Finals Week!

Well, today is the first day of our finals week, and the day when I plan to start on my report cards. I already have two final grades done, and after giving the literature exam today I hope to add that as well. Our report cards have undergone a streamlining process that has helped a lot with writing them, but it is still an undertaking that means several extra hours of work. I'm starting to think about and plan for my trip down to Lusaka at the end of term to get my passport renewed. I have until February, but because I need to get my new work permit before it runs out mid-January, and for that I need the new passport. Oh, the joys of keeping all your documents in two countries current! I've never been down to the embassy--should be interesting!

Fires and Sports Day

I was realizing the other day that while the ‘greater burning of Zambia’ is something that I have lived with for the last three years, it’s actually a pretty foreign concept to most people back home, so it might do well to explain it a bit more.

About a month or two into the dry season, the Zambians start to set fire to the now rather dry bush and burn off vast swaths of land. There are several purposes for this. First of all, most of our bush is covered in a tough grass that can grow to be over 6 feet tall. As this dries it becomes a fire hazard itself, but to clear it would very time consuming. The fires are a way to clear the grass and make room for the next years growth. Before they burn, the Zambians harvest what grass they want for thatching, and then they start their (mostly!) controlled fires. A second reason for the fires is the ash makes cheap fertilizer for their garden plots and for the bush in general.

Thirdly, though most people are pretty careful with fire during the dry season, it would not be hard to end up with a pretty devastating wild fire. So people burn fire breaks around their property and along the roads to create a safety zone. Our fire break was finished up last week, but there is still plenty of burning going on around us.

Little bits of black ash are all over and in the air right now—at night you can often see the pink glow on the horizon of another fire. Though you might not see them, there is normally someone keeping some sort of tabs on the fire; it’s very rare to hear of one getting out of control and causing a lot of damage. One of our short termers was a volunteer fire-fighter, and took her awhile to get used to the crackling sound of bush burning!

Tuesday was our sports day, and Mr. T. kept us busy all day. I was the scorer again, so I had my little tent to set up with my laptop in. I also was the one passing out ribbons which sparked an interesting controversy over whether red of blue was supposed to be for first place. Apparently it depends on if you are American or Canadian… Fisher didn’t win this year, but the kids did a good job. I wore my new yellow shirt to support my team, but I must say that there is a reason that I’ve never had a yellow shirt all these years! Not the best color on me... Now that the last of the big events is over, life goes back to normal now-whatever that is!

Only three more weeks…

Bonus picture of my fast growing puppy!

More snippets.

*My puppy got her ear caught in my screen door when she tried to crash through it the other night--maybe that will teach her to have more manners! The yelping she let out made it sounds like she was being devoured by a lion or something. I guess you really can't blame her, but STILL! *I had a nice long, newsy chat with my mom last night. It was good to hear about what's going on in our homeschooling friends lives, and just to hear her voice. E-mail is a huge blessing, but nothing can compare to the sound of a loved voice. I also got to talk to my dad who is in Germany this weekend; technology is so crazy! He could call from a computer in Europe to my cell in the bush! *We had joint prayer meeting with Kalene over here yesterday, and there were THREE babies present! Ha--no lack of aunties who were quite happy to take them off their mother's hands for a while... *Those of us who were off this weekend went to Ikelenge for church--I hadn't been to 'town' for awhile, and was interested to see the continued improvement work going on there. Since we are a boma (official market town), we are getting more government officials and some effort is being put into upgrading the roads and some buildings. We are the African equivalent of Siberia for government officials--we are so far out in the bush that the people we get out here tend to be 'exiled' rather than called. We are praying that all these new people and all the changes going on in our community will be for the best, and that the local Christians will stand out in their honor of the Lord. *The fire break around the school is pretty much finished now, but there are still fires all around. The other night the ridge across the valley was on fire, and it looked so beautiful. The little bits are black ash are all over, and there is a constant undersmell of smoke. That's how you know you're home when you step off the plane here--it always smells like smoke!

Still alive...just very tired

Just a quick note to say that

A. I am alive!

B. I had a fairly nice half-term--I didn't get as much as I wanted to accomplish done, but it was a nice break from the classroom.

C. My puppy is growing very fast--she might be a bigger dog than anticipated!

D. It is very dry here. So dry, that I have had to resort to Vaseline for the first time to heal a big crack under one of my toes. Nasty stuff, but it gets the job done... I don't intend to go whole hog and start smearing it in my part though...

E. The end of term is racing up like a tidal wave--I'm trying to get all the way up on my board before it comes crashing down.

