herself, dancing at the graduation:

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The graduation was a lot of fun. The children put on a play, about how parents should send their children to school instead of making them work all day. I couldn't understand all of it, because even though they speak English in Liberia, the English in the rural areas is very different.

From Where in the World is Dad?

From Where in the World is Dad?

Then there was more dancing, and lots of music, both from the band and from the students' choir. I took some videos that I'll show you when I get home, but my internet is too slow here.

This is Mama Tomah's daughter, dancing:

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And one of the student's grandmothers. She was a very good dancer!

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The choir:

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Everything finished up with handing out small gifts, like books, or bags, or lunch boxes, to the children who had done the best in school. They even had Miss Susan and me hand out some of the prizes:

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(I also got Mommy a present I hope she'll like, and a pink shirt for me. Pink!)

I love you very much, and I miss you. I'll see you soon, in only 4 days.