So many villages - Tungamalenga Parish
Our group returned to Iringa last night after eight days in the villages. I look at my notes from each stop along the way, and I have dates, places, descriptions of who and what I saw, what has changed from the previous year, words of welcome, words of pride in accomplishments, and words full of hope and anticipation of next steps. I have notes about introductions to church elders and parish leaders, notes about students sponsored from this parish, notes indicating gifts received from parents grateful for opportunities for their children, so different from their own life stories.
In Namelok, bricks cover the dirt floor, waiting for cement to finish floors and walls. They have begun digging the pit for a latrine (a "modern toilet," the doctor stresses). Last week, they hosted a gathering of youth choirs. "We know that through this partnership, we share things in common with God," says the evangelist, thanking us for our support since 2006.
At Kibaoni, we meet under the big tree and apologize for keeping them waiting. Pastor Paulo makes a point of cautioning our Bibis (grandmothers) to walk carefully and not slide, because Tanzanian roads are not like those he saw in America. Evangelist Joel Mbwillo speaks to my heart when he says, "We are very happy to see you. I will not call you guests because you are friends. We are so happy you have come to see your friends in Africa." We hear a report detailing supplies and cost estimates for the chapel construction, and then we are welcomed to share soda and "a few bites."
The people of Mapogoro meet us on the road, singing, dancing, waving palm branches. I notice that the evangelist collects the branches at the end of the greetings, and perhaps they are the same ones used at another village chapel the next day. The Evangelist explains the tasks of the congregation leaders: "our first job is to serve the people spiritually, our second task is agriculture, our third task is construction." The pastor/evangelist home has seen big changes since the previous year, with the kitchen/courtyard area going from foundation to walls, ready for roofing.
Kitisi welcomes us with Barabeig songs - so different from the ebullient Hehe and Bene singing, different still from the bouncing Maasai songs. These are slower, often in a minor key, just different from any singing we've previously experienced. This congregation is a meld of Barabeig, Maasai, Hehe, Bena and Mburu. Evangelist Stefano welcomes us saying that this is his second happiest day, second only to the day his Mama was baptized. The congregation has been meeting in a school, but led us to the site of their eventual chapel. Leaders speak of the enormous challenge of evangelizing to these tribes, "we know God is trustworthy and will make their hearts to be soft; they will come to worship." We talk of Pastor Paulo Masinga's trip to America in April; they tell us that they were almost losing hope about his journey until they heard that he had arrived safely in Minnesota. When he arrived back home, so many people came to greet him and hear his stories. Our friends joked, now the Barabeig and Maasai say, if you convert you might get a chance to go to the USA. We met the fundi (engineer, laborer) who is working on this chapel construction. "He's a Roman Catholic, but he's helping direct our construction project." He says he will not be paid, "it is a God work."
We spent significant time at Mpalapande, the site of our anticipated primary school. Emmanuel Yusuphu greets us and eagerly shows his certificate of graduation from Pasiansa College of Wildlife, where he has earned a degree in wildlife management and law enforcement. He's waiting for a job. His graduation photos show a determined young man in his snappy uniform.
The primary school project is the main topic here, and we are thanked for cooperating with our partners to make this happen. "Small children have been walking so far to school. They go for a long time, they arrive tired, sometimes they fail," a parent reports. "They even miss lunch" because students normally go home for meals, and they would have to travel too far. We will have a meeting at the end of the month to select a contractor for the school project. To show people back at SOTV, we take lots of photos and a few videos of the school site, and of parents and students describing the challenges. All the children have already walked t school very early that morning, so we try to set up a shot of two young children, as if they are walking the distance to school. Our efforts at film making get a laugh, even with cooperation.
On Tuesday, we held a partnership meeting. Strangely enough, Pastor Paulo was the only one who arrived on (wazungu) time, perhaps a lesson learned during his visit at SOTV. The nine AM meeting really finally got rolling at 10:30. We heard reports and requests for transportation support, construction support, and scholarship support. We shared the amount of available funds and discussed options and priorities. In addition to the Mpalapande Primary School, the finishing work at Namelok will be the parish priority for the coming year.
So we spent three days in Tungamalenga Parish visiting village congregations, and another day in meetings. What my notebook doesn't record are all the times we set down our pens to join in the singing and joyful dancing, or the quiet conversations over soda, or the singing on the bus. These are the experiences that bind us together as partners, with the will to make all the projects happen.
