Esperança=Hope

Maybe like me you read the news and become saddened by the headlines. Murder, abuse, scandal: evil. Lots of it. It seems that sometimes the only "good news" is that the Spurs won. That's depressing. I would guess that a lot of Christians just shake their heads at "this sinful place" and assure themselves that the rapture will happen soon and we won't have to endure this anymore. Maybe. I would concur that these world events along with this list of evil things fit the end times scenarios given in the Bible. But I don't believe that shaking our heads while looking at the sky for our escape is the right thing either. So I have been in Mozambique for several months with on and off internet availability. When I do have internet access, the news headlines are overwhelming. When you go from being in America, to being away and then looking back in, it's a while new and huge culture shock. This isn't life as it was supposed to be. It's the curse of sin. Satan loves chaos, pain and evil. But, guess what, he is not the winner. He has been defeated! If you read the letters from the apostle Paul, he had a lot to say about the situation we Christians find ourselves in today; How we should conduct ourselves. And it doesn't have anything to do with hiding out, ignoring what's going on or pretending that it's normal. "Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents...for it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in Him but also suffer for His sake." Phil 1:27-30 Over and over he challenges the church to be strong. To persevere. To endure hardships as a good soldier, we get the picture. Let's keep reminding ourselves of that! We have Hope. The greatest Hope and His name is Jesus. A friend spent some time in Asia and said that whenever she met a Christian she knew it before they even said it. All she had to do was look at their faces and you could see the hope. That's beautiful. But if we know Jesus, we have that hope too! This madness is not the ultimate reality for us. God came as a baby. He lived among us to know us. So that we could relate and so that we could know that He understands! I am reminded of my favorite Christmas hymn: 1. Come, thou long expected Jesus, born to set thy people free; from our fears and sins release us, let us find our rest in thee. Israel's strength and consolation, hope of all the earth thou art; dear desire of every nation, joy of every longing heart. 2. Born thy people to deliver, born a child and yet a King, born to reign in us forever, now thy gracious kingdom bring. By thine own eternal spirit rule in all our hearts alone; by thine all sufficient merit, raise us to thy glorious throne. Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus By: Charles Wesley So what? Here is my challenge to me and anyone else willing to take it: Don't be afraid to do what is right or to stand out. But I didn't say it first, God did. Just read the book of Joshua. If something is wrong, say it. Don't get pushed into popular opinion. I also say this because it's a prayer of mine. I have not said things when I know I should have but I resolve to be a better ambassador for Christ when it comes to that. And we might suffer, we probably will. But I bet it's going to be worth it when we stand before God, in heaven, about to face eternity, and hear those glorious words, "well done good and faithful servant." That would be way better than receiving approval from mere humans in this temporary life on earth And maybe I don't fully understand all of these things . I'm sure that what I read in the headlines doesn't even scratch the surface of everything that is really going on. It's a bit overwhelming. What can I do? What can we as the church do? I know where I need to start and it's on my knees. I need Him to help me know what I am dealing with. I want Him to give me His heart for His people. The "bad" ones and the "good" ones. And then I want Him to give me a job. How do I combat this madness? Who are the people that I can show hope to? I could sit here and say, "man, I'm so glad that I got out of that place!" But I can't. That's home. Those are people who God loves. Some are throwing their lives away and some are having their lives thrown away. It's a mess. And if we wouldn't consider ourselves to be in one of those categories, it is ONLY by the grace of God! And we should be doing all we can to show God's love and to help bring redemption to those who are in those categories, it's our job! "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful." Hebrews 10:23

Christmas In Mozambique

This is how the Christmas Eve service goes... It starts at 9pm. We walk into a mostly dark building, the only light is two small flashlights on the podium by the pastor. We sing and dance, it might be a little more energetic than regular church, but that changes the later it gets. Someone might start snoring and then the boys laugh and someone wakes the culprit up. The kids fall asleep on the back rows but get woken up every few minutes and told they can sleep at home but this is church. People get up and give praise reports. At a certain point, anyone wanting prayer for healing will go to the front and kneel and everyone prays for them. We sing some more. Ashlynn and I sang "Silent Night" in English. I guess they all thought that wasn't a good song since you can't play the drums or dance to it, but they had been asking us to sing for a long time and what better time to sing than at Jesus birthday celebration! The service goes all night with more singing and preaching, all in Makua and a little bit of Portuguese. The back rows quickly fill up with sprawled out, sleeping children. At 4 am, right around dusk, the service ends and everyone goes home to take a nap.

 On Christmas Day we slept in a little bit, until about 5:30. Ashlynn and I made some baked oatmeal, a traditional Amish dish but neither Ashlyn nor Brenda had tasted it before. Funny how a different breakfast makes it feel like a holiday. We listened to some Christmas music to distract ourselves from the fact that it was starting to get hot outside. At 9am, the Christmas service started. We sang and danced, this time Ashlynn and I each had a little girl on our laps, or holding our hands. They small kids come and go, but sometimes they line up or fight over who gets to sit on our laps. It makes me feel loved when I was the one who was supposed to come to make them feel loved. I guess we both win from this arrangement.

After church we took toys to the kids houses. I was surprised to see baby Daniel sitting up. He was only 2 months old when he came and since September he has doubled in size and is now sitting up. Joanna, the helper at that house has a little baby also, his name is Cristiano, he was born a month ago and was there also. My heart was completely content to hold him and watch all the kids excitedly receive their gifts. It was also special because they have so little so presents are a big deal. It was a different and special Christmas. None of the usual Christmas traditions were involved in this day but we still celebrated the same person who is the same as He was on that first Christmas 2000 years ago. It is because of Him that we live and move and have our being and I cannot thank God enough for giving us the most wonderful gift of a Savior. "...you shall call his name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.' All this took place to fulfill what The Lord had spoken by the prophet: "behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel, which means God is with us." Matthew 1:21-23

Take Another Little Piece of My Heart

I know I probably shouldn't have favorites, but there will always be those kids who have a very special place in my heart. Maybe its their personality, maybe its the look in their eyes. Maybe its just God saying that they need me to be their fan.
There is one family here in particular who have that special place. Two of the boys are brothers and the other two are their nephews but they are raised as one family unit. The older two are seven(Momade) and nine(Dinis) and the younger two are twins and they are four(Pedro and Pedrito). That could be part of the reason they are so special to me.

The older two are kind of free spirits and you could say they are troublemakers without stretching the truth at all. They like to play and are a little rough around the edges. They are simply adorable with a confidence around the other kids but a shyness around adults.

