Wonderful Christmas vacation!

It's been such a great 2 weeks - no time to blog! I have taken Linda to most of my favorite places; a couple of restaurants have been closed, so we had to miss those, but we've covered quite a few others! Lodges, swimming (for me!), eating out, eating at home (eatng played a big part in our time!), the Cultural Heritage Center, shopping, movies on DVD, a couple of different churches, including the one in Swahili Christmas Eve! Our favorite thing was a trip to Karanse, where teacher Upendo had us to lunch. So special and a great time with her family. We also visited with Godfrey's family and Moses's family. They couldn't say enough great things about Linda comng all that way during Christmas. Reminded them of the Wise Men and their visit to Bethlehem!

We spent the first week at my friend Jenny's dog-sitting for Stupidhead, I mean Simba! She's 3 and 1/2 months old and just wild! We kept her outside as much as possible! Got up before 6 every morning to let her out and dozed after that as long as she'd let me, which was usually before 8. Snce it was my vacation, that was a bit of a drag, but I've made up for it this week, back at my house.

Really nice time on Christmas day, mostly with the Joshua Team, the few of us left here, and talking with family and friends that night via skype and phone. A few more family members this week, so that's been good, too.

Linda and her suitcase and 1/2 for me made it here fine, so that was a big part of my Christmas! I also sent things back with her that I won't be needing till I go home because I'm trying to figure out how to get everything back at this point.

Holidays end next week, then it's back to work. Hope I can remember how after all this time off!

Just another typical drive into town

Yesterday Shelley, Sarah, and I headed in to Arusha to the Impala Hotel for a swim, since it's our vacation. As we neared town, we saw what looked like soldiers directing some cars off to the side of the road. Usually it's police, checking licenses and various stickers and documents hoping for a fine (otherwise known as chai money, or money for food and drinks for them!). This looked more official, and praying for invisibility wasn't working (my usual strategy), so Shelley started getting my papers out of the glove compartment, and I pulled over. Turned out to be a fire inspection. We are supposed to drive around with a fire extinguisher, and road triangle sgns in case of a break down. I had both of those, so Sarah handed him my extinguisher. He immediately said, "No, this is not the right kind. And you do not have a fire sticker on your windscreen." Amazingly, we could buy those from him for the low, low price of 60,000 Tshillings (about $40). I was pretty willing to do that just to save the hassle, but Sarah and Shelley started telling him we were part of an organization and our organization would have to sort that out. He told me my other option was to park my car and leave it! At that point I was really ready to pay up, but I'd already told him I didn't have the money. He asked did I want an askari (armed security guard) to go into town and get money with me. I said yes, because I thought he was bluffing. Sure enough, a very armed man walked over, but I don't think he was any more excited about getting in the car with 3 white women than we were about having an armed stranger in the car with us! More conversation, more looking at my papers, then they asked for the head of Joshua's phone number so they could call and verify our story. Everyone with any power is gone at the moment, so Josh Moose has proclaimed himself President of Joshua, as there's really no one else. We had called him to check out this story, and he said the guy was full of it, and it should no way cost that much, and not to give him the money.The fire inspectors eventually admitted that we have till Jan.1 to get these things, and since our organizaton was aware of it, they would have to let us go on our way. They did, however, call Josh (who they called Mr. Joshua, thinking it was his organization!), and he, of course, said he would handle it! This close to Christmas everyone is suspicious of extra "inspectons," as we don't really know where the money is going (or we do and don't want to contribute to their personal Christmas Club!).

You just never know!

Christmas Holidays Begin!

Yesterday I finished grading exams: 3 exams for 16 students, each including 2-4 essays on Civics, Social Studies, and Christian Education - whew! My holidays have officially begun!

I have no big exciting plans for the next week, but the small plans include the mentors going out for a celebratory dinner, getting a haircut, going to the pool (at a hotel in town), going to movie night at my church (they're showing It's a Wonderful Lfe, my all-time favorite Christmas movie!), having a meeting at Imara one day next week - I know that doesn't sound lke a "Christmas holiday" plan, but I love visiting friends at Imara and will probably go out to lunch since I'm in town, anyway! I also hope there's some sleeping late in the plans for next week, especially as some of my louder housemates will be gone to Zanzibar all week!

Sometime next week, I will also clean out the guest bedroom for Linda, do laundry, do some baking and make some plans for the visit with Linda - my REAL Christmas holiday!

