Community Celebrations

Every so often I am amazed at the sense of community that exists here at Mzumbe.  Last Sunday I experienced quite a bit of that community togetherness as I was invited by a couple of families here to join the celebration of their children taking their first communion at the local Catholic Church.  I know the importance of this ceremony for both the parents and the young children, so I was quite honored to celebrate it with them.

The feeding of the cake!

After a festive Sunday Mass, I went to the house of the Singano family that lives nearby, along with many of my other Mzumbe colleagues that were also celebrating.  At their house, each person was introduced, then following that there were some traditional rituals that took place for their daughter, Lusia, the girl of honor.  One such ritual included calling up a few guests (myself included), to be fed a piece of cake by Lusia.  Each person that was called upon was greeted by singing and clapping from everyone present. 

Following those rituals, we celebrated further with a delicious Tanzanian meal.  Once the meal was finished, there was some music and gift giving for Lusia, and then it was off to another family’s party!  The other party was the same joyous celebration where the community joined together to congratulate the family and celebrant and enjoy the company and time with one another.

It’s really quite warm and humbling to experience the sense of community that exists here in Tanzania.  Everyone is incredibly welcoming (just about the entire Mzumbe staff was invited and attended both parties), and it’s at these events where you really get to see how important family and community is to the way of life here.  As a member of the community (no matter how big or small), you are treated like family and even at important events like a first communion, you are welcome as any other family member would be.  It makes you realize what really is valued here is that sense of community and family, values that are truly easy to appreciate and be grateful for.