I will do my best to be brief in writing our final update, however with over a week to write about, it may be tricky…
Friday night: Continuing from where Ashley left off, on Friday night, Ashley, Leanne and I took the Sr.’s “out”. For this occasion, we started off by showing them.. a movie containing the extreme events that took place while in Livingstone. They really enjoyed watching it. Once it was over, we said goodnight to the boys and then headed to the girls dorm where we had fun playing games and talking with them. There is an election this year here in Zambia, and in order to vote, citizens need to have their ‘voters card’ validated. A young girl, about our age is stationed here at Sakeji to validate the cards of the villagers in this area. Her name is Mwengala. We have been talking to her the past couple of days, and learned that her job is very boring. Feeling bad for her, and having a house all to ourselves, we decided to invite her over to hang out for a bit. It wasn’t long however that we all decided it was late, and time for bed.
Saturday: Today was a fairly normal Saturday here at Sakeji, however, we had the opportunity to visit Hillwood Children’s Home. It was a about a half an hour walk in the blazing hot sun, but it was well worth it. Soon after arriving we found Esther and she introduced us to some of the orphans. We had a really fun time playing with them for the afternoon. Esther offered to drive us back for dinner, and we gladly accepted. Ashley and I piled in the back of Esther’s truck along with about 12 of the kids, and with Leanne up front we headed off to Sakeji!
Sunday: We went to the Samehina village for church, it was quite a bumpy ride. The church building has collapsed so we met in the school building. There was a very small gathering of people after having waited for about 20min, but the singing was still incredible. Once back at Sakeji, we were responsible for Sunday school, which went well. We were also on river duty, and this is when Ashley was “unplatted”, and ended up coming to dinner with an afro.
Monday: Lina Burklin, the Gr. 5/6 teacher, took us into “town” (Ikelenge) this afternoon, and we were able to purchase some chitenge’s, as well as visit the market, where we were overcome with the fresh stench of dried fish and caterpillars. Mmmm!
Tuesday: A fairly normal Sakeji day; honestly can’t remember much else!
Wednesday: After a long, but productive day at school, Ashley and I were able to have a really good chat with Mwengala – we learned that she is a Christian, and a youth leader at her church! She is going into her first year of university, and studying to become a teacher!
Thursday: We were on games today, and while Ashley and Rachel took the Jr.’s, Leanne and I had fun teaching the Sr.’s how to play “The Chair Game”; it went really well, and despite a few scrapes and bruises, the kids had a lot of fun! Instead of Ladies’ Bible Study, the Towse’s invited us over to watch Louie Giglio’s ‘Indescribable’ movie. What an awesome reminder of the God I serve, who chooses to love ME!
Friday: We enjoyed spending this night in the girl’s dorm room, playing ‘Animal Basket’, complete with actions and some very hilarious sounds. Once the girls were in bed, Jill, Lina and Rachel took the 3 of us star-gazing on the air strip. The moon was fairly bright so there weren’t millions of stars out, but it was still BEAUTIFUL!
Saturday: The Sr.’s, Mr. Towse, Miss Sheach and Miss Janette left today for a net-ball tournament at Amano in Chingola. An 8hr drive… blah! Since Miss Sheach was gone, I was responsible for the Gr. ½’s! They had earned a class party, so after giving them each a cupcake for a treat, Ashley, Rachel, Mrs. Towse and I took the kids rollerblading! Lots of work but lots of fun!
Sunday: Ashley and Leanne went into Ikelenge for church, I wasn’t feeling well so I stayed back and was able to have a time of reflection on all that has happened, and all that God has shown me through this trip – very beneficial! We took Sunday School again today (our last one!), and were on river duty. After having gotten to know her a bit more and swapping emails, Mwengala left. It was hard saying good-bye but it was awesome to have met her, here out in the bush!
