NORMAL? WHAT IS NORMAL?

As I sit here I can hear the cries of a baby and the laughter of children playing.  I can hear the mumblings of the men and women as they start their day of daily chores.  If I didn't know the difference, I could be sitting in the mall at home or standing on the porch at our apartment.  There is one big difference that I have noticed however.  Since we have been here, we have not seen or heard an angry person.  Even though they speak a different language, you would be able to hear in the tone of their voice or see in their actions if they were angry. 

We rode the city bus into town yesterday.  As the people would step onto the bus, they would greet one another with a handshake & smile.   Drivers are racing to their next destination, weaving in and around vehicles, honking their horns, and not once have we seen evidence of "road rage". 

In the market place, lined with hundreds of vendors, small isles to walk through, you touch shoulders with people and you might stumble because you've stepped on the toes of someone walking by, but the people just smile & mumble something and keep walking.  They don't do this because we are white, they do this because it is their nature!

Moses & Eddie are working on a project that requires the assistance of an attorney.   We are accustomed to attorney's office being in special buildings, beautifully decorated.  The building that we are walking into, in America, would be considered "the slums".  We walked up a stairwell that had chipped paint and rails that were not sturdy as we held to them.  The attorney's office had a tiny little reception room, with what looked like seats from an airplane against the wall for us to sit on.  A receptionist summons for us to come into the attorney's office barely big enough for the three of us to sit.  Behind a desk sat a man sitting wearing a white shirt reaching his hand to greet us.  The windows were opened, no screens, no air conditioning.  When he needed to make a phone call, his receptionist opened the door and handed him a cell phone. 

As we walked down the streets, we passed the dress shops, electronic shops, motorcycle shops, drug stores, all with their merchandise stacked in piles, or hanging on the walls.  It looks like our "side walk sales" or in some places, a huge yard sale. 

As we passed by homes, you might see people sitting on the ground braiding hair, cooking chips or selling bananas. Occasionally you might see a man or child taking a "short call".   The doors of most of the homes are simply covered with a piece of material.  There are no bars on the windows, no deadbolt locks.  Parents aren't afraid to let their children run around and play unattended. 

As we passed by Lake Victoria we saw people enjoying a swim.  You might see someone naked running from the water.  There is no "Polisi" waiting to arrest them for indecent exposure.

On the bus, sitting in church, or on the sidewalk in town, you might see a woman breast feeding her child.  You may even see this when they are standing talking to you!  This has happened to us, and if you're not used to it or expecting it, it can be quite the shocker.

I am telling you all this to say that "THIS is normal" for most parts of the world.  We live in a country that is NOT normal compared to most countries. We were thinking about bringing Maomi & Esther to the States for a visit when they graduate from school.  We told them this yesterday, but added that we hesitate to do this because we wouldn't want to corrupt them in anyway.  Esther was quick to tell us, as she pats her chest, that she has the Word of God strongly embedded in her heart, and this would never happen. 

It saddens my heart when I think about going back home to the sad faces of the people, the complaining that we will hear because they do not have enough money, the teenagers cursing their parents, married couples fighting, or neighbors complaining that the person next door is making too much noise.   What can I do to help OUR people grasp the concept that happiness & contentment is not found in what we DO NOT have?   We are among people that are CONTENT, just as the Bible says we should be:

" Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be CONTENT with your wages"

Luke 3:14 

"Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be CONTENT with such things as you have; for He hath said, I will never leave you nor forsake you" 

Hebrews 13:5

"Not that I speak in respect of want; for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be CONTENT" 

Philippians 4:11

"But Godliness with CONTENTMENT is great gain" 

I Timothy 6



I can assure you that the next time our air conditioner goes off, or we are without hot water, or our bank account is left without a dollar, or someone cuts in front of me while I'm driving on the highway, or the grocery store doesn't have the item I'm shopping for, I will quickly reflect back to what the Word of God says about my circumstance - be content, my child, I will not forsake you.  We must find a balance in our lives.  We must live our lives as God expects us to, with contentment!

DAY AT THE SALON

Maomi & Esther are absolutely intrigued with my hair.  It's not a secret that the texture is very different than theirs.  Every time I pass by them, the want to touch it.  Sunday morning at the church many of the women asked me if I went to a salon to have my hair done?  When I explained to them that I had only washed it, let it dry, and thus the "do", they couldn't believe it.  I was worried that it didn't look good because I had forgotten to put my blow dryer in the suitcase.  So after I washed my hair, I sat out on the balcony and let it dry.  Wow!  I am beginning to recognize how vain I must be.  There are so many areas in my life that God is dealing with me, and I believe this to be one of them.

Most of the young girls in this country have very, very short hair.  We have learned that as long as they are in school, they must keep their hair short.  I haven't gotten a "why fer & how come" to this requirement, so we just have to accept this as the gospel.  The girls don't seem to mind.  Even with the short hair, they are so beautiful.  Without the clothes and earrings, you wouldn't be able to tell them apart from the boys.

Think about the money that could be saved with this hairdo.  You wouldn't have to buy shampoo, hair gel, hair spray, and the trips to the beauty shop certainly would be limited.   Once the girls finish their schooling, they may, at that time begin to grow their hair out. 




