Churches and Manure

Nothing really amazing happened this last week. I have only been doing two things lately: building churches, and shoveling manure. Which as I was thinking about it today (while lying down for my sabbath nap) is really quite interesting. I'll start with One Day Churches. Kibidula has a hundred and forty of them to build. But, since it is rainy season we usually only get in one a week. Thursdays are the church building day and they usually beging around five thirty in the morning, so that we can be to the church site soon after day break. Then we work really hard and, if all goes well, are done in time to sit down to a real good African Lunch of peas and rice. It is quite a fufilling day, in the morning you start with bare ground (sometimes not so bare, the first church we did first required the removal of some large bushes and stumps) and by afternoon we leave behind a new church and a happy congregation. The other days of the week I have been hauling manure for the farm here and at first appearances it is just about as fruitless as building churches is gratifying. It all has to be loaded and unloaded by hand, which takes maybe an hour and a half. and if we work hard we can do four loads a day. Unless, it starts to rain then you only get dirtier. And just as building a church only takes a matter of hours. I have calculated that at the current rate it will take a month of only hauling manure before we finish. However, as I was thinking about it I realized that both jobs are equally important because both jobs are essential to the work of God. While one does seem more satisfying the other is needed to make sure the first can continue. So, I have decided to seize the pitchfork with renewed vigor.

Earthquake!

Well, this week was real exciting. I was able to feel my first earthquake. On Sunday night other people here felt two earthquakes. Nothing much, just a little shaking of the gound and the house creaking. However, I didn't feel a thing and was real dissapointed that I had missed my opportunity. Then, on Wednesday morning, I was laying in my bed reading my bible, when if felt thump, thump, thump as my bed shook with the convulsions of the earth. It didn't last long, maybe fifteen seconds. Then all was peace and quite. At first I didn't realize what was going on (half groggy waking up phase), then I became aware of what it was and wished I could feel another one so that I could analyze it more. Well, I got what I wished for because, lo and behold, a minute or so later another, more powerful tremor sent my bed into uncontrollable spasms. For me it was wonderful. As for the group leader who lives in the other part of my house, he thought the day of Judgement had arrived. Later that day I found out that the epicenter was down near Lake Malawi, and was measured around 5.9 on the Richter Scale. There was some damage done in the south part of the country but nothing was hurt here. Even today there was a minor earthquake but maybe it is just to remind us that this world is not our home.

Package

I have for some time now been waiting for a package from my family. Packages take some time to get here so after a month I was not too worried. As weeks passed by and one month became two, I became more and more expectant for the goodies I was soon to receive. Well, the other day, I was joking to one of the boys here that my package was sure to come that day. This was not the first time that I was sure my package was to come that day, and all other times I had been disappointed. This day, however, turned out to be different. Just as the words had left my mouth, Vusi, a man from South Africa, drove up and told me that I had gotten my package. There it was in the back of his car. Perfectly wrapped in its beautiful, blue and white United States Postal Service tape. Well, needless to say, I was very happy with the package. Actually more happy with what the package contained. Wonderful treats. It is amazing how little things from home can have such special meaning to you when you have not seen them for a long time. Like the farming magazine that my family sent me. It was quite a delight. Or the pest control form that my sister filled out for my room, indicating on it that I had every kind of cockroach and spider infesting my house. (Its not so bad really). In the end it made me wonder whether or not it is more blessed to give than receive, but after thinking about I decided my family probably got more joy in sending the package than I got in receiving. But, boy it sure was nice.

Disclaimer: This was not a dissertation to make everyone who reads it feel like they must send me a package. Rather, it is a grateful recipient sharing his thoughts, feelings, and emotions upon receiving a taste of home.

Wedding

Well the other day I had the privilege of being able to attend my first African wedding. One thing that someone should know about African weddings is that they are long. This is mostly because no one ever remembers the pastor showing up even an hour within the appointed starting time. This wedding wasn’t too bad, the pastor showed up two and half hours late and we were able to start. The weddings here start with a long march (they don’t march very far it just takes a while) And I really can’t call it marching it is a little like a shuffle where they take steps about three or four inches apart and step on each foot twice before they switch and put the other foot in front. Anyways it takes a long time for the wedding party to march in, then they march out, then they shuffle back in. Finally the bride comes in with the same slow shuffle, but she only goes halfway down the aisle where she is met by the groom who lifts up her veil to make sure he hasn’t gotten Leah. Then together they march to the front of the church and the rest of the wedding proceeds. One interesting thing to note is that the bride and groom are not allowed to show any emotion during the wedding so they tend to look depressed or bored throughout the ceremony. Also something else that is interesting is the sound the women make after the wedding is over; it sounds something like a mix between and Indian yell and calling for cows, quite remarkable. Then after the wedding all the girls dance in front of the couple as they walk to the reception. The whole service is replete with lots of singing, music, and dancing. I was surprised that this is the first wedding where the bride marches into “Power in the Blood”. At the reception all the guest come and present their presents to the couple and congratulate them. Then it ends with a meal of beans and rice. Which, for me, makes a very complete day.

Chameleon

Tanzania has some of the most diverse wildlife anywhere. Besides the normal lions (I have yet to see one),Elephants and zebras, it also has other small less noticable creatures such as the chameleon. When I say less noticeable, I mean that they are hard to find. The fact that they are very small (around six inches) and can change colors only makes the task that much harder. One of the missionary boy's, Tim, who is about seven years old told me that he would help me find one. So one day he and I went out in the trees looking for a chameleon. We searched and searched for over an hour but with no success, he told me that he would keep looking for one and when he found one he would save it until I could see it. Well, that was two weeks ago and still we had found no chameleon, however on Friday I went to Tims house and he was all excited, there on his hand was a small green chamelon. They are so cool. When I held him he suddenly got little dark spots all over him and then once he got stripes. Very crazy animals.
We tried and tried to get him to eat a bug so I could see his tongue out but he was not hungry but he wouldn't eat anything we placed in front of him. Right before I was going to leave Tim put the chameleon on the couch and he crawled down in the crack between the cushions. When we pulled him the most amathing had happened, instead of being lime green he had turned a dark grey almost completely black. I was impressed. So now I am a big fan of the tiny chameleon.

Rainy Season

The rainy season has just begun and I am still in the somewhere in the awe stage. The days begin with sunshine and clear skies but by lunchtime the whole sky is has turned into differing shades of grey broken only by a frequent flash of lighting. Then it rains, though not very hard, just a steady drizzle that fades away during the late afternoon. After the rains stop everything is left smelling fresh, moist, and renewed. The rains bring many changes: grass instantly turns green, shoes turn muddy, clothes don’t dry, and much more. Today, I was quite surprised to find that for some people the rainy season means more than just a change in weather, it also marks a change in what music you listen to. One of the missionaries here informed me that every time the rainy season starts, it puts her in the Christmas mood and she starts listening to Christmas music. I was quite surprised, I think mostly because I almost forgot that Christmas is only just over a month away, or that it even existed. So, in the afternoon, as I was fixing our hay-baler for the coming summer months, I sang Christmas songs and listened to the rain tin roof join in my glad melody.

I Am Getting a New Name

There was a change in my blog name because after learning some swahili I learned that nende is not really a word, however nenda is.