Yesterday was the day for them to come get fitted for uniforms and only one of them came. I guess the other doesn't want to go to school and it was kind of brushed off. I saw him at the center and I told him that he needed to come get fitted for his uniform. I waited and hoped that he would come. Maybe a little encouragement from a friend would help convince him. (This morning I learned that I had told Momade to come and he is the one who actually came yesterday, Oh well. I think it was the sincerity of my plea that God honored.)
Today the house mother showed up with Dinis to get fitted for his uniform. I couldn't hide my happiness that he had come. He folded his arms and looked a little uncomfortable as he waited, maybe thinking that this wasn't a good idea, he would lose some freedom if he went to school. But he now has a uniform in the works and Atemani is a very good tailor, so he will be stylish in that uniform.
After the fitting he walked out to where the mother was waiting with two of the pastors, Alberto and Fred. Alberto looked at Dinis and asked why he didn't want to go to school, who knows, he might be president someday. Atemani, the tailor, continued by saying that going to school and getting an education would open up a lot of opportunities for him. And then Fred said that it seems like a big thing but that God is bigger and can do anything. He seemed to be really listening to these men and had a sheepish smile, probably wondering why they cared for him but really soaking up the attention at the same time.

I do hope he will continue to listen to these men. My heart was overwhelmed with the goodness of God in allowing me to be here to encourage the kids, and to see others investing in their lives as well. God loves all His children and its our job to be encouragers to each other. I know that I wouldn't be where I am today without the investment of many others into my life.

Hallelujah-cute song by cute voices

Four Churches

Sunday October 26

Ashlynn and I woke up, cooked some eggs, put them on some bread and ate our breakfast. At 6:00 we gathered the supplies to take to Alberto. Some Mantega beans and oil as well as salaries for the pastors and some audio Bibles. Janito drove and Frederico, the pastor over the district, sat in the front. Ashlynn and I sat in the bed of the truck and we were off. It was pleasant morning, even a little bit chilly. We drove through Balama and then headed South to Namuno. The dust was flying and people were calling “acunha” and pointing as we drove by. It could be because they rarely see white people or because they rarely see white people sitting in the bed of the truck. Either way, we were happy to have the best seats with fresh air, and a perfect view of the African wilderness.

We drove through Namuno and it was much bigger than I had imagined it to be. It is bigger than Balama and cleaner also. There are lots of coconut trees and lots of trees in general. Janito bought some bejias (fried bean patties) and they were fresh off the fire which means they were extra-delicious. He said Namuno has the best bejias and I agree although he does have more experience eating bejias than I do. The first church we visited is still being built. But we met under a mango tree to hold the services. There were about 15 men and one woman. I was shocked to see a father holding his daughter who was about two and she was entertaining herself with a knife and a green mango. I didn’t notice her making any progress in opening the mango but hopefully someone will take the knife away and actually help her open the fruit so she can eat it.

The second village was called Vitoria and they actually had a church building made of mud bricks. When we arrived there were a bunch of kids singing and dancing being led by a man and woman. I later learned it was the pastor and his wife. We went inside the building and they showed us their daughter who was laying in the front of the church sprawled out on a capalana(a capalana functions as a sheet, skirt, bag, baby wrap and many, many other things). The girl had been vomiting and throwing up. The mother picked the girl up, she was probably 8, tossed her on her back and tied her on with a capalana. Janito drove them to the hospital. After church we walked to Alberto’s house and visited with the pastor.

As part of this journey, Ashlynn and I went to find the bathroom (made out of bamboo sticks with grass tied to them as the walls and there is a hole in the ground). There were some cute baby pigs inside the bathroom and then I noticed the mother was there too. ‘Fred, we have a problem…’ Fred came over and he along with one of the boys chased the pigs out of the hole in the back wall of the bathroom.

We drove to the third village and they also were building their church. We met under a grass roof with people spilling out to the porch of the house next to it. We sang with them and then Fred preached again. As we were walking to the truck to leave one man came running after us and gave us a plastic bag with 5 eggs in it as an ‘oferta’. Some of those guys went with us to the next church.

The final church also had a building and it was the biggest with around 80 people in attendance. The singing was more energetic in this place. After the service we prayed for an older grey-haired man who was sick but I couldn’t quite understand what Fred said he was sick with, a blind woman and an epileptic boy. As we were leaving that place a man also gave a plastic sack of eggs and one of beans as an ‘oferta’.

As we drove home Fred bought some boiled corn on the cob for us to eat and we bought some cokes. It was a sweet day visiting and I do hope we get to visit those churches again as well as some others.

As we listened to the preaching in each church and understood none of it, I was grateful that God has provided His Word to these people in their own language and men who can teach them. My prayer is that the pastors will continue to seek God and to challenge their members to follow Him. And also that more men would follow God’s call to teach others of Him.

Tavidi

He has been our friend pretty much from the start.

Two years old. And with a little bit of coaxing, the biggest smile will appear.

He is a little shy but not too shy to come to you.

Last Sunday at church I noticed him walk in the back door. He was walking like he was on a mission. He marched right down the aisle and to the row I was sitting in. He stopped and put his hand on my knee. I laughed inwardly that he is not so shy now and knows that I will gladly hold him on my lap for the whole service no matter how hot it is in that building.

On Thursday at food distribution he was standing by his grandmother with his shirt pulled up, he was holding the bottom of the shirt creating a pouch with his precious peanuts inside. He put the whole thing in his mouth and after he cracked it open and got the peanut out, he would spit out the shell. I walked to him and he grinned. I picked him up and held him; I doubt that he actually understands what I say, but I talk to him anyways. A few minutes later, he looked up and got a big sheepish grin, I looked over and his grandmother had come back in to get him. She had got the food and needed a child before she could go home. I reluctantly handed him over.

Later Ashlynn and I walked to visit the homes. As we walked past his I looked over just as he screamed "acunha!" He threw the dishes that he was holding and ran towards us. Now that I know he talks, we will work on some names. But the abandon with which he ran to us was what impressed me.

I know its not the same and pardon the comparison, but I thought of the prodigal son in Luke 15. After the younger son had made a huge mess of things and crawls back to his father, the father doesn't start off by reminding the son that he had made a huge mistake, he runs to him. He loves him. He is the father who has a right to judge, but the son knows that. What he has forgotten is that he loves him. Running to meet someone signifies abandon. It signifies that you don't care who sees and what they think. All  you are thinking about is the person you are running to and that they know it.

A Mozambican Wedding

Manuel drives our big trucks and we love to ride we him to food distributions. He gives us oranges which we call "friendship oranges", he is always smiling and brings a lot of joy to everyone.
On the last trip together he was telling me about a wedding and asked if I would come. You cannot imagine my excitement since I have been wanting to go to a Mozambican wedding since I decided to come to Mozambique. It seems like a great place to learn about the culture not only in regard to weddings but to marriages and relationships.
There was some confusion about who was actually getting married because I guess family titles are used loosely. Manuel said it was his daughter and I thought she was only 14. The day of the wedding we walked to the wedding with Manuel's half-brother, Bertino, and I said something about his niece getting married and he looked at me funny. I said 'isn't this Rachel's wedding?' and he said 'no, it's my aunts wedding'. I still am not sure who it was who got married, but I hope they have a very happy life together whoever these people are.

