Wednesday, May 28, 2014

After Five Years

I know I've posted this picture before, but it's one of my favorites from Malawi
Five years ago I was in Malawi. It was the first time I’d crossed the Ocean, first time I’d been on African soil, first time I’d been away from my family for two months, first time I traveled internationally (solo at that). My two month internship was full of firsts. Take for example the day we left by dawn for a distant village some three hours out in the bush; we returned after dark, racing through the bush with a mama in labor in the back seat. Her son was born just as we pulled into the hospital entrance.

In many ways, the two months I spent in Malawi five years ago gave me excellent background and prep for moving here to Zambia. My time in Malawi is also part of the seeds for bigger life dreams… like one day working in a least-reached/frontier area.

As a kickback, I pulled a few snapshots from my time in Malawi, as well as portions of an essay I wrote after my first ever village stay, at my language helper’s house in early June 2009.

eating lunch
(blue car pictured in the background)
“When I first began soaking in my surroundings, I especially noted the old blue, tireless car that rested in the courtyard behind Asiyatu’s house. I wondered the story behind it, but never asked. By request, I took posed pictures of Asiyatu’s family and the car.”

“Beyond the brain-ups required for a stay in the village were the cultural learning experiences. My host family was kind and gracious, and patiently tried to teach me everything from the ChiYawo word for “delicious” (which I fail to remember at the moment), to how to pound maize, to how to scrub blackened pots. In exchange, I attempted to explain what a snowman is and how to build one, what a bailer is, why you need a tractor on the farm, how far the trip is from Malawi to America, and why I’m not married. Over the course of time, we discussed many topics and compared many things between Malawi and America. Last night, as we sat on a grass mat gazing at the sky, Asiyatu asked, ‘Do you have the moon in America?’”

hungry?!?
This was my first ever ugali/nshima (call it whatever you will) meal on the continent.
I was definitely not used to the idea of wadding up food in my hand before stuffing it into my mouth!

“Joyfully, as a friend to a friend, Asiyatu shared parts of her life with me. We cooked meals, ate together, toured the village, visited friends, chatted, bought food at the market, exchanged sweet treats from our respective countries, and visited the village chiefs according to proper protocol.”

(oh my... i look so young...)


“It takes humility and joy to join villagers in their environment. In the morning, when we walked to the river to draw water, everyone laughed, because unlike my friends who carried large pails (4 or 5 gallons each) on their heads, I hauled a small 2 gallon pail at my side. When Asiyatu invited me to pound maize flour at the neighbor’s, I gave the pounding stick a huge thwack and it landed on the side of the mortar, spilling the precious maize in the dirt. The onlookers laughed. After watching a round of net ball and still not understanding the strategy of the game, I joined in a round and ran around like a confused person. My friends laughed and said, ‘It’s okay.’ ” 



“I can’t carry water on my head, and I get tired before I get the ground nuts pounded into the sought-after fine powder; I am clueless about net ball rules; when I tried to pound maize, I spilled it in the sand, but I have friends in Malawi, Africa.”

looking out over the Shire River

I’m very excited about the opportunity I have to once again visit Malawi this July—after five years.



yep. that's for real.
Lake Malawi

what might you need today?



Sunday, May 25, 2014

Bhubesi Pride II

wouldn't you like to be sponsored by Land Rover?!
how cool is that!

You may remember Bhubesi Pride's Nahumba visit last year while passing through Zambia on their 2013 tour. Once again, Nahumba was a hub of commotion two weeks ago with Bhubesi events at area schools.

Shelter


You are my shelter, You are my hideaway,
You are my covering, You keep me safe.
You are my harbor, you are my quiet place,
You are my refuge, and my strength;
You are my shelter.

~Paul Marino~

Saturday, May 24, 2014

Charades in Zim

the final round

Q: what happens when you have a dozen guys and gals who get together on a whim for Saturday evening?

A: a nourishing meal of spaghetti bolognaise, two rounds of coffee and tea, and a lively game of charades.



If you want to play your own game of multi-level charades here’s how:

You’ll need 1) a group of friends, 2) three small papers for each person, 3) a bowl, 4) a timer (30 seconds), 5) a board/sofa/table to crouch behind for the final round

1) have each person write down  three famous people/places/events on three separate scraps of paper

2) collect all papers in a bowl

3) count off into two teams (1,2,1,2,1,2…) [teams will remain intermingled, but all participants need to know which team they’re on]

4) one of the team members is elected to start round one by pulling a paper from the bowl. The timer is started. The leading teamie must describe the word on the paper (without using that word, of course) to his teammates. As soon as one of the teamies calls out the correct word, the leading teamie grabs another paper and starts describing it. This continues until “time” is called (30 seconds).

5) the bowl is passed to the left, and the opposing team’s leading teamie repeats the process listed in Step 4

6) the plays continue until all the papers have been pulled and won from the bowl. The teams tally points and proceed to round two, putting all the papers back into the bowl.

7) for round two, the leading teamie must act out the word on the paper (without saying anything). The bowl continues around the room as before. When all the papers are won, the teams again tally their scores.

8) by this time, everyone should be quite familiar with the words on the papers. For the third round, the leading teamie is only allowed to speak ONE word as the clue to his team to get them to say the word on each scrap of paper. Score is tallied as with the previous rounds.

9) the final round is fingers only! The leading teamie goes behind a sofa, board, or other large item and must communicate the word on each scrap of paper by using only his hands. Plays continue around the room as before.


10) when all the papers are won after round #4, total game points can be calculated.

