Safari Time

We ended up leaving the village a day earlier than expected so that afternoon was a rush of trying to pull everything together. We had to pack ourselves and load the vehicle while trying to say goodbye to all the wonderful people we had met. We did get a chicken for E (and to answer your question Sharon, you catch a chicken in a man's yard, tie up its feet, and sit it next to you in the car on the way home, haha).
We drove to a town about 13 hours away and stayed in a missionary couple's house who was out of town for the weekend. They lived at the foot of the mountains and had a gorgeous view from their backyard! Their house was about 1 hour away from a National Park which we went to Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning. Each of us bought a 24 hour pass and we were allowed to take our vehicle through the park. We saw so many animals! Lions, giraffe, swalla, zebra, hippos, wildebeest, cape buffaloes, hyena, dik dik, elands, warthogs, elephants - it was incredible!
Now we are in the city and will spend the next two days here before our flight on Wednesday. I'm wearing a skirt E made me out of the local material and am ready to hit the streets and enjoy the day :)

Chicken Time

Nick and I are about to head off to buy a chicken! We've become good friends with a local believer, E. She has the funniest personality, the most joyful spirit, and an incredible story. We have really enjoyed our time spent with her and as a seamstress, she has made us several things (including a dress made out of local fabric which I am wearing now). We wanted to leave her something, but knew she would not accept our money...so we decided to buy her and her children a chicken :) She had two chickens but her neighbors stole one recently. (To remedy this, we painted her remaining chicken's beak and toenails with lime green nail polish to identify her, haha).

Can't believe we only have two days left in the village before we head back to the city for our flight. We are going a few days early in case we experience any car troubles on the road and so the family can pick up some supplies before heading back home. I love the people here and as we were out walking through town today with a child on each hand, greeting everyone we passed, I began to realize how much I will truly miss this place. Even without water and power (the town's final generator broke down a few days ago), we aren't missing the luxuries of America. (Well a shower would be nice...) The happiness of these people is contagious, but it breaks my heart to know only a few of them know the true joy found in Christ.

So Long Computer

So Nick's computer bit the dust...he's spent the last two days trying to repair it, but to no avail. So our updates may be few and far between for the next two weeks.

Yesterday we went to Z's house for after school English tutoring. Z is a prominent Muslim man in the community who knows some English. He holds class for about 60 kids every afternoon and invited Nick and I to come. When we got there, he asked for one of us to come forward. Nick graciously volunteered me, haha, and I thought I was simply going forward to be used as an example. When I got to the front of the 'room' (3 cement walls) Z handed me a piece of chalk and told me to "teach." I had nothing prepared, no idea of how much English the children knew, or where to start! We ended up discussing pronouns, the difference between this and that, greetings and questions, and vocabulary. My favorite part of the session was when we discussed animals. Once the children recognized the English for several animals, I would point to the word and they would make the animal noise - roaring for lion, baahing for sheep, and hissing for snakes. It was hilarious and Nick got a video of it which we'll hopefully post on facebook when we get back home.

We've really enjoyed our time here and can't believe it's coming to a close. We're truly getting a realistic picture of what IMB missionary life looks like and can envision us doing something very similar to this for a long time :)

Mango!

Everyday, children come and line up at the P's bamboo fence to play. They know the family does not come out to be with them until later afternoon, but they begin to line up earlier and earlier nonetheless. We've averaged around 65 kids per day and even had close to 100 at one point! The boys play soccer and the girls play games with singing and dancing. Some days we get out frisbees and it's always a hoot to watch them play. B is constantly giving medical care during this time as so many have cuts and worms as well as colds and fevers. Every child is just so beautiful and I'm truly going to miss their faces when we're gone. My name is very hard for the Tanzanians to say as they do not have the '-er' sound in their language. A few are able to choke out my name but most call me Embe, which means mango.

Hungry Hungry Hippos!

A month ago, the P's were detained by an angry mob a few villages away. They accused the family of some things and held them in their vehicle for much of the night. Since then, the village's officials have sought to make amends with the family. The Chairman of the village invited S back and he took Nick and I with him. We met with the Chairman, Asst. Chairman, and Exec. Coordinator. They called us their friends and welcomed us back anytime. This meeting also gave S an opportunity to talk to the leaders about a clean water project. As we were leaving, the Chairman invited us back to look at his land and some animals. He asked us to give him a week for his guards to go out and find a trail. We returned this past Wednesday and 6 men, including the Chairman, piled into the P's vehicle with us (it seats 5 but we managed to squeeze 10 people in!) We drove through the bush and were able to see 1 elephant, a couple herds of swalla, 1 herd of wildebeest, 2 warthogs, and a TON of hippos! It was really neat and a great opportunity with the P's to continue building their relationship with this community.

Goat Ribs...Yum!

We bought a goat a few days ago and he lived with us a few days before he became a meal...I am very happy I was out visiting when the boys decided to slaughter the poor thing! (I may have grown a little attached...) But we had ribs for lunch and some more meat with rice for dinner. It was pretty good! (I'm trying to get used to and experience this way of life) And I have gotten much better at killing bugs and not getting squirmy around geckos and other creatures who live in our house with us. (Although Nick did have a little screaming episode with a cockroach that was stuck to his leg last night, haha)
It is amazing how the influx of people to the house never stops. There is always someone who needs some medical help (B, the mom, is constantly treating wounds, fungus, scabies, etc), wants to sell something (they often buy fruit and chickens from people at their gate), wants to visit, or has a problem they need help with. The number one work of the P's seems to be building relationships so that they can have a friendship foundation to share the truth from in the future.
And the number of kids who daily show up to play is astonishing! Nick is putting his soccer skills to use and I am just trying to love on the little girls. They are all so precious and though they tire us out, I really enjoy our time with them. Some days we walk them home through the bush and have been able to meet a few of the moms and introduce ourselves to them. The generosity of the Tanzanians never ceases to shock me. I have yet to go to someone's house (or hut) and not receive a gift - whether it be a biscuit, a piece of sugar cane, a passion fruit, etc.

New Friends

We are really enjoying some of the new friendships we are making over here. K is a new believer who lives with the P family (whom we are staying with). He has the most fascinating story - orphan who found his way to the town we are in, lived on a man's property who hired him to guard it, once the property was rented he was kicked the the curb and the P's took him in. He has since become a believer and is now being discipled by S. He was baptized just a month ago! He has the kindest spirit and is a completely transformed man. He is around 19-20 and loves hanging around with the kids and the P's have taken him in as one of his own. He was scared of Nick and me the first few days but is coming around and has even cooked a few treats for us to eat!
St is a local believer around 25 who works for the P's a few days of the week. He has the biggest smile you have ever seen and the P's are really excited about his potential as a Christian leader in the community.
N is a friend of the family around 20-21 (many people do not know their age around here). He is not a believer but is open to the sharing of the Word. He is drawn to this family and is good friends with St and K. I've enjoyed the time we have spent with him and can tell he has a good heart. Please pray that the Lord continues to work on N and that N will have a thirst for salvation.
Z is a widow we went to visit yesterday. She is probably only in her 30's and takes care of her children and grandchildren. She is a Muslim but allowed us to share the Creation story with her yesterday. We shared as much as she would allow and we will go back to visit her. She thinks Christianity is ok for us as we do not have the problems that she has - poverty, dirtiness, health issues, widowhood. Please pray she is receptive to the love God shows to ALL his children. We also believe she has cataracts, as she is losing her sight and the sun hurts her eyes. Pray for healing (we shared with her that true healing comes from God).