A tukel (too-kul) in
South Sudan is a round house or hut.
There is a tukel near the gate on the Baptist compound. It is used mainly for scheduled and impromptu
meetings, shelter from the rain and it is where John, our weekend guard, spends
all of his time.
As the rains come to South Sudan, a person begins to
consider their roof; is it leaking … will it hold up for another year… should we
re-thatch it?
Our tukel roof had seen better days and we decided it would be
good to replace the thatch to help keep John dry. We already had enough grass to do the job. Jerry, helped by a South Sudanese friend, had
transported the grass to the compound earlier in the year. But thatching is quite a process – let me tell you!
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| Dinka Rope |
Besides the grass you will need:
*bamboo poles
*dinka rope
*strips of rubber thinly cut from automobile tires
*thick rolls of vine
*bamboo poles
*dinka rope
*strips of rubber thinly cut from automobile tires
*thick rolls of vine
First one must build the frame. You have to know the diameter of the tukel to
make sure the roof will fit. After marking
out the diameter in the dirt, the first four poles are set in position. Everything will be built around these initial
poles.
Other poles are positioned to fill in the gap until they are
10” apart at the bottom of the frame. Dinka
rope is used to tie the poles to thick vine at the pinnacle of the roof to hold
it all together.
Split bamboo will be used to help hold these poles in position and hold the grass onto the roof.
Split bamboo will be used to help hold these poles in position and hold the grass onto the roof.
The very top of the tukel is thatched on the ground for ease
of reach and safety too.
The roof is then raised and placed on the tukel. Several people came to help ‘raise the roof’. (See the video below). Thank you is demonstrated by giving a little
bit of money (6 dollars) to one of those who helped. In this case an elderly widow was very
grateful for the generous reward.
After the roof is put in place the major job of thatching
begins.
Bundles of grass are placed strategically on the frame and the rubber
strips are used to secure the grass to the frame. The grass is secured from the bottom up. This way, when it rains the water will run
from the top right down to the ends of the grass at the bottom of the roof.
This is a labor intensive process and there is a need for cooperation from the community, exhibited by raising the roof. The Dinka live in community, their lives are intertwined with those around them. Christ also lived in community and as He showed love to those around Him they saw, through Him, God’s love.
Pray that as we live, even for a short time, among the Dinka, that they would see the love of Christ through us and would understand God’s plan of salvation.