The bride wears a white dress and the groom wears a suit. They are escorted in by the jovens (young people) who were gathered from the audience a few minutes prior to the ceremony. One person sings and everyone else sings back as they slowly dance their way to the front. The couple stays and everyone else dance-sings their way back out. The Padrinhos stay close to the couple for the whole time--this is where Manuel and his wife come in--they are the Padrinhos, which for us would be the equivalent of best man and maid of honor and they also help pay for the wedding.
They first thing they do is welcome everyone which includes reading names from a really long list and whoever is there stands up and waves. Many people are not even there like pastors from neighboring communities, teachers and government officials. The pastor of the church preached about marriage and the husband and wife's relationship--he included humor which helped keep everyone's attention. They exchanged vows and the kiss. Then the dancing choirs started. Our kids had a choir led by Bertino and they invited us to join their choir, so after one dance lesson we were in. It was fun but a little nerve wracking since as two white girls we can't even pretend to blend in. Everyone was laughing but we hope it was because they were impressed. The kids love when we dance with them and we are honored when they invite us. We kind of feel famous though. One of the choirs in their song about how God loves marriage included some Macarena-type dancing and it was awesome! There was some more talking and then they had the offering. It's a time for everyone to go to the front to greet the couple while giving your gift. It could be as little as 10 meticais (less than a dollar) or more, a bucket, plates or a basin. But you have to dance-sing with everyone else as you make your way to the front.
The ceremony lasted more than five hours but surprisingly it didn't feel that long at all because we were so caught up in trying to know what's going on and talking with our friends. They served food at the end but we couldn't stay for that part. We walked home with Dominica and she said it was a beautiful wedding and she hopes that she can have one just like that for her daughter. Nene is only 16 and common wedding age is 18 or 19 so she has some time to prepare.
So, Mozambican weddings are fun and you all shouldn't complain the next time you are at a wedding that takes over an hour. But you should if you don't get to dance-sing as part of the ceremony.

In everything

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything with prayer and supplication; with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

I remember a pastor challenging us with this verse once. He said that we are not only to give thanks for the good things but everything. I think that it's a fact that we pray more during hard times or times of confusion and frustration and we give thanks more in the good and happy times. I didn't do an official survey except with myself but I'm pretty sure you all do this too! But we are supposed to pray about AND give thanks for everything. God has a way of changing our perspective for us when we do.

Here are a few things that I was challenged with as I read this and I'll challenge you with also:
1) Don't be anxious--give whatever you are worried about to God. He already knows everything and He has a plan. (Jeremiah 29:11-13) Usually whatever we are anxious about we can't do anything to fix so we should give it to Him and rest in the fact that He has power to handle anything we give to Him.

2) Even if you aren't fully convinced, say 'thank you'. Maybe you don't know yet why you should be thankful but later you will and it's better to be thankful now and see a reward later than to be frustrated now and regret it later.
In The book "The Hiding Place" by Corrie Ten Boom she talks about when she and her sister Nellie were moved to a concentration camp and there were lice in their straw beds(on top of all the other horrible atrocities present in the camp). Nellie told her to thank God for their new location and even for the lice. She was aghast, 'why ever would someone be thankful for lice?!' She did and not long after that they realized that the guards didn't come into their room because of the lice. This meant that they could hold Bible studies with the other ladies. After that she could more genuinely thank God for the lice.

3) The peace of God surpasses all understanding. In Paul's opinion, it's better to trust Him than to have understanding. Ok so I haven't conquered this yet. It's probably the hardest thing for me to fully accept from God. I want to see what is going on, I like details especially when I am involved. I want to know now that everything turns out beautifully, that my hard days aren't going to keep on happening and that there will be a happy resolution to them.
But why would I trust anyone else?
 Cue the song "Dios Ha Sido Fiel" by Marcos Witt, (really, it just played), it's a beautiful song about how in the midst of great pain and dark nights God has been faithful and He will always be faithful. We can trust our lives to The One who is good.
And I can believe this when I'm feeling super homesick, when I'm feeling totally unqualified for what I've been given, when dealing with loss or on days when I wonder if my ministry will bear fruit. Or really for any difficulty that I face. Because it's not hard to believe or trust when everything goes according to plan. But when it doesn't, I have to remind myself of the great truth that the God of the universe knows me. He knows my needs and He is either working details out or working me out. Or maybe both.

Quarta-feira: Escola Ingles

This is Bertino.
Today he taught a very riveting English class. It was nice to have someone else teach and also a little bit entertaining. Seven of eight boys from the dorm were there(ages 13-16) and Bertino who is one of the children's pastors and 23 years old.
He knows a decent amount of English and is always excited to use it. He kept challenging the boys: "memoration"--he wanted them to memorize the vocabulary words. And said tomorrow was "revision"--meaning we will review tomorrow. We started with days of the week and then switched to parts of the body. Midway through his lesson he said "I have two songs." He proceeded to sing "ten fingers, ten toes, two ears and one nose" and then some song which we don't really know what it was... But it didn't include any English words that I know. We finished with learning some fruits and vegetables and he said he loved to eat rice and a little bit of potatoes and to drink fanta. It sounds simple but that's actually an uncommon meal for them. They usually eat shemah(warm cornmeal mush) and beans and mostly they don't eat more than two meals a day.

For obvious reasons, English class is one of our favorite things!

September ten

Manduin is the snack of choice here, by us and the Mozambicans. It seems every time I am at an event someone hands me a small handful of freshly shelled nuts. Ashlynn and I joined Jose, Armando, Paulo and Dominica to shell and visit. It's fun to sit with them, listen to them talk in Macua and try to figure out what they are saying. They are very welcoming and always smiling and laughing.

A little later we ventured outside the gates of the missions compound we took a left and walked towards Balbina's home. We passed some children, greeting them with a "bom dia" or "salama." I always have to stop and shake the hands of every willing child; a high-five also suffices. I hope that I never get so caught up in things to fail to do so. There is something very special in touching their hands. I want to be their friend. They just melt my heart. And I admit, I feel famous and it's sweet to be known by all the kids. I believe that it is through our love that many see the love of Jesus and I hope I do Him justice.
We walked into a gate to several bright blue buildings and four little voices calling "Keitee", "Ashtonee". They were sitting in the shade on the edge of the building holding some used 'Shake it Up" tennis shoes with glitter shoelaces trying to figure out how to put the laces in. We sat and talked but mostly we just smiled and played clapping games.

Then we went to Ernestina's house. I've been dying to go visit ever since she got a baby last week. I had malaria though and was confined home to rest and recover. Baby Daniel is adorable. He is a sweet baby. I held him last week when his uncle and cousin brought him to us since his aunt couldn't care for him anymore. The moment he was placed in my arms and he didn't cry I knew he loved me. When I saw Esperança and Pedrito yesterday I asked about their new baby brother and they said he was a good eater--he is on his third can of formula and it hasn't been quite a week.

