I’m exactly half way through my time here in Ain Leuh and have fallen into a very comfortable rhythm. I wake up at about 8:30am, go to the shop up the street with the money Khadija gives me to buy a few crunchy baguettes, and eat a leisurly breakfast of bread and tea before walking up to the cooperative with Khadija.
I then usually spend an hour or two at a cafe near the top of town that has wifi to work on the cooperative’s Facebook page and website. Check them out! If you find anything that interests you, I’ll be bringing back a bag of weavings when I leave Ain Leuh, so you’d just have to pay for shipping from Portland, OR to you!
After eating a lunch of some type of stew and bread around 2 or 3pm, I take my daily afternoon nap, and Khadija and I make our way back up to the cooperative to work until 8:30pm-ish. I spend my time taking videos and pictures of the various activities that go on at the cooperative: dying wool, stringing up looms, and of course the weaving itself. I hope to make some type of video outlining the entire weaving process, although I am quite the video-editing novice.
Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting, is coming up sometime next week, probably beginning on Friday the 20th. Since I am living with a Muslim family, I’ve decided to join in on the fast. I’d most likely be fasting by default anyway. It will be an interesting experiment to see if I have Sabir: the virtue of patience and perseverance.