Friday 29 November 2013, Mali, West Africa

 

Today was a highlight–our first Feminine Hygiene Kits were given to the beautiful girls here in Mali.  It’s a Red Letter Day for the girls and women here.  A couple of nights ago as we were eating by headlamp light around the table, someone asked about the hygiene kits.  I went and got one and opened the bag, showing the contents to everyone in our group.  Many of our medical team had not seen them before.  I always love seeing the first response of someone who has not seen a kit before.  The thought of needing feminine hygiene supplies just doesn’t cross most people’s minds.  They usually ask, “what do they use if they don’t have access to hygiene products?”  I explain, “rags or corn husks, or tree bark, or whatever they can find.”  Then an expression like horror usually crosses their faces as they think of their wives or daughters not having supplies, or using “whatever they can find.”  And then I can see them considering what it is we are bringing.  This is not just a one-time fix or comfort.  This is re-usable, month after month after month.  This small kit will bless a girl’s life for years.  It will keep her clean and safe and allow her to go to school and be social and retain her dignity.

 

I have never met anyone who is not thrilled with me at the prospect of helping provide these kits.  I passed the beautiful kit around the table so each could see the beautiful fabrics and see and feel the love that went into preparing it. Beauty. Comfort. Love.  All in one little bag. Life-changing for the girl who will receive it.

 

This morning at 8:30 Teningnini, our local Health and Education Director, Ami, our translator, and a few of our team went to the Saint Francois Xavier Catholic school in Ouelessebougou over on the east side of the main road.  We took 50 kits.  Teningnini had arranged with the headmaster to have all the girls gather when we arrived.  He sent all the boys out to play in the dirt field in the school compound.  The compound was walled with an entry gate.  The school was nice, several buildings and a few trees in the compound.  I think about 3 classes of girls from ages 11 to 16 were called together.  We had about 80-90 in the room, beautiful bright lovely girls, crowding onto the wooden desk/benches four to a desk.  They were absolutely beautiful girls.  I loved them immediately.  We were told we had 30-40 minutes.  The plan was for Teningnini to introduce us (in their local Bambara language) and tell them why we were there. Then she talked to them about being girls and having periods.  She explained using the visual of what a womb looks like and she explained the process of menstruation.  The girls were absolutely quiet–all listened intently with big bright black eyes.  Not a whisper or giggle.  They were fascinated and engaged in every word.

           

Then I showed them a kit and showed them each part of it, explaining how to use it.  They started to smile and show excitement as they realized what this would mean in their lives.  Then Ami explained how to take care of the kits and keep them clean and sanitary.  She also talked about body hygiene and how to care for themselves.  Washing from front to back seems to be a new concept here.  Then Teningnini talked to them a bit more and there was good rapport with her and Ami and the girls.  I handed the kits out.  We had the girls arrange themselves from large to small and we handed the kits out from our largest sizes to the smallest.  We had some underwear in small women’s sizes, which were a bit large for the girls.  Sizes 10-12 are the most accurate for these girls.  In the future we need to just use those sizes and then have a few packages of 14-16 and a few women’s sizes if they need to exchange for a bigger size.

           

We explained at the beginning that we would not have enough this time for every girl, but I will be back in February and will bring more to them then.  We ran out of kits before we ran out of girls.  Teningnini had them sign a list if they didn’t get one, and they were grateful to have their names on that list.  One girl came up to Teningnini and told her she started her period yesterday.  Another said she started last month.  The younger smaller girls were the ones who will have to wait.  I was sad there weren’t enough, but it was OK.

           

After all the girls had their kits, we told them to open them and check the underwear sizes and to trade if they had the wrong size.  When they opened their kits, it was like the room filled with electricity.  Excited chatter filled the cement room.  I could see some boys peeking in the open windows, wondering what the excitement was all about.  I watched the girls finger the soft flannel and open and close the snaps and smell the perfumed hotel soaps.  They were Thrilled.  It was a beautiful sight I hope to see over and over and over again in the future.  What beautiful smiles!  What a perfect gift.  I love that these kits are made by hand by other women.  You can feel and see that they are made with love, each different, each beautiful.  They were fascinated by the different fabrics.  Nothing like they are used to seeing in their culture.  I think they loved that.

 

I loved watching the girls leave the room when it was time for them to get back to their classes.  They were excited and happy and buzzing with chatter.  I was wishing every women who had anything to do with these kits could have seen what I saw this morning.  It was like Thanksgiving and Christmas all wrapped into one for me and for the others who were there and for the girls. I have been loving these girls for years.  I have photographed their faces and I look at them all the time when I am at home.  I’ve always yearned to be able to help them in some way, or communicate my love to them.  Now, with the help of 100s of women back home, there is something we can do for them that will bless their lives over and over and over again.  I feel like I have finally found my mission here.  I felt a bit overwhelmed with joy this morning at the thought of it.

 

Ann Laemmlen Lewis

Co-Director of the Utah Valley Chapter