Three months: Favorites!

Here are some highlights.

Kids, of course. They are too adorable. Loveable and loving. It's amazing how simple life is for them as far as trusting others and giving of the little that they have--they just do it without thinking. I am constantly challenged by their selflessness. I hope to be more like them.

Food distributions. We love visiting other villages and getting to be the hands of feet of Jesus as we provide for their physical needs after telling them of The One who loves them And through His people has provided this food.

Church. It is energy packed. They know so many songs but it's always a beautiful time of worship with them.

August 20

So we continue in Balama with really limited internet and that's why blog posts have been so spaced out. But we are alive and well.
We continue with our food distributions at the center as well as baby consults where we see orphaned and malnutritioned babies every week. We weigh them and then based on the babies' needs we give them formula and/or hypo. Hypo is a powder that is full of protein that is mixed in with water and fed to the babies to build up their strength and to help them gain weight. Fred usually is in charge of the baby consults but today had to go to a meeting so Daudo helped me. I was so glad to have a Macua speaker. He spoke with the mothers and if the baby had lost weight he would ask why which was so helpful.
Last week we also started food distributions to two new villages Tauane and Kwe Kwe. Friday we will do another one. Every year Capena meets with village chiefs to see who in the village really actually needs assistance and then He figures out what and how much of everything is needed. At each of these distributions, people come from several different villages and received beans, soap, salt and corn. Capena keeps everyone moving and food is distributed in less than two hours. These three villages will receive food once a month during the dry season. It was a beautiful drive and we enjoyed the new faces and scenery. We also enjoy spending time with our guys too. Here are some photos from the distribution in Kwe Kwe last week:

The kids are on vacation from school last week and this week. We have enjoyed playing soccer with them and just hanging out. On Saturday we took Nelson with us to Montepuez which is an hour drive from here. We needed to get some supplies. It's the closest place to get ice cream and a burger which we took advantage of! Nelson hadn't had ice cream or a hamburger before and now he is a fan!

Africa de Sur August 8

I made a quick trip down to South Africa this week to get my residency visa. In April I sent in my passport with a visa application so I arrived in Mozambique with that and then you can have two thirty day extensions, Capana just took my passport and some other a paperwork at thirty days and they stamped it and let me stay. But before the 90 days are up you have to leave the country. So Eric took me to the Mozambique embassy where we turned in some paperwork, my passport and some money. I got the residency visa and in the next few weeks I will go to Pemba to fill out some more paperwork and then hopefully they will give me my residency visa. You can pray for that all to go smoothly!
While in South Africa I celebrated my birthday with some new friends. Eric worked in Balama for over ten years, he went back to South Africa in June. On Monday He greeted me with a huge smile and a hug when I arrived in Johannesburg--I was happy to see my substitute uncle! He took me to meet his daughter Roselle and her husband Rian. They cooked steak with a side of salad with feta cheese as soon as I arrived. They made me feel right at home. The following afternoon after the visa as well as a visit to Nelson Mandelas statue, I met Eric's granddaughters Franska who is four and Alika who is 18 months. They are precious and Franska was eager to introduce me to their four dogs, two sheep, 13 horses and bunny named cheerio. She reminded me of my niece Leah who had just turned 5 the day before.
Wednesday was my birthday, how am I twenty-nine already?! It was my first birthday to not be with any of my family and I was only able to talk to two sisters for a few minutes so that was REALLY hard. But, God knows and I'm so grateful that He gave me a substitute family for the week! We went to the girls school in the afternoon because Eric and Rozelle will be doing some work for them and they needed to put some stuff together to give an estimate. We walked to the playground after they finished to pick up the girls. Franska came running toward us and with outstretched arms yelled, 'Katie!' Aah, I felt so loved! Rian and Rozelle made reservations at their favorite restaurant which serves the best prawns (shrimp) in Pretoria--I have it from a very reliable source! They were delicious and so was the chocolate brownie with ice cream. They made my birthday so special and even brought in the grandparents for a real family party.

On Thursday Eric took me to visit the lion park, and then Anca gave me a horseback riding lesson. Happy birthday to me!
Today I'll head back to Balama, Mozambique.

August two

Breakfast/Montebixo
We went to the home of Balbina yesterday for breakfast. Esperança, Fatima, Filomena, Angelica, Dominica and Ortencia live there. We arrived at 7 and Balbina told us to have a seat while she finished getting breakfast ready. The younger girls with wet hair and no clothes on, peeked out from around the corner where they take their baths. It was a chilly morning, but it didn't seem to bother them that they were wet. In the middle of the yard, a chicken sat under a basket with a wooden pole on top to hold it down. After about ten minutes it started clucking and trying to squeeze it's body through the hole which in reality was only large enough to fit her head and neck through. I wondered if she just realized that she was about to be dinner and was calling for help before she lost her head.
Balbina invited us to the dining room. On the table in front of us was a glass plate or bowl for each person with a spoon and a glass sitting in top. There was also a bread roll for each person. We sat and she told us to put sugar in our cups. We followed her lead and put two teaspoons. She then pointed to the can of sweetened condensed milk but we weren't sure what she wanted us to do with it so we waited. The girls came in and sat on the bench across from us except for Dominca and Ortencia who have a kiddie table at the end of the big person table. Cups were filled halfway with hot water and then Fred arrived and told us to put the milk in the sugar water. His English comes in so handy sometimes since a lot of the people mostly only speak Macua. He asked if we liked bejias which we do, so we told him so and a few minutes later Balbinas husband brought in some bejias for everyone. Bejias are made from beans that have been ground into flour and mixed with onion then made into patties and deep fried, they are yummy. I think he had gone to the market to buy them since it is really time consuming to make them. We watched the girls and they tore strips off their bread roll and dipped it in the milk sugar water so we did the same. It tasted really good even though it was sugar loaded. I asked the girls how old they all were and they looked at each other and giggled before they answered that and any other question. Besides that, they were really quiet, we thought maybe they were nervous to have the three acunhas there but we tried to put them at ease. Balbina wanted Fred to tell us she wanted to apologize for everything not being ready when we arrived. I was the spokeswoman for us and I said not to worry, we were very grateful to spend this time in their home and that the breakfast was our favorite that we have eaten here... Usually it's bread with jelly or peanut butter, or French toast on the weekends. We also really enjoyed spending our morning in their home and getting a little more of the culture. I doubt that they eat from glass dishes on a regular basis or even that this was a normal breakfast. What an honor to get to be more involved in their lives and for a few moments to be totally a part of their lives.
As we walked home I said to Hannah and Ashlynn, "can you guys believe we are in Africa?!" We kind of forget sometimes. But when we spend the morning in their home, in their neighborhood, it's just a little more obvious. And again I am thankful for this opportunity that God has given me.

