Thanksgiving 2007

We had a fun and interesting Thanksgiving gathering at our house this year. Five Peace Corps volunteers arrived at Namwianga on Wednesday to spend the holiday with us. They stayed at the large guesthouse but ate most of their meals with us. They came prepared to cook and bake dishes for our feast, and on Thursday morning we had three kitchens in use—the guesthouse where the PC women were staying, the Hamby guesthouse kitchen, and mine. We had a short power outage around 10 a.m. that gave us a bit of panic, but the power came on again after about 30 minutes and the baking continued without any major disasters.

Don Oldenburg had contacted the manager of the Spar grocery store in Choma weeks ago and asked him if he could get us two turkeys for Thanksgiving. We had high hopes that this manager could pull it off, but alas, it was not to be. When Don and Laura went to pick up the turkeys on Wednesday, the manager informed them that the turkeys had come in, but they were of such poor quality that he wouldn’t sell them to us. David grilled chicken instead.

We had two more Peace Corps workers who came in on Thursday—one made it in time for dinner and another arrived in the evening. Our other guests were Don and Laura Oldenburg, Sheri Sears, and Richard and Sue Krogsgaard. Richard and Sue are Canadians who arrived at Namwianga in August. They missed the Canadian Thanksgiving Day in October, so we thought it was appropriate that they share in our feast.

And feast we did! We managed to have many traditional American Thanksgiving dishes: stuffing, pumpkin pie, apple pie, rolls, mashed potatoes, green beans, and even jellied cranberry sauce that some recent visitors brought with them in their luggage. There were no Macy’s parades or football games to watch, but we did have lots of laughter, sharing, and fellowship.

Sara and John were in Searcy with David’s sister and family. We were able to talk to them via Skype and even saw them through the web cam. Later we talked with David’s parents and watched the last minute dinner preparations going on in the background. When they announced that dinner was ready, David’s dad had all of the family hold hands in a circle and then asked David to lead the prayer for the meal. From 10,000 miles away we shared in the Thanksgiving gathering with our family. God is good, and we are thankful.

Just Another Day

Saturday was one of those days. I knew it would be busy, because the secondary school had a PTA meeting in the morning and graduation scheduled for the afternoon. The unplanned events were just extras.

I was ready to leave for the PTA meeting at 9:30 when I decided to take a loaf of bread out of the freezer for lunch. I opened the freezer and picked up the loaf -- and it wasn't frozen! My freezer had stopped working—the victim of one too many power surges, I suppose. David and I quickly emptied it out and surveyed the damage. Most of the things in the bottom were still frozen, so we took those over to the Hamby guesthouse freezer. One chicken, some sausages, and some steaks that were in the top rack had thawed. I put the chicken on the stove to cook, gave the sausages to my neighbor, and put the steaks in the refrigerator to cook Saturday night.

Finally at 11:00 I headed for the PTA meeting. The lively discussions were still going strong at 12:45 when the sky grew dark with ominous clouds. A storm was on the way. I also had a chicken cooking on the stove and hadn't told David to turn off the burner, so I left the meeting and went home. A huge storm hit about 10 minutes later with torrential rains, violent winds, and pea-size hail. David and I watched limbs break off and fall from our back yard trees and wondered if we were going to lose another fence as we did last year. The power went out as it usually does in a storm.

We had just finished eating lunch when Justin, the security guard, called to say the roof had blown off his house. David suggested someone for him to call.

The storm abated, and I began to plan to return for the 2:00 graduation ceremony. There were four sponsored students who had no family coming, and I was to be their “Mom" for the day. At 1:45 we got a call that the shipping container of donated food relief was in Kalomo and we needed to send an escort to show the truck driver how to get to Namwianga. We also had to arrange for workers to unload the contents of the container so the driver could get back on the road.

Thomas Siafwiyo was supposed to be in charge of the container, so we tried to call him and found out that he was at his farm and out of cell phone range. (We found out later that he was trying to get back to Namwianga, but the storm flooded the usually dry creek bed and he was stranded until late afternoon.) We drove up to the school and found Andrew, the maintenance supervisor, just as he left the graduation luncheon. Although he knew nothing about this container coming and was planning to go to graduation, he agreed to help us out. He drove off to recruit workers for the unloading while David went into Kalomo and to find the truck and escort it to Namwianga.