I had promised Maomi and Esther that I would let them braid my hair one day.  Monday was the day, since we were staying home and enjoying our African experience.  After the dishes and clothes were washed, they brought a chair into the living room and instructed "Mama Janice, sit down, please".  I had gone too far now to back out, so I took a deep breath and took my seat.  They chattered between themselves laughing and laughing while they ran their fingers through my hair.  Do you know how you feel when you walk in a nail salon at home and the technicians are talking?  You just know they are talking about you, so you sit there and imagine what they could be saying.  That's the way we feel here.  When they want us to know what they are saying, they will speak in their broken English.  But other times, they break out in Swahili and we get dizzy trying to keep up with them.  We're learning to ask them what are they saying, we know you're talking about us.  Ha!  They just laugh, and tell us something, but who knows if it's really what they are saying.

Esther begins by combing my hair out.  She took her time doing this because she just enjoyed the feel of my hair.  Next thing you know, I feel this tug and squeeze so I knew the process had begun.  My mother used to braid my hair, but when she finished I either had one big braid in the back or one on each side of my head.  From the feel of things, I'm going to end up with a whole lot more braids than two.  All I can think about is "what in the world are my girls going to think about their Mama".
One thing I was convinced of was that my eyes were going to be slanted by the time she finished.  This was hurting like crazy!  But I was trying very hard to be tolerant of the pain because she was so proud of what
she was doing.  Before long, Maomi joined her.  Each girl had a side.  My hair is very thick, so I took this as meaning they realized with only one of them working, we were going to be here for a very long time.
After almost three hours, they finally gave a loud yell!  They've finished!  There are no mirrors in this house, so Eddie took a picture so I could see what they had done to me.  Eddie was very reassuring when he said "just remember, this is temporary".   The girls were so proud, and Goodluck was saying "Wow!, that looks good".   Then Moses walks in and tells me I look like a Masai woman.  Okay, this is getting worse by the minute! 

I could only feel my head, and from what I could tell, I have about 150 braids on my head.  Remembering that I am not going to be able to wash my hair until Friday, this might not be such a bad idea after all.  Now for moment of truth, bring me the camera.   If I throw up right now, would that hurt their feelings?  I just smiled and said "oooohhhhhhh" , the response you give when you see an ugly baby - you know that response, don't tell me you don't!   A member of the church stopped by and when he saw me he said "Mama Janice!  You look so gorgeous.  I like your hair!"  Okay, now it is obvious that the African definitions of words are different from our Webster definitions.  But I'm going to deal with this with a smile on my face, it's only temporary, my husband told me so!!!   And besides, now I will blend in with the crowd, I'm convinced of it!

Finished product - I feel like I fit in for sure now!







HOW DO THEY DO IT!!!!!!

The alarm goes off, we get up, turn on an electric coffee pot for our morning cup of coffee, step into a warm shower, turn the air conditioner to the temperature that is comfortable for us, pop a slice of bread in the toaster for breakfast, and begin our wonderful day in paradise.  This is our life as we know it.

The rooster crows before we want to get up, we walk to the bathroom and pour water in to flush the toilet, walk to the kitchen to start a fire on the charcoal cooker to boil water for coffee, wipe our head of sweat with a cool rag, heat up a bowl of rice from the night before, and off we go to the bus stop to begin our day.  This is the life of an African.

Rooster on death row!

Monday we experienced a full day with Goodluck, Maomi & Esther as they know it.  Julia goes to school and works a full time job.  She leaves in the morning at 6:30 am, walks to the bus stop which is about 1 mile from the house and catches a bus into town.  She attends college until noon, then goes to her job.  She teaches computer skills, bringing home 150,000 schillings each month, which is the equivalent of approximately $75 USD after the African government takes out their taxes.  To supplement this household income for Goodluck & Julia, JSM contributes $200 USD each month, which equals to 280,000 schillings.  So their total income, with our support, equals to approximately $275 USD per month.  (And we complain about our salaries - shame on us)

Goodluck is a full time Pastor, so his responsibilities require all of his time tending to his church & others that call constantly for him to pray with them.  Maomi & Esther are up early to begin the daily chores.  The first thing that is done is washing the dishes from the night before.  They don't have the luxury of a dishwasher.  The dishes are stacked in pans and are washed outside.  You see three pans of water, one for washing, two for rinsing.  No hot water!  This is hard to imagine isn't it?  They have no concept of sanitation.  When we mentioned the word to them, they looked at us clearly not understanding.   The faucet you see in the picture is not hooked up.  There is no running water anywhere near this place, trust me!  Once the dishes are washed, you stack them neatly in another pan to dry.


Janice & Esther washing dishes

Next it's time to wash clothes.  You guessed it - no washing machine and no dryer.   Clothes are washed in a bucket of water - cold water of course.  You then wring them out and hang them on a clothesline to dry.   There is no such thing as "fabric softener".   Our clothes feel as though they have been starched!  They do have an iron, however.  Imagine that.  It is electric, so we plug it up, place a sheet over the dining room table and iron our clothes. 

Maomi washing clothes

The girls take turns doing the laundry & dishes.  They never complain, or whine.  You can hear their beautiful voices singing as they are washing the dishes or the clothes. 

Maomi hangingclothes





 Since there are no faucets of running water, they go to a well to "fetch" the water.  It is carried in 5 gallon buckets to the house and poured into a huge bucket in the kitchen.  They get water from this well for the bathrooms, kitchen, and for the clothes to be washed.  These tiny little girls carry these 5 gallon buckets filled with water by themselves!  They can carry one on their head and hold one by the handle.  They are completely self sufficient.  I, on the other hand, would be yelling for the man of the house to come quickly and "fetch" me a pail of water!!!!  I have observed this daily activity since we have been here.  The women do ALL the work, while the men sit around under the trees laughing and talking about what they are going to wear the next day, I guess.  I can see I've got a lot of work ahead of me for these women!  They need to be updated on some things.  Seriously updated.  This could get ugly before it gets better.  This Sunday Eddie and I are doing a marriage seminar.  I can see clearly that the women are going to be very happy, but you can only imagine the men will be a different story....

