October 2006
Vol. 6, No. 5
Hello Everyone,
The rainy season has pretty much come to a close. In the last
three weeks we have had two showers, and that’s pretty good
for Niger. Now that we don’t have regular cloud cover, the
100+ F temperatures are back and so are hot, sleepless nights!
According to recent reports, much of the country should have a
decent harvest, except for some scattered pockets that seemed
to have missed regular rains. To read articles on the subject,
including one that credits Niger for holding back desertification
in recent years, see the United
Nations’ Integrated Regional Information Networks’
Web site.
We’re also nearing the end of Ramadan, the Muslim month
of fasting, where no adult eats or drinks during daylight hours.
In a large city like Niamey, it isn’t real obvious that
Ramadan is taking place, other than the fact that government offices
and banks close each day around 3:00 p.m. That is so employees
can go home and prepare to break the fast at sundown (besides,
no one is very productive—or pleasant—after nine hours
of fasting). Evidence of Ramadan is easier to spot in smaller
and more Islamic towns like Maradi, where the town is shut down
during the afternoon and only revives during the evening hours.
Maybe you’ve heard this before, but most people who fast
actually eat more during this month, since they stuff themselves
before dawn and during the night. Food prices tend to rise in
all the markets, as people treat themselves to “goodies”
they seldom eat during the rest of the year.
I’ve spent most of this past month at my desk—no
travels or visitors to host, although I’ve had a fair amount
of meetings to attend. I do a lot of correspondence and translation
for the EERN and its partners. In reality, I serve as a “bridge”
between the Nigerien and American churches. Also, I’ve been
trying to brush up my Hausa through a couple of projects. I’ve
assembled a glossary of over 2,300 of the most common English
words, especially Christian and medical terms and their Hausa
counterparts, with the help of a university linguist student,
Alio. I prepared this to be used in a dictionary
program for my Palm Treo (PDA and cellphone). When it is finished,
I’ll have this word list with me at all times, since I carry
my Treo on my belt. That way, I hope I’ll never need to
struggle for a Hausa word when in conversation and I can also
add new words, as the need arises.
My second project has been to create a
listserve for sharing Hausa Christian resources among missionaries
and Hausa-speaking Christians. I keep discovering new Christian
materials that are available in Hausa, but often their existence
is only known to a few people. With this listserve and Web page,
I hope to create a community of those working in Hausa ministry.
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