I went on to graduation. There was still no power, so the packed auditorium had no lights and no sound system. I could barely see the front of the auditorium and couldn’t hear much of anything. I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to tell when my students were awarded their diplomas, so I ended up standing near the front with my camera ready to catch the moment.

Graduation ended at 5:00, and the container was unloaded by 5:15. The power was still off at our house, but we found out that Don and Laura Oldenburg had electricity at their house near the clinic. I volunteered to cook the thawed steaks at their house, and we invited Louisa and Ashley to join us for dinner. We enjoyed our time together and managed to have a very pleasant ending to a chaotic and eventful day. By the time we got home at 9:30, the power was back on at our house.

David and I have a saying about days like this. When spoken with just the right drawl and a smile, it pretty well sums things up: “Just another day in paradise.”

HIZ Final Photo

On Saturday the Harding In Zambia group hosted a lunch for all the workers and missionaries who have helped them this semester. The Harding students served the meal, presented us with gifts, and blessed us with their incredible singing. Then we set up the multimedia projector on our veranda, and the students showed us the powerpoint program that the group will present in chapel when they return to Harding. We were touched by their thoughtfulness.

We managed to gather all of them together for a final and official photo. We will treasure this parting shot of a talented, caring, and unique group who blessed us richly during their time at Namwianga.

Graduates' Tea

These lovely ladies are sponsored students who are graduating from Namwianga Christian Secondary School this month. I had a tea for them on Saturday and enjoyed hearing them tell about happenings in their lives and plans for the future. Most of them will be attending Mapepe Bible College in Lusaka next year. Mapepe has a nine-month program designed to equip recent high school and college graduates for leadership and service in the church. I know these young women will be blessed by their time there and will in turn be a blessing to others.

Ants

We had hoped that the annual invasion of the flying ants would occur while the Harding students were still here. Just a few days before they left, we had two huge thunderstorms. Right on schedule, the ants invaded the following night. The swarms of winged critters clouded the air with their buzzing wings. They followed every light source and crawled through every crack to get into our house. We did as we have done in years past--gave up, turned out the lights, and went to bed. I tried to sneak in a little bit of reading by taking a flashlight and a book under the covers, but a couple of the stubborn ants kept bugging me until I surrendered and went to sleep.

The next morning there were the dead bodies of the ants an inch deep on both front and back verandas. This year we had a good use for them and dumped pails full of the creatures into the chicken pen. The fowls had a feeding frenzy! It was an all-you-can-eat smorgasbord for an hour or two.

We threw more ant carcasses over the fence a couple of times later in the day. By mid-afternoon the chickens had had enough. They turned up their beaks and walked away from the final buffet.

What's Cooking

Jonathan Strickland, one of the Harding students, made a Cobb Lorena stove in our back yard kitchen. The stove is made of clay mud mixed with elephant grass. You can see in the photo below how the mixing part is done.

The firebox and "pipes" inside the stove are made of banana tree trunks. A very small fire will cook a pot or two of food efficiently and effectively without having to use a large quantity of firewood or charcoal.

Jonathan taught two of the Zambian college students how to make and use the stove. They have already used it to cook a meal or two, and they plan to make another Cobb Lorena stove near the guys' dorm for other students to cook on.

This project was just one of the many ways that the Harding students got involved with Namwianga's residents and made a difference.

News and Notes - November 12

I apologize for not posting more blog entries later. We were extremely busy last week and have also had continued problems with our internet service. The AfriConnect system installed for Harding stopped working at our house a week ago, although thankfully it continued to work at the houses where Harding students were staying. We reconnected to our old Coppernet system, but for some reason we cannot post any photos. I tried several times but finally decided to give up on pictures and at least get something on the blog.

The Harding In Zambia students left this morning. We have been dreading this event, all of us feeling surprised by the depth of the attachments we have made. The Harding students and the George Benson college students have shared their lives in big and small ways for 10 weeks. We missionaries have known the blessing of the Harding students' cheerful spirits, their great attitudes, and their fantastic devotional times with us. Saying goodbye was difficult for all of us. We know that they are taking many wonderful memories with them and that they have left us with many wonderful memories of their time here. The campus will be too quiet for the next few days and weeks as we adjust to life without them.

