Joshua, Caleb and Becky experienced their first Zambian birthday party this past Saturday. One of their friends from church turned five and invited them to her party. The birthday girl is the one with long braids in the middle of the tent filled with some of the children. Becky is easy to spot. : )
It was a cultural learning experience for Sophie as she accompanied the children. In Zambia, birthday parties are not a yearly event. A child will have one party during their childhood years (often at 5), then maybe another party when they become a teenager. Because it is a rare event, the family makes it special.
For this party, the family had rented a jumping house (yes, even in Africa) for the children to have fun in. A wide array of delicious food was prepared and enjoyed by all. When it was cake time, "Happy Birthday" was sung with a "Hip Hip Hooray" added to the end. Once the candles were blown out (they used relighting candles) the child's younger sister fed her a piece of cake. I have heard that with milestone adult birthdays, young grandchildren or grand nephews/nieces feed the honored person bits of cake. Another interesting aspect of a child's birthday party is how gifts are handled. Guests bring gifts just like in America, but the birthday child does not open them. While the child and all the guests look on, an adult opens the gifts and they are set aside to be enjoyed after the party. It sure took less time to open the presents this way, but I still like seeing the joy on a child's face when unwrapping their own gifts.
No comments:
Post a Comment