4kgs

Four kilos of perfect tomatoes from Conrad's garden.

Ready to start the process...

Every time I make spaghetti sauce, the house smells like home :)

Tropicals

Tropicals

One day a girl moved to Africa. She rediscovered what she always knew—sand and dirt between her feet and footwear left her feeling batty. She always had to stop along the path to shake sand out of her sandals.

She borrowed her friend’s flip-flops and then decided to shop for a pair of her own. One of her African friends taught her that flip-flops are called “Tropicals” in Zambia.

One day when the girl and her friend were walking by Pep in town, she saw cute tropicals in the window. The girls went in and she bought a pair of tropicals.

I was quite amused by the sales tag, "LADIES BASIC SANDALS (2)"
How many would you think there would be??

Now the girl doesn't have to borrow her friend’s tropicals, because she has her own. She can wear the tropicals out in the sand and doesn't go buggy about the little bits of dirt in her tropicals, because they are cheap, so it is okay for them to be dirty.

It is also interesting to note that in the States, I always wear a 7.5 or 8 shoe/sandal...
but here, I bought size 6 tropicals, and they're none too snug!

Also, when the girl thinks about tropicals, she thinks of her friend in the Dominican Republic, because she knows that friend would love to call flip-flops “Tropicals” too!

PS- This is a true story.

Ham Show

Compliments of Frey :)

A 1-800-Dial-A-Brother Moment at Nahumba

This post is for my brothers :)

Adventures happen in real life. It was Sunday morning, and Heather and I were standing in the kitchen, dressed and ready for the morning service in half an hour.

We had just finished taking care of some business with the deacon when our farm manager, Ba Mudenda came to the door, “We are asking if you can use your vehicle to come pull a dead animal from the corral for us?”

Heather met me in the hall and held out the keys. “This is all yours. You’re the one from the farm!” We laughed some nervous giggles and exchanged our this-is-bound-to-be-interesting looks as we hopped in the Isuzu and headed for the corral just behind the garage.

Yes, I grew up on a farm, but no, I’d never hauled a few hundred kilo dead cow. It was one of those 1-800-Dial-A-Brother moments in my life… “Hi, it’s Julie. So, um, I need to pull a dead cow out of approximately twelve inch deep muck. It’s sort of sunk in, as it’s been there a while. My truck is only two-wheel drive, but it’s a manual. My concern is how to have enough pulling power once the rope is tight and the engine starts lugging. When do I give the throttle? I’m thinking if I don’t do it right, I’ll kill the engine… and the cow won’t budge. Also, they want me to turn and pull. I’m thinking I just need to pull straight or the truck won’t keep up…”

But, I couldn't call my brother. This one was on me.

We rolled up and I reversed toward the coral. Ba Mudenda and a few other guys started tying the rope to the dead animal while the remaining herd meandered around. The cow looked like a huge rock next to a small tree in the mucky coral. I was strategizing which direction to pull and how I’d maneuver the vehicle. Heather and I were both wishing we had grabbed a camera. A small crowd was gathering to watch the excitement.

Let me just tell you that navigating a vehicle under instructions from those who have never driven a vehicle can be interesting…

"Where do you want me to go?"

"Oh, just straight. Then you can turn. You can just pull it out and then we’ll dig a ditch for it…"

OK. Super clear. Of course.

Pull #1 went like this:

Julie puts Isuzu in 1^st gear and takes off (not wanting to lug the engine to the point of stalling)… Julie was way too ambitious and the rope quickly snapped. Whoops.

Somewhere around pull #3 I got the cow out of the muck. “Now,” said Ba Mudenda, “just pull it out a bit and we will take care of it.”

Have I ever mentioned that Tonga directions can be interesting, because they are so ambiguous-?

I revved the engine and started pulling that cow. I pulled and pulled and pulled. Eventually the guys said I could stop, so I did—just before a small rise in the path (note: this was not a road). Soon after I stopped, they wanted me to pull again. It’s one thing to pull a dead cow once the vehicle is moving; it’s another thing to start pulling a dead cow when you’re on a slight incline, off-road, with a two-wheel drive vehicle.

I put the Isuzu in first gear. The engine coughed, the vehicle slid sideways, and the wheels spun. The cow didn't move. Not a bit.

I tried again. I repositioned. I tried again.