Monday: So Monday was the beginning of half-term, a two day break for the kids and staff half-way (ironic, I know) through the term, and what an interesting but fun day it was! Routine is very different but our day was still fairly structured. There were EGGS at breakfast, as well at hot chocolate! Such a treat! The three of us had the morning “off”, so we took the time to relax and reflect on our time here at Sakeji. We also began marking the presentations we had the Gr. ¾’s do on their habitats. After morning tea, we decided that it was high-time we made good use of this break to get some long overdue exercise. There is a loop that runs from Sakeji, through Hillwood farms, ending up at the river. It usually takes a little more than an hour to walk, but we were determined to get it done in less than an hour and be at the river for lunch at noon. We had been walking for about 40min, with about 15min left, when Mr. Ronald came speeding by in a truck. He screeched to a stop when he saw us and offered to drive us the rest of the way. Having walked for 40min in the blistering hot sun, and not wanting to run the rest of the way to be on time, we gladly accepted. Nshima was served for lunch – delicious (with the right relishes)! Rest hour was also spent down at the river, and Ashley, Leanne and I took the opportunity to tan while floating on inner tubes in the pool. Because it is half-term, a water slide is set up from the top of an ant hill ending up in the pool – we had a LOT of fun on that! There is also a zip-line that is set up for the older kids, and Leanne and I had the guts to try out the infamous “Flying Fox”. Dinner was a little different, as the kids and staff ate separately. It was difficult watching the kids eat their meal after spending three hours in a pool, but it was well worth it. Vicki Saunders (the cook) surprised us all with fried chicken for dinner (along with many other delicious side dishes)! After dinner and getting ready for bed, we ALL met in the main sitting area for ‘half-term movie’; we learned tonight that Sakeji had won EVERY net-ball match they played at Amano! We were all so proud! When movie was finished, Leanne, Ashley and I decided to visit with the Gr. 5/6 girls in their dorm room until bedtime. We had lots of fun sharing stories and playing – quiet – games. Once we said goodnight we packed up and headed home!
Tuesday: What a day this was! Everything was fairly normal; got up, got ready, came down for breakfast, and decided to come back to the house to brush our teeth and do devotions before taking the kids for some organized games. I am so glad we came home when we did, because within 3min of being home, we hear Leanne scream “EWW.. Uhh.. Guys?”; we come running to find massive swarms of ants at the foot door. We ran to check if they were anywhere else, and found them covering the windowsills at one side of the house – thankfully they chose the side opposite our bedrooms to invade. We had no idea what to do! After screaming and running around trying to find some civilized way to rid our house of the insects.. we found the DOOM. I was given the job of spraying them until they struggled no more. This, unfortunately means that our house still smells like DOOM.. BUT we haven’t seen any more ants. Once we figured we had killed them all we went down to meet the kids for games. On the way we ran into Jill Avery who informed us that they were army ants, and did a number on us with the comment “Oh ya, those are the ones that, if you were injured, would eat you alive.” Horrified, we said a quick prayer and ran to the games cupboard to get the supplies we needed for our wide game. We taught the kids how to play ‘Jackets’ (a form of capture the flag, or eggs) and they LOVED it! We did a bit more marking between tea and lunch, which again was down at the river. For dessert, as a treat, we had ice cream. A weakness of mine, I couldn’t stop myself from having a bit of both oreo-cookie AND chocolate surprise. Absolutely delicious. We stayed down at the river for the afternoon again, to help supervise swimming and what not. As soon as swimming was finished, we were given 10min to run up to our rooms, change and meet at the ‘football’ field. We were going to have a staff vs. students ‘football’ match. Leanne and I were all for this. Ashley has developed large blisters on her feet, and decided it would be best to serve as a cheer-leader instead. A couple of the Brass-Tax workers, Barry and Derek had come to play too, and Barry had brought long sleeve, cotton jersey’s for everyone to wear. Just what you want to wear when it’s 35 degrees celsius and you’re running around a field non-stop. Needless to say, it was a really fun game; score: 0-0. With 5min left to play, we heard an eruption of cheers from the sidelines and were happy to see the victorious Sr.’s piling out of vehicles after just arriving back from their trip. It was nice to have everyone back again for dinner. We finished the half-term movie, and then once the kids were in bed the staff had a little get-together to send off Barry and Derek, who were leaving the next morning. Stories were shared, and games were played – Leanne and I DOMINATED as a team in Dutch Blitz! Eventually, the events of the day caught up with us and we trudged back to the house, feeling exhausted, but having survived, and thoroughly enjoyed a Sakeji half-term.
