On this blog we are going to share the lives of 10 primary girls from our district here in Zimbabwe. Our dear friend Ann, in Utah suggested we share the lives of young girls here with her primary activity girls there. We agree that this is a great way for our friends and family in America to see how many of our friends in Zimbabwe live.

We first want to introduce you to Gracious Kimbini.

Down thru the corn which they call Maze to Gracious's house.  They dry the corn, grind it, and use it to make a mush they call Sadza (pronounced Sudza).  It has very little taste and is about the consistance of thick mashed potatoes. They eat it with their fingers, which they call their Zimbabwean fork. The sadza is just rolled between the fingers into a ball and dipped in a relish, (if they have one) and plopped in the mouth.

This is the house where Gracious lives with her family.  Behind the green door is the wash room.  The cooking area is to the right of the house.  The opening to the left of the green door is the two rooms of the living area.

Here is Gracious cooking Sadza for the family.  She is 11 years old and started cooking at 10.  She cooks on average 1 meal every day for the family.  As you can see they cook over an open fire.

This shelter is at the end of their house where they cook their meals. They do not have electricity in their home.

This is a picture of Gracious's family. Her mother and father and brothers Maxwell and Tinotino. Gracious full name is Gracious Nokhutula Takavingofa Kimbini. She was born 16 Dec 2000.

Gracious and her brothers sleep on the floor of their livingroom. Their home has three rooms. This room, the largest room in their house, her parents bedroom and the bath area.

Family pictured in their livingroom. Her father Norman is a plumber and is the branch Elders Quorum President. Her mother Claris is in the primary presidency.  They do have some electrical things, such as a TV, which is powered by a small generator.  With petrol (gas) at $5.50 a gallon they don't use it much.

Gracious is sitting in her livingroom, holding her doll. The family has a small bicycle that she shares with her brother.

This is the third room of their home, it's no wider than the door. This is where they bath and store their water. They bath from a bucket. They wet their body, soap up and then rinse off. There is no running water in their house. Sometimes they heat the water on the fire, but usually just bath with cold water even in the winter months.

It's Gracious job to bring water to their home. She climbs up to the road and walks about 65 yards to get water and then carries it on her head back to the house. She does this 4 times a day, every day.

Gracious helps do the families wash, which is done in a bucket like this one. She is rinsing these clothes and will hang them on a line in her back yard.

One of her chores is to hoe the garden and the maze, using this hand made hoe.

This is the kitchen sink. They do the washing of their dishes in the back yard.

This is the family bath tub but used in the privacy of their wash room, except for the little boys, they bath outside.

Children wear uniforms to school in Zimbabwe. Each grade has a different uniform. Parents have to pay school fees, buy books and provide the uniform for their students to be able to be educated. Not all children are lucky enough to get to go to school because of the economic condition of the country. It is quite common for children to drop out of school for a year or two when the funds can't be produced.

Bringing wood to the home is another of Gracious's chores. Wood is needed for every meal that is made. There is no refridgeration in their home, and packaged foods aren't affordable or even available. So when you are hungary you make a fire and cook sadza. Left over sadza is eaten cold the next day.

Gracious and her best friend Wendy who is her next door neighbor for the past 6 years.

It was supper time when we visited, so we got to watch Gracious prepare the food. Usually in another pan they will prepare a relish to eat with the Sadza. It consists of chopped vegtables and sometimes dried fish. They love fried chicken when they have the funds to buy one.  When they eat chicken they eat everything, head, feet (they call that walkie talkie), skin, bones, except for the tiny sharp ones. They even eat the red thing on the top of the chickens head.

Small children, less than half the age of Gracious, care for and carry babies. This is the way African women carry their babies, starting when the baby is about a month old. The carrier just leans over puts the baby on their back wraps this towel around the baby and herself and then stands up and tucks the towel under the babies buttocks and over the feet, and wrap ties the towel in the front of her. When a baby gets fussy and tired in church, it is put on someones back and it settles right down and goes to sleep.

This is the view behind their home. Gracious is with her mother and Aunt.