F. The kingfishers outside the hall make me happy.

Please Pray

This weekend has been tough as we deal with a tragedy in our missionary community. Saturday the Chitokoloki plane went down into the Zambezi river and the young pilot and his wife were killed. It sounds like the plane was having trouble--witnesses say they saw it swerving as the pilot was following the Zambezi from Chavuma to Chit. Apparently they went under a cable that is across the river for the pontoon ferry, and the tail of the plane got caught, flipping the plane backwards and smack into the river. The Zambezi is very deep there, and as it was about 4:30pm it was shortly before sunset so there wasn't much that could be done yesterday. Today they have been shooting into the river to keep the crocs away while they dive to recover the bodies--by late afternoon they had both J and K's bodies. They were in pretty good shape, so it doesn't look like they suffered. They are leaving behind two little girls aged 3 and 1. The funneral is on Tuesday, and they will be buried here in Zambia; arrangements are being made for the two girls. I did not know them personally--I just saw Jay in passing for the first time on Friday when he stopped over on his way to Lusaka with another missionary from Chit. The couple were out here short term, and they had been out since February. There are several people here who met Jay and have a connection with the people who are dealing with the tragedy right now--it's very sobering to be reminded that no one knows the time when they will be called to glory. It must be really hard for Gordon Hanna at Chit in particular as he is overseeing the recovery operations and no doubt feels somewhat responsible. It doesn't look likely that the plane will be salvageable. Thanks for your prayers--I'm sure the families back in North America also really appreciate them.

I have to say that I’ve felt so blessed these last two days. While it’s a little hard getting back into the routine of school and figuring out how to juggle a very energetic puppy into my life, but it’s been good. Last term was so hard and so discouraging that I was almost afraid to start this term. However, I’ve had a great time with the kids so far, and my classroom is settling into its new routine with only minor issues, and I am just so thankful for these good days.

Hazel has made a lot of friends among the children—while they were sorry to hear about my other dog, Ceili, they have quickly taken that little ball of energy into their hearts and I think she’ll become a much loved part of station life. If only she would move out of the biting faze…

The mornings and evenings are growing cooler, and I’m starting to enjoy my collection of hand knit socks again. The blaze of a brushfire has lit the ridge behind us already, and those pesky little brown bits that fill the grass during dry season are starting to cover the unwary child, teacher, and dog! I love this time of year—I love the smell of burning, wrapping up in my wooly creations, and the clear blue skies.

Well, I have some planning to do this evening—we’re about to embark on ancient Egypt in history. That is a topic I’ve never been particularly enamored of, but I have to admit it’s growing on me… It’s fascinating to me that God used that country so many times to save His people. Hope the kids think so too!

Isn't Hazel a cutie?

May 2012 Newsletter

Dear Friends and Family, I have been putting off the writing of this newsletter because there were several ongoing things in my life this year, and I was waiting to see what the outcome was so that I wouldn’t leave you with a cliff-hanger! While these past few months have been very difficult in many ways, I’ve had a chance to see God’s hand so vividly in my life—I’m both encouraged in my faith and rebuked for my worry and stressing over details. Just in the last week the Lord has solved three major worries in my life, once again proving that He cares for every area of my life. I’m looking forward to a new term of working with the children and sharing some of my renewed joy.

As some of you may know, one of the big challenges facing me this year was the tooth I broke within a week of returning to Zambia. A seemingly innocent sandwich has cost me three months of pain and two trips to town—odd how such a small thing can have such a big impact! Because the tooth was so badly broken, when I finally got to the dentist in early April she was horrified and put a dressing on it to see if the tooth could heal once the exposed nerve was covered up. Two weeks later I came down to the Copper Belt again and found out that my tooth had indeed healed, so I was able to just have a massive filling instead of a root canal and crown. Being freed from the pain and stress of trying to decide what to do with the tooth is such an answer to prayer—God is very good!

Another area where God showed His mighty hand was when I re-embarked on the project of getting my Zambian drivers license. While down in Lusaka in early April I spent several hours moving through the different offices at RTSA, and emerged with a temporary permit and a booking to take a road test the next morning. Thought initially chastised for ‘climbing the wheel’ I realized that I had a good chance of passing once my instructor bought a newspaper from a street vendor and proceeded to read for the rest of my test! On my second town trip this holiday Beth and I braved the bus down to Lusaka to see if my pass certificate was ready, and after some hassle because of a document I forgot back in Kitwe I walked out of the RTSA office the proud possessor of a Zambian license! This is another huge load off my mind—God is very good!

The third big problem was with my dog Ceili. Shortly after returning from my first town trip I noticed that she had a hugely swollen face. I got some antibiotics from a nurse friend which seemed to help, but when the swelling came down she developed a massive abscess under her jaw. I unfortunately had to leave for my second dental appointment in town, and while I was in Kitwe I got a call saying that the start of the trouble was definitely a snake bite, and my only two options were costly (and almost impossible to get) reconstructive surgery, or putting her down to end her agony. A local game farm owner was able to take care of it for me, and while I’m going to really miss that dog, I had a chance to adopt another puppy, Hazel, in Kitwe to help with station security and as a companion for me—God is very good!

In station news our dorm has a brand new roof of bright, shiny tin that the Canadian team put up for us in the last month. We’re so thankful for not only a better environment for the children, but also for the fellowship and encouragement the team provided for us. Getting to make new friends and renew old friendships is such a blessing to us; we love to share our station and our ministry with visitors!

Thanks again for all your loving prayers and support—as I was so vividly reminded this past month I can’t do anything on my own. Knowing that the saints back home are remembering me is such a blessing. May He find us faithful wherever He has called us to be,