Back from the Baka land.

I’m back in Yaounde now. I left the Baka land yesterday around noon, taking public transport (a bus) by myself to get here. I was in the Baka land a little more than two weeks and got quite a bit done, although not as much as I would have liked. Progress tends to be slow in Cameroon it seems. I’m not sure if it’s the heat/humidity or just the way of life or not having every tool available to you from a local Home Depot to get the job done the fastest/easiest or just a combination of it all.

Jen’s house is pretty much mostly complete at this point. The veranda is completely screened in and has a door. She still needs Ethernet cable for the internet to be ran to her house, a few doors on the inside and she still needs a few more things moved from her old house to her new house but I think other than that it’s mostly complete.

I managed to get a nice cut on my left cheek and a black eye while working. I was assembling the door for the veranda and had the pieces of wood stuck in the frame to see if it would line up. Nothing was secured but friction was holding it all together long enough for me to check each corner out. Well, one of the supporting pieces of wood slid out and a relatively heavy redwood 2x4 fell from a height of about 7 feet onto my face as I was sitting down on the ground below it. I still have the black eye but the cut has healed pretty nicely.

I was able to go over engine fundamentals/mechanics with the Anderton/Conrod children. I think most of the older ones understood fairly well and the younger ones probably learned a thing or two but were mostly just interested for a few minutes at a time.

My heart really feels for the Baka people and especially the children. It pains me to think of their potential future. It seems the kids don’t have a lot of opportunities in life to go beyond just living where they are, to get an education, and to live in a city larger than just the tiny area they know. The Baka are considered to be fairly nomadic but when they travel, it seems they most stay within the forest area they know and hardly travel to towns/cities. The Baka are unfortunately looked down upon by some people of Cameroon. Even if they did have an education, people might still shun them for being Baka. Occasionally there are some that make it out of the area and might find a job in Yaounde and make a living there, but very few.

Most of the children don’t receive a formal education. All they know is what they experience from their parents and extended family/the people in their villages. A lot of the adults don’t tend to be very good examples. They don’t use their money wisely and definitely don’t save money. The concept of having savings is kind of foreign to most Cameroonians but it seems more so with the Baka. They’ve never known anything different so why change? Many of the adults are alcoholics and spend much of their money on that. The children usually have only one set of clothes that they wear 24/7. Very few of the Baka around here wash and almost no one has soap. They say they don’t have the money for it, but it’s not necessarily true, they just don’t wisely spend their money.

The children are very sweet, playful and happy. Often as I was working on Jen’s veranda, they would watch and help out when they could, handing me a saw when I reached for it holding a piece of wood in place when I needed an extra set of hands, etc. I really hope that with the missionary families there, the Baka children are inspired to live a more-I don’t want to say Western life-but a more civilized life. Bathe regularly, save money, don’t abuse alcohol, strive to educate yourself. These are all things that could happen if they were instilled in the children from an early age and I really hope it happens. Jen told me that it isn’t going to be very easy and they need to know the love of Jesus to make a life change and a commitment to improving their lifestyles. Hopefully they see what they could have and more of how life should be.

I’ll leave Yaounde tomorrow at some point, just staying here for two nights. I’m hoping to find a few groceries I can’t get in Banyo, a few Duracell batteries and take out some money from the bank. I’ll have to take public transport to Bafoussam first (about 5-6 hours) and then from there, catch another bus to Banyo (about 10 hours). Once in Banyo, depending on the time, I’ll either take a motorcycle taxi to Wouram where I live (only a five minute drive) or arrange for someone to get me.

Here are pictures from my trip to the Baka land. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2046922&id=1337370415&l=53cb4a833d