End of July

Sorry it has been a while since my last update. There are two phone/internet carriers here: MCel and Movitel. Movitel is the better one and the one that we run our internet through but they have some problem with their fiber optics so we have been without internet, it was expected when I came that the internet would be difficult to have but then I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived and it was as good as the internet service in the states. Reality check. But we have survived and besides it being harder to communicate with you all, it hasn't been too bad. But, we still are hoping that it come back up before too long!
Brenda went to the states for two weeks to visit with her parents in July. Her mother is not in good health and Hannah and I were happy to be able to hold down the fort here so she could go. Really it wasn't too difficult since we had Capena here who knows all the programs and pretty much ran everything with the help of the pastors. We controlled money, keys and assisted with the basic programs that continued while Brenda was away. We got to use our Portuguese to ask the guard to go to the market for fruits and meat. He came back with the right foods and amounts so I say it was successful. Also, Ashlynn arrived from the states two weeks ago and we are happy to have her here.
We go to the center daily at catorce hora (1400 or 2:00, we go by military time here) for Escola Ingles, most days we have students show up with their notebooks and pencils. We teach them basic words and if Nelson is there, he is 16 and knows a good amount of English, we ask him how to say things in Portuguese. This week there were some teenage girls looking through the windows and giggling as we had class. I asked if they wanted to learn English and they came right in, borrowed paper and pens from the boys and eagerly took notes. We sometimes take children's books and have them read in English and then translate for them. It was a challenge as we read "The Nose Book" and I had to try to figure out how to say that 'some use their noses to blow horns', that's kind of weird. Or how to say 'sniffle'. We decided to put my Portuguese/English Bible to use and teach them--as well as ourselves!--some Bible verses in English and Portuguese.
We finished corn processing this week. We are relieved to have that huge job finished and thankful that God provided and everything went off relatively smoothly. The second big truck broke on the last day of transporting corn but Brenda and Manel were able to get it up and running again so Manel and two other guys could deliver food to another village a few hours away from here the next day.

Thanks for the continued prayers. I'll write more later!

Domingo

I love Sundays here. We go to the Igreja Aguas Vivas which is about two minutes away. Sometimes we will also go to church in Rovuma which is about 5 minutes away and then we will go to Igreja Aguas Vivas afterwards.
Church includes A LOT of singing. There isn't a 'worship leader' like we have at home. As far as I can tell, if you want to sing a song, whenever there is a lull, you just stand up and sing and everyone else will too. Some will stand and dance and sometimes everyone will. There are 4 or 5 boys who have their hand drums and another instrument made out of metal and wood. Nelson or Fred will get up and say something in between songs. For the offering, one of the children will stand and hold a basket and everyone comes to the front to put their offering in. Then the children's choirs will sing and dance for a while, without fail, there is a lot of enthusiasm and a bunch if adorable kids singing and dancing. Some if the mothers will join them. (I talked about the choirs and my brief stint in an earlier post).
All the while, Hannah and I have a bunch of kids sitting by and on us. And they all smile and wave as they make their way into the church and find their place. I don't prefer to be the center of attention, usually I like to fade into the background, but try as I might it's impossible. It's obvious that I'm white, almost as obvious that I can't dance and hopefully a little less obvious that I am slow in my Portuguese--I'm learning. I'm thankful to have a lot of people to practice with.
After the children's choirs have finished we go with all the kids to the center for escola dominical. They fight over who gets to hold our hands while we walk. Nelson, Bertino or Carlitos Gorge will do a Bible lesson with them. We will sing a few more songs. Then each child will receive a piece of candy before leaving.

Some Thoughts From Leviticus

A few weeks ago I set a goal to read through the Bible while in Moçambique. I have about a year so I can accomplish it.
It is so fun and interesting to read the accounts of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and Joshua. People who found themselves in less than desirable circumstances but chose to listen to and obey God. They are people of faith and that's why they ended up in the Bible. But they weren't perfect and that's also why they ended up in the Bible. So we can relate but be inspired to live obedient to the call of God even if we have no idea why he would call us to do such crazy things. Because of these heroes of faith, we see what Gods plan was for their lives and we can trust that He has great things in store for us also.
Then I got to Leviticus. It can be a struggle to get through the next three chapters. It seems that the laws about unclean things and sacrificial offerings don't have much to do with us. Yet, as I read, I believe it does.
Then I got to a passage which I think is the key: 
"you shall therefore keep all my statutes and all my judgements, and perform them, that the land where I am bringing you to dwell may not vomit you out. And you shall not walk in the statutes of the nation which I am casting out before you: for they commit all these things, and therefore I abhor them. And you shall be holy to me, for I The Lord am holy, and have separated you from the peoples that you should be mine." Leviticus 20:22-23, 26.
He doesn't give a lot of rules just because. It's because all of the sleeping around, all of the worshipping of idols(which we still have, they are just called things like entertainment, money, success, etc), all of the injustice and selfishness are ways of the people who God abhors! That's about as bad as it can get. He calls them to be holy--different. How will anyone know that they follow Him if they do the same exact things as the people who He abhors?
But they weren't the only ones from whom God expected the first fruits and best of what they had. Whom He expected to be set apart and holy like Him. That stands for us too:
"So the scribe said to Him, 'well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He. And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love ones neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.'" Mark 12:32-33
So, today we don't offer sacrifices the same way, but we do live sacrificially by denying ourselves a complacent life,  the 'right' to always be right, to trample on others, to be selfish, to practice immorality., etc. because if we really do love God with our whole hearts we will obey the commands that he gives and we will seek to be holy like Him.

Don't Miss It

It's so easy to spend our lives looking and waiting for the next big thing. That's easy to do. And we are more likely to think that way when we compare our lives with others'... Look what so and so has, look how happy they are, look how successful my friend is, etc, etc. I think it was Theodore Roosevelt who said "comparison is the thief of joy." A good friend (Dave Sexton) used to challenge us after returning from mission trips which greatly increased our time with The Lord and consequently joy in Him--"don't let satan steal your joy." It's a fruit of the Spirit, and so are love, peace, patience, kindness goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I am convinced that having Joy in our hearts helps the others thrive though. (Galatians 5:22-23)
And so if we spend our lives looking for that next big thing, we miss out on a lot of little things. Or maybe even the little thing right in front of us that would turn into a big thing if you were paying attention.
And I would miss a million sweet moments during the days.
Like...
the mischevious smile of Patrito as we play keep away with two little girls during recess
the brilliant stars that shine even brighter when when the lights go out in the middle of the AWANA program
hearing the guards singing hymns outside in the afternoons
Paulino proudly showing off his cartwheels
Small sticky hands sliding into mine as I walk to church
Kicking the futebol back to four little boys individually because for some reason they want me to be the one kicking it to them
Devotions with the group of bicyclist pastors and local pastors in Makua

And so many more, but these are a few of the lovely moments that I savor and thank God for placing me here to enjoy.