By the grace of God, we are empowered - kwa neema ya Mungu, tunawezeshwa.
In Namelok, bricks cover the dirt floor, waiting for cement to finish floors and walls. They have begun digging the pit for a latrine (a "modern toilet," the doctor stresses). Last week, they hosted a gathering of youth choirs. "We know that through this partnership, we share things in common with God," says the evangelist, thanking us for our support since 2006.
At Kibaoni, we meet under the big tree and apologize for keeping them waiting. Pastor Paulo makes a point of cautioning our Bibis (grandmothers) to walk carefully and not slide, because Tanzanian roads are not like those he saw in America. Evangelist Joel Mbwillo speaks to my heart when he says, "We are very happy to see you. I will not call you guests because you are friends. We are so happy you have come to see your friends in Africa." We hear a report detailing supplies and cost estimates for the chapel construction, and then we are welcomed to share soda and "a few bites."
The people of Mapogoro meet us on the road, singing, dancing, waving palm branches. I notice that the evangelist collects the branches at the end of the greetings, and perhaps they are the same ones used at another village chapel the next day. The Evangelist explains the tasks of the congregation leaders: "our first job is to serve the people spiritually, our second task is agriculture, our third task is construction." The pastor/evangelist home has seen big changes since the previous year, with the kitchen/courtyard area going from foundation to walls, ready for roofing.
Kitisi welcomes us with Barabeig songs - so different from the ebullient Hehe and Bene singing, different still from the bouncing Maasai songs. These are slower, often in a minor key, just different from any singing we've previously experienced. This congregation is a meld of Barabeig, Maasai, Hehe, Bena and Mburu. Evangelist Stefano welcomes us saying that this is his second happiest day, second only to the day his Mama was baptized. The congregation has been meeting in a school, but led us to the site of their eventual chapel. Leaders speak of the enormous challenge of evangelizing to these tribes, "we know God is trustworthy and will make their hearts to be soft; they will come to worship." We talk of Pastor Paulo Masinga's trip to America in April; they tell us that they were almost losing hope about his journey until they heard that he had arrived safely in Minnesota. When he arrived back home, so many people came to greet him and hear his stories. Our friends joked, now the Barabeig and Maasai say, if you convert you might get a chance to go to the USA. We met the fundi (engineer, laborer) who is working on this chapel construction. "He's a Roman Catholic, but he's helping direct our construction project." He says he will not be paid, "it is a God work."
We spent significant time at Mpalapande, the site of our anticipated primary school. Emmanuel Yusuphu greets us and eagerly shows his certificate of graduation from Pasiansa College of Wildlife, where he has earned a degree in wildlife management and law enforcement. He's waiting for a job. His graduation photos show a determined young man in his snappy uniform.
The primary school project is the main topic here, and we are thanked for cooperating with our partners to make this happen. "Small children have been walking so far to school. They go for a long time, they arrive tired, sometimes they fail," a parent reports. "They even miss lunch" because students normally go home for meals, and they would have to travel too far. We will have a meeting at the end of the month to select a contractor for the school project. To show people back at SOTV, we take lots of photos and a few videos of the school site, and of parents and students describing the challenges. All the children have already walked t school very early that morning, so we try to set up a shot of two young children, as if they are walking the distance to school. Our efforts at film making get a laugh, even with cooperation.
On Tuesday, we held a partnership meeting. Strangely enough, Pastor Paulo was the only one who arrived on (wazungu) time, perhaps a lesson learned during his visit at SOTV. The nine AM meeting really finally got rolling at 10:30. We heard reports and requests for transportation support, construction support, and scholarship support. We shared the amount of available funds and discussed options and priorities. In addition to the Mpalapande Primary School, the finishing work at Namelok will be the parish priority for the coming year.
So we spent three days in Tungamalenga Parish visiting village congregations, and another day in meetings. What my notebook doesn't record are all the times we set down our pens to join in the singing and joyful dancing, or the quiet conversations over soda, or the singing on the bus. These are the experiences that bind us together as partners, with the will to make all the projects happen.
By the grace of God, we are empowered - kwa neema ya Mungu, tunawezeshwa.
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