Friday, May 23, 2014

These are a few of my favorite things...

…organized cupboards stocked with hot-drink supplies



I love kitchens with countless cupboards (even if painting is a massive chore!) and enough space to devote multiple shelves to all things coffee and tea related. I recently reorganized our hot drink cupboard and am delighted with the results. The items we most frequently use are now more accessible. 
Ahh the joys of life ;)



PS- Thank you, thank you, thank you to the man many years ago who built such incredible cupboards in this Nahumba house. You are a hero.

Thursday, May 22, 2014

Sometimes we do dinner for 14

our makeshift buffet line

Sara and I served an evening meal for fourteen the other day.
It's a blessing to work together hosting others.

Our menu included mom's meatloaf, cubed butternut squash, homemade bread, tomato cucumber salad, and bread pudding drizzled with custard for dessert.




haha... note the array of candles collected and ready in case of Zesco outage ;)

ps- sorry for the poor picture quality.

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Buckets


Sara and I hauled more than a few buckets of water the other day when the borehole pump broke and we had a guesthouse full of visitors.

Thankfully our water problem was resolved within two days.

Monday, May 19, 2014

flat on the bottom


Sometimes when life happens, you're left out in the bush with a very, very,
very flat tyre.


Not to worry, though.
We are testimony that the Lord provides in the Zambian bush just as he provided for Abraham up on the mountain. No sooner had we pulled out our tools and started to change our flat than three helpful gentlemen appeared in a small pick-up (yep. right out there in the bush). Twenty-five minutes later, we were on our way home ;).



PS- Brian: "Tyre gone flat? bumpity whoosh?" Such a good book... 
That's what I thought of first when I surveyed the situation! haha...

First

we did it!

Not only was Saturday the first ever MRT/PTR [Macha ResearchTrust, Push The Rock] Macha 5K event, it was also my first time to run a 5K!


You may be a runner, or you may be a very athletic person, or you may find trotting long distances nothing notable (in which case you likely find 5km a short distance)... 
For me, running a 5K meant hours of energy, effort, and sweat in preparation. 

so you can get a feel for Macha scenery

Eastern Uni women's soccer team (from PA)

waiting for prizes
There were perhaps 50 participants, and I was the last of the runners to complete the course (there were a few walkers behind me). But I wasn't running to be fast or first. 
I met both of my personal goals: 1) finish the race. 2) run the entire course.


It was a privilege to participate in Macha’s first annual run day (Sara and I were the lone Choma participants). 
Thanks to Eastern University women's soccer team, MRT, and PTR for a great community event!

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Friday, May 16, 2014

Food Lover's. Oh Yeah.

Bulawayo
I’ve mentioned my favorite store in Lusaka more than once on this blog. Part of our Zim holiday included visiting not one but TWO more Food Lover’s Markets (one in Bulawayo, one in Harare). Food Lover’s is owned by the South African Fruit and Veg City.

Taking pictures in stores is generally off-limits here (maybe in the States too—I’ve never tried!), but Sara snapped a few shots before the security fellow came and told her not to take pictures. I hope I don’t get in trouble for introducing you to a glimpse of why I love Food Lover’s :)

ooo.la.la.


Fun Fact about Zimbabwe:

You may notice prices in the above photos are listed in US Dollars. That’s because Zimbabwe uses USD as one of its main currencies (South African Rand is also popular). Zimbabwe has had some rough economic times over the past 20 years. The Zimbabwe Dollar lost value entirely (people had to use suitcases and wheelbarrows to tote around the bills!), so the government decided to adopt certain foreign currencies as official Zimbabwean tender.

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Call us crazy or Wish you were here (those are your two options)

Sara and I invited a few friends over for a girlie day last week.


Getting ready was a big job… approximately 5 hours of cooking (both of us) along with a generous chunk of time devoted to decorating tables and transforming our sitting room into a spa.

Sara prepping brownie bites



I started the day baking pie crust... the first time I've made pie crust in years!

choosing the dishes :)


thankfully Zesco (electricity) stayed on all morning!


yes. the kitchen was a mess!

would you care for a little snack?

Sara arranged the tea cups on the piano

choices!

Nahumba Spa
Sorry you didn’t get to sample our high tea selection.
(Originally, we drafted a menu of ten sweet and savory treats, but… in the end we were pinched for time, so we had to scratch the lemon scones, making our final count just nine different items ;)
  1. Mini brownie sandwiches filled with chocolate macadamia nut paste and topped with dream whip (this was a smashing success)
  2. Mini custard tarts garnished with green apple slices and drizzled with caramel
  3. Eggplant, red pepper, and feta quiche (this was one of my faves)
  4. Bacon and local dairy cheese quiche
  5. Yogurt cheese sandwiches garnished with thinly sliced cucumber and sprinkled with dill
  6. Egg salad sandwiches
  7. Chocolate dipped and drizzled miniature peanut butter cookies
  8. Espresso chocolate chip mini muffins
  9. Mini pan pizzas topped with avocado, diced tomato, and drizzled with yogurt garlic dressing


According to my calculations we used 15 eggs for our nine items! (please, don’t turn us in to the American Heart Association)


brownie bites
l-r behind: espresso muffins, egg salad sandwiches, custard apple tarts







mix and match plates

After pedis and manis, and chatting over tea, we rearranged the sitting room furniture once again for a big screen showing of Pride and Prejudice on our huge empty wall! (thanks to our neighbors for the use of their mini projector)

happy toes :)


What a fun day.