Now, were back to the grind, as the second half of the term is underway. We only have two full days left here at Sakeji; a sad thought, but in all honesty, we have been so blessed just to have had the opportunity to experience something like this, not to mention meet all the incredible people we have come to know and love. I am going to miss this place, as are Ashley and Leanne; but there is comfort in knowing that a piece of our hearts, and our effort will always be known and appreciated here, as well as knowing for sure that a piece of all those we have met, what we have seen and experienced, and what God has done in our lives while in Zambia will come home with us. I have no doubt that Sakeji School has made an impression on my heart, and I pray I wont soon forget it.
Frila
Thank you again, to all who have been praying for us. We SO appreciate your prayers, and there were days when they were all that kept us going. Thank you, a million times over. We cannot wait to be back home to share these stories, and many more, with you in person. Although they were long, we hope you have enjoyed reading these updates. A “reflective” update may show up once we’ve been home for a while. May God bless you, and we hope you have a wonderful summer!
Erika, Ashley and Leanne
Wednesday 15 June 2011
Sunday 5 June 2011
The Calm after the Storm
The Calm after the Storm
Greetings from a little oasis in the bush of the northwest corner of Zambia! We are nearing the end of week five here in Zambia and it honestly astounds me to say we have already been gone for five weeks. However, when I think back on all we have seen, the people with whom God has brought into our lives, the places we have traveled, the lessons we have taught, the lessons we are being taught and the children who have stolen our hearts; it seems like we have been here much longer. I want to apologize for not writing for taking more time than usual to write this, but with the business of school and the overwhelming task of trying to express what is going on in the hearts of three women, I have procrastinated writing to you.
Since we have last written to you, there has been many activities going on around the school including, the regular routine of classes, activities and lessons (swimming, guitar, piano, etc.) as well as chaos and activity surrounding the building site (the new dining hall that is being built). We have a visitor here for the week named Natalie, who was the girl that we spent the day with at Kalene, so it’s nice to have another Canadian girl our age here. We actually found out that she and her mom are flying out of Lusaka on the same day as us, which is quite neat!! New workers from the UK named Barry and Derek have arrived with a specialty in welding and are working with local workers to put together the tin roof for the dining hall. The trusses were raised on Thursday and God blessed all of the workers and those around with safety, as the heavy machinery and welding could be potentially very dangerous. Thursday was also the day that Jim and Paul, two of the Brass Tacks workers from the UK (and the men who took us on our trip to Kalene) left Sakeji and flew back to the UK on Saturday. We will most definitely miss having them around, but it was such a privilege to have met them!
Last weekend we had the opportunity to travel into a local village for church, which was quite an enjoyable experience. At the break between the gospel message and the breaking of bread service we went outside to socialize with the women and we met little Christopher who we figured was about 16 months from a conversation Gwen had with the mother in broken-English. Leanne was holding Christopher and we were all cooing at him and taking pictures trying to get him to smile when all of a sudden he started “leaking”! The looks on both Leanne and Christopher’s faces were absolutely priceless! Leanne, trying not to be rude, just sort of laughed awkwardly as she decided what to do with this baby who had just relieved himself all over her. Christopher’s face however, was extreme glee, as if he knew exactly what he had just done and was proud of it! We have several photographic records of this occasion, which we will be happy to share with you when we return home :)
Last Sunday afternoon we were teaching Sunday school and Leanne and I went to the library to pick out a book to read the juniors for that week’s lesson of ‘Daniel in the Lion’s Den’. A few of my seniors were in the library looking at books and one of the boys, JP, came over to me randomly (I’m not quite sure what provoked him) and said, “Miss Ashley, you smile too much for a person of your age!” I laughed, as this comment caught me completely off guard and said back to him (with a frown on my face), "Would you rather I walk around like this all day JP?" Neither of us could hold our laughter in and agreed that maybe it would be better for me to smile. I shared that story with the juniors later when we were doing Sunday School and most of them thought it was pretty funny. After Sunday school one of the grade three girls named Ellie came up to me and said, "Miss Ashley, I like that you smile all the time. It's because Jesus lives in your heart." God used this little girl to remind me, that even when things seem confusing and we get worn down from the worries of the world around us, we should have the biggest smiles on our faces because the Creator of the universe loves us so much that He sent His only Son to bring us life. He did not sacrifice His life so we would go around worrying, fearing and complaining, but rather living life ABUNDANTLY!!!
