We came back to Dakar Thursday morning completely and absolutely coated in reddish brown sand. My maid was outside laughing at me, and then I climbed in the shower and found out there was no running water.
“Mama, uhhh, is there a problem with the tap?” (this is me standing in the kitchen in a towel.)
“Oh Janelle, we weren’t expecting you home so soon! There’s no water in Senegal right now, but the maid’s fetching a bucket from the restaurant across the street.”
Maybe something got lost in translation. I just took a nap until it was turned back on.
I’m not prepared for life after Africa.
“…It left an emptiness. By then I knew everything good and bad left an emptiness when it stopped. But if it was bad, the emptiness filled up by itself. If it was good, you could only fill it with something better.”
--- Hemingway, A Moveable Feast
There’s already a hole where spring break used to be. Back to life in Dakar, complete with cold water and readily prepared food that can be purchased for money. Knowing what your next meal’s going to be – how luxurious! I’ve been filling the void by burning through books – Mariama Ba, Candance Bushnell, Ernest Hemingway, Gary Shteyngart, Dave Eggers, anything I can get my hands on – and repeatedly bringing new designs and patterns to my tailor. I guess it’s just nice to remember what it’s like to enjoy being alone.
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