Fasting month here is a whole change of pace for us. It’s quiet most of the day, but crazy busy after dark. Early on an toward the end there are plenty of fireworks too. Some places are open to eat, but mostly, we don’t get to eat out much during this month. Every bit of life is kind of flipped upside down. It’s impolite to eat and drink in public during this month, so everything we do comes with a heightened awareness of those around us. I’m pretty afraid of people driving under the influence of low blood sugar in late afternoon too. We saw an accident just the other day happened right in front of us, and I’m totally sure their lack of awareness probably had something to do with lack of sustenance. Payton’s also had to find another helper and switch up his language schedule because of the season as well. So, instead of fighting the wave, we’ve decided to ride the change of pace and do some different things, which means getting creative.
Besides being freed from my glasses after 20 long years, I also got chickens as a part of birthday week! We’re currently on a waiting list for some laying hens–rhode island reds are not easy to get here. But, since we couldn’t wait 2 more months, we decided to get the regular chickens from the feed store in the meantime to give us some practice. Plus, chickens are a very normal part of life here. Most folks here either keep birds/chickens or at least have had them in the past. I have even seen fancy roosters on a leash! I don’t plan on going that far though.
I’ve also had some time to fiddle with sourdough, although it’s not doing super well yet. The tropics do weird things to fermentations. We did succeed at making birthday doughnuts though.
Finn and I have spent a lot of time learning together too. He loves helping me cook. I use the term “helping” in a very broad sense. He sniffed every spice I had the other day.
We’ve also been exploring the garden. We found these cool tortoise beetles the other day. Finn helps me plant stuff and dig up things. And then I try to save the things he digs up.
We’re still learning so much about the people and culture around us. A lot of the understanding seems to only come with time. There’s only so much knowledge you can force into your head. Some of the more complex part of culture are very subtle and come from just enjoying everyday life and keeping your eyes and ears open.