Yes, this bucket is filled with water.  I just don't get how they can walk with this thing on their head and it doesn't fall off!  Maybe it's the hair texture, or just a God thing.  It didn't work for me, I can tell you that.  And to be honest with you, I don't WANT to learn how to do it!  My prayer for them is that we will be able to get running water for them soon.  Having something that heavy pressing on top of your brain can't be good for you!   It's heavy, you hear me?  And they carry two at the time!!!!!  This is one of the wonders of the world.  You don't just see women carrying water on top of their heads, you see baskets of bananas, potatoes, charcoal - you name it.  And the strangest thing - I've never seen a man carrying anything!  They push their stuff around on bicycles!  There's something seriously wrong with this picture.  Eddie has been working with Goodluck regarding this very issue.  He has been encouraging him to cook & help around the house.  Imagine the concept of him having dinner ready for Julia when she comes home!   I see nothing wrong with that, do you?

In between all this cleaning, the girls are preparing lunch and dinner, just to start this cycle all over again tomorrow.  At the end of the day, everyone is still smiling and happy.  Me, on the other hand, after following them around all day, my tongue is hanging out and I am ready to step into that hot bucket of water and go to bed early!

As I sit here and write this, it's 9:00 am and I can hear Esther singing praises to the Lord as she sits on her little stool washing dishes.  Maomi is outside washing clothes.  We are going to town to today and the first place we are headed will be the market.  We're coming back with a mop!  The least we can do while we are here is make their jobs a little easier.  It hurts my back to watch them mop the floor, bending over using a rag!  When Eddie asked them about a mop, they had no idea what he was talking about.  Maomi said "you mean I can stand up and clean the floor?  Wow!" 

Our passion for this country has increased after observing and participating in the lives of these people.  We will surely go back home with a greater passion to increase the support for this ministry.   Together we WILL make a difference! 

THIS IS THE WAY WE GO TO CHURCH

It's Sunday morning and we're waiting for our ride to church.  Goodluck told us last night that they should be picking us up at 10:30 am.   If there is one thing that we have learned about this country, it is that "fast pace" is not in their vocabulary.  We get  up early to make sure we are ready on time and as we stand waiting for our ride, I'm thinking about the extra hour I could have had to sleep!   We finally see them turning into the hotel parking lot.  Looking at our watch, it is now 11:15.   They drive up with the vehicle packed to more than capacity.  Okay, here we stand, two more bodies that need go in this vehicle and two pieces of luggage.  This looks like a true challenge to me!   There must be a secret to this madness!   Much to my surprise, we all fit! 

Since we were here 19 months ago, the church has moved to another location.  During this past  year, one of the projects we have been working on is building the church.   It is not finished, but it has the tin roof and walls of canvas that will house the people until the finishing begins.  The finish work will not be started until the rainy season ends, which will be around the end of April, 2011.   The floors  of the church are made of the packed clay. 

Covenant Bible Church of Mwanza

As we come around the dirt road toward the church, you can hear the voices of the people singing!  How beautiful it is to hear this in the distance.  People are walking along the road toward the church.  Many of the people hear the music and walk toward the sound to find out what is going on.  As we drive by they see the white man & woman inside the vehicle,  and they run behind to follow and see where they are going.   When we arrived at the church, we got out one by one, six of us now because along the way we had a "tuck & roll" with a young man that had picked up a ride.  We walked across a ditch that had 3 planks.   As you walk across, the planks feel like they are going to break or maybe it just seems that way to me.  I walked slow and with tiny steps just in case.  This may be an indication that I have a few more pounds to loose.

When we walked in the church, the Praise team was singing the most beautiful song.  They have instruments and a huge sound system that is run by a generator.   Children are reaching for our hands as we walk down the isle.  They love to touch our skin.  As we walked in the church you could feel the presence of the Lord.  He was there, no doubt.  The worship service is so incredible.  As you look over the crowd of people, you see hands raised, tears flowing, tears of love for their Savior, Jesus Christ.   There is no shame as they worship and express their feelings of joy!  

Praise Team

Another thing we have learned is that you must always be prepared.   It's amazing even to me how Eddie does this!   Eddie, of course, is prepared because he knew that he was going to preach.   But me, on the other hand, I am not prepared.  The first thing Moses does is asked Eddie to introduce me so I could greet the people.   Eddie has his introduction down now - he introduces his beautiful wife, Janice. Ahhhh, he's so sweet.  It's such a blessing to me and an honor to stand before these people.  They are looking at me with big beautiful smiles, and as if they are grasping every word that I say with such enthusiasm.  This is fun, I could get used it....

Goodluck interprets for Janice

                                         

Eddie begins the service by calling all the little children to the front of the church.  This was so special for these children.  They ran up to gather around him, mother's carrying the babies.  He called them up to urge the parents to be the examples to these children, to teach them and train them.  The only Jesus that their children will see will be thru them, as living examples.   The children were clinging and holding onto Eddie listening to his every word.

