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T.I.A. This is Africa!
from the mouths of babes! Gracie's Picture for Mom this week!It’s funny the things you learn about yourself through the eyes of your children. I hadn’t noticed that we used this phrase as much as I guess we do day in and day out, but Gracie made me a picture the other day that said, “This is Africa!” otherwise known as TIA! ~ Our household motto! And we’re finding that it’s a much broader used term than we realized. The other day we overheard some people eating dinner using the same coin phrase as well. Nothing derogatory, just the simple fact that in Africa, things are a little different, on a different pace, in a different rhythm if you will. If anything goes against the grain or happens unexpectedly as it tends to do here, we just smile and say, “TIA!”
Now its actually been a pretty calm & normal week, I say that and then I’ll also have to later explain how I got bit by a duck, so take calm & normal with a grain of salt! But starting back on Monday, the kids have been hard at work with their school. And while I was downtown, I found the most amazing thing! A quilted handbag for sale,
by a lady set up down near the meat market. I smiled as I talked to her becuase I just knew that these bags had to be the result of last years Quilting Classes! I'm still waiting to find out for certain, but last year when we lived in Arusha as we were starting out with the first of the quilting classes, I had met a British woman who ran a children's home just down the road from us and I had invited her to the class Shasta was teaching. She was so excited about the quilting that she decided to take that and reteach it to the parents of the children she tended to to learn to make quilted handbags to sell for profit for their families. So, to see one of these quilted bags in person, for sell on the streets in Moshi, I just had to buy one, if for no other reason than to take it to Shasta to show her how the quilting classes were actually being used in everyday life now, about a year and a half later. Funny how things run full cirlce and end up back in your lap here in this
Quilted handbags
Found a lady in Moshi making and selling these on the street. country. ~ TIA!
We are really pushing hard to finish up the kid's school year. Emily & Garrett are working hard at crossing off each assignment and Gracie well, is just having fun being Gracie and already using her 1st grade workbooks to pass the time waiting in the other two to finish up. Brent’s been busy building book shelves and sheet and towel racks for us, with his new tools. He says he can finally get some things done around here. Anthony & Shasta & Sean drove down from Arusha on Tuesday with a load of plywood for them to all sit out under the shade tree together and build a few things, and Shasta decided to join us in our Tuesday fun with the children at the Nursery school. Shasta had never been there before so we gave her the grand tour and introduced her to all the children. I taught in the babies class, while Callie & Emily taught in the Junior class, as Mr. Evance was working on Mathematics with the Standard One students when we arrived. We played, sang songs, and held our Bible Class out on the playground, closing out the day in
prayer before sending the students home at lunchtime. Then Emily & Callie went back in and re-taught the Bible Class to the Standard One students, when they completed their assignments for the day! There’s much progress going on in the area of files on each child, progress reports being kept and sent home to the parents, and I am just so proud of where they are now in reflection from where we have come in the past year and a half of working together. I look at these kids now and know them all by name and by heart, and each and every one of them have a special little tug at your heart strings! Jackie, our little one with Downs Syndrome sits high on that list of ones who will forever have changed me for the better, she helped me instruct the class this week and personally greeted the entire class as they headed out to play, she just never stops smiling!
When we returned home the guys had just about finished up, and to my surprise the ELECTRICIAN had finally showed up, so we actually got our ceiling fans installed in each room of the house this
week! And with the fresh new circulating air, I’ve somehow caught the sniffles. Last night I couldn’t lay down and breathe at the same time… I’m calling it my Ceiling fan cold! Hopefully I’ll get adjusted to them soon! (funny huh!)
Tuesday evening we got a call from some of the local brethren here in Moshi, Kilo & Teresia called and invited us over for dinner at their home. A simple room, a simple meal, but a gift to last a lifetime…. Even before she said she had a gift to give us. That’s when she brought out two little Guinea Pigs in her arms and said that she wanted to give them to us as a gift in appreciation for all we had done for the church here in Moshi. I was torn between crying and looking at Brent with those eyes of shock and surprise.. But that wasn’t all, next she had her two daughters go out in the yard and chase down a duck to give us as well. She tied his feet together and stuffed the live duck in a plastic bag for us to take home.. For this family, in their circumstances, this is
a huge gift to give. It was a real sacrifice on their behalf to give us these animals. I hugged Teresia as best as I could with two guinea pigs in arm, and we headed home, to show the kids. In a little bit of shock that I am now sitting in my car holding a live duck and 2 guinea pigs, we both busted out in laughter… thinking who would have thought that the best part of our week would have involved a duck in the truck? Brent warned me with flip flops on as I set the bag in the floorboard that he might bite me, but I didn’t heed the warning too well. After we arrived at the house, shared with the kids the blessing of the gifts and enjoyed teasing them a little first about who was going to get to slaughter and pluck the duck. Then we let them keep the two guinea pigs and Brent & I took the duck down the road to give it to a man who we have both been talking to and trying to study with, who we knew was truly in need of a good meal! Before we
got there, I screamed in agony as the duck had popped his head out of the bag and bit me on the foot, in the front seat of the truck going down the road! It scared me more than anything and then we pulled over and laughed harder than we had ever laughed before! ~TIA! (You see how well that applies!)
