Village and Dezda

Today was our “off” day as we have been so efficient so I will tell a little more about yesterday at the village.

After giving the ladies their fertilizer and clothes it was raining again, so we all ran inside the resource center to stay dry. The eldest lady gave a speech thanking us for our gifts and coming to their village and helping to pay for the children and their support of the seed, fertilizer and feeding program. It was quite eloquent to hear in the native dialect and then have it interpreted for us. Then they broke out into dance and song/chant and it was all us women in the resource center together, mingling, smiling and being one voice. It was amazing to be a part of this.

Then the weather broke and we were able to walk outside in the muddy village and put all our tubs out. The children have been through this several times so they knew what was coming. Debbie and Bethany positioned themselves near a beautiful bush to take photos of each of the kids as they were holding their clothes and shoes. Caleb, Sherry and I handed out the items to each of the kids. It was very organized and not what I expected. Gracian. Timothy, Lawrence and John who work with Invest in Malawi and know all the kids my name and sight called the kids one by one and they each came up and accepted their gifts. Then they headed over to Bethany to get their picture so we could send something to each sponsor. For smaller children, they also got a wooden car handcrafted by the Missouri Woodworkers in Columbia. After the program we prayed for the kids and had several words from Timothy and our ministry leader Nick.

One of the sweetest things I saw was Zione. She is the young lady that needed the pull-PET. One of her sponsors is Katie Sharland who is a 19 year old Mizzou freshman. She sponsors Zione with her own money and has for several years. She purchased Zione ruby red ballet slippers with sequins all over them. I know, you are thinking, that isn’t very practical when you live in a dirt village, but for her it is. Since she has no use of her feet and they are mostly tucked under her body her feet are mostly decorative – and what better way to show them off in her new pull-PET than with red shiny shoes. Katie who is also wheelchair-bound with a childhood sickness also knows no boundaries. I know about Katie through her sweet mother Dana. Katie went to college, moved into a dormitory and has been to all the MU football games and activities that the other students know – even in the rain. I love the connection that Zione has with the west and her Invest friends as Zione and her family knows we will continue to assist her, as this is what the church of Christ does; they take of their church family when they are unable. I observed Zione taking care of the smaller kids, braiding their hair and spreading her smiles and helping to interpret for me as I fumbled trying to meet the other kids gathered around her. She was the first person I talked to and met when I went to the village as I wanted a connection with her. Bethany has since filled me in about the disease, it is where her bones break because they are weak, and they fuse together getting shorter and shorter with each break. She is now to the point where her legs are unusable and her arms are shorter, but not as much as her legs. Zione knows the love of God and I understand that last year she wasn’t as open as she was when I met her. She was all smiles.

We went on an hour long car ride today out to Dedza which is a hilly country with mountain villages and we saw beautiful scenery along the way. It was beautiful to see the ladies along the riverfront washing their clothes against the rocky banks. The villages changed as we drove down the highway. Each little village had a little different way of building their homes. They had community grain areas in wicker round shaped bins, they had outdoor kitchens and round or square huts. Some with stucco outside, some with red brick and some with stick and most with thatch roofs or tin slant roofs. They are mostly one room and have a little overhang on the front so they can get in out of the rain. I believe they have dirt floors (at least in our village they were), no electricity, running water or other facilities. A very simple life – but they don’t look sad. They work, they sleep when the sun goes down and they are up with the sunrise. Many work an hour or more from their home and travel in to their job. Add that to the 9 or 10 hours they work and another hour walking or bike riding home it makes for a long day, many times in the rain or dark on unlit roads. It makes me wonder about the lights I saw this summer at a conference on safety – they would be perfect for our walkers and bikers.

I have befriended our cook Paul. He has 4 kids and rode over to our kitchen 25 km and arrived to a kitchen without electricity and improvised. He still was able to make coffee with the generator and a simple breakfast. This was after traveling for an hour in the dark to be here for us. He is a good cook who can make magic.

Last night we had a popcorn card party in our room which lasted until 3 AM. We wanted to be together and have fun – we did. Sherry and Caleb taught us rummy and we made popcorn on Paul’s stove and drank filtered water. We hung out, talked, and laughed. No music. No TV. No alcohol. I think it was good for a 16 year old to see you can be silly, have fun and not use drugs and alcohol. He calls me grandma or mean-mom, and I call him man-child. I think it was good for Caleb – what HS student spends their Christmas vacation going to a foreign country and give so much? It is very rare to see and experience. It is my wishes to have kids of Woodcrest have this experience. I guarantee they would come home and give more, want less and be happy in their life. What kid goes to 5 countries in one trip, drives in an African country, builds a wheelchair for a child (twice) and bonds with 4 women so deeply. I will always care and cherish this time. Not ever having boys, I know how blessed my mother-in-law was to have 4 and Sherry to have Caleb and his older brothers Justin and Dakota. It was a gift to have Caleb on our trip.

More tomorrow……another new experience for dinner now.