Acacia

For the past month I have been back in N’djamena, doing the work I am actually meant to be doing during my gap year! Work at the centre has changed quite a lot during my absence as a new group of women has started doing the rehabilitation course. To give you a better idea of what goes on, I have decided to take you through a week at the Acacia centre. Over the next few weeks I’ll also tell you about other things I do during the week.

In front of the centre

The week’s work at the Acacia centre starts at about 1:30 on Monday afternoon. All five women from the first rehabilitation course come to spend the afternoon making soap, bags and cards.

Soap in moulds and our buckets

The centre is actually in the same building as my flat (I really have to travel far to go to work- a 30 second walk!). On Mondays we generally start by cleaning the buckets and things which we used to make soap the Wednesday before. One lady is always there on time so I mostly help her as she sets things up and measures the oils and lye for the soap. We mix the lye with water and then have to leave it to cool all afternoon as it gets very hot. Naomi (a Northern Irish missionary who set up the vulnerable women’s ministry) and Annie (an American missionary who also works as a sports teacher at a local high school) and the other 4 ladies from the first group slowly arrive, some of them have work in the morning and finish late so they aren’t always on time.


Now that the first group have finished the initial course we mostly do practical things so they can support their families. Lately we have had quite a few orders for cards so we have been busy making sure we have enough of each type. Each order is slightly different, but thankfully Annie is there to sort everything out! We often sit and make cards all afternoon, each lady cutting out different animals from the scraps of African fabric and sticking them onto cards. I get to do mundane jobs like sticking stickers on the back of the cards or cutting out the “greetings from chad” messages.

Cards

It’s generally a nice “safe” place to be. We chat about everything and sometimes listen to music. At five we all get up and make the soap mixing the oils with the lye and pouring it into moulds. Then we tidy up, fold away the mat and everyone goes home.

Inside the centre

At 8 o’clock on Tuesday Naomi and I are back at the centre (Annie joins us later after school). We have a lesson with the second group. There were originally 3 ladies in the group; they started their three month rehabilitation course at the beginning of March. Since I have come back from Abeché the already small group has been reduced to 2 ladies. They generally arrive on time and we start with a Bible Story which I tell using big story books made by WEC, a missionary society. We have just finished going through the story of Moses and the Israelites going to the Promised Land and have started on the gospels and Jesus’ ministry. I read through the story then we go through it together and discuss what it teaches us about God. Then we have time to share prayer requests and pray before we have a short tea break.

Annie generally turns up about then and we do some “sport”: stretches to wake ourselves up before Naomi teaches the lesson of the day. Naomi is teaching the three month rehabilitation and counselling program which goes through varied and essential subjects to help the women gain life skills. We have talked about our value in God, limits, truth, forgiveness and many other subjects. Anne (an Australian missionary) has been helping her but has just gone on a break for a few weeks. I help where I can and read Bible passages. We go on until one o’clock in the afternoon.

Soap drying

On Wednesdays we meet again in the afternoon with the second group.

We tend to do pretty much the same things as on Mondays, cleaning the soap buckets, measuring oil… We also have to cut out labels and cloth to label the soaps after they have dried for 6 weeks so that they are ready to be sold.

We also make bags. The ladies are mostly able to make the bags at home now so all we do at the centre is cut up the cloth.

Using the new sewing machine

Lately they have also been making bags at the centre using our 2 new sewing machines. Rebecca (a lady from our old church who used to cook for our family at Guinebor) is also a seamstress and has been teaching the ladies how to use the machines. Some like it more than others but they all seem to be doing pretty well.  On Wednesday’s Naomi or Anne also do a short Bible study with the ladies. At the moment we are studying Ephesians. We hope that these ladies will share their experiences with those around them and that they one day may be able to run the centre by themselves. After the study we make soap again and finish at about 6.

Bracelet made with you-yous

On Thursday mornings we are at the centre with the second group again. I tell the Bible story then we do some crafts so that the ladies have time to go over and think through the things Naomi talks about during the lessons. So far we have made jewellery using homemade paper beads and small decorative flowers made from fabric which we call you-yous. We have also started making cards as the idea is that in the end this group will join the first one. In a few weeks’ time we are planning on making candles. We have our tea break and chat and listen to music.



Woman making cossey

On Fridays we are at the centre with the second group again. We tell a Bible story, have our tea break for which I go with one of the ladies to get cossey from across the street. Ccossey are deep fried doughnuts made with crushed beans which we eat with a sauce made from chili peppers. Often when we go the lady has only just started making them so we wait a while sat under a tree chatting and watching everyone walk by. When we get back we eat, drink tea and chat together. After the break and some sports or dancing we have a lesson like on Tuesdays. Around midday we finish, wish each other a “bon weekend” and lock the doors.

 

The centre is quiet for a couple of days.



You-yous