Wednesday, we worked hard on school again all day long, and Brent worked on formatting some Bible Study material into Swahili and then after Bible Class that evening in Moshi, where George is teaching an evangelism class, we all went out to eat together as a family at Deli Chez. The kids favorite spot because they actually have ICE CREAM there! The only place in town to get a banana split!
Then Thursday after working all day, almost finishing up Science for the year, we all got ready to go to the weekly devotional at the Jensen’s house. Garrett as always lead us in a few good songs as well as the other guys there! Then we loaded up to head to the airport to greet Cotton, Dupree, & Glenn ( a first timer to Tanzania!) They
A light in the darkness
the nights when the power goes out in Tanzania! all arrived safe and sound, Gracie was standing at the windows waiting anxiously to see her COTTON! Of course they were the last ones through the glass doors, but well worth the wait! I think they got caught up paying duties on things in their suitcases. It’s a hit or miss kind of situation at the airport here. Nothing is ever easy or normal, not really a set standard to follow, but general guidelines that they pick and choose when they want to enforce… TIA!
Today I had a handful of errands to run this morning, so I shook Callie out early and tried to get out and about while the kids where beginning to stir around the house, with Dad here working on updating the website! We went and got all our grocery shopping done… at our favorite Allem’s Grocery store, and then drove around town passing out tracks and looking for certain fruits and veggies in the Food market. We passed out all the tracts we had brought with us and had bought all the veggies on the list, so we decided to take a little drive and go in search of a new orphanage that we
Julie with Margret
the Director of Kili Kids Orphanage in Moshi had recently learned about through meeting a young lady named Margaret. We actually met at a birthday party that the kids went to a few weeks ago. She had told me that she would love to get together and study the Bible and that she wanted me to come out and meet her children! All 25 of them! She’s a single 36 year old woman, who speaks wonderful English and is very tenderhearted and kind natured! She’s been keeping these children in her home called Kili Kids for the past four years. So we sent off with a set of rough instructions and a phone number. But luckily we only had to make one U-turn and ask one lady and we were there. As it turns out, the house that they are renting for these children is a house that Brent & I had looked at in our house hunt when we first moved to Moshi… How strange is that! She said that they had just relocated to this particular house about 6 months ago. But she welcomed us with great big hugs and surprise that we had found her! The children as they do everywhere came running up to
greet us into their home with huge smiles and reaching arms wanting to be held! It just melts your heart! As it turns out they have 25 children there from the age of 2 to 16, every bed in the house is full and they are at their limit. But Margaret has everything so well organized and scheduled, I was actually very impressed! The dilemma they are currently facing is they have no teachers for the younger children at home, and the older ones are sent off to the local schools in the area. So Margaret begged for us to please come and at least teach the children the Bible when we could! How can you say no to that??? I just can’t! And seeing how I have been trying to set up a study with Margaret anyhow this just opens that door even further, as well as to the 8 adults who work in and around the home… with these children. So on Thursdays I will go early in the mornings to hold Bible Class, there at this nearby orphanage and study with Margaret after teaching the children! One of the things that caught my eye while we were
Julie with Baisil
Littlest child at Kili Kids... also HIV positive there was a small feeble attempt at a garden with week and dying plants all over the place. Margaret said that a few of the older boys and the 2 teenage girls had been trying hard but unsuccessfully at planting their own vegetable garden to help supply food for themselves, but it was sad that they worked so hard and nothing came of it. I could see Brent written all over that one… So I brought Him back with me later in the afternoon and I just knew he would want to teach these kids a few helpful hints about gardening, so he’s going to return there Monday to begin helping them to learn how to develop and grow their garden. Margaret was so excited and said that hopefully that would teach them the skills they needed to grow up to be responsible young men, who wanted to provide for their families. Plus, there are many biblical truths to be applied in working with your hands in the dirt!
All in all its been a busy, but rewarding week, even with the duck bite and all!
And it's not even over yet! I just had so many pictures taken
Teresia, Ellyoverrose, and Abagail
I had some clothes and household goods that I thought they could use. that I knew I needed to get them on here with a new blog before any thing else exciting happened! Thank you for all your love, prayers, and support. We couldnt be here without you!
Love you all so much!
Julie
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Mildred Whitlock
non-member comment
Thanks for sharing your life
The pictures are wonderful and your children seem to be growing up so fast and but I'm sure you are aware of that since you see them everyday. What a tremendous life experience for your entire family and I thank God everyday for you all. Keep up the good work and remember that we love and appreciate you for being there. God is so good!! Love to all, Mildred Whitlock