An Akha woman shelling corn (Aqpiq ardu pyav-eu)
At the beginning of the rainy season, many Akha families harvest corn from their personal fields. Some of the corn is eaten off the cob, usually cooked over an open fire. Occasionally, the kernels are ground into corn meal (ardu cehrmeu) which is used to make into a warm pudding (similar to a rice pudding, and often cooked with a small amount of chicken). Most of the harvest, however, is used to feed the livestock: specifically chickens.
When the corn is fully grown, the Akha go into their fields with loosely woven baskets (khavkar) to gather their harvest. The corn husks (ardu arkhawf) are removed and burned, and the corn is then laid out on rice bags (pehrzeur) to dry in the sun. Once dried, the entire harvest is shelled by hand into individual kernels (ardu dumyav).
The chickens are, most commonly, fed these kernels whole along with uncooked rice grains. Some of the families that do not raise many chickens or who have larger fields will sell the corn, but they still shell the entire crop because they receive a much better price for shelled kernels than for full ears.
Once shelled, the corn cobs (ardu arkahq) are, most commonly, used as fuel for the family fire. Currently, most families still cook their daily meals over indoor, open, wood-fueled fires. The shelled cobs add to the family fuel supplies.
The season of shelling corn is a unique time in an Akha community. Because most families are shelling corn and the people in the villages go about their daily tasks: visiting neighbors, having conversations, drinking tea, or just passing the time; everyone is free to join in and help shell the cobs in the home that they have entered.
At the end of the season, most of the younger children have large blisters on the outside of their thumbs, but as they grow in their agricultural experiences the callouses soon harden those soft hands. Before long, the children join their parents and grandparents in their ability to stick their hands (briefly) into open flame in order to stoke the fire and pick up boiling-hot pots and pans without feeling pain.