Glimpse of a Wednesday

There are no two days alike, but just wanted you to kind of have an idea of what we do here.
We arrive in the kitchen at five o'clock every morning. We drink a cup of tea, hot cocoa or coffee. Then we go out to get job assignments. Usually the boys that live in the dorm lead all the workers in a song and a pastor will give a short devotional. It's always so fun and we love the boys in the dorm and we especially love it when they sing and dance. Sometimes Toto, our roaming guard dog, will join in on the dancing with Brenda and the guys love it, they laugh and laugh.
Thursday is food distribution so it's a given that the correct amounts food will all get organized on Wednesday. This includes sal(salt), feijão(beans), arroz(rice), açúcar(sugar), farinha(corn flour), batatas(potatoes), óleo(oil), manduin(peanuts), lenya(firewood) and sabão(soap).
Then Hannah and I went through the barrels of clothing to take inventory. Atemani is the resident tailor. He sews a LOT of clothes for the kids. Dresses, skirts, shorts, blouses, aprons, etc. He is really good and we were having fun admiring all the beautiful fabric as we counted the articles of clothing. After that task we went outside and I was so intent on wherever I was trying to go that I almost stepped on this guy!

It's the first unique animal we have seen and we decided after the fact that we should have made him our pet! Maybe he will still be in the tree tomorrow, the hard part will be trying to find him. Hannah searched that tree for thirty minutes earlier with no luck--I gave up after five. Diamantino, one of the guards walked by and asked what she was doing. When she said there was a chameleon in the tree he picked it out in five seconds.
A woman came with her week old orphaned grandson. Capena showed her how to make formula and explained the importance of cleaning the bottle out, using clean water and not storing the milk for more than an hour so it doesn't spoil and make the baby sick. The work crews had just finished and were waiting around for their next task. They were intrigued by this adorable little baby with a full head of hair and as Capena spoke with the lady they came closer and closer. At the end of the tutorial, there was an audience of 25 men. Good to know that if they ever need to know how to make baby formula they are set.
After our lunch of arvelia(kind of like green peas) and rice we went to Ravuma which is about 5km from here. We visited the goats.

This little guy is adorable but sadly, he has been sick. Brenda doctored him up.
Then we met a lady and her four orphaned grandchildren who Brenda also doctored up with some medicine and vitamins.
 Then we went to another home of a woman and her husband and their seven children. They just took in four orphaned children this weekend. We took them blankets, mats, pots and food yesterday and they were soo happy to have something to sleep on. The kids were a little shy at first but then so excited to shake our hands and give us high fives.
Hannah and I then went to visit three of the homes here in Balama. Our two buddies, Melito and Melito went with us.  The home mothers are so sweet. Ernestina likes to teach us words and we can get along pretty well in conversation. It's my favorite way to learn because we are building relationships at the same time as learning Portuguese. I can't wait to understand everything and to say everything I want to say--correctly. She also tells us words in Makua but they are a lot harder to remember!
We stopped off at the center and played with the kids for a little bit. Then it was time to come home and make dinner of salad(lettuce, salad and onions), corn, and goat with sautéed onion and green pepper. It gets light here at 5:30am and it gets dark at 5:30pm, so we take as much advantage of the light as possible. Up and ready to go by 5am, back to our homes at 5:30pm.
I continue to be so grateful for Gods faithfulness in providing the food for us to buy that we may share with the families here who have need of it. We will finish rice buying this week and then we start the July corn buying and processing in two weeks.
Thank you for continuing to pray for us.

Follow Jesus

Eric Dry is the associate director and has been here for more than ten years. From Eric I learned some new things to incorporate into my vocabulary like "fetch"and"it's a pleasure", he taught us how to make his delicious chickens and gravy, and from him I almost got my first job tarantula-sitting. Linda is his faithful pet tarantula who randomly causes him to dive across the sidewalk as he seeks large cockroaches for her dinner. 

This was his final week here. Sadly, I missed his last time at church last week where they had several special songs and messages planned for him. Wednesday was a holiday so Tuesday was his final workday here. He came to devotions to give a word to the men. He said, "you come here every day and hear about God. I want to tell you to listen to what you hear because it's the truth. Jesus is coming back very soon. He will take those who follow Him to heaven and those who don't will be left here to experience hell on earth. Follow Jesus. Do good and not bad." It was short, simple and to the point. The people here have much respect for him and there are even several children here named Eric (or Erica) because of him. 

On Wednesday we surprised him and made custard and chocolate cake to go with our lunch of rice and juko beans--which also were a treat and surprise because we eat mantega beans everyday. He had no idea so it was a perfect surprise. On Thursday morning Hannah and I gave home two cards that we had made with the preschool kids and said our goodbyes (to Eric and Linda who had been safely prepped for her journey) and then we had to go get the food distribution set up while he finished his final preparations. About a hour later he drove up and stopped the truck in front of the center and about ten women ran over to the truck... It was so cute that they rushed over because they wanted to make sure they got to say goodbye.

He was the resident mechanic, welder, tech guy, solar power expert, and radio program recorder, etc. While Manuel has been trained to take over some of those things and Brenda knows how to do some things, he will be sorely missed. 

Here he is happily oiling the swings which have been swinging non-stop since they were installed about 2 months ago.

If you need a good read, I just finished "The End of the Spear" by Steve Saint, it was an incredible book and I recommend it! Here is an excerpt from an interview that Steve did with his aunt, Rachel Saint who learned the language and culture of the Waorani Indians that she might share the good news of Christ with them. These are the same people who less than three years earlier had speared and killed her own brother and four other missionaries who made contact with them. She lived among the tribe for more than twenty years and translated the Bible into their language and then taught them to read so they could learn on their own. This interview was shortly before she passed away. "Isn't it something, that The Lord Jesus would have used someone like me to do His work in this special place? I was too old by the time I could apply for missionary service. I couldn't help the Waodani much medically, I was not a Bible scholar, and if was never really a superior translator."... "Well Aunt Rachel, why do you think God gave you this assignment? What do you think He saw in you that He could use?" Her eyes brightened, and this eighty-two year-old hero of mine responded with a formula for living. "Well Stevie boy, I loved The Lord Jesus with all my heart, and I trusted Him completely, and I guess I just learned to persevere in whatever He gave me to do."

I pray that this is true of me--and all of us. May we follow Jesus, May we do good and may we persevere in whatever He gives us to do.

