Smaller Than Your Elbow

I like to visit with my neighbors. I learn a lot from the time I spend with them - about “real” African life (as opposed to the relative “luxury” I enjoy), about culture, about Krio. Recently, Mama Sisi reached out and caught a chicken that was wandering by. (The chicken’s name is Nancy, namesake of her owner, Mama Nancy.) I watched as Mama Sisi selected a feather and plucked it right out of Nancy’s wing. She started peeling part of the fluffy part from the shaft, leaving the tip of the feather intact.

I quietly watched in fascination. What was she going to do with this feather? Which part of it was she going to use? And then she held the shaft of the feather, putting the tip in her ear as she twirled it between her fingers. It was a homemade Q-tip. I guess her mother never told her not to put anything smaller than your elbow in your ear!

I’ve also heard that you can use a piece of charcoal to clean your teeth in absence of a toothbrush and toothpaste. Honestly, I haven’t had the courage to try it yet.