In the heart of Africa, 50 miles from the nearest road and 4 hours from the nearest city, we're left to our own devices to mark special occasions. The team here threw together a variety of means and modalities to make my golden birthday (27 on the 27th) memorable.
We decided to pack up early (it being a Wednesday, which is like any other workday during the week, we usually work until 7 or 8pm--well after dark) and head to a newly-opened watering hole (I'm using that phrase euphemistically--I realize that I could be speaking about an actual watering hole that you'd think of on the Serengeti. I'm not near the Serengeti). A large group of us assembled there, arriving from the market, the hospital, the office, and the house. We split a few beers, then headed back for our security curfew. I stopped at the office only to shut down my computer and grab my keys. The luxury of an early night!
We headed back to the base and settled in to our usual spot, on plastic chairs clustered around a folding table. C'est la classe.
As I was duped into retrieving my entire laptop and external hard drive to provide music for the evening, a stealth group decked out our outdoor hangout and installed a home-made banner and balloons made of rubber gloves. I returned to an ambush and a rousing rendition of "Joyeux Anniversaire" sung in English (also known as "Happy Birthday").
A little while later, an expat arrived with crepes! Real crepes, made with love by a real French person! Nutella, sugar, lime, honey, and jam were passed around, and tears fairly flowed. What an amazing change from the norm. We scarfed them down, and shared where everyone was for their 27th birthdays.
Then it was off to bed, to get some sleep before the 6am wakeup for another work day the next day.
Life goes on. But we paused for a beat to make me feel special. Thanks team.
We decided to pack up early (it being a Wednesday, which is like any other workday during the week, we usually work until 7 or 8pm--well after dark) and head to a newly-opened watering hole (I'm using that phrase euphemistically--I realize that I could be speaking about an actual watering hole that you'd think of on the Serengeti. I'm not near the Serengeti). A large group of us assembled there, arriving from the market, the hospital, the office, and the house. We split a few beers, then headed back for our security curfew. I stopped at the office only to shut down my computer and grab my keys. The luxury of an early night!
As I was duped into retrieving my entire laptop and external hard drive to provide music for the evening, a stealth group decked out our outdoor hangout and installed a home-made banner and balloons made of rubber gloves. I returned to an ambush and a rousing rendition of "Joyeux Anniversaire" sung in English (also known as "Happy Birthday").
A little while later, an expat arrived with crepes! Real crepes, made with love by a real French person! Nutella, sugar, lime, honey, and jam were passed around, and tears fairly flowed. What an amazing change from the norm. We scarfed them down, and shared where everyone was for their 27th birthdays.
Then it was off to bed, to get some sleep before the 6am wakeup for another work day the next day.
Life goes on. But we paused for a beat to make me feel special. Thanks team.
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