Saturday, October 29

No work today – we had the morning and early afternoon free to sleep in, to walk the grounds, and to catch up on e-mail and such like.

The pictures of LaRochelle that are linked to this blog aren’t necessarily current. The house and grounds are now owned by the National Trust for Zimbabwe (in fact, it may be the only property that they own ...) and like so many other historic preservation groups money is hard to come by. There has been a woman from the National Trust in the UK staying to take a survey of needs and to offer advice for grants and other sources of funding. The grounds are still gorgeous and many of us took the opportunity this morning for a walk around while it was still cool. There is an orchid house, lots of "intentionally naturalized" landscaping, and trees from all over the world.

Of course it quickly became too warm (read HOT) to wander around so we retreated to the lounge and the veranda to drink oceans of iced water and to rest. Cedric (one of the AU workers – he’s an electrician) was here for a bit to show us the soapstone carvings that he makes. One of the other guests brought out a sculpture that he had purchased from someone else and Cedric quickly identified exactly where the stone came from!! The soapstone is found in all sorts of different colors but apparently different colors come from different locations.

Mary Beth and Dona Lou returned just before lunch. They had a wonderful time with Lovemore and Julie and their family (including Dona Lou’s namesake Dona Lou!) at the Murehwa Mission. There is a school there with 1300+ students – they even have a class for special needs children. The station also has a hospital and a nursing school.

And then it was time for the party. We had sent invitations to all of the AU students who are attending with the help of scholarships from Indiana Conference UMC or from Indiana UMC churches. They arrived in one of the mini-buses driven by Douglas and accompanied by Sharai and Susan from the AU Information Office. Moses (AU alumnus) and his wife