I finally finished grading the 85 term papers. It is a relief to have time at last to do the things I enjoy and not just mark papers! I brought my special toddler friend Bernard home from the orphanage to spend an afternoon playing. I also had the other missionaries over for dinner so we could get caught up on the news in each others' lives. I'm slowly getting caught up on all the other projects that had to be deserted for the term papers.

Former Namwianga missionaries Sam and Nancy Shewmaker are here visiting for a few days. Sam grew up here and has been involved in African missions in one way or another for most of his life. A few weeks ago he and Nancy moved to Rwanda and are beginning a new work there. They have blessed us by sharing stories of their mission experiences and have given us valuable insights that will help us in our ministry at Namwianga.

There will be more news to come when I can post some photos!

More Fowl Play

It wasn't enough just to teach the chickens how to jump. Now David has them doing other tricks as well. He takes his laser pointer out to the chicken pen. When he points it on the ground in front of them, the chickens think it's something to eat and try to peck it. Then he points the light on their feathers and they contort themselves trying to get it off. The grand finale is when he targets their feet and gets them dancing. Stay tuned . . .

Kalomo High School Church

We took the Harding In Zambia students to visit the Kalomo High School church this morning. As always, we enjoyed our time with this congregation composed of over 150 high school students. Vann Rackley taught the Bible class, David preached, and Harding student Matt Leroy did the Lord's supper. Shown above is the Kalomo singing group presenting a story in song after the worship service. The Harding students also sang and delighted their Zambian audience.

Bicycle Evangelists

Some of the bicycle evangelists are pictured at their training seminar that was held in September. Ten of the evangelists recently spent a week at Mbabala evangelizing and planting a church there. David and members of the Church Development Program team joined them for the first Sunday that the new church met. Dyson and Military, two of the bicycle evangelists, decided to stay an extra week to provide some additional training and encouragement for the new group. David saw Dyson a few days ago and found out that they also planted ANOTHER new congregation during their extended stay.

A Story You Need to Read

Please click on the title above to read a gripping article about suffering and hope in Zambia. We see the Rodericks and Kenneths every day in our acquaintances and students here at Namwianga. I hope we are making a difference for some.

Today was the deadline for applying for sponsorship for the 2008 school year. The stack of applications is six inches high. Many of the applicants come from families like Roderick's. They long for an education and the luxury of three meals a day and a bunk in the dormitory.

I am torn between the joy of helping the thirty or so who will be selected and the agony of saying no to the others.

Suffering and hope in Zambia.

HIZ Outreach

One of the many joys of having the Harding students on campus is that they have joined us on many outreaches. The group shown above braved a rugged two-hour ride with David and Rodgers to see a congregation install its first elders. Jonathan delivered the message that day with Rodgers as his translator.

Graduation

Friday was graduation day for the college. The graduates finished their coursework in 2006 but had to wait for the results to be finalized before receiving their diplomas. Since we hadn't seen them since last year, it was exciting to see them again and to hear of their activities. Most of the sponsored students were able to get jobs even without diplomas and are already teaching. Several are in mission areas of Western and Luapula Province where they are planting churches and encouraging new congregations.

The college choir sang for the occasion. Some of the Harding students have joined this group, and it is a joy to see and hear them mixed in with their Zambian peers.

The guest speaker was the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Zambia. He raved about the beautiful singing and even requested an additional song after the official program had ended. As he made his final remarks, he said, "I don't want to leave. I'd like to just sit here and listen to more of this beautiful singing from the choir."

We made sure he received a CD to take with him so that he can continue to remember the George Benson Christian College choir.

85 Reasons I Haven't Been Blogging

The 85 reasons I haven't been blogging are the 85 research papers my students turned in for me to grade. I have been marking papers every spare minute for three weeks now. I am drowning in a sea of red ink (and self-pity). I am nearing the end at last and hope to resume normal life soon.

Fowl Play

Since we don't have a TV, we have come up with our own creative forms of entertainment. Many of these involve--no surprise here--the chickens.

For instance, we have discovered that the chickens will jump for bits of food. We simply poke a piece of stale bread through the wire mesh and watch the fun begin. One of the good jumpers will go high and grab the food, then hit the ground and run while the other less athletic birds chase after him and try to steal the treat.

Certain chickens definitely have more spring in their steps than others. The rooster Justafella has the advantage of superior height, but Petronella, Citronella, and one of the younger hens can just about match him. My favorite, though, is one of the young roosters who can't seem to get enough of jumping. He starts flying at the fence as soon as he sees me heading toward the coop. He leaps high and hard time after time.

