Saturday, December 26, 2009

Communion

Today we had communion at the local Kibidula church. It was my first introduction to African style communion. There was not much different other than we went outside to wash our feet. Which it is my opinion that even if Jesus did not command us to wash each other’s feet we should do it anyways because it feels so good. I like it a lot. After we had finished washing each feet we went back inside for the bread and juice. I was wondering where they would get their grapes for the juice because I have never seen any here in Tanzania. And when they uncovered the juice, I assumed that they didn’t use grape juice because it was yellow. More like a pineapple juice or something. Well, they do use grape juice but they only way to get grape juice is by boiling raisins and straining out the juice. And since golden raisins are the most common here, the juice turns out yellow. I must say that it taste a lot like what it is, raisin juice, but it does the trick when you need it to. As for the bread, it tastes just like home.

Christmas Memories

Yesterday I returned from one of the most memorable, adventurous, exhausting and plain interesting trips of my life. Last Friday the director of Kibidula asked me if I would be willing to go the northern part of Tanzania and buy some sheep for the farm. I would be going with a Tanzanian guy named Ezekiel and we would buy around 100 sheep and ship them back to Kibidula. It sounded fun, especially when I found out that the sheep were in the Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania. So Monday morning we took a fourteen hour bus ride to a town called Boma Ng’ombe. Which is Swahili is means cattle corral, it a small town at the base of Kilimanjaro. It was dark when we arrived but when I awoke in the morning. You could see the mounting right out the guest house window. It is really hard to describe, a huge dormant volcano the rises to over 19000 feet. And even though it is near the equator it has an eternal snow cap. Anyways it is a real beautiful mountain. The next day we went to a farm to look at sheep but he only sheep that farm was willing to sell were rams, so we bought five and continued looking for our hundred sheep. Well, they proved hard to find, but by Thursday we had all the business sorted out and a letter from the vet saying they had all necessary vaccinations (required for transporting in between regions of Tanzania). And we were ready to load them on the truck that we had rented. I was wondering how they would do it, but when it came time the Maasai sheep herders just grabbed the sheep and handed them up to me on the truck. Then came the adventurous and exhausting part, It was two thirty in the afternoon on Christmas eve and we had a twenty four hour truck ride back to Kibidula. Also, the sheep needed to be watched so that they did not trample each other to death. So me and Ezekiel took four hour shifts watching it the back with the sheep. So I spent this past Christmas Eve and part of Christmas day with the bleating sheep in my ears, and me returning the favor by bleating Christmas carols back at them. It took us twenty three and a half hours of almost nonstop driving but we made it back safely to Kibidula. As for me, I was tired and stank horribly, but it is one Christmas I will never forget.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

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.

Friday, December 11, 2009

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.

Saturday, December 5, 2009

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.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

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.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

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.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

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.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

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.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Medicine Man

Kibidula is a big place. It is situated on around eight square miles of land and I happen to live in the farthest corner. In light of this fact I wisely chose to get a bicycle. All was going well until the other day I took it out of my room to ride somewhere, when, lo and behold, I saw that my tire was completely flat. There was a boy from my unit standing there while I was despondently inspecting the tire. He looked at my tire and assured me in his broken English that he could fix the bike because he had “some medicine in his room for bicycles”. “This will be good,” I thought, “give the bike some Ibuprofen and all will be better, I should have thought of that myself”. While I was musing to myself, he trotted off to his room and returned with a pair of pliers, a bicycle pump, a knife, and a small piece of rubber from some other unlucky tire tube. He then proceeded to take out the tube and look for the hole. Once he found it he took the knife and rubbed it back and forth across the tire to buff it so the glue would stick. I had never before seen a kitchen knife being used to fix a tire and I sat transfixed. I tried to explain to him that we use a buffing liquid in America instead of a knife. “Oh, he said, “maybe your medicine in America is better”. I assured him that his medicine looked just fine, and so far my tire has held air good.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Wildfire!

