Breaking bread

Last night we had some friends over for dinner - two couples. One couple work with us, and live on our compound. They are Salvation Army majors who are going to retire next year. The other couple are Congolese, and they are a lot of fun. We had such a great time. Of course - the first shock of the evening was seeing John in the kitchen. So, we had our typical conversation opener about gender roles, about the shocking truth that we don't have lobola (bride price) in Canada, and about how John is the better cook and actually likes cooking. I tempered the culture shock by getting on my knees and washing the hands of all of our guests with a jug and basin. Very Shona. We put all the food on the table and then I suggested it was sort of a "help yourself" sort of style, but if they really wanted to have a cultural experience, the men could serve the wives.

"No, no, no, I couldn't do that - it's not African. I don't even know how!" but then the wife, "No, I like it. I'm not getting up. I'm sitting here!" And so he did it. This old man who is terribly traditional actually served his wife some food and brought it to her. She cried tears of joy, and I was really impressed that he did it. She was thrilled, and I know she will remember this evening for the rest of her life!

It was a wonderful evening - just chatting about culture and life and family, and then playing krokinole (sp?) - to complete the Canadian experience. At the end of a meal there is always a formal speech, and I like this tradition - because our family does it at special occasions too. And in the formal speech, this Major said, "this evening has been very special and we feel honoured. We have known and worked with white people for many years, but this is our first time to be invited to one of their houses for a meal." Both John and I agreed that the meal felt a lot more meaningful than our actual work does here. There's just something about breaking bread, sharing food and sharing lives. Jesus was on to something when he gave us a simple instruction, "love your neighbours as yourself." I think he meant it literally.