Another orphanage visit

Not Cradle of Love this time but the children's home my friend Jenny is involved with. A TZ couple she knows from Imara, Esther and Lyimo, are pastors of an Arusha church and over the years have found themselves adoptive parents to about 12 children, and counting. Not all of them are orphans; some have a parent who is HIV postive and can no longer care for them, or a parent has died and the remaining parent can't cope; there are many scenarios. Jenny has been spending more and more time with these children and even sponsors one of the teenagers and keeps her on school holidays. Needless to say, this arrangement has maxed out their space at their own home, and they had opened a children's home nearby with a "mama" there to care for them. But, some months ago, they decided to relocate to some family land a couple of hours away and build a home specifically for the children, and for more, as they come. They have been in talks with Jenny to join them as an administrator, so she's leaving Imara in February and moving to Marangu. I spent last weekend with her, and we went to Marangu for the day with Esther and Lyimo, so I got to spend time with the children. I had met some of them a couple of summers ago, but neither they nor I remembered much of that. I held little Precious (about 6 months old, maybe) for a while, then little Junior (about 4) until he fell asleep in my arms waiting for lunch to be ready. Hassan and Witness played games on my cell phone, constantly handing it to me to restart, we sang songs, watched the older children play, then we got to go to the building site to see the progress on the home, due to open in February.

A wonderful facility! A big great room and dining room combo, large kitchen and pantries, 4 bedrooms for 6 children each, a couple of guest rooms for volunteers, a study room, 2 bathrooms, and a garden already planted. Also with lots of room outside for the children to play - something they don't have much of now.

After that, we went to check out Jenny's house. A great place she found to rent with lots of bedrooms and bathrooms, and, a little strangely, 2 dining room areas (?), and a secluded garden and small lawn. She, of course, invites everyone she knows to come spend time there with her! I plan on doing that at least once!

People here have long amazed me wth their vision. Esther is trained as a nurse practitioner, works in the HIV-Aids minstry at Imara, but finds herself opening a children's home! Jenny, who is an administrator, both back home in Australia and here in TZ, has felt called to help them pioneer this new ministry - doing web sites, brochures, hosting volunteer teams, etc. I think that's something I've learned about the mission field that I keep re-learning: there are so many ways for God to use you, and we get so tunnel-visioned that we only see the one way we did it at home, if we even did it there. There are so many needs here that you never even come into contact with back home, and if you're open to being used, it will amaze you to see where God takes you!

Sad event for Daniel

Our students are back on the En Ged campus and have faced several trials already that they weren't prepared for: lack of water in their part of campus, power outages (again), difficulties making their money stretch far enough (which has led to a couple of extra meetings, one with Isack from Imara coming out to talk with them), and anxiety over their new schools in January (and a visit from one of their new headmasters). We mentors have become quite the group of problem solvers, especally in the absence of Joanna and Lynda, both of whom are home in New Zealand for a couple of months! We've had the students bring buckets and bottles to our house for water, loaned them money or given them their allowance early, and helped however we could. Last night at 10, my cell phone rang, and one of the young men said there was a big problem, and could they come see me. I said yes, and went out to our steps to wait for whoever it was. Joseph, Elijah, and Daniel came a few minutes later, and I asked them in. Turns out, Daniel had just gotten news that his mother "might be dead." (I know how bizarre that sounds, but what I found out later is that this is their way of subtly breaking tragic news to someone, not beng definite about it!) Daniel is the "first born," so he had a big responsibility to his family and needed to go, but he was worried about not finishing his exams. I had told Joelle about them coming, so we quickly said he neded to go, and we would sort out the exams later. I prayed for him, thanked his friends for being there for him, hugged him, asked if he had bus fare for this morning's bus, etc. (Oh, and I also said don't feel bad about calling me this late for something this important, as they kept apologizing for disturbing me, so...)

This morning my phone rang while it was still dark, and one of the students said, "Miriam, we have the same problem as yesterday; may we approach your house to discuss it?" (They can be very formal, at times.) I asked, "What time is it?" "5:30," I was told. I was barely conscious so I told him no one was awake in my house, and yes, they could come, but to be very quiet. Again, I went out on the steps to wait so I could catch them before they got close enough to wake everyone else up.