I surveyed the area, asked for clarity on where I was to pull this hunk of animal, put the diff lock on, and tried pulling again. Meanwhile, the fellows re-adjusted the rope, tying it to the cow’s legs instead of around its neck.

As I let the clutch out, the engine pulled, I gave it throttle, and we took off, hauling that cow out in the middle of a field of 6 foot tall grass.

We left him there with the guys, and drove the vehicle back to the yard. Then, Heather and I grabbed our Bibles and walked to church. We weren't even late!

During lunch, I watched one of the fellows pushing the cow head by in a wheel barrow, and in the afternoon, a small truck came from town and left looking squatty and full.

I was just thinking… is there an evening this week that would work for you to come for dinner? Maybe something American—like hamburgers?! You know, that’s one of the great parts of life on a farm, all the fresh, natural, home-grown food…

*sorry- no picture. I wanted to at least post something after several days of silence due to our busy programme and lack of internet.*

Just Like Amelia Bedelia, well maybe...

A little bit of this, a little bit of that...

Makes something amazing!

Lettuce from the garden

Locally raised chicken from a friend

An imported apple (from S. Africa I assume)

Cashews from a Christmas package from friends

Dried cranberries from my suitcase

maintenance

One of our recently repaired exterior lights :)

Friend Hunt

I knew moving thousands of miles (or kilometres as the case may be) from the place I've lived for over twenty years would mean leaving my family and walking into something essentially unknown. When I arrived in Zambia, I soon realized that not a single person in my African life had ever met a single person from my Michigan life—not family, not friends, not coworkers. I felt alone. Not one of my Zambian contacts had ever even visited my hometown, home church, or family. Likewise, my parents, siblings, and friends back in Michigan had never even met the people with whom I now interacted daily.

hosting another "get to know you" meal

In all the preparation for moving to Zambia, I braced myself for leaving everyone I knew. I realized that building new relationships would take a lot of work, but I forgot just how challenging it can be to make new friends. Part of me wishes friendships could come in pre-fab packages, but it has been a blessing to begin building relationships here in Zambia. I remind myself to recognize and praise God for the beginning stages of relationships and trust.

In building new friendships far from home, I identify with something a friend who grew up continents away from extended family and childhood friends shared with me: You just have to realize that no matter where you are in the world, you will always be separated from people you deeply love.

That’s one reason to look forward to heaven. Nothing there is going to separate us from being together with ALL the amazing people who have ever lived. There we’ll be— praising Jesus forever with every other wonderful person who ever lived (anywhere, at any time, speaking any language) for the King. Won’t that be glorious?

Till then, I’m rejoicing in the little things in life, like the fun evening we had recently with Lukondo, another new Zambian friend.

not a great picture... really great food!

PS- I know I’m partial, but this meal was ridiculously delicious… BBQ chicken pizza, White Pizza (garlic, olive oil, cheese, fresh tomatoes), bread sticks, and tossed salad.

Field Trip Fascinations

My Dear family,

I wish you could have been there Thursday. We arrived in Macha mid-morning and jumped out of the red Isuzu. “Jump” and “red” are key words in that sentence. If you didn't jump out, you’d be covered in red mud from the outside of the vehicle. As far as “red,” well, it was a white truck when we left Choma.

getting started with Dr. Thuma

Anyway. It was like being on a birthday trip without you, so I missed you. I missed learning all this fascinating information about malaria and aids research together, and it’ll never be half as good if I just tell you about it.

I missed Dad, because- while we weren't in a chemical plant- there were all sorts of high tech scientific machines, and though the scientists were working with more biological stuff than what’s done in PE, I’m still sure you would have like to see how they use hoods (in the TB room) and freezers and microscopes and liquid nitrogen and all the other equipment. Plus, I thought you’d like to hear about their poly-finish coating on the concrete floor of one of the special lab rooms…  

I took this picture for you, Dad. It's in their freezer room. There were probably about
10 freezers behind me on the other side of the room.

I missed asking questions together. Remember the time we stood in the truck bay of Jiffy Mix and asked the tour guide questions for a half-an-hour after our tour was over?

Within the past 10 years, the research and development at Macha (born out of the hospital work) has been unbelievable. They went from 30 or 40% of ALL people in the surrounding 5 to 10 kilometers being carriers of malaria (and thus, many deaths, especially of children, each year… sorry, I don’t have all the stats right here), to just one or two deaths each year from malaria, and less than 5% (or was that less than 1%... oh dear, now I’m forgetting…) of people being malaria carriers (one can be a carrier without being ill).

mosquitoes from the wild- kept for observation and study- all the way up to the 62nd generation so far...

