Mama ny Linda came by as Linda and I were preparing to head over to the well to wash my long-overdue load of clothes, mildewy from weeks of constant rain and damp. Mama ny Linda had an exhausted look and was so hoarse from coughing she could barely produce enough sound to say “mbolatsaraâ€? [”still good = hello]. When I enquired she told me that she’d only been coughing for a few days and some “sakay tanyâ€? tea would help but she had no ginger. I went into the house, grabbed my olive-oil bottle full of rainforest honey and a large piece of ginger root from the market in M, and brought them out to her. She accepted gratefully and a little while later, my olive-oil bottle was returned empty. I always forget that when you offer something in Madagascar, you only offer the amount you are prepared to have taken because the “fombaâ€? here is to take all that is offered, instead of our custom of politely accepting a reasonable amount and returning the remainder. Ah, well… I’m happy she has the honey. Will buy more next time I’m in M.

For now, I have “siramamy gasyâ€? (”Malagasy sweet saltâ€?, i.e., a block of homemade sugarcane molasses) to sweeten my tea. The “siramamy gasyâ€? was a present brought over by Mama ny Noro soon after Mama ny Linda returned the empty honey bottle. Mama ny Noro just came back from M, a four-day journey on foot from V, the village my traveling onion-sellers come from. She carried a heavy block of solid molasses on her head the whole way, bringing over a beautiful piece as my “voandalanaâ€? (fruit of the road, i.e., souvenir of her trip). Such a lovely gesture! Today I gave away honey and was given molasses. Such is life in V.