This part was like a scene from a movie. There is a hedge that blocks the road in the direction the students would be coming from, so I could hear them before I could see them. They turned in my driveway, and they just kept coming: Paul, Abraham, Haruni, Elizabeth, Lucy, Noel - all of them! It was before 5:30 in the morning, and they were all there for Daniel! I get tears n my eyes just writing about it. Paul, the oldest and a pastor, said, "Miriam, in our culture, it is not right for Daniel to go home alone." I asked who would go with him, and they said, "Elijah." They had shared a room in Karanse, have loaned each other money, prayed for each other, helped each other with studies, and now Elijah was the one going on an 8 hour bus ride so Daniel wouldn't be alone. I was so incredbly moved. I did have to be a mentor, too, though, so I reminded him he'd have to make up his exams, too, and he said, no problem.

The students had been up most of the night and since 4:30 ironing Daniel's clothes and getting him and Elijah ready, and they were up to see them off. They had arranged with the husband of one of the teachers at our primary school to drive them into town to catch the bus, but something was wrong with Enoch's car, so I volunteered to do that. Agaba and Noel rode with me so I wouldn't have to come back alone. They walked Daniel and Elijah to the bus to make sure everything went OK, then we headed back home. I told them I'd make tea and something for everyone to eat as it was hours till morning tea, and they had an 8:00 exam! However, when I got home, I found Sarah and Shelley up and they had already decided to postpone the first exam and give them all the morning off, hopefully, to get some sleep before their afternoon exam. I took them tea and corn muffins, anyway, as they deserved at least that!

These are the same students that we complain about, wonder if we're making a difference in their lives, wonder if anything is really sinking in, etc. So, even though there have been tragic moments in this, it has truly been gratifying to see them come together and support one of their own like this.

Standard 7 Graduation

Last Thursday in Karanse was a very special day - the third graduation of our class
7. This marks the end of their primary education and the beginning of their secondary (our high school) education. This is a very big deal in a village that, before our school, had graduated something like 7 students EVER! This, our third class, makes about 80 from our school alone! These students took a national exam in August or September (I forget which), the results of which help determine where they will go to secondary school. There are far too many students for the available schools, and especially teachers, so there is a weeding out process with this exam. Our students took an entrance exam just recently at a secondary school in Moshi, a large town about an hour away, that we have heard good things about. It would be a boarding school, which is very customary here in TZ. Some of these students are the first in their families to graduate from primary school, so there were some very proud families there! Mostly, I wanted to put up pictures of this event. Some of them aren't very clear, but I wanted to give you the flavor of this whole thing.

Supposedly to start at 8:30, really began about 12, lasted almost three hours, followed by lunch! The other classes presented a traditional dance (those are the pictures with painted faces!)and songs; there were lots of speeches, a drama, several dignitaries introduced (including me, but I don't have a picture of that!) - a very full day!

Saying good-bye (temporarily) to Karanse

Yesterday, Friday, marked the end of our student teachers' time in Kranse (except for Abraham who is based there). It was a bittersweet time. Probably more bitter for me, sweet for the student teachers! I always HATE saying good-bye to Karanse and those precious teachers and children, but our students are SO excited to be coming back to En Gedi and getting together with their fellow students. So, that is understandable. We stayed pretty busy during the morning, gathering up materials, packing up some of their stuff in my car to bring back, as they will all take the bus, and that's hard to do with all their stuff! We also had had them plan a good-bye lunch for the teachers, and I went to the lower classes giving out stickers to say good-bye to them.

One of my sweet student teachers, Daniel, called me off to a private room so he could personally thank me, on behalf of both Joelle and me, for all the work we have done for him as his mentors. He even had gifts for both of us and letters telling exactly how we have enriched his life!

(I have to add that we have been studying Love Languages, and we have discussed both gifts and words of affirmation, and he used them both!)

Later in the day, after I was already back in Arusha, I got a text message from Abraham, thanking me for what I have done for him as his mentor. These are the things I wil treasure as we end this part of their training.

At the lunch, there were speeches by our students, then the Karanse teachers started in on their thank you's to us for all we had done to bless them. My nickname is Mama Karanse, and very sweet Issagya spoke about how true that is: that my heart really is full of Karanse! When I finally had to speak, I told them how very glad I was that this is only "baadaye" (later in Swahili), not "kwaherini" (good bye to you all) because I would be crying and crying! I won't be back properly till the beginning of February, though I may pop in before that. I will go back to check on Abraham's progress through the first three months of next year. It seems like a long time till then!