Story of childhood in Tanganyika from 1953-1957- arriving

MOVING TO A NEW HOME

Galilee was so excited. It seemed like she had been stuck in this truck all her life.

She could just remember her old home but it was so very far away.

Mom told her, “Today, when we get to the pig tree we will be there.” But, it was taking so long. Galilee longed to just run about and play.

Just as the sun was going behind the hill Dad, Mom and Mr. Deming pulled off on the side of the road.

Dad came over to the truck Mom and Galilee were in, “ It will be awhile Grace, so I think we need to take time to eat and then go on. Mr. Deming says it will be another hour and we are all very hungry.”

Galilee was glad as she was so hungry she could hear her tummy growling.


Mom gave each of them some peanut butter sandwiches and a drink of lukewarm water. The cookie that she had at the end of the meal was the last of mom’s homemade cookies.


On the ship there had been plenty of food and lots of fruit, more than Galilee had ever seen before. But since leaving the ship they had mostly bread, cereal, boiled eggs and sandwiches. She missed the fruit the most. But, she was really glad for the cookie to end the meal.


Soon they all got back into the trucks. Galilee in the truck with her mom, Dick with Dad, and Jerry and Jim with Mr. Deming. Jim and Jerry were twins and almost 15.


Galilee didn’t know when they stopped. She slept right through the arrival. When she woke up in the morning she was laying in her bed in the back of the truck. She could hear her brothers and parents talking and smell toast.


Excitedly she shoved her feet into her shoes without stopping to tie the laces, and pulled yesterday's dress over her head. She didn’t even think of her hair.


She went to the tail gate to look out. The one door was propped up. The other side was still closed. All she could see was tall grass, almost as tall as the truck,and a big tree.

There were people all around. Where the trucks were parked under the tree, the grass had been trampled down. Then she just about fell off the end of the truck. She had just  remembered the tree. The pig tree. Forgetting everything else, Galilee jumped down so she could see the pigs.


She peered up at the leaves overhead. No pigs. She looked on the ground under the tree. Still no pigs. Where were they?


She walked around the tree, stumbling a bit on the tree root, but still no pigs.


Finally she ran over to her mom who was making toast over an open fire.


“Mom, mom, I can’t see them anywhere. Where are they?”


“Careful of the fire Galilee. What can’t you see?”


“The pigs?”


Mom now looked up, but only half listening, as she was watching the toast. “Pigs? What pigs?”


“You said, we would be home when we got to the Pig tree. I thought we were there, but I can't see any pigs anywhere.”


“Oh Galilee” mom was laughing softly, “not pigs. It’s a Fig tree. That's a kind of fruit.


Galilee‘s shoulders drooped. She missed the pigs they had at their old home. She also felt shy because everyone was laughing at her. She ducked her head under her mom’s arm.


Dad came over, tossed her up in the air and carried her over and sat her on the truck tailgate. Her oldest brother Jim came over and tied her shoes. Mom went back to making breakfast.

Well, there were no pigs. But she found she loved the smell in air. She could smell the fire, but,  there was another lovely smell. Later she realized it was the smell of the grass. She was glad they had arrived and were out of the truck.   But, where were they going to live. There was no house, just the tent and the beds in the trucks. And the fire outside where mom was making the food. It was all very unusual.


The people standing around watching seemed to know Mr. Deming. He was talking to them with funny words. Then everyone moved back a bit but didn’t leave.


Galilee was looking at the children but she was shy. She tried to catch their eyes so she could smile but they also seemed shy and would look away quickly, before she could smile. It seemed funny because they were all black and she had never played with anyone who was black before.

She was used to their color by now because since leaving the ship most of the people they saw were black. In fact, her family and Mr. Deming stood out because they were all pink.


After breakfast Galilee helped mom, drying the dishes. Mom brushed her hair and washed her face and hands in a wash bowl of cold water. UGH.

Galilee wanted to run around and explore but mom said she must stay close to the truck and not go out into the grass unless she was with her brothers or dad. Mom said there were snakes they had to watch out for, and also, she could easily get lost. 

Dad and her brothers were putting up the tent so they couldn't take her.  They were busy, busy, busy, moving some of the stuff from the trucks into the tent once it was up. But surely this wasn't where they would live.  Galilee finally just sat on the tailgate of the truck and watched everything going on around her.  She was trying to figure it out.  Later maybe her brothers would take her to explore.