M & M in Suriname

Our life with the Wayana indians

Quite a week

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We’re praying that there will be no Corona outbreak in Upper Suriname. So far there are no infections, for which we are very grateful. At times it is also quite difficult for us to keep our distance and not visit people. We have been in self-imposed quarantine since Monday March 16 and that is not always easy. A number of leaders from the village were picked up by plane for consultation with the authorities in the city because of the Corona crisis. During the consultation it was explained (again) which measures should also be taken in the Wayana community. It has also been agreed that support will be provided to help the Chief with regard to enforcement. Last Sunday we heard a number of announcements in the church that are now more in line with official measures.

Last weekend, Sonja, the daughter of a former chief, died of cancer after a courageously worn illness. We woke up with a heavy heart and knew that Sonja had died. The next morning one of the elders also came to inform us. Almost all men were busy cutting open the cemetery and digging a burial place. In the pouring rain they spent all day preparing things for the funeral. The women and close relatives mourned the dead woman, who was wrapped in a blanket in her hammock. On Monday morning an airplane brought a coffin that was ordered in Paramaribo. The body was carefully placed in the coffin in the hammock.

The funeral followed in the afternoon. The people are not familiar with a farewell service in the church. From home they walked to the cemetery, where the coffin was lowered into the ground. A number of bags with personal belongings were also placed there. Then a wooden plate was placed over it. An iron frame was put on top and all was covered with cement. Here too we see that the customs concerning burial ceremonies develop over time. Since there are still no Corona infections here, we took the risk of meeting the people during the funeral. Marco was able to offer comfort from the Bible and that still is very precious to us. We’re outsiders but they like us to be involved. After this we took a shower and changed our clothes, because it was not possible to keep a distance of one meter and a half.

Last Friday Marco had a smart idea while climbing the stairs. Under our house, against the ceiling we had some planks stored since 2018. What if we would use those planks to turn our outside shower into a bathroom. Beams, plugs, screws and planks were all available in our ‘workshop’. What a blessing! Saturday Marco worked on it and that same evening we could take a shower in our bathroom downstairs. He didn’t put planks up to the ceiling because we still want to enjoy our river view.

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