Every day life

 

 

 

La Missione di Baoro
La Mission de Baoro

 

Every day life

Life goes on, and every day it brings various pieces of news.

On Sunday I went to celebrate Mass in Igwe, a small village with 12 houses, in the savannah, 65 km from Baoro. I went with Marisa and Flavio, my sister and her husband, and with Paolo Silvestro, a longtime friend, who is visiting for a few weeks.

After Mass we left to visit the other more distant villages. After Bayanga Didi we moved on to Yoro, where with surprise I saw a nurse who was vaccinating against Covid: more than 900,000 doses have been given to the people here in Central Africa (which is many for this area), with a coverage of about 7% of the population fully vaccinated.

Over the past few days school desks have arrived in Baoro, we had ordered them given that the number of pupils has greatly increased.

And today, we leave for Bozoum, for the final preparations for the 17th Bozoum Agricultural Fair, which will open on Friday, January, 28th until Sunday the 30th.

Courage!

Igwe

Vaccinazione Covid a Yoro
Vaccinations Covid à Baoro

Banchi per le scuole
Tables bancs pour les écoles

 

Positive

 

 

Positive

Covid is also present in Central Africa, of course. Thank God, there are few cases (only 13,319 confirmed cases, from February 2020 to date, and 108 deaths). Even there there aren't many there are still some.

The past few days I wasn't feeling great, but I thought it was just the usual bout of malaria.  On Monday, January 10th, I discovered, with a quick swab, that I was Covid positive. So: isolation and rest ensued.  Thank God it wasn't a very severe case, and in a week I was able to resume my regular activity and on Monday January 17th I tested negative.

During my quarantine I was able to review some commitments that I had coming up, in particular the Bozoum Fair. We had it scheduled for January 21-23, and we moved it to January 28-30 this month.

Early Tuesday morning I left for Bangui, for the weekly meeting with the construction company carrying out the work on the new convent.

The works are progressing quickly, and probably within a couple of weeks the ground floor walls will be ready.

Today, Thursday the 20th, I returned to Baoro, stopping along the way to visit some of our schools.

Cantiere del nuovo convento di Bangui
Le chantier du nouveau couvent de Bangui

Dobere

Laughing together

 

 

 

 

Laughing together

A display, with different faces, with the actors who have just finished rehearsal and are enjoying the show of the "Perroquets de Bangui": men, women, girls and boys, Muslims and Christians altogether.

This is the collection of the work week here in Baoro, with the theater that is a means of peace, social cohesion, respect and hospitality.

After 3 days of training with the teachers of the "Perroquets de Bangui" group, the thirty boys and girls of the 3 communities (Protestants, Catholics and Muslims) are ready to act, and to bring a serene and positive message to the city.

Friday morning we were at the highschool. In addition to more than 1,000 students, many other young people and children have also joined.  The young people begin, they have 3 skits that describe the everyday life in this area, with its joys and problems, and how, through dialogue, respect and welcomed discussions, these problems can be resolved.

They have garnered a lot of attention, and the actors are purposeful and committed, and they perform very well.

Once they are done their performance Evariste, Benjamin and Malicra, of the 3 "Perroquets de Bangui", close the show with other skits.  In addition to making people laugh, they also make people think and reflect.

On Saturday afternoon the show took place between a Protestant church and the mosque in the neighborhood where over 3,000 peuls (Muslims, nomads, who have returned to Central Africa after 5 years refugees in Cameroon) live.

It is nice to see people of different races, faiths and ages, united by smiles and laughter.

Sunday was the last show, right in the city center. Here too the young people performed with confidence and professionalism, followed by the 3 Perroquets.

It was a very beautiful experience, which brought joy and laughter, reflection and new friendships, especially among the young people.

So we hope, in one way or another, to be able to continue it, perhaps with a theater school ...

 

 

 

 

Venerdì 7 gennaio, Liceo
Vendredi 7 janvier, au Lycée

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sabato 8 gennaio, quartiere Langa Langa
Samedi 8 janvier, quartier Langa Langa

 

 

 

 

 

Domenica 9 gennaio, centro città
Dimanche 9 janvier, Centre ville

 

 

 

 

 

Laugh, think and hope

 

 

 

Laugh, think and hope

The year has just started, and the daily rush continues, thank God!

Sunday the 2nd, here in Central Africa, we celebrate the feast of the Epiphany. I'm going to Bawi, a village 36 km away on the paved road towards Bossemptele. Here I will celebrate Mass, and we have the joy of baptizing a newborn.

In Baoro, as in other centers of Central Africa, there is the PLATEFORME DES CONFESSIONS RELIGIEUSES, which gathers Protestants, Catholics and Muslims. It is a group that began in 2012, and who continue to work for peace and reconciliation, and to avoid tensions and struggles between communities of different faiths.

During these days we organized an important event. Starting Wednesday there were "I perroquets de Bangui" (The Parrots of Bangui): a group of very good comedians (they participated in August 2021, in the World Theater Festival of Monaco - FR- placing 2nd).

Wednesday we also had 30 boys and girls, Protestants, Muslims and Catholics, together for 3 days of formation. After the training, they too, together with the Perroquets, will do 3 shows in the city, to give people a moment of serenity, but also of reflection.

Thursday morning, just before 6am, I left for Bozoum. At the 35 km mark , there is a bridge, over 40 meters long, which was very dangerous. Together, we Carmelites and the community of merchants and transporters of Bozoum, we were able to remake the wooden plank and repair it.

In Bozoum, in addition to the community, I met Caritas staff, merchants and agricultural cooperatives, to organize the Bozoum Agricultural Fair. A unique event in the country, it represents for hundreds of cooperatives the opportunity to exhibit and sell agricultural products. We are trying to organize it, because the situation in the country is still very critical (some of the cooperatives will not be able to come, because they are threatened by the rebels, or because there are some roads with mines…).

We can hope!

PS: thanks go out to all the amazing translators, who help me translate the blog into various languages every week: Natasha for English, Regina for German, Fr Juan for Spanish, Sister Nazarè for the Portuguese and Ludmila and Terezie for the Czech. Thank you with all my heart!

Fiori di caffé
Fleurs de café

Bawi

Formazione al teatro
Formation pour le théatre

Ponte di Kounde
Le pont de Kounde