Already almost home

By -
It's hard to believe we've already been gone two weeks, traveled across the globe, spent eight days in villages singing and dancing with our partners, and are now on our way home.

We're in Amsterdam, safe and sound, a little tired but so grateful for the amazing experiences we have had together.

We had unusual problems accessing internet this trip, which is why there have been no blog posts during the trip.  Don't worry, we'll catch you up on all the news with posts and photos in the coming week.

For now, a few highlights....

Being together with dear friends from previous travels -- John, Mfaume, Msigwa, Chavalla, Pastor Naftal, Pastor Paulo, Azuberi, Absalum, Asifiwe, Mama Petro and so, so many others...

Meeting most of our Idodi Secondary School students; Sharon meeting her student Vumilia and Judy meeting the family of her student Zeituni...

Being cared for so lovingly by our partners, who would hold our hands as we walked over rough terrain and who asked every morning how we had slept, and who would carry our backpacks if we walked more than a few steps...

Seeing John speechless and with glistening eyes when we invited him to visit us in Minnesota in October 2013, hearing Mfaume ask, "but why me, Mama?" when we extended the same invitation to him and his wife Jenitha...

For Kirsten, walking the six kilometers along the pipeline bringing water to Mahove, and then continuing around the village for about the same distance to inspect each of the six water taps, seeing that the work has been well done and is being maintained in good condition.  It was hot even by ten a.m. when I reached the top  of the hill, and the sight of the tap in front of the church was such a joy -- and cool water on my face felt like a miracle...

Judy and Sharon were fortunate to see baby leopards during their safari at Ruaha National Park -- some of the guides said they had not seen such a sight in eight years.

The celebration at Mahove last Saturday was so amazing -- the singing, the dancing, drinking the cool refreshing water, celebrating a major milestone in our partnership...

Hours and hours spent discussing parish projects, hopes and dreams with our partners --- God has so many plans yet for us to accomplish together.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Idodi Secondary School

By -
Image
July 10, 2017 On Monday we headed out to Tungamalenga and Makifu parishes, ready to be offline for the next eight days.  Our first stop was at Idodi Secondary School.  Idodi is the first village we come to in the parish, and we have about 75 students attending the secondary school. Headmaster Christopher Mwasomola welcomed us to his office for an introduction and update. He said that Idodi is known as a community school -- the infrastructure is built by the community (in this case, heavily supported by a group known as Friends of Ruaha) and teachers are provided by the government.  Fun fact: the Friends of Ruaha at one point received a donation from Roy Disney, whose name is included on the dedication plaque for the school's library. The school was registered in 1999 and has 889 students, 437 girls and 452 boys. There are 41 teachers. The government supports salaries, books, lab equipment, desks, and other basic supplies. There are 11 non teaching staff, wi...
Read more

Safari 2013: the journey of a lifetime

By -
Image
Safari in Swahili means journey. We'd like you to consider taking the journey of a lifetime with other Shepherd of the Valley members next summer.  For two weeks in August, you could be ambassadors from our congregation living among and getting to know our partners from Tungamalenga Parish. What's a journey like this look like? We'll fly from Minneapolis to Amsterdam, then Amsterdam to Dar es Salaam with a short stopover at Kilimanjaro (alas, it will be dark and we don't get off the plane at Kili). That's about 24 hours from start to finish, with a four hour layover in Amsterdam. Arriving at the Landmark Hotel just before midnight, we get a good night's sleep in Dar before the eight to ten hour cross country bus ride to Iringa. notice the US and Tanzanian flags on the dashboard of the bus?   Highlights of that cross country ride include driving about 100 kilimeters of the way through Mikumi National Park -- and if we're lucky, we'l...
Read more

Karibuni sana

By -
Image
Pastor Naftal & Anjelina Ng'amillo In just a couple short weeks, we will be hosting guests from Tanzania. Pastor Naftal and Anjelina Ng'amillo from Tungamalenga Parish, along with Dr Mufwimi and Dora Saga from the Ilula Lutheran Hospital, will arrive in Minnesota October 21 for a stay of just over two weeks. What better way to welcome them than to learn a few words in their language? Karibu sana or, if you are addressing more than one person, Karibuni sana , means "we warmly welcome you." It's pronounced like this: KAH ree boo SAH nah or KAH ree boo nee SAH nah. Jambo means "hello." Another greeting is Habari, which is more like "how are you," to which a Tanzanian might respond Nzuri [good], Salama [peace], or Njema [fine, well, good] and then they might add, Habari yako [and how are you?]. When Tanzanians are in a gathering, like at church or at a meeting, and they rise to speak to the assembly, they almost always start by say...
Read more