An exciting even that took place on Tuesday evening at Jim and Paul’s flat was the “platting” of Leanne and my hair! A friend of Jim’s wife Joyce and her three daughters came and plated (which is just the British and Zambian way of saying braiding) our hair. It took them two hours with two of them on each head. Joyce could speak very good English as well as her oldest daughter Jackie and so Leanne tried to explain to them the way that we were thinking of having it done. The way we tried to explain it was “corn rows”, but they did not understand that so Leanne said “Just do the top part tight to our head and then the rest of it loose.” They nodded to agree that they knew what we meant, however, when we saw the end result we had to try very hard to keep back the laughter. The back braids were all done the way we thought, but then the ones at the front were “tight to our head and then loose”, which to them meant braid it for about two inches and then tie it. So the front of our hair had these short pieces braided and the rest was just our natural hair. To be honest we looked quite funny and after we heard the daughters whispering in Lunda, probably saying something like, “Those crazy Canadian girls sure like their hair looking strange”. We took pictures before we finished the braids ourselves back home. Whenever we look at the pictures or think back on it we just laugh at the results of broken communication.
Wednesday evening we had a farewell party for Jim and Paul and a belated celebration for Lina’s 25th birthday. All of the staff and visitors gathered in the Main Sitting Room and played team Pictionary, which was quite competitive as it was boys versus girls. It’s so great to be able to get together with the staff and just relax and laugh after a long day of school and such. The snacks (of course) were exceptional including cheese scones, carmel corn, regular popcorn, rhubarb muffins and chocolate cake; all homemade of course!!
We had a special opportunity on Thursday afternoon to travel into Ikelenge with Mark, Pam and Phil to the local high school. Every Thursday they go in to share a gospel message with the students at the high school. It was neat to see a local high school and compare how different it was to Sakeji. First of all the basic school was quite close where all of the elementary students go to school and we arrived just as school was getting out so there were kids everywhere! We got into the classroom where the meeting would be held and were greeted by the two girls behind us. It was also interesting because most of the students were around our age or just a little younger. Mr. Ronald shared the message from Mark 5 when Jesus heals the man possessed by demons. He talked about God’s almighty power to heal and Jesus’ response to the man when he asks to follow Jesus. Jesus says to him, “No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the LORD has done for you and how merciful He has been.”
I have reflected on this passage, since then and it has made a few of my own questions clear. For those of you who don’t know, for the past few months I have been considering the possibility of staying at Sakeji until the end of the term (July 21st). When I arrived here the longing to stay grew as my love for the children and the desire to be used as a teacher and mentor for the students increased. I wrestled with the thought of staying and going and for quite some time I was in much turmoil trying to make a decision. After consulting many of you for wisdom and spending nights praying and begging God to make it clear, I finally stopped worrying and gave the issue completely to Him. I am still waiting on Him to continue to make it clear, but each day I spend with Him He continues to bless me with His peace knowing that in His time I will know. When thinking of what to entitle this entry, I thought of Jesus calming the storm with simply His voice. In the same way He calmed that storm, He has called out and said, “Peace, be still” to the storm that has been raging inside of me. I praise Him for His ability to calm even the most intense of storms.
There are many more stories I could share, but we have to save some for when we return, as reading on a screen isn’t nearly as exciting as a story being told in person.
As we continue to get closer to these children we see their needs and would ask that you pray especially right now for the young women at Sakeji and in this country. This week we have been enlightened as to the probable fate of many of these women and it has caused us great heartache and sadness to see these beautiful young women that we love to dearly and think of what life is like in the villages and towns back home. If you could pray that God would give them the strength and courage to stand strong when the enemy comes knocking whispering lies to persuade them into believing they are anything other than the most beautiful creation God has made. Another request is for the young men. That they would grow up with a strong faith and relationship with their Creator. That they would also be men convicted to following Christ’s example of a husband in the way that he loves His bride, the Church. The need for permanent help here at Sakeji is still very real, as the need for another teacher is great. Please pray that God would continue to prepare this person (or people) and that when His time comes for them to be at Sakeji, they would be a devoted servant to the LORD.
