Letting Loose

I really respect the people in my town for their outlook on life.  It's funny because people in the States find it shocking that my friends and I love living here in Madagascar so much, in what is essentially pretty poor conditions.  But, for my townspeople (fokon'olo in Malagasy) this is their life (not for just two years like me) and they don't have too many qualms about it.  I've certainly been learning a lot from them just about how to live.  The thing that I enjoy most about them is that they can always let loose, regardless of age, day of the week, or hour of the day.

It's a quality in my neighbors and friends that I can't imagine living without at this point.  For example, last Friday, there were festivities for a circumcision in Siranana.  Beginning at sunrise, my town got pretty noisy.  All the women started preparing for a big feast in the evening and while they were cooking they blasted music, drank sugar cane wine, and danced like I've only seen people here in Africa dance.  Around noon, they were running up and down the road of town carrying colorful flags chanting.  You'd never see your neighbors in the States getting this excited about circumcising an eight year old.  One of the women, who is widely respected in town and has ten children, got down in the dirt in the middle of everyone and started doing what is equivalent to "the worm" dance move as a way to have fun and get the crowd riled up.  Just right there, not really drunk, rolling in the dirt, midday, for the fun of it.

Likewise, this past Wednesday, one of my friends in town decided to throw in impromptu party at around 2pm.  No reason, just wanted to dance.  Age 43 mind you.  I can only hope that my friends and I play hook-ey from work every now and then to do the same in twenty years.

Maybe it's because I am 23 years old, but I don't really picture my childhood neighbors or my former adult co-workers running through town or throwing afternoon midweek parties.  Not to say that we need to do those things to have fun, but, as a contrast to the United States, it's refreshing to see my neighbors in Madagascar doing it.  The people in the countryside here don't take life too seriously and always seem ready to relax and get together as a community.  Yet, it is also because of this live-in-the-moment-spend-all-your-money-on-unnecessary-things-and-dance-at-2pm attitude that the country lives in poverty, doesn't invest in its citizens, and is largely illiterate.  In the States, we work hard, study, and plan for the future.  In reality, I need a mix of both in my life: working hard and being able to relax at the drop of a hat if necessary too.  I'm happy to get the opportunity to live at this end of the spectrum every now and then in my village.

By the way, it's officially mango season here in Madagascar again!