Tag: Canada

Giving Thanks

On January 25, 2022

By Sister Agnes Bwalya

In our northern Zambian tradition, when workers go to work in the fields in early hours of the day, parents or elders in the family prepare food to eat during and after cultivating. The food prepared is nicely wrapped and put under a tree, sometimes covered with leaves. Everyone starts cultivating and after working for long hours, everyone sits under the tree where food was left, washes their hands and shares the food. Now it will be time for fun and laughter, everyone will make an effort of cracking a joke, good days are remembered, good dances are danced including songs with a message about hard work. When work is done, now it is the turn for young ones to collect plates and other utensils used. On the way home, young ones carry all tools used for cultivating including their sandals. When they reach home water is prepared for bathing and food is prepared for the workers, (men and women). It is a humble way of saying, THANK YOU to those who worked in the field.

In a similar situation the Kawambwa site would like to thank Inverness County Cares staff, sponsors and donors and everyone who has contributed directly or indirectly to make the dreams of Kawambwa school sites come true. You are giving sight to the blind, smoothening the skin of the Albino child and putting a smile on the faces of vulnerable children. You bring hope and happiness to these disabled and vulnerable children.

We are ready to carry your sandals and prepare your water for bathing, a humble symbolic way of saying THANK YOU Inverness County Cares for everything. In return Kawambwa sites will pay back through prayers. Kawambwa site wishes Inverness County Cares and community, a Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year in style.

Zambian Christmas:

Christmas in Zambia is celebrated in style. It is a great event with preparations both by children and elders. Children of the same age form small groups and share an assortment of food and drink. All ages participate in delicious food and good times. A traditional drink called Chibwanto is brewed using maize and munkoyo root. Chicken is most popular but goat/sheep/game meat/cow/rabbits are enjoyed as well.

Every evening, children prepare games to be performed on Christmas day. The beating of drums is done in a colourful way while traditional songs are sung and danced. Children go in the bush to collect our Christmas flower, which has green leaves and a red blossom. it is very important and shows love and appreciation.

The Christmas church service is a big part of the celebrations and in schools and churches the nativity story is acted out by children. On the evening of Christmas Eve 24th of December, whoever you meet, their greeting will be “Christmas”. The first person to say “Christmas” will be given fruits, food or a token gift. The same applies on New Year, where the traditional activity is to leave a branch or to throw it on the roof and shout “New Year”. The secret is that one should be the first, to say “New Year”. Christmas is celebrated in extended families and the community. It is a great celebration for parents and elders with Christmas carols being an important part of the festivities.

Decorations are made in a traditional way. Most houses are made out of mud and are festively decorated with different colours of soil. People make sure that money is saved to purchase new colourful clothes for this special occasion.

Christmas trees are not part of Zambian traditions, instead a crown like made out of grass is made, to hold a tin with a Christmas flower. The grass and weeds in the courtyards near the homes is well slashed and tidy. However, these days in towns, some Christmas trees are decorated in shop windows. A Zambian Christmas centers around celebrating the birth of Christ and spending time with friends and family enjoying food, music and dance.

The Kawambwa schools send best wishes for a Happy New Year and many happy days in the future.

Inverness County Cares (ICC) is a local charitable organization, founded in 2012 and based in Inverness County, NS, Canada, with a mandate to assist children who are in desperate need. Their current project involves supporting two schools for albino and visually impaired students in Northern Zambia. Inverness County Cares always welcomes new members. Individuals who wish to donate, can use the donate button on our website https://invernesscountycares.com

When using E-transfer, please include your mailing address for CRA tax receipts and a thank you message. E-transfer address: [email protected]

or send a cheque to Inverness County Cares, 5414 Route 19, Judique, NS, Canada, B0E1P0. Taxation receipts provided for USA and Canada.

Baby Christmas 2021 is saying,”Glory be to God”.

January: Elizabeth, an Albino Child Tells her Story

By Inverness County Cares

On January 6, 2021

In Uncategorized

Elizabeth an Albino Child, Tells her Story

By: Elizabeth Mulenga, Sr Agnes Bwalya and Mr. Telesphore

Albinism is a hereditary condition, resulting in the absence of melanin pigment causing an individual being born with the white skin, light hair and vision problems. There are two types of albinism. Oculocutaneous albinism involves the eyes, hair and skin and Ocular albinism which is less common involving only the eyes, while skin and hair may appear similar or slightly lighter than that of the other family members.

