 |
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
|
 |
|
||
 |
 |
|
|
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
An African Odyssey, Part 2 My first day in Tanzania (a Wednesday) Pastor Emmanuel and I traveled to Luther House in downtown Dar es Salaam for a 10AM meeting with the diocese (synod) leaders and teachers from Kisarawe Lutheran Junior Seminary. At this meeting Bob presented checks and brought greetings from the Northern Great Lakes Synod. We also learned the status of the library. Due to changes in Tanzanian law a licensed contractor must now construct the library. In fact the second floor of the library was already under contract and work would start next week. The project we came to work on was contracted….We had no project…Now what will we do? Instead of heading to Kisarawe this afternoon a new plan was hatched. We visited TCRS (Tanzanike Christian Refugee Service) and the cultural housing museum. On Thursday we visited Kisarawe and met a dozen students and more teachers. Several students rode back to Dar es Salaam in the van with us and I started a friendship with one student that would last beyond the 4 weeks I spent in Africa. On Friday we drove north to Mcuzo women’s school. On Sunday afternoon we would head to Kisarawe for the week. We still didn’t have a project, but we knew there was maintenance work to do on the buildings there. What we didn’t know was that God had other plans for our little group of 4 workers from America. Saturday: I had a goal for my first weekend….lighten my bags!! I had about 50 pounds of gifts in my luggage and I wanted to unload. Twelve school kits from First Lutheran went to Sunday School teachers. The school kits would be used as rewards for top scorers in each age group on a test next Sunday. Six health kits also from First Lutheran; two of them stayed in my host’s home and the rest went to people the Pastor knew needed them. Over 100 necklaces and small gifts (thanks Nora) were given out in a free-for-all to the Sunday School at Mhimbili parish. The four First Lutheran T-shirts were given to the teenagers and young adults in my host family. Towels, washcloths and sharp knives went to Mama Grace. A tennis ball and Frisbee went to the young children in my host family. A brief note about Frisbees: No one in Tanzania knew what a Frisbee was, but before I left several Frisbees were flying around Dar and at Kisarawe. Soccer or “football” is the national sport. Sunday: I attended both services at Mhimbili parish and brought greetings from you to them. The early service is at 7 AM. The second is at 10 AM. In between services the Catholics use the sanctuary. Sunday School this day was held outside under the mango tree. Evangelist Gilbert Marissa interpreted the service for me. Most parishes in Tanzania have a pastor, one or more paid evangelists, and one or more parish workers. The Mhimbili parish had 1 pastor, 2 evangelists, and 2 parish workers. The sanctuary has open concrete block walls and birds fly in and out during services. During the second service portions of two bird nests fell from the rafters onto parishioners. At 3 PM we met the rest of our group at Luther House for our ride to Kisarawe. What will we be doing for the next three weeks?
|