Eddie & the little children

Now for what they have been waiting for!  No one is worried about the time, the fact that is now 1:30 pm, means nothing.  No watches are being tapped as a reminder of the time, no one is leaving the building.  Everyone sits with great anticipation of hearing this Man of God feed them the Word of God!  I love this.  I'm hungry for real food no doubt, but being here is more important right now than my empty stomach.   Eddie begins with the loud "Bwana Asifiwe!"  The shouts and clapping of hands could be heard for miles.  Just writing about this brings tears to my eyes in remembrance of this special, special day.   He begins his message of "The Truth of GRACE!" He told of the Old Testament Hebrew definition as being "God's kindness undeserved"  Whereas the New Testament Greek definition of Grace as being "the divine influence upon the heart and it's reflection in the life of the believer".  Thus Grace in the New Testament is God being the divine influence upon each believers heart because He dwells within us.  Therefore we should reflect this influence throughout our life.  Knowing this, it is proof that Christ dwells within each believer.  Grace is the Person of Christ, and Grace changes us through His influence.  Grace enables us.  It is the power of God working thru us. 



Eddie preaching





There may be thousands of miles that separate our youth from these, but the distance doesn't change the fact that they have the same challenges, same struggles in their lives.  Having 5 teenagers & young youth ourselves, we didn't find this to be such a problem to find something to share.   We started with the illustration of the "ladder".  You, as a child of God are standing at the top of the ladder.  Your friend, living in the world, is standing at the bottom of the ladder.  Which is easier, the pull someone up to the top of the ladder from the bottom or for someone to reach up and pull you down to their level?  Of course it's easier to pull someone down.  That's why we should be grounded in our relationship with God. They loved this!  Seeing an illustration visually will have more impact than just hearing.  Eddie then talked to them about staying focused on their relationship with God, and never compromising this relationship.

By the time the day at church was over, it is 4:30 pm.   I reflect on our Sunday's at home.  We go to church at 10:30 am and expect that we better be walking out the back door no later than 12:00 noon.  How sad!  This is a typical Sunday for them.  They love worshipping and praising the Lord.  Time does not matter to them.   By now, I had forgotten that my stomach had been trying to get my attention.  We were enjoying this time of fellowship with the people.  We watched as all the people started walking back to their homes.  No vehicles waiting to take them home, no bicycles. 

Janice & little girl



                                                                                                             



Martha, Moses' wife



         



Julia, Goodluck's wife



Woman walking home

GRADUATION DAY IN MWANZA

Saturday was graduation day for 20 schools in the local area of Mwanza.  Approximately 1000-1200  people (both inside and outside) gathered together at a large church in the center of Mwanza.  The Administrator of the schools  had invited Eddie to give presentation to the graduating students.  What an honor!  We arrived at the school to find the building packed with students, parents, and well-wishers. 

                                     

There are 250 students graduating high school.  High school in Africa is for ages 18-22.

To begin the ceremony, students danced and sang.  This was absolutely amazing!  Although it's all sung in Swahili, in your spirit, you hear the words and some way seem to understand exactly what they are singing.  I found myself with a strong urge to get in the line and dance with them. Don't panic, I didn't act of the urge.

I was so proud when they introduced the Man of God from America, my husband.  Although this experience was something completely new, you would have thought he had been doing this on a regular basis.  He walks up with such confidence and greets the people with a loud "Bwana Asifiwe!"!  Praise the Lord!

"Congratulations to all the graduates & parents.  This is an honor for me to address you this morning.  I would like to say that this accomplishment is the first of many you will have in your life ime. You are the light of Tanzania, and with each accomplishment you become brighter and brighter.  Always say to yourself  'I am going to be better!  I am going to go through!'  Remember, circumstances in life are only temporary.  Never let them demand that you give up.  Always press forward, remembering that you are going through to the end!  Your words are the creation of your life.  If you say I cannot, you will not.  If you say I can, then you will!  Speak life not death.  Life is hard, so let the hard times mold you into a better person and rejoice in the good times!  Remember you can do all things trough Christ who strengthens you!  (He then read Mark 5:25-30)  Press forward, with no compromise.  Because as this woman we read about in this scripture, we all need to touch Jesus.  It is by touching Him that will always make us whole.  He is always ready to be touched!" 

                                  

                                              Goodluck interpreting as Eddie presents 



We had the honor of meeting the National Youth Director of Tanzania.  He was the key speaker for the graduation ceremony.  He came in after Eddie gave his presentation.  When he was introduced to Eddie, he wanted to speak with him regarding his topic of speech, so he could go in the same direction.  Come to find out, they both had the same thoughts and he too had prepared to encourage the students to press forward and never give up.  He said that in Tanzania the students usually get married and move on into their traditions and never go further than the school attended. 

 

Samuel Limbe & Eddie

There was an immediate connection between these two men.  They sat and talked, shared and laughed as if they had been friends for years.  Mr. Limbe insisted that he would be contacting Eddie for future conferences that he has planned for Tanzania.

The entrance of the students was quite different from our traditional graduation ceremony.  The students, all dressed to identify them by their schools, lined up at the doorway and "danced" in, two by two, and stood at the front.  Once they all were together, they sang a goodbye song to the audience of people, finishing with a loud yell and applause.