He's the mosquito man! This room was hot (notice the heater on the floor). The lights
are also set to be on for 12 hours and off for 12 hours, gradually changing to replicate
a natural environment as much as possible.

I thought of Dr. Surfield, too… How not? With all those stats and charts and P-factors and data and numbers… it was better than “wing-bang-doodly.” What made it better than ordinary wing-bang-doodly is that this research has saved so many lives!

One of the coolest parts of field trips and tours is learning more about another world. I really have no interest in studying science and figuring out how to prevent people from dying of malaria, but I am fascinated that there are people who are passionate about this type of research. And I’m excited to see those passionate people making a difference in their world.

Imagine the challenge of keeping specialized scientific equipment operating in a rural area...

I have also realized that one of the coolest parts of field trips and tours is doing them together with you, my family. I love learning new things together. That’s why I missed you Thursday.

The research lab building. Those are mosquitoes and malaria parasites painted around the building.

Of course, I've now added a new birthday trip request: Macha Research Trust.

Don’t forget the British Museum is still on the list too.

Love you,

Julie

Yesterday

It only seemed proper to serve heart-shaped pancakes on Valentine’s Day to guests who have spent 50 years of their life together serving in Africa.

(Our regional administrator and wife were visiting from Zimbabwe for the week.)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Heather says I love Valentine's Day more than anyone she's ever met before.

I must admit, each year I spend weeks anticipating Valentine's Day. This year, I marked 14 February with pink hearts in my datebook; I noted "Valentine's Day!" at the top of my February calendar. I posted pictures of heart cookies (my sisters make the BEST!) on my office door. I brought red serviettes (paper napkins) all the way from the States with Valentine's Day in mind...

I love Valentine's Day!

Me and my smoochie sisters the year I spent Valentine's Day in the hospital

Last year, my little friend Lydia gave me the sweetest valentine. It's pinned to my office wall. "Wishes do come true Valentine!" it says above a picture of Snow White on a charming, white horse.

the cookie picture on my office door

It was probably about 15 years ago when Betsy and I made our valentine pact. "Why miss out on the fun of Valentine's Day?" we thought. So, we decided we were going to give each other valentine gifts each year. And we have. Some years it's been chocolate, some years a little trinket, or maybe just a special gift. Last year I gave her fun, stripy socks and candy. Three years ago it was a plastic cup with a heart (plus a chocolate bar!). This year, I had to plan well in advance to send my valentine sister a valentine. I didn't tell her I sent it, because I wasn't sure if it would reach her. It did!  On Saturday's mailbox check, I was delighted to find the valentine Betsy sent (a sweet card and a crocheted set of hanging hearts)! (I figured it was okay for me to open the envelope early, considering Betsy had opened hers early.)

Some years ago, my sisters and some of our girlfriends decided we were going to throw ourselves an annual Valentine's tea party! Our parties have always been scheduled just after Valentine's Day, so we can purchase our party goodies on clearance-- usually 70% off. At our parties, we have been known to do such things as enjoy a giant bowl of mocha punch, watch Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, take ridiculous pictures, wear silly dresses, and laugh and laugh and laugh....

tea, anyone?

Some friends have told us (and I believe them) we have more fun at our parties than most people who have valentines! (these parties are strictly for singles ONLY). But this year, the only girls left to have the annual Valentine's tea party are my sisters. I won't even be there to join them if they have the party... sigh.

tea party cohorts

One year, we had our party in the conference room at my hospital rehab facility-- and it was the first time I dressed in "people clothes" that year since the middle of January!

talk about a bunch of cool valentines...

Last year, Amy and I hosted our family for Red Dinner at the Cookie House. We served spaghetti, red jello, raspberry chocolate muffins, and pink cookies for dessert.

In Michigan, February is usually gray and gloomy and ugly and cold and depressing and... you get the picture. But Valentine's Day is bright and cheery and smiley and sweet and full of loveliness.

Hank
(also notice the amazing Valentine cookies my sisters made)

Five Reasons I Love Valentine's Day:

1. It's a fun, cheery holiday
2. It gives me an annual opportunity to tell people- the people closest to me in life- that I love and appreciate them
3. It gives me something to look forward to when winter gets blaah
4. I have so many happy memories of previous Valentine's Days
5. I love giant heart-shaped, pink frosted, sprinkled and decorated, home made sugar cookies! 