I must wrap this entry up as the Sunday evening get together is starting and the seniors are playing the music, so I am very excited to listen!! I love you all dearly and cannot wait for the day when we are reunited. I pray that we would each be changed more and more each day into the likeness of our Father.
May you know and experience this week, the GREATNESS of God’s love for YOU!
Ash
Greetings from a little oasis in the bush of the northwest corner of Zambia! We are nearing the end of week five here in Zambia and it honestly astounds me to say we have already been gone for five weeks. However, when I think back on all we have seen, the people with whom God has brought into our lives, the places we have traveled, the lessons we have taught, the lessons we are being taught and the children who have stolen our hearts; it seems like we have been here much longer. I want to apologize for not writing for taking more time than usual to write this, but with the business of school and the overwhelming task of trying to express what is going on in the hearts of three women, I have procrastinated writing to you.
Since we have last written to you, there has been many activities going on around the school including, the regular routine of classes, activities and lessons (swimming, guitar, piano, etc.) as well as chaos and activity surrounding the building site (the new dining hall that is being built). We have a visitor here for the week named Natalie, who was the girl that we spent the day with at Kalene, so it’s nice to have another Canadian girl our age here. We actually found out that she and her mom are flying out of Lusaka on the same day as us, which is quite neat!! New workers from the UK named Barry and Derek have arrived with a specialty in welding and are working with local workers to put together the tin roof for the dining hall. The trusses were raised on Thursday and God blessed all of the workers and those around with safety, as the heavy machinery and welding could be potentially very dangerous. Thursday was also the day that Jim and Paul, two of the Brass Tacks workers from the UK (and the men who took us on our trip to Kalene) left Sakeji and flew back to the UK on Saturday. We will most definitely miss having them around, but it was such a privilege to have met them!
Last weekend we had the opportunity to travel into a local village for church, which was quite an enjoyable experience. At the break between the gospel message and the breaking of bread service we went outside to socialize with the women and we met little Christopher who we figured was about 16 months from a conversation Gwen had with the mother in broken-English. Leanne was holding Christopher and we were all cooing at him and taking pictures trying to get him to smile when all of a sudden he started “leaking”! The looks on both Leanne and Christopher’s faces were absolutely priceless! Leanne, trying not to be rude, just sort of laughed awkwardly as she decided what to do with this baby who had just relieved himself all over her. Christopher’s face however, was extreme glee, as if he knew exactly what he had just done and was proud of it! We have several photographic records of this occasion, which we will be happy to share with you when we return home :)
Last Sunday afternoon we were teaching Sunday school and Leanne and I went to the library to pick out a book to read the juniors for that week’s lesson of ‘Daniel in the Lion’s Den’. A few of my seniors were in the library looking at books and one of the boys, JP, came over to me randomly (I’m not quite sure what provoked him) and said, “Miss Ashley, you smile too much for a person of your age!” I laughed, as this comment caught me completely off guard and said back to him (with a frown on my face), "Would you rather I walk around like this all day JP?" Neither of us could hold our laughter in and agreed that maybe it would be better for me to smile. I shared that story with the juniors later when we were doing Sunday School and most of them thought it was pretty funny. After Sunday school one of the grade three girls named Ellie came up to me and said, "Miss Ashley, I like that you smile all the time. It's because Jesus lives in your heart." God used this little girl to remind me, that even when things seem confusing and we get worn down from the worries of the world around us, we should have the biggest smiles on our faces because the Creator of the universe loves us so much that He sent His only Son to bring us life. He did not sacrifice His life so we would go around worrying, fearing and complaining, but rather living life ABUNDANTLY!!!