CHICKEN & RICE & EVERYTHING NICE

JIKO - African stove

As you can imagine, the foods that are prepared in Tanzania are quite different than what we are used to.  The night we arrived in Mwanza, after a long, tiring ride on the bus driven by a crazy man wearing a cake top hat, Julia had prepared for us a meal.  Keep in mind that is 10:30 pm by the time we sit down at the table.  No doubt we were hungry, and by now would eat anything within reason.  She had prepared rice, greens, & a tomato based sauce, and chips (which is our French fries).  When we sat down at the table, one of the girls walked to each person and held a pan for us to wash our hands as they poured the water.  The meal was delicious, but lacking in flavor as we are used to.  

The next morning we told Goodluck that we would like to prepare a meal for them.  Moses & his family were coming over to visit, so we thought this would be a good time to introduce them to a true Southern meal.  We had decided that we would cook chicken & rice.  When we asked them had they ever had chicken & rice, they say "sure!"   And they had - chicken - and rice - of course.  They had no idea what we were talking about.  They do not have the privilege of going to a grocery store for packaged chicken as we do. When they want chicken for their dinner, they go to the market place and get a live chicken.  This is going to be very, very interesting....When we arrived at the market, which is open with hundreds of people selling produce, fish, household items, you name it,it's there.  You walk thru narrow winding walkways with people calling for your attention to buy from them.  Goodluck takes us straight to the chicken cage.  How in the world he knew where to go is a mystery to me.  On the side of the walkway is a long cage with hundreds of chickens, all sizes & colors, cackling as if to say "don't pick me, please!"  Goodluck would point to a chicken and the man behind the cage would pick the chicken up by the neck for Goodluck to hold.  He would bob him up and down, trying to calculate the weight.  He did this about 3 times before he finally chose the chicken that we were going to have for dinner that night!  It was a pretty, red feathered chicken, very thin I thought, but what do I know?  We paid this man 7000 schillings, which would be about $4.50 USD.  Then the man took the chicken, holding it by its neck, still alive and kicking, to a table outside behind the building.  He handed the chicken to another man that had a knife in his hand.  I'm standing there looking at this table with men plucking feathers from chickens without a head, so I know what is about to happen to our pretty little red feathered chicken.  I couldn't watch, so I turned my head.  So I'm a wimp and proud of it, okay?  When I turned around, they were putting our chicken in a boiling bucket of water.  What are they doing!  They boil them alive?  No, they slit their throat, put them in hot water so they can pluck the feathers easier.  Oh, that's nice.  Once they had the chicken all defeathered and headless, they handed it back to us in a plastic bag.  He asked for 500 schillings, which is 50 cents in USD.  Watching this process just really takes away from the desire to cook chicken & rice.  But we've already promised, so I have to suck it up, put on my big girl pants & go for it!  

The kitchen is very, very different than what we are used to.  They do not have an electric or gas stove.  They cook on a charcoal cooker, called a Jiko.  They have a couple of them sitting on the floor of the kitchen.  There is no sink, just pans that hold water to wash dishes.  There are two little benches that you sit on while you cook.  The girls prepared the water for us to boil the chicken.  They had never done this before, and they asked many questions as we were preparing the chicken to be boiled.  Once the chicken was boiled, we removed it, and put the rice in the chicken broth.  Wow!  What are we doing?  This was so intriguing to them.  Then we cut the boiled chicken up and once the rice was done, we put the chicken back in the rice.  

When we sat down to eat, Moses, his wife Martha, & their children were there.  Moses asked where is the chicken?  He thought we were making chicken & rice.  We explained to him the chicken was in the rice.  He couldn't believe it.  When they took the first bite, it was so amazing to hear the "wow!'s, the Yummm's".  They were so excited to eat something different and with flavor.   Spices are not very expensive, but when you have so little or no income, only the necessities are purchased.  Many times, they go without even the necessities.  They are still talking about this "chicken & rice" dinner and how excited they are that they will be able to cook something so delicious for their family.  As we were preparing this meal, I recited the poem "Sugar and spice & everything nice, that's what little girls are made of.  Snips & snails & puppy dog tails, that's what little boys are made of".  Oh, my Maombi & Esther laughed and laughed.  They had never heard that before.....go figure.

On Thursday night, Eddie and I cooked vegetable soup and fried chicken breasts for them.  I know that years ago, raising chickens was all you had, but today we go to the grocery store and buy processed chickens.  The difference between the two is like night and day.  The chickens that they buy at the market are fresh chickens so poorly fed, and to get a lot meat from the chicken is not very likely.  Not to mention that it is like chewing leather, it's so tough.  We found an actual grocery store in Mwanza, that sells canned goods and had a frozen meat section.  You probably have pictured in your mind Publix, WinnDixie & WalMart.  Forget that picture because it is far from what we are accustomed to.  We did buy a package of frozen chicken breasts however.  There were about 8 breasts in the package.  Goodluck & Julia had never seen anything like this before.  So much we take for granted, so much.  We made the vegetable soup with our usual ingredients of corn, peas, carrots, potatoes, onions and spices.  We had brought spices from home.  Then with the chicken that was left, we cut each breast in half, battered and fried it.   Once this meal was prepared and served, Goodluck, Julia, Maombi & Esther couldn't stop licking their fingers and lips!!  The frozen, processed chicken cost 8000 schillings, which was about 500 schilling more than the live, tough to chew chicken.  They were amazed at the meat that they were eating from this chicken.  

If I told you that we were having chicken & rice or vegetable soup for dinner, you would say "big deal', and think no more of it.  But these are meals that are completely new to these people.  They eat rice almost every meal with a tomato based gravy, along with greens.  They have no idea what it is to eat something with flavor.  The spices we brought they will cherish and use very sparingly so they will last a long time.