Malaria

So, I figured I would get malaria sometime while I was in Mozambique, I had hoped I would be a good way into the year before that happened, it was 3 1/2 weeks exactly.
Thursday morning we walked to the center for food distribution and I was freezing! I was wearing warm leggings under my skirt as well as long sleeves and a jacket. I was still cold so I was standing in the sun which still wasn't warming me up. After food distribution Hannah and I sat in the sun outside of our house and then my head started hurting. I knew what my diagnosis was about to be. At lunchtime the food made me feel nauseous and I told Brenda that I had a headache, she touched me and said I had a fever. She immediately told me to sit down and to drink some mango juice. That's a treat because we don't have sweets that often except a little bit of canned fruit salad for dessert. She gave me my first dose of medicine and Hannah came to get me settled in. She was so kind and thought of everything that I could possibly need: cold water to soak my feet in, cold compresses, a comfortable chair, books, games, etc. she would leave to help Brenda with stuff but came very often to make me coolaid or tea and to update me on all of the news and adventures of the day.
I don't have migraines so I don't know what they feel like, but people say that a malaria headache is like a migraine. You also have body aches and a fever. Some strains of it will also cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea--I did not have that one, thankfully! The best cure is to rest, and to eat and drink lots of sweets. They are no treat anymore! I don't want anything with sugar in it for a long time!
My wonderful housemate Hannah was the drink enforcer because you just get tired of drinking all the time! Obviously it means you have to use the facilities more often which is complicated mosquito nets that trap you in bed, no plumbing and flashlights. Not the end of the world though--everything that we face could be worse. That can pretty much be said by anyone anywhere.
She also woke up two-three times during the night. Once to give me medicine(and make me drink something) and then again to remind me to drink something. And in the evenings she would keep me company and we would chat or play family feud. But I was pretty boring for those three days.
This morning, Sunday, I woke up feeling great. The sun didn't make my head hurt, I wasn't so lightheaded when I stood up for more than a few minutes and my fever was gone. So happy!
I am a little weak still but should be completely back to normal in a few days after my red blood cells replenish. I wasn't allowed to go to church which I was sooo sad about because it's "papa Eric's" last Sunday here. I could hear singing from my room but it's not even close to the same. Hannah told me all about it when she got back and how they had sung some special songs for him. So sweet. He was really happy about to when I asked him at lunch. Right after church Nelson stopped by and said hi and asked how I was and he picked up a bike. A few minutes later Fred came over(sooo many visitors!), he came in and said he wanted to pray for me. He and Hannah put their hands on me and he  prayed for me(in Portuguese) to recover quickly. It was the sweetest thing and made me feel extra loved and welcomed here.

Here is my buddy for the day. I was ordered to take it easy but allowed to attend preschool. This little guy seemed a little sad and when I walked up to him he grabbed my hand and wanted held. I happily picked him up. He wrapped his legs around me, laid his head down and fell asleep. He felt warm so I told Brenda and turns out, he has malaria too. We gave him some medicine and cookies so he was happy.

17 June--week three

Yesterday we went to church in Ravuma(5k from here). I am so impressed by these kids. There were around 100 kids in the Sunday school class, around 15 of those were girls and another 15 were small children or babies on the backs of those girls. Some of them are probably not older than 8. When I was that age I'm sure my mom wouldn't have trusted me with a baby--and it's a good thing! After church we walked outside and the kids swarm to us and just look at us. White people are really rare around here. They talk amongst themselves and then when the teenagers get brave, they step up,quickly, brush their hand on my hair and then step quickly back. They love to teach us clapping games. Our communication is limited here more so than in Balama because most of then only speak Makua. They haven't gone to school (or they don't go for long) and that is where they learn Portuguese, so it's a struggle. But a smile and a high five surpass language limitations.
We came back to Balama and went to church there. It's more energetic and the kids are mostly the same ones we see all week so they flock to us. We hear "Hannuh, Keitee" as we walk up and they run to grab a hand. We sat in the back because their service had already started, and we are a distraction. They were intrigued by my bible and then even more so when they found my family picture inside of it. I am sure they were thinking 'that is a lot of white people!' But I put it away until after church or every child in the building would be sitting on me trying to see in about thirty seconds. We sang a few songs and then the kids dancing choirs started. There are about twenty kids in each choir and they line up in two rows at the back of the aisle, they dance and sing their way to the front and the complete a few more songs before dancing and singing their way back to the back. Then a few kids will get out of the line and a few more will jump in and they do it again. Bertino, the children's pastor grabbed Hannah's hand and dragged her in. Even though I was sitting all the way against the wall I knew he wouldn't let me out of it. Haha, not a chance. But even though I'm not a good dancer they brought me in and it was super-fun! Who knew that our just dance game on the wii at home had helped prepare me for Africa. All I had to do was watch Bertino's feet and do what he did. It doesn't matter that it didn't look quite as graceful, everyone was having a blast and singing to God. That's what He wants from us.
This morning Fred went with Hannah and I to visit the homes. I loved it! We visited five homes and spoke with the mothers in those homes. One mother, Ernestina, invited us to come visit anytime and said she would help us with Portuguese. Another mother, Balbina showed us her home. The girls were hanging around getting ready for school and we said hi and chatted for a few minutes. Filomena is around 8 and she was eating breakfast. Balbina motioned that the fresh, full bowl across the table was for us to try, she handed a spoon and Hannah and I both tasted it. We decided that it was delicious! It was like the consistency of grits but made out of farinha(corn flour), sugar and water. It's what they all eat for breakfast. As we walked between the houses, Fred introduced us to people along the way, one of the guards' wife, the case worker's daughter, the preschool teacher's daughter, etc.  Fred was greeting everyone, sending the kids to school (since they were already late), and teaching us some new words along the way. I loved being out among the people, on their turf and getting a better glimpse into their lives and making connections: who belongs to who. What a privilege to get to experience this.

June 7 Update + Video!

Today marks two weeks since I left home. In some ways it feels like it's been way longer, I guess it's just funny how life goes on there even if you are not there. The time here is flying by. Hannah arrived a few days after me and I'm so happy to have her here. 

We processed a whole bunch of corn this week. We are only a little bit tired, but I'm sure the incredibly strong Mozambicans are reallyyyyy tired. They carry sacks of corn (weighing around 140 lbs) on their heads! With around 400-500 sacks coming in a day and moving them to the chute and then into the warehouse to stack them, that is a LOT of lifting and carrying. I'm pretty positive that any body builder wouldn't last a day here doing what these men do. And we are glad we just have to switch the empty sacks in when they pull out the full ones. But you will be impressed to know that we moved 13  45 lb sacks of rice this week so maybe by July corn buying we could help the guys out. Our favorite part is when they sing while they are sacking. Hannah says it's like the Lion King but way better.

The guys make stairs out of the sacks and then climb them to stack the corn to the rafters.

