I've been slacking but we're back on track and using the Typepad future post feature now so all the stories are now lined up. It's day 8 and we've got a story from Ghana. Stories stimulate the senses and and broaden our multicultural perspectives. See Backpack Nation for all 20 - and vote for your favorites - or reference my original post for additional context.
A Week With the Midwife by Jenny Sherman
The circumciser held up her pinky finger, measured down to its first joint with her other hand, and showed me. "This," said the translator behind her, "is how much of the clitoris you take. Too little, and it's not done properly. Too much, and it will not stop bleeding."
I tried not to flinch. I had researched the phenomenon of female circumcision for a couple of years, had read the brutal descriptions of infibulation, infected sutures, complicated childbirth, but hearing the procedure described in blasé detail by a woman who used to perform it on young girls was another matter entirely.
"Did they cry much?" I asked her translator, a middle-aged man from her household who spoke some English.
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