Our daughter is a born leader, but at four years old, we're working on teaching her that 1) there isn't always a right and wrong way and 2) often times there is more than one way to solve a problem. So when Riley was begging for a "real story" the other day, after a tough day at school, it seemed apropos to tap into my vault of life experiences living in Niger, West Africa.
Problem:
I was on the side of the road in 110° F watching on as a pregnant mother with two kids, a Nigerien business man, an Imam (Muslim teacher), a man with nothing but the shirt on his back (honestly!), and the driver of a 1984 Peugeot station wagon with a flat tire (piled high with boxes and baskets and a couple chickens) discussed our predicament. Ignorant me, I actually toyed with the idea that we could put on a spare tire - but wait, there is no such thing as a spare tire in Niger!
Possible Solutions:
Here's what I got out of the discussion at the time - based on a cross between what they said in Hausa, along with hand gestures and facial expressions:
We could put more air in the tire and see how far that gets us.
- Hmmm, who is going to blow into the tire to see if that could work? Because of course there is no tire pump!
We could patch the tire.
- But wait, there is a gaping hole in the tire; undoubtedly sliced by one of the sharp rocks we drove over in the dry river bed.
"In sa Allah" (if God wills it) when the next car approaches, someone can ride into town, borrow a tire, ride back and we can fix it.
- It is getting dark and very unlikely that anyone will drive past us until next week's market.
We could walk to town.
- We could certainly carry many of our belongings, but together we only have so many heads! (It's hard to carry something on your head - but it really works!)
We could stuff the tire with panyas (the fabric wraps or saris that many women wear in multiple layers) and wrap it with some of the extra rope that is holding on to the belongings on the roof.
Ta dah!
Success:
We made it to Madarounfa just a few kilometers away - the pregnant mother and her two kids, the Nigerien business man, the Imam, the man with nothing but the shirt on his back, the driver, the chickens, and the car with the roof piled so high with things that it looked like a Nigerien variation of an IKEA commercial. I'm not sure what the driver ever did with the tire.
PS - If you're reading this, please share your real life experiences that demonstrate that there are many ways to solve a problem. My well is drying up!
| posted by Joe Kennedy on 03.12.10 at 15:14 |
| I've got nothing that can compare to that - sounds like quite an experience.
It is interesting that children do seem to want real stories. When Jackie Kennedy was four she always wanted to exchange spooky stories - but afterward always demanded to know if they were 'real'. |
