I began this blog post in Tanzania a while ago, but got busy enjoying our last bit of time we had there to complete it. So I'm a little behind, but here it is...
I was really glad that we got to experience what it's like to go on a first visit to a village. The church in Katoro has built up relationship with a new church in another nearby village called Miti Mirefu and they asked if Brett would come teach a bible seminar. Ezekiel, the church leader from Katoro, is mentoring the leader of this new church. Richard is only 22 years old and wanted to start up a church in his community since the next closest non-Catholic church was miles and miles away. Part of what the first visit to a village entails is seeing how receptive the people are to studying the Word and desiring to be obedient in their lives. We were studying 1 Peter 2 about how Christ is the cornerstone of the house, whereby the whole house is measured, and a house built off of anything else will not function as a house should. Typically in the villages where African traditional religion influences their mindset, a house will be built on other things like ancestors, or teachers, or even dancing. Later when talking about the parable of the seeds (Matthew ??) they discussed how ones roots can not be divided into two soils- thus a tree can not grow and thrive when split between two different sources of life. A few of the women recognized that they can not hold onto both the truth of Christ's redemption and also the traditional belief of trusting ancestors and witch doctors for healing. I really enjoyed seeing this church eager to learn, even if they were hesitant at first. We finally learned one of the most popular Swahili worship songs and it was stuck in my head for days (Dad likes to call this an earworm. It exists) It goes like this: “Baba wa binguni, hakuna kama wewe” = “Father in Heaven, there is no one like you” Aaaand now it's right back in my head. Could be worse though. It could be Miley Cyrus.
One day Katie, Gunnar and I visited an NGO in the area called Anamed. Its name stands for “Action for Natural Medicine”, not “Andrea's Ambiguous Edibles” like you may have expected. It provides herbal medicine and treatments for common African illnesses, gives education on health and medicine, sells patients' products to help them afford treatment, and does it all in acknowledgement of God's glory revealed in his creation. It was really cool to see all the practical ways to use the plant resources that are available in Tanzania to help treat malaria and HIV, the most common health problems in this area. Also she pointed out how they use similar treatments that the witch doctors sometimes use to show how God, not Satan, created the earth in a way that provides healing and care for his people. One tree we learned called the Moringa tree is known as the Miracle tree, because it grows throughout the year and its leaves are incredibly nutritious (In my head I imagined it as the Giving Tree. Or Grandmother Willow from Pocahontas. Not the Womping Willow though.)
We got to work in the fast food industry here in Geita. And when I say fast, I mean fast for the customers. Not for the cooks. One day us girls helped a woman in town prepare lunch all morning to sell to people who work in the main market. It's a genius idea and her food was the best I've had in Tanzania. They seemed to enjoy teaching us how to do everything, including how to ask "Do you want rice with that?"
Later that weekend we went to pick up the boys from bonding in Bupondwa and go to church with them there. It was our last visit to a village church, and the Lord made it one to remember. Not just because Brett made a skip-bo out of trash or because it rained so much that it leaked through the roof. First of all I got to see spend more time with Rachel and her wonderful family. She even agreed to let me come spend a day with her later in the week. Even as the rain was causing everyone to get wet, they insisted we keep learning about the bible and enthusiastically sang and danced in worship. We all laughed a lot that day- them laughing at us attempting to dance and us laughing at them laughing at us attempting to dance. We also amused ourselves with puns that came from discovering a chicken had fallen into the choo (a toilet that's really just a hole in the ground). Apparently someone had an egg-stremely unfortunate fowl movement. Or, for my Swahili-speaking friends, a "haji kuku-bwa." Not sure if the poor chick lived, but if he didn't it would give a new meaning to die-arrhea*. (Don't worry, that's the last one). It was a long day, but I don't think any of us wanted to leave by the end.
*Some credit is due to the other interns and Brett for these puns