My lovely sisters. I love you!

Happy Valentine's Day, friends! I hope you have a wonderful day... and that you take time today to tell at least one  special person in your life that you LOVE them... and that you take the opportunity to eat at least ONE piece of chocolate (or one other sweet treat of your choice...). I'm pretty sure you won't regret either action ;).

P.S. Dear Valentine tea party friends- I miss you!

*all photos compliments of my sister Amy.*

Crazy orange, I know...

Perusing through recipes is a favorite pastime of mine, and muffin recipes receive premier viewing time. I have a “thing” for muffins—baking, eating, experimenting, sharing. Though I miss some of my favorite muffin standby ingredients (wheat bran, oat bran, flax meal, maple syrup, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, cranberries, walnuts, pecans… and mini chocolate chips!), I get the fun challenge of experimenting with what I do have available here in Zambia (papaya, mango, guava, bananas, oats, Zambian honey).

image thanks to Google

I could try to explain it (I really do have a good explanation), but you probably wouldn't understand the urge for carrot muffins that recently hit me. The unavailability of sour cream (used in Carrot Muffies, my classic carrot muffin favorite) proved a great excuse to search out another carrot muffin recipe.

I present to you: Zambian Carrot Honey Muffins*. Easy, nutritious, and tasty.

When I confessed my baking urge to Heather, she couldn't imagine anything delicious coming from the combination of “carrot” and “muffin,” so I’m pretty sure these guys are going to the freezer to be enjoyed again and again by this muffin-loving accountant (unless I give them all away before they make it behind that frigid door!). The recipe only makes twelve… so, who are we kidding, they won’t last long.

Thanks to my sister-in-law, I enjoyed a special cup of imported tea with a fresh carrot muffin Saturday night. Wonderful! The only thing better would have been sharing a muffin and cup of tea with you, and enjoying each other’s company. Next time, maybe?

*I only altered this linked recipe slightly: by the time I grated four carrots, I had a bit over 2 cups of shredded carrots, so I threw in the extra too. I used olive oil (less than ½ cup), and organic Zambian honey. Also, our wheat flour is "brown flour" (not the same as American whole wheat flour). Next time, I might try adding some grated apple and reducing the oil to 1/3 cup. These muffins would be great with pecans and/or raisins as well.

Mazoe

Riddle: What's sweet like Kool-Aid, has a yellowish Tang-ish color, comes in a two-litre bottle, is mixed with water, and is an ultra-popular drink in Zambia?

Mazoe (Ma-zoe-eh)

Orange Crush

I find it slightly amusing to read the instructions and the picture on the side of the bottle:
"3 Parts Water" (with a bracket around FOUR parts of the pictured cup!)
"1 Part Mazoe" (a bracket around a fifth part of the cup)

I also like the message on the opposite side of the bottle:
"CONTAINS NON-NUTRITIVE SWEETENERS"

In addition, the final ingredient is:
"SUNSET YELLOW"

Delicious, huh?

Workshop

200+ buns!

Heather and Chrissy led a weekend workshop in Sikalongo recently. It takes an afternoon of shopping to purchase all the workshop items... plus a pick-up bed to haul everything to the site.

stacks of supplies

loaded with biscuits, buns, milk, mealie meal, cabbages, etc...
off to pick up the chicken and beef Saturday morning

the stuff of life

View looking  toward Choma

Figured you might be interested in hearing about a typical day here at Nahumba… but part of what makes each day typical are the unpredictable knocks at the door and the interesting phone calls.

Last Friday I decided to keep a little record of some of the day’s events (sorry, I didn't take pictures):

6:30 (a.m.)- Call from a pastor regarding a last-minute booking for that night

6:37- Knock at the door, one of the church overseers (staying at the guesthouse) asking for keys for the mini-bus which he had arranged to borrow for the day

• While walking out to the garage with the reverend, I met up with Bright, our groundskeeper (he usually arrives about 6:45), so I gave him the keys and let him finish up helping the reverend with the mini-bus

7:00- Heather and I had Bright come inside to sprinkle rat poison in our attic (preventative maintenance)

7:30- Another knock at the door, this time the fellow asked if my dad was home (uh, yes… in bed sleeping, I believe). Guess he didn't think I was old enough to be in charge.

