A Day in the Field in the Mulange and Chirizulu Districts

Limbe, Malawi

We were off at 7:00 a.m. to the field to conduct interviews with a group of Malawians who attend the Anglican Church. The villages are located somewhere between the districts of Mulange and Chirizulu. The interviews went well and observing the participants and the surroundings is always an educational and grounding experience, at least for me.

Rural village life is simple but very hard. The poverty is great yet we are greeted with handshakes, smiles, and singing. The study participants gathered at the churches and waited to be interviewed. Prior to the interviews we gathered in the church building that was moderate-sized but was dark (no electricity) and had no seats or benches. There are no glass windows but small holes in the walls that allow in natural light. Once your eyes adjust you can see your neighbor’s face, but you are in the dark. The lay leaders were kind to provide us with benches, but the participants sat on the floor on top of mats. Women on one side and men on the other.

Today is hotter than expected, but there is some relief in the shade with an occasional breeze. Our vehicle seems to be held together by a thread, but it got us to where we needed to go. The backdrop of the area is a picturesque scene of tall mountains surrounding the village with long roads that are very dry and dusty (Red dust covers everything.) There are small brick houses and mud huts with thatched roofs. Outside goats are tied up to small trees to prevent them from wondering off. There are chickens, and a few cows are penned up in the small yards. I saw a few gardens that were well attended and looked beautiful.  

Our research assistants in the field

Joel, Crystal, and I went scouting for traditional healers. Walking down the village roads we would stop and Joel would ask villagers if they knew where a traditional healer was located. Along the roadside were women and children (preschool age) playing and eating sugarcane. Small girls were carrying water in small buckets on their heads and young men were carrying tree branches on the backs of their bicycles. I saw a little child who was about 3 ½ feet tall carrying sugarcane on top of her head that was twice as long as she was tall. Amazing!