I think I picked an appropriate name for him: Larry Bird.

Foster Hen

The drama in the chicken coop continues! One of the hens (now dubbed Cruella for soon-to-be-obvious reasons) seems to be suffering from a severe lack of motherly instincts. She has been sitting on her nest for weeks now. Her eggs began hatching last week, but she pushed the chicks out of the nest and refused to come down with them. In the chicken-eat-chick world, the other chickens attacked the babies and killed four of them before I figured out what was happening and began my rescue operation. I started checking the pen every few hours and managed to save three of the balls of fluff before they had too many injuries. I have them safely ensconced in a cardboard box in my pantry where they are doing just fine under my foster care.

Then on Wednesday Cruella came down off her perch with two new baby chicks and started acting like a mother hen should. I thought she had finally come to her senses and might manage to avoid becoming our dinner in the near future. The following day Citronella, one of our original hens, hatched out just one tiny chick. Citronella and Cruella strutted around the yard with their chicks and all was well in the chicken world—at least until dusk. I went out to check on them and found Cruella back up on her high nest with her babies running around frantically below her. I figured I might as well add them to the box in the pantry and started to go in the pen. Just then Citronella came swooping over from her corner and engulfed the two lost chicks under her wings with her own baby. She stared at me with her beady-eyes and dared me to take another step. I watched her for a few minutes as she got settled for the night and left her alone.

Cruella came down for a few hours the next day and took over her chicks, but by mid-afternoon she was back on her nest and hasn’t been down since. Citronella and the three little ones seem perfectly happy without her. I asked my neighbor Mrs. Moono what she thought about Cruella. "Some chickens are not good mothers," she told me. "You should eat that one!"

Maybe we will. Citronella, however, is now in the running for Mother of the Year.

Another Sponsored Student Success Story

I was delighted to see Japhet Nawa visiting the campus this week. Japhet was sponsored through high school here at Namwianga and in 2005 was the first person in his family to graduate from high school. Last year he earned a diploma in business and computer studies at George Benson. Japhet proudly told me that he now works the front desk computer at the highly rated Tongabezi Lodge in Livingstone. I'm very proud of Japhet and thankful for the sponsors who made it possible for him to achieve this.

Update - October 14, 2007

It's been a quiet and busy week here. The Harding students were gone on a nine-day camping trip to northern Zambia, so the campus seemed empty without them. They arrived this (Sunday) afternoon with stories to tell, and we look forward to hearing about their adventures with windblown tents, rainstorms, and much more.

The first stop for many of them after getting off the bus was to grab their laptops and go online. They were able to do it because we finally have the new internet system up and working again. The new server had to be shipped from the US, cleared through customs, flown to Livingstone for checking, and finally brought out here to be installed on Thursday.

Courtney Elder, one of the Harding students, has been staying with us since Wednesday. Courtney's father died suddenly in September, and Courtney flew home to be with her family for a couple of weeks. The plan was for her to fly into Lusaka on Monday and meet up with the Harding group on Monday or Tuesday to finish out the trip with them. However, South African Airways made a series of blunders, and by the time Courtney got into Lusaka on Tuesday, the Harding group was too far north for her to join them. I know this was a terrible blow for her, but she has been an absolute trooper about everything, and we feel blessed that we have gotten to know her this week. The Oldenburgs took her to Livingstone yesterday, so at least she got to see Victoria Falls and do some curio shopping.

October is the hottest month of the year here, and the first part of this week was miserable as we endured baking, energy-sapping heat. On Thursday the first big rain of the season washed over us and left the air fresher and cooler.

On a Mission Update--Agness

On Tuesday I blogged about my mission in Lusaka to get the chemotherapy drugs for Agness. I managed to find a person who could contact her parents in their remote village. It took a few days, but on Friday, Agness's mother came to get her medicine. She says Agness is doing fine.

Formula for Happy Babies

The Kiwanis Club of Abilene donated money to purchase formula for babies at The Haven. Shown here are some of the precious little ones who will benefit from their generosity.

If you are part of a group that needs a service project, consider contributing to the Milk Fund at Namwianga. In addition to feeding the babies who live at The Haven, the Milk Fund also provides formula for orphan babies in the villages who are being cared for by aunts, grandmothers, sisters, or cousins.