7:40- Knock- same fellow, asking this time to write a letter for me to email to a former missionary

• I set him up on the porch with a table, chair, paper, clipboard, pen, and tea.
• After a while, he knocked again to give me the letter and announce his departure

Our popular porch

8:00- Heather left for work

8:40- Phone call from a pastor (same as 6:30) confirming evening booking [he never did come...]

8:45- Knock, a teacher requesting three copies (which I made) as well as a connection to the States for someone to bring back a part for his broken camera (I made no guarantees)

8:50- Emma came in for work

10:10- Emma came to the office requesting to go to the clinic for her cough

10:20- Knock, Bright, ready for his morning tea/breakfast (each morning, I serve him two peanut butter and honey sandwiches, a piece of fruit, a drink, and sometimes a muffin, cookie, or cake)

• Emma stopped back in after her visit to the clinic

12:05- Knock, Bright, returning the keys after finishing for the day

12:30- Knock, same teacher as 8:45, this time with a student, asking me to make a copy of one of her report papers

1:10- Knock, Mwaka (one of Heather’s colleagues) asking for two 2 liter milk jugs (empty). 

• Heather was home for lunch, so she took care of that knock

13:45- Call from a pastor asking if I was available to meet

14:13- Knock, pastor who called. We discussed building committee items.

• I messaged the building committee chair with a question
• The chair later called me back with a response

15:34- Knock, a friend who is doing some maintenance work for us. 

• I brought him a drink of Mazoe and we walked around the exterior of the house and out to the garage, discussing the proposed work.
• Also stopped to talk with a fellow who rode up on his bicycle; he was looking for one of the Compassionate Ministries workers.

view of our house from near the church building

16:20- Skype call for work, cut short at 5 minutes when the internet kicked off

16:40- Visit with Stebbin (water and sanitation specialist for Compassionate Ministries) and Heather on the porch

• Discussed financial reporting items with Stebbin (for work)

17:15- Greet Conrad and Mwaka as they leave the office for the day

Our popular backyard (the only swingset around)

17:30- Walk with Heather to the neighbor’s to see if she’d like some extra strawberry plants from our garden

• Walk back together with our neighbor to pick up the strawberry plants from the garage
• Greet our pastor and a visitor who were waiting in our driveway. 
• Once the visitor (also a pastor) realized Heather and I stay here, he asked if I happen to have a BIC logo on my computer that I could put on a CD and give to a reverend staying at the guesthouse…
• Walk back to the neighbor’s with the strawberry plants

• One of the reverends stopped by in the evening to make arrangements for Saturday, ask me to make some copies for him (before 6:30 the next morning), and to pick up the CD with the BIC logo.

• Evidently, we missed out on a bit of excitement around 21 hours when a pastor drove out to see about accommodation but discovered our gate was locked. He wound up lodging elsewhere for the night and coming on business Saturday morning.

Another shot looking down toward Choma

It can also be noted that Wednesday night I stayed half-awake until 23 hours waiting for a guest to arrive (he never did). Thursday evening, I had just tucked my mosquito net around my mattress for the night when I received a call asking for two sets of towels and some soap at the guesthouse.

...And, Saturday morning started bright and early with making copies in the office and the reverend’s knock at the door around 6:15 to settle accounts and pick up the copies. Thus began another day at Nahumba…

Preschool Play Date

When’s the last time you had a preschool play date?  I mean a true, all-around, totally FUN afternoon with a three-year-old-friend. It had been way too long since my last preschool play date.

On Tuesday, Heather and I invited our friends Zili and Zipo over for the afternoon. Though there are 16 years between them, these sisters are all about each other :). 

We had an afternoon blast complete with coloring (markers and crayons), singing, building with duplos, swinging, and… eating groundnuts (peanuts) and American candies for tea.

for Amanda

Yes, the stack starts on the floor and that's a six-foot tall bookshelf.

Nahumba Lemons

it's time for some lemonade!

Number 133

the pocket-size Tonga songbook I carry to church each Sunday

Leta Maila

I don't expect to be fluent in Tonga after only a few months in Zambia, but at least I'll know how to sing number 133 in the BIC Tonga songbook. Next time you visit us at Nahumba BIC, if you're unable to tell using any other method, just know that once we start singing Leta Maila, you should have your offering ready.