This week, during my language study time, I reviewed one of my first language learning notebooks, in which I had made notes and categorized things that I was learning. There is one section that I set aside for recording vocabulary and phrases that I wanted to learn. In this section, I broke it down into categories like words about the forest, cooking, family, time & seasons, animals…etc. I had to laugh when I came across one of these categories that I labeled “doing nothing”. Well, this is a common thing for the Baka to do during the day if they aren’t in the forest checking traps, hunting or gathering edible leaves, yams, fruit, nuts and honey. Here are some of the vocab words I have under the doing nothing category: tobacco, marijuana, smoking, nail polish, braiding hair, and refusing to do something (ie – I refuse to go to school today).
I was complaining how it bothered me to just go and sit under the cooking shelter with the women during the day when they weren’t doing anything, because I always feel like I need to be doing something and it drives me crazy that they are just sitting there. Yesterday I found a good solution and figured out how to be with the women and DO something (besides paint our fingernails -- I supply the polish – they supply the razor blades to scrape their nails clean enough so that the polish will stick! It’s all from digging up wild yams in the dirt, it just gets caked on). Nathan has hired some Baka men and women to help him with our addition project on the house. So, yesterday, he hired some women to break rocks apart into small pieces that he can use to mix with the cement and sand for the foundation. I got a hammer and sat down in the middle and broke rocks all morning with them. It was not the most efficient language learning session, but it was fun. Pounding rocks apart really is a stress reliever too!
This week, during my language study time, I reviewed one of my first language learning notebooks, in which I had made notes and categorized things that I was learning. There is one section that I set aside for recording vocabulary and phrases that I wanted to learn. In this section, I broke it down into categories like words about the forest, cooking, family, time & seasons, animals…etc. I had to laugh when I came across one of these categories that I labeled “doing nothing”. Well, this is a common thing for the Baka to do during the day if they aren’t in the forest checking traps, hunting or gathering edible leaves, yams, fruit, nuts and honey. Here are some of the vocab words I have under the doing nothing category: tobacco, marijuana, smoking, nail polish, braiding hair, and refusing to do something (ie – I refuse to go to school today).
I was complaining how it bothered me to just go and sit under the cooking shelter with the women during the day when they weren’t doing anything, because I always feel like I need to be doing something and it drives me crazy that they are just sitting there. Yesterday I found a good solution and figured out how to be with the women and DO something (besides paint our fingernails -- I supply the polish – they supply the razor blades to scrape their nails clean enough so that the polish will stick! It’s all from digging up wild yams in the dirt, it just gets caked on). Nathan has hired some Baka men and women to help him with our addition project on the house. So, yesterday, he hired some women to break rocks apart into small pieces that he can use to mix with the cement and sand for the foundation. I got a hammer and sat down in the middle and broke rocks all morning with them. It was not the most efficient language learning session, but it was fun. Pounding rocks apart really is a stress reliever too! 
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3 comments:
That does sound sorta fun, actually. I bet you got a good workout, too.
Sounds like you,re being creative. Honestly, I think I'd like to sit around and do nothing for a day or two... though, you're probably right that I have to "do something" while doing nothing.
ps Please wear safety glasses when pounding rocks! We want you to be able to see Mickey when you return!!!
The pic of Mama Lendo painting her toenails is priceless. Thanks for doing such a good job updating your blog. In a way, makes us feel like we're in the jungle with ya! Keep up the good work!
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