Eddie & Goodluck frying chicken & making "chips"

Stop for just a minute as you read this and thank God for your life.  We are so blessed.  We take so much for granted as we live each day with our conveniences.  We think nothing of it when we grab a Coke or eat a package of crackers.  When they have a Coke, or a cookie, it's a special treat and means that they are sacrificing something of need for it. 

Maombi & Esther 

THURSDAY, September 16

Today we came into Mwanza to meet with a business man, Lema.  He was to meet us at a restaurant for lunch.  The restaurant he has chosen is a Pizza Parlor.  Imagine that, pizza in Africa!  This was a semi-outdoor restaurant.  Very unique, with authentic African painting on the block walls.  The floor was the packed clay.  Fun!  Lema was sitting at a table waiting for us.  On one side of the table sat a woman.  We had never met him before, so Goodluck introduced us and asked Lema to introduce his friend.  Friend?  This woman was just someone sitting at the table, he didn't know her!  So she just said Jambo (hello) and continued to sit there, order her meal and ate as if she were part of the group.  How weird is that?  Oh well, how could I be surprised at this?  They didn't seem to mind at all.   Lema didn't speak fluent English, so Goodluck had to interpret.  He welcomed us and was very happy to meet us.  He was and will continue to be a supporter of the ministry.  This is good  news.  He asked us to order our meal, as he had already eaten, but just wanted to meet us and bless us.  Wow!  This is quite the surprise, and a blessing to us!  They brought the pizza menu.  In looking at this menu, it lists many pizza's, none of which had meat.  They had pizzas that had bananas, pizzas that had avocado, pizzas that had some things I didn't recognize.  So we chose one that had cheese, tomatoes & bell peppers.  That sounded safe enough. 

While we're waiting for the meal, "short call" time!  I could see the bathroom door and knew immediately it was a women's room because there was a picture of an African women drawn on it and the word "wanawana".  I just assumed that meant "woman".  I excused myself and walked to the door.  As I opened it, I was relieved to see a familiar toilet, but as I closed the door and locked it I realized the toilet didn't have a SEAT on it.  What in the world is this?  But at least I didn't have to squat, I could stand.  So this bathroom experience is somewhat better don't you think?

The pizza was okay.  Nothing to write home about and not good enough to take the leftovers home.  But we enjoyed the experience anyway.

After we left the restaurant we went back home.   When we got home and got out of the car, we heard little voices laughing and screaming.  I looked across the yard and there was a group of children running toward their house yelling and pointing.  I could catch the word "Americana", so I knew they were talking about us.  Goodluck said they were saying "white man, mommy".  He said they had never seen a white man either.  Wow!  I ran inside and got out the bag of candy we brought and took it outside for the children.  When I walked toward the fence, they all came running over.  They lined up and held their little hands out as I put a piece of candy in each of them.  When they would take it, they would say "Asante" (thank you) and run away laughing.  The candy was peppermint and believe it or not, these people have never tasted peppermint before! 

This is the group of little ones waiting anxiously for their piece of candy

For the rest of the afternoon, we rested.  After dinner, we sat in the living room and was entertained by two girls that are staying with Goodluck & his wife Julia, to help while we are here.  These girls are amazing, so please be sure and read the blog about them later.  They sang to us as they played a drum and the girls danced.  Julia & Goodluck sang with them on some of the songs.  Goodluck is very talented musically, as he plays the keyboard, guitars, & drums.  We sat there with chill bumps as we listened to these beautiful voices.  One of the songs they sang was "What a Friend We Have in Jesus" in Swahili.  Oh, if my mother could hear this, it is one of her favorite songs. 

Maombi(left), Julia(center), Esther(right)

At the end of the day, what could be better than sitting around listening to voices of praise?  No television playing, no radio, no Internet games, just enjoying being together and showing thanks to our Lord.  This is a normal evening for them, by the way. 

WEDNESDAY September 15

This, my friends, is the business of a tailor.  Inside this tiny little room, sits a man behind a sewing machine, with posters that have pictures of women in different styles of dresses.  At the front of the room, where you see me standing, is a makeshift desk.  I am supposed to pick out the style dress I want, tell the tailor, he then draws a picture on a piece of paper to match what I have selected.  Then Eddie tells him the style shirt he wants and he draws that on the paper.  Now it's time for him to measure us.  I won't go into details about that because "the old grey mare ain't what she used to be", thank you very much.  The tailor told us that the styles we had chosen would take "one piece of fabric" for each piece of clothing.   We now go to another store where there are pieces of fabric, all different designs, hanging on the walls.  We were to pick out the fabrics we liked and then take them back to the tailor.   To make the outfits that the two of us have chosen will take 10 pieces of fabric.  Now for the most amazing part of this story - I am having two dresses, three skirts and Eddie is having three shirts made.  The costs of these outfits in US dollars will be $88!!!  Are you kidding me?  This is better than shopping at SteinMart!  That price includes the tailor's charge for making the clothes and the amount for the fabric.  We will go back next Tuesday for fitting and will be able too pick the clothes up on Wednesday.  This story will be continued.......

