It was a serious job, which required concentration and a high
level of poise.
And I was determined not to let the group of women who had
invited me to join their circle down.
The container of red millet which I was trying desperately
to balance on my head was being transported to a local house in mourning. It is
a central ingredient in the Pito making process; the local brew served at funerals
in the village I have called home for the past three months.
The camaraderie of
the five other women who were carrying much heavier loads as well as babies on
their back was a good distraction as we trekked the challenging terrain to the
market side. These women have spent hours procuring food and drink items to
give their relative a befitting send off.
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| The experienced plasterers of Sirigu |
Such rituals are the responsibility of many of the wives and
daughters in Sirigu who take the concept of multi-tasking to a whole new level.
Whether it’s cooking for their families, travelling long distances to collect
water from the borehole or manual labouring. A deep rooted sense of personal
pride is what drives many to keep their lives turning. This became apparent as
I joined the troupe of neighbours who’d come to help my host mother plaster her
home.
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| Being shown how it's done by the women of Sirigu |
With no time for a master class
and not wanting to unleash my creative side too explicitly, I tried some
observation before grabbing a handful of the plaster mixture to throw on the
wall to cheers and laughter from my fellow artists. There wasn’t a trowel in
sight; only hands for application, alongside buckets of mud, sand and water. This
was a social gathering like no other but it was also an expression of the level
of respect afforded to the home owner Patricia.
As we sipped some much needed
water she explained what was at stake if she didn’t fulfill this back breaking
work:
“As a woman, if I don’t plaster then all the women from this
area will laugh at me. They will tell me you are not a woman, if you were a
woman you plaster this simple thing.”
“The men cannot plaster using their hands, it’s the women
who do this. It’s a local mortar so the women plaster but the men use block. “
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| Madame Pauline taking a well-earned rest |
As the edges of the building were being smoothed out in the
scorching Sunday sun, it was clear that this represented more than an exercise
in DIY. It signified the maintenance of a cultural tradition and a reflection
of a woman’s place in the community. Being able to share such experiences is
perhaps one of biggest bonuses to being a volunteer on the ICS programme in the
hidden gem that is Sirigu.
Shauna McKeown
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