An exciting even that took place on Tuesday evening at Jim and Paul’s flat was the “platting” of Leanne and my hair! A friend of Jim’s wife Joyce and her three daughters came and plated (which is just the British and Zambian way of saying braiding) our hair. It took them two hours with two of them on each head. Joyce could speak very good English as well as her oldest daughter Jackie and so Leanne tried to explain to them the way that we were thinking of having it done. The way we tried to explain it was “corn rows”, but they did not understand that so Leanne said “Just do the top part tight to our head and then the rest of it loose.” They nodded to agree that they knew what we meant, however, when we saw the end result we had to try very hard to keep back the laughter. The back braids were all done the way we thought, but then the ones at the front were “tight to our head and then loose”, which to them meant braid it for about two inches and then tie it. So the front of our hair had these short pieces braided and the rest was just our natural hair. To be honest we looked quite funny and after we heard the daughters whispering in Lunda, probably saying something like, “Those crazy Canadian girls sure like their hair looking strange”. We took pictures before we finished the braids ourselves back home. Whenever we look at the pictures or think back on it we just laugh at the results of broken communication.
Wednesday evening we had a farewell party for Jim and Paul and a belated celebration for Lina’s 25th birthday. All of the staff and visitors gathered in the Main Sitting Room and played team Pictionary, which was quite competitive as it was boys versus girls. It’s so great to be able to get together with the staff and just relax and laugh after a long day of school and such. The snacks (of course) were exceptional including cheese scones, carmel corn, regular popcorn, rhubarb muffins and chocolate cake; all homemade of course!!
We had a special opportunity on Thursday afternoon to travel into Ikelenge with Mark, Pam and Phil to the local high school. Every Thursday they go in to share a gospel message with the students at the high school. It was neat to see a local high school and compare how different it was to Sakeji. First of all the basic school was quite close where all of the elementary students go to school and we arrived just as school was getting out so there were kids everywhere! We got into the classroom where the meeting would be held and were greeted by the two girls behind us. It was also interesting because most of the students were around our age or just a little younger. Mr. Ronald shared the message from Mark 5 when Jesus heals the man possessed by demons. He talked about God’s almighty power to heal and Jesus’ response to the man when he asks to follow Jesus. Jesus says to him, “No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the LORD has done for you and how merciful He has been.”
I have reflected on this passage, since then and it has made a few of my own questions clear. For those of you who don’t know, for the past few months I have been considering the possibility of staying at Sakeji until the end of the term (July 21st). When I arrived here the longing to stay grew as my love for the children and the desire to be used as a teacher and mentor for the students increased. I wrestled with the thought of staying and going and for quite some time I was in much turmoil trying to make a decision. After consulting many of you for wisdom and spending nights praying and begging God to make it clear, I finally stopped worrying and gave the issue completely to Him. I am still waiting on Him to continue to make it clear, but each day I spend with Him He continues to bless me with His peace knowing that in His time I will know. When thinking of what to entitle this entry, I thought of Jesus calming the storm with simply His voice. In the same way He calmed that storm, He has called out and said, “Peace, be still” to the storm that has been raging inside of me. I praise Him for His ability to calm even the most intense of storms.
There are many more stories I could share, but we have to save some for when we return, as reading on a screen isn’t nearly as exciting as a story being told in person.
As we continue to get closer to these children we see their needs and would ask that you pray especially right now for the young women at Sakeji and in this country. This week we have been enlightened as to the probable fate of many of these women and it has caused us great heartache and sadness to see these beautiful young women that we love to dearly and think of what life is like in the villages and towns back home. If you could pray that God would give them the strength and courage to stand strong when the enemy comes knocking whispering lies to persuade them into believing they are anything other than the most beautiful creation God has made. Another request is for the young men. That they would grow up with a strong faith and relationship with their Creator. That they would also be men convicted to following Christ’s example of a husband in the way that he loves His bride, the Church. The need for permanent help here at Sakeji is still very real, as the need for another teacher is great. Please pray that God would continue to prepare this person (or people) and that when His time comes for them to be at Sakeji, they would be a devoted servant to the LORD.
I must wrap this entry up as the Sunday evening get together is starting and the seniors are playing the music, so I am very excited to listen!! I love you all dearly and cannot wait for the day when we are reunited. I pray that we would each be changed more and more each day into the likeness of our Father.
May you know and experience this week, the GREATNESS of God’s love for YOU!
Ash
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