After we left the tailor, we wanted to bless our driver, so we asked Goodluck to pick a restaurant and we would buy their lunch.  This would be quite the treat for both Goodluck and our driver, Joseph.  I like the fact that most of the people in Mwanza has the name Joseph.  It's easy to remember.   When we walked into this restaurant, Goodluck pointed to a table and said "we will sit here".   I walked toward the table and saw an entire colony of ants walking across from one end to the other.  Not a good choice, can we find another table, please?  So he directs us to another table.  Not what we would consider clean, but at least I didn't see an ant.  We sat down, but Eddie and I both said at the same time "I'll just have a soda, I'm not very hungry".  Goodluck & Joseph ordered a fish plate.  While we were waiting for their lunch, I asked Goodluck if they had a restroom.  He had asked the waitress and she pointed to the outside.  Nice....I knew this was going to be interesting.  Goodluck walked with me and on the door there was a sign that said "$1000 Tsh".  You're telling me we have to PAY to use the bathroom?  He said go ahead, he would take care of it.  The guard at the bathroom door, unlocked it and I walked in.  It was a very narrow room, and immediately I noticed there is NO toilet in this room, just that hole in the floor again, only this time it's raised about 6 inches.  The room was narrow, but not narrow enough that I could reach the side walls, and there was nowhere to hold on to as I tried to stand up from the "squat position".  Not a pretty site.  If there is one story that seems to be consistent in these blogs, it's the bathroom experience, I do realize that. 

This is the fish plate that Goodluck and Joseph ordered.  You are not seeing things, that is a whole fish, head, eyeballs and all.  Please tell me that you're not going to eat that head and eyeballs!  Of course, you don't eat the head of the fish?  Uh, NO!  Goodluck asked us what did we do with the head of the fish?  WE THROW IT AWAY!!!!   My baby girl Kandis has never liked to eat fish, and if there was any chance in the world of us getting her to at least try it, seeing this will end that chance! 

We left the restaurant and met up with Moses for church.  Since last year, the church has moved to the property that we had purchased about three years ago.  The church building is still under construction, but now has a congregation of approximately 150.   The service started at 4:30 because there is no electricity there and the people must have time to travel home before dark.  On Sundays, they rent a generator for the sound equipment and instruments.   The people came from all around, not one vehicle parked at the church, yet the church was partially filled with approximately 50 people.  All of them had walked from no telling where and no telling how far.  Amazing!  We are so spoiled aren't we?  Would you think about walking 10 miles church?  Or 5 miles to church?  Or 1 mile to church?  Before we walked in the church, there was a little girl outside that was absolutely amazed at us.  She wanted so bad to get close to us, so I turned to reach out to her and she screamed and ran with the most horrified look her face.  Moses said she was scared of us because she had never seen a white person before.  We walked inside the church, walking on dirt floors, well actually it's clay.  I don't know how they do it, but they pack this clay so hard that it's like walking on cement,  They walls are canvas and the roof is covered with tin.   Everyone was happy to see us.   Many of the faces we remembered from last year.   Eddie preached, of course.   At home he teaches a Bible study and one of the studies was a 7 part series, taking 7 weeks to complete it.  This afternoon, he started talking and going over the 7 points and my eyes got big and I took a deep breath.  What in the world is he thinking?  These people are expecting to start walking home in one hour.  They're not prepared to be here for a week!!!!  But to my surprise, he was able to get all these 7 points done in less than one hour and still had time for an altar call!  The altar calls are my favorite part of the services.  I love to see people that are hungry for the Lord, people that want to know Jesus and develop a relationship with Him!     When we said the last Amen, all the people wanted to hug us and say Karibu (welcome)!   As we got in the vehicle to take us back to our home, we watched the people start walking back to their homes.   How do they do this?  By the time we got back to the house, it was dark.  We passed women, children, men - all walking up and down the dirt roads and highways. 

This is another thing you would never see in America.  When we see someone walking along at night, we think that they are homeless and probably won't make it without either being killed, raped, or kidnapped.  I asked Goodluck was this not a concern to them?  He said "no, never".  It is their way of life and it is okay, no problems.   Wow!  Can you imagine your little boy or girl that is 7-8 years old walking alone on a dirt road?  Or a young woman walking alone on a dirt road or highway after dark?????

This has been a most interesting day, as is all the days we spend here.  Something new, something breath taking, something unusual, something wonderful!    My daddy always said, "A day without learning is a day wasted", so you can be assured that our days in Tanzania are not wasted!!!!

FIRST DAY IN MWANZA September 14

When we arrived in Mwanza, Goodluck informed us that the Butumpka Girls School had called and requested that he bring Eddie to the school Tuesday morning.   We had visited at this school last year and when they heard that we were coming back, they had insisted we visit them again.  As we drove to the school, the sites were the same as before, no change.  Usually in a span of one year, you would think to see at least growth of some sort wouldn't you?  The school is several miles down a road, off the main highway.  You're thinking main highway being that of Interstate 10 or Highway 19, as we're used to.  The main highway in  Mwanza is equivalent to a side street in one of our cities.   No lines in the middle of the road to separate the lanes.  And the vehicles drive on either side of the road.   I have a problem already with the "backseat driver" syndrome, so you can imagine how difficult it is for me to keep my mouth shut as I am watching from the backseat when our driver is meeting head on with another vehicle!  Just before we meet, one of them moves over and continues on.  There is no panic by anyone except me.  Eddie is punching me each time I gasp or yell "OH MY LORD!" as I put my hands over my face.   He just sits there, all  calm and collected like he's riding in a limo.  The school is off the main road - turning onto a winding dirt road, a winding, BUMPY dirt road.  When we get inside the gates of the school, the driver stops and we get out to walk the rest of the way to the school.  I haven't quite understood this yet - we're used to driving up to the door, park the car and walk a few steps.  They apparently haven't got the memo that it's okay to do that.  But at least we're getting our exercise.