I am Elizabeth born from two parents with very light skin, (Ocular Albinism). We are seven in the family, 5 are black but with light skin and 2 (*John and myself) are Oculocutaneous, with very light skin and hair. My eyes are not stable the eyeballs move and sometimes even my head shakes involuntarily.

My family surname is Mulenga but now my nickname is my surname…”Manda”, in English it means grave, meaning my brother *John and I are already dead, in other words we are not human beings. People in society continued calling us this, at first secretly but as days went by, it became a famous surname.

When I was born my parents were separated but my father could visit my mother, however when my youngest brother was born, my father ran away and he told my mother that,” I will go now forever”. My mother was disturbed and she dumped us. My widowed grandmother from my father’s side came to our rescue, she took us and we stayed with her for some years, where the care was not up to date. When I was ten years old my grandmother died and we went back to our mother who couldn’t manage because she was sickly and she died when I was 13yrs old. I started staying with my aunty to my mother’s side.

People in the village where we were living didn’t accept us and we were considered as “Ghosts”, because only “Ghosts” are found in the grave. When we were passing, especially a pregnant woman she would spit saliva on her chest “pupuu”, which they believed prevented them from having an albino child, even elderly women and young girls did the same.

As an albino we can’t share plates with others, I should eat alone and my plate should not be mixed with other plates. My bedding (an old coat of my grandmother) was kept outside the house and it was a bad experience with no shelter in the rainy season. I was denied family socialization and no one will touch any object that I touched or eat the food or drink I have prepared, because they believed Albinism is contagious.

I will never forget this day: I went to the river to draw water, and as I was coming back a middle-aged woman called me and said “Elizabeth from today onwards do not pass here or touch my children because when you pass here, they dream of you and hallucinate at night”, I didn’t say anything, I cried the whole night, and said to my God, “God why create me as a Ghost! Why?” That was how I vowed not to visit any home in the village, I was living in isolation, I felt lonely, unloved, useless and unworthy to live.

When I entered the classroom in our village, the female teacher never accepted me, she never talked to me or give me any work. That time I had sores on my body and one day I heard her telling others that, she cannot stand the situation it’s better she teaches other classes, her negativity made me more passive and I decided to stop school.

One day the light shone, I was called by an old lady in the village and she asked me to help her wash plates, at the river side. She held me by the hand and whispered in my ears “Elizabeth, one day your problems will flow away like the waters in the river and they will never come back again. Look at this water as it flows it will never turn back and flow in a different direction, this is how life is, once you understand life, you will not be the same and the solution is education. This old woman made me feel loved, comforted, accepted and fully human.

A few days later, she decided to take me to St. Mary’s Special School (Sponsored by Chalice.ca) with the help of St Vincent de Paul Movement. When I reached school, I saw my friends wearing shoes, sleeping on beds, eating while sitting on a bench/chair, within myself I couldn’t believe it.

I was happy, in fact more than happy, especially when I saw other Albino children. To be sincere it is St. Mary’s Special School that introduced me to the wearing of shoes and sandals, I really felt uncomfortable, since eating while sitting on the chair was something I never thought of and many other traits that makes a human being feel human and comfortable.

Today I am so positive about my life, I am in grade 9 and just finished writing my junior secondary final examination. I promise the world that I will pass. * John has also found peace at the St Mary’s school and is in grade 3. I remain a good dancer, I live healthy with no sores on my body, I wear decent clothes, I have Braille and Braillo paper for my education.

An albino child is fully human, fully alive, we send thanks to you so many people.

Inverness County Cares always welcomes new members. Individuals who wish to donate, can use the donate button on our website https://invernesscountycares.com

Please include mailing address for CRA tax receipts and thank you, when using E-transfer. E-transfer address: [email protected]

or send a cheque to Inverness County Cares Box 99, Judique, NS, Canada, B0E1P0. Taxation receipts provided for USA and Canada.