Yesterday we had a fire. I was in the midst of writing an email to my sister when I heard about it so, I abrubtly ended my email and we went racing to the flames. It is still dry season so everything is really dry and on top of that it is also really windy which makes fires frequent and severe. We have an old Army truck here with a water tank mounted on the back to fight the fires. First the truck goes through and sprays the fire then every one follows behind with a branch in their hand and beat out the remaining flames. It works fairly well except that a branch is not very durable, especially after repeated beatings on the ground. our fire was not to big and after we made sure it wouldn't burn down campus we just let it burn. As I went to bed last night I could still see the flames in the distance makeing the sky red like a perpetual sunset, it was beautiful. It was a great experience and sure added variety to my day.

Thursday, October 15, 2009

It is spring here and all the trees and flowers are blooming. even though it has not rained since April. Its pretty amazing, several weeks ago it was all brown and now everything is turning green in anticipation of the raining season. Also in anticipation of the rainy season I have been plowing the fields in preparation for planting. It is pretty fun, they have a small tractor here that they let me use. I reminds me of home and that makes me happy. Yesterday everything went very well, except on the way home my tire fell apart. But, that also reminds me of home.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Ag Units

This past week I moved into the ag units where I will be staying for the next eight months. The ag units are the dorms for the boys that go to the agricultural school here. I am in the third one which is really far away from anything. For example it takes about a twenty five minute walk to get to class. That aside, it is really nice, I got my own room and the boys there cook pretty good. We eat ugali (corn meal mush) with beans and cabbage most every meal. I was worried that I would end up losing weight here but, the students feed me so much that after every meal I end up wishing I had only eaten half as much. I start teaching this week so hopefully that goes well.

Monday, October 5, 2009

Going To Town

“Do you want to go to Iringa on Sunday and go shopping? We are going to take the daladala because it is more adventuresome” There was a group of people around my age going and it sounded like an enjoyable social activity, besides I forgot my hat in America and also needed to buy a cell phone. Iringa is the nearest big town and a daladala is just a small minibus. However, since Kibidula so far out in the bush, we had to hitch a ride in the back of a pickup truck for forty-five minutes before we made it to the bus station. Daladalas come in many sizes ranging from minivan dimensions up to regular buses. The one that we chose was about to the size of a fifteen passenger van and in the beginning that was about all that got in. I got a seat near the door and had plenty of legroom. “Bus rides in third world countries really aren’t that bad,” I thought to myself as we leisurely began to drive down the road. As the trip increased, however, so did the passengers. Every few kilometers we would stop and pick up some more people on the side of the road until my nice seat by the door became the nice seat to lean on when more and more people shoved themselves in. I had a fun time trying to count how many people we could actually hold but after twenty-six I couldn’t see over the people standing in front of me, but I suspect we probably had more. The normal one hour trip took two but other than that it was a very enjoyable ride. In Iringa I bought my hat, cell phone, and had a nice meal at a hole in the wall restaurant called Hasty Tastys, they weren’t that hasty but the tasty part was okay. On the way back to Kibidula we had a nice bus that even had a TV. This was great except for the fact that all the Africans love to watch these weird music videos of choir dancing and singing. Thankfully they shut it off half way and started to play hymns on the radio, which I enjoyed immensely.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

I Made It To Tanzania

I made it safely to Tanzania, I got to Dar es Salaam on Tuesday night and met Bill and Jason (two missionaries from Kibidula) where we spent the night at the YMCA in Dar. Then we left the next day at four in the morning and drove all day in a truck loaded with stuff. Finally I got to Kibidula at sundown on Wednesday. Today I was shown around and met a bunch of the people. For lunch I ate at the directors house and in the afternoon I disced one of the fields. I am doing well and tonight I am going to the local campmeeting. I will write more later.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Nende! (Go!)

This time next year I will be in Kibidula, Tanzania.