We were met at the sidewalk by one of the school girls.  She's dressed in her uniform - blue skirt, white shirt, white socks and black shoes.  The socks may or may not match, the skirt may be held together with a pin, and the shirt may or may not be neatly pressed.  I mention this because our children are so conscious of their appearance that they wouldn't think about going to school without everything matching, cleaned and by all means the right size!  But you don't really notice the mismatched uniform because of the big, beautiful smile that is on her face.

As we walk in the classroom, the girls stand up with excitement and started clapping their hands to greet us.  The classroom is filled with only small desks lined in four rows.  There are no pictures on the block walls, no carpet over the concrete floor.  There were windows, all opened because there was no air conditioning.  A girl walks in carrying a small table and sits it in the front of the room.   They were making preparations for "Pastor Eddie" and Goodluck.  Over to the side of the room was a bench and a small table for me to sit.   Goodluck introduces Eddie and as he walks to the front of the room, the girls just yell and are saying "Bwana Asifewe!"  "Praise the Lord!"  Goodluck interprets as Eddie talks.  This is absolutely the neatest thing to me.  It's fun to watch them because Goodluck speaks with the same emphasis and movement as Eddie.  And the strangest thing of all, if Eddie says something that Goodluck doesn't know the word immediately, it's as if Eddie knows that he doesn't know the word and will change his word to help Goodluck.   That has to be the Holy Spirit, you think?  Eddie introduced me to the girls as his "beautiful wife".  Ahhhh he's so sweet.  He had asked me to say a word to the girls.   They were as happy to hear from me as they were Eddie, imagine that!  I took only a short minute to tell them that we were so thankful to be there, how awesome it was to see their beautiful faces and the obvious love they have for the Lord.  I told them that  if they continued in their walk with the Lord and continued to strive to achieve, they could say as we say in America "GIRL'S RULE!"   They just clapped and laughed. 

Before Eddie encouraged the girls, he requested that they sing for us.  One of the girls stood up and brought a drum to the front of the room.  A group of girls came with her and they began to sing the most beautiful song in Swahili.  The only instrument was the drum, but you would have thought there was an entire band playing.  It made tears come to our eyes.  They sing with such passion and sincerity!  As they were singing the presence of the Lord was so strong & beautiful.  Their worship was if we were in the upper room on the day of Pentecost.  We have here 30 girls that came from different backgrounds, different religious upbringings, yet all were praising and worshipping God with such reverence and intensity.  They had forgotten the visitors and were focused completely on their time with God, praying in tongues, singing, tears flowing, hands reaching to the heavens as if they know that God was holding them. It was an overwhelming experience for us as we stood there and watched because we thought of our young girls and boys in America and what a shame, what a shame, that we would never hear of this happening in our children's classrooms.  It has all been taken away from them!  We can't even say the name of Jesus in our schools, how sad this is for us and for our children.  These girls were not ashamed to show their love for Jesus.  It didn't matter to them that complete strangers were standing in front of them.  They were praising the Lord as if they were in a room all alone!!!!  I think of us when we are in a crowd of people, either at church or at work, wherever it might be.   Most of us are too conscious of our surroundings, who might be watching us - what would they think about me? 

Eddie spoke to the girls about the importance of knowing who they were in Christ.   I watched the girls as he spoke and it was absolutely amazing to see their faces.  They were listening with such seriousness, like they were capturing every word and placing it into their hearts & minds.  They would respond with a loud "Ndio" (yes) or shake their heads in agreement.  He encouraged them that we are all the same, although we live in different countries, our relationship with Jesus is what matters.  And that they could make a difference in this life by making the right choices and continuing their walk with the God that IS now.

After he finished, he said a prayer.  Oh if you could have watched them as they worshipped and praised the Lord.  For those few minutes, the white man standing in front of them wasn't their main focus.  They were raising their hands, eyes looking up, talking to the Lord as if He was standing there with them. Tears would flow down their faces.  After the prayer, the girls lined up for Eddie to pray for them.  They wanted him to pray for them, lay hands on them and bless them.  One by one he would pray for each girl.   The very last girl was so precious.  God was dealing with her and as Eddie prayed, she wept and wept.  When he walked away, she put her arms around me and I just stood there and held her for a few minutes.  At the end of the meeting, the girls wanted to sing one more song.  The harmony of these voices will forever be remembered, no music, no drums this time, just beautiful voices!     As we said our goodbye to the girls and were walking from the room, I reached down and grasped the hand of one of the girls.  She had the biggest smile on her face and the entire room just started laughing and yelling with joy.

We were walking back to the car and as we passed by the window of the girls classroom, we heard the them yelling "Mommy Jan-ise, Mommy Jan-ise!"  Talk about warming the heart!  They were so precious.  We  will never forget the expressions on these faces. 

Eddie and I refer to this day as a "burning bush" experience, which means when Moses was on the side of the mountain and encountered a bush burning, but yet not being consumed by the fire, and the voice of God was coming from the middle of the bush and later after he came down from the mountain, how could he explain this in a way that people could understand.  So from time to time if you hear me say "this was a burning bush experience", you'll know what I'm talking about.  AND I imagine there will be many more on this trip, because as I've said before, this trip is already so different than last year.  Bwana Asifiwe!!!!!