Our good friend, Sala, told me she was pregnant last spring. As her belly grew and grew and grew, I asked her when she was due. She didn’t know, but instead passed me her prenatal card to look for myself. To my surprise, a doctor had noted from an ultrasound: “Impression – twin gestation.” When I asked her if she knew there were twins inside, her jaw dropped. She didn’t.
The time finally came for her to deliver and the twins came without the need for c-section. With three older sons at home, she delivered a girl and another boy. We visited them several times at their family compound in the week after the babies were born. When the babies were two weeks old, the family held a “suuna” or baby naming celebration at their home. Our friend Sala was decked out in her new dress, seated in her room with her twins to receive guests. Traditionally, gifts of soap, clothing, cloth and money are given to new mothers, so we followed suit. I also brought her a bag of clothes that KJ has already outgrown.
The family slaughtered a sheep for the occasion and prepared rice for their guests. We stayed for a while to visit and greet their friends and relatives. As we left, they honored us with a front leg-o-lamb as well as fried pieces of meat.
The little girl is named Aisha and the boy’s name is Sada. We are excited that as years go by, KJ will have a friend in Aisha and we pray that our friendship will continue to grow with Sala and her family.