We have been so busy but really enjoying the simplicity of life here. When we have free time, instead of watching tv or wasting time in some other way, we walk down to the center and there are always some awesome kids waiting for us. They love to call our names and go over Portuguese words with us in exchange for English ones. We started out drawing pictures in the sand but realized that we run out of things to draw really quick and it's not only because my artistic skills are lacking! They live so simply and don't have all the resources we have so many of the things that I would draw, they simply don't know what it is. As I had girls twirling around me, holding to each of my hands and then other girls jumping in when they got too dizzy and fell down so that they could spin too, and then six or seven boys straight in front of me showing off their head stands, cartwheels and walking on their hands, my heart couldn't help but be filled with gratitude that I get to love these kids and they love us. And all we had to do was walk up,  I don't think that there is any other human love as easily earned. And I hope that they will come to know the greatest love ever, a love that will not fail them because of Jesus. 
You all have persevered to the end, so here is a video treat! Last Saturday was a party for children's day. It is widely celebrated here as the birthday for all children since they don't usually know what their actual birthdate is. The man in blue is the guard at the center and is very sweet. The little girl is named Monica, she is three and adored by all. 

First day in Moz

From Kate: (5/28/14)

Today I again woke up at 4:45 to be ready at 5. It starts getting light around then. We went down to the warehouse to bag up 38 bags of beans. I was the 'sacker' and would put the bag under the chute after the guys pulled the other one away while the beans were still coming. It was stressful at first but I think I got the hang of it. I guess the corn comes out of the chute slower so it will be easier. The guys carry the bags on top of their heads and I am sure the bags weigh more than 100 lbs. next week we will bring in around 300 tons of corn--we will do around 200 sacks each day.
We had the normal breakfast of bread and tea. Then Brenda said I could go to the preschool class so I walked there, it's a short walk. As I got close to the center a little boy, who was around 8 years old, ran up to me, grabbed my hand and walked me in. He was proud to show me to his friends. They all gathered around and wanted to talk, mostly all I could get were names, most of which I already forgot. 
Then I saw the preschool kids sitting on the sidewalk eating their cookies. I greeted them with a "salama" which is the Makua greeting, they shyly smiled. I sat with them and asked their names and then we counted to 39-I couldn't remember 40 so we quit. I went to their class with them and we learned our colors. They have to know Portuguese by the first grade so that's what they learn in preschool. They get a little devotional at the end also.
After that a lady named Madalena called me, "mama!" And then I gathered that she wanted me to walk her home. She has very little vision so she needs a guide. She held my hand and then as we were walking back she proudly showed me her field that she plants crops in. I think she wants me help her cultivate it but I'm not really sure. 
We ate our normal lunch of beans and rice. I hope I continue to like that meal because I think that's what we get. After lunch I made up Hannah's bed, she will arrive any minute and I'm excited to have a house-mate. 
Then we went to meet the town administrator, the mayor and the police--all visitors in rural communities have to check in with these people-it's the law. The policeman said I was welcome to Balama and to eat a lot of peanuts-they grow a lot of those here and I guess they are proud of their peanuts. Then we stopped at the hospital to see Nilza--the case worker for Orphans Unlimited. She has malaria and has to be on an iv. We brought her drinks and then since a mother is supposed to be with her I offered to be it. Since she is 24 it's not realistic but oh well. She told me about the AWANA program that she organizes. She asked if I was coming, It is on Friday and I just can't wait! We prayed for her before I was switched out for a real mother and we hope she feels better real soon!
Thank you all for your prayers. I'll continue to update you all.

Katie

Arrival in Mozambique.

From Katie (5/27/14).

Hello all,
I am on the other side of the world. In Mozambique. Can you believe it? I still can't. In some ways it looked like Bolivia--familiarity--for the first shirt bit of the drive. However the mud huts with grass thatched roofs, the people and the noises all remind me that this is indeed very unfamiliar. I am able to understand some Portuguese but will need to work pretty diligently to make any sense when I speak. 
I have never had someone waiting for me at the airport with my name on a sign. I arrived in South Africa exhausted and beginning to feel nervous about this last leg of the trip, a woman named Elzabe was there with a beautiful smile and a sign with my name on it. She took me to get coffee and loved me. I can't tell you how wonderful it was to have a friend I had never met care for me and bless me like that. God loves me just that much to show himself in the little details. There was also the trip through customs in South Africa and then Mozambique with not so much as a question or look at my baggage claim receipts. And the window seat I prayed for so I could sleep.
Eric Dry (along with two Mozambican men--Monsiour and Mario) fetched me from the airport and we made the three and a half hour drive back to Balama. En route we passed a smashed minibus with all the windows broken out of it, Eric said that the minibus had crashed that morning and ten people were killed. When we arrived I met Brenda and George(he will be volunteering here for three more weeks). It was Brenda's birthday and she had even cooked goat goulash, home fries and salad. We talked for a bit but it was late so them we all went to bed. Bedtime around here is 8 or so and everyone gets up at 5 or earlier. I am staying in he house where teams usually stay I am the only one here as of now but Hannah will arrive tomorrow. The houses all have cement floors, brick walls and tin roofs with no insulation- I imagine that will be hot in the summer and they said it is loud in the rainy season with the torrential downpours. 
Today Nilza took me with her to inspect the homes. There are 26 homes in the program with orphan children cared for by their own grandmothers and then three homes of orphan children with Mozambican houseparents. She wasn't feeling too well though and later went to the hospital where they started treating her for malaria. She is only 24 and came here three years ago to run the child development--probably the equivalent of a caseworker.
I am grateful to be here and hoping to fit right into things here very soon. Please continue to pray for the transition.

Much love!

Katie

Where is that?

You wouldn't be the only one who asked... 

Mozambique is in Southeast Africa. North of South Africa. South of Tanzania. And across some water from Madagascar.

In case you all wondered what I am getting myself into, I'll give you some basic information about Mozambique:

Moçambique was a Portuguese colony but gained independence in 1975. 

They speak Portuguese--exciting for me since I speak a decent amount of Spanish which will make picking up Portuguese a little quicker and easier. They also speak Makua and I'm sure I will have a bunch of children willing to teach me some.

Climate is tropical to subtropical. Think 90-100 for a good portion of the year. But without A/C. Winter will be in the 70s and around 50 at night. All you Texans can somewhat relate but I'm sure you will all appreciate the luxury of A/C a little more when you think of us!

Main issues faced by the people include waterborne diseases (more frequent during drought and dry seasons)--these are preventable and unfortunately can kill in 3 days or less; malaria; drought which leads to crop loss which leads to malnutrition and starvation; AIDS virus is prevalent--Mozambique is #5 in the world with people living with AIDS although population-wise they are #51.The maternal mortality rate in Mozambique is 490/1000, In the United States 21/1000. In the Mozambique, the infant mortality rate is 72.42/1000, In the United States, 6.17/1000. 

Feel free to check these facts out and more at The World Factbook.

I wanted to give you a point of reference. We are incredibly blessed. It is only by the grace of God that we live in the US and we don't have to worry near as much about these realities for our families and friends. 

I also tell you this so that you know how to pray for us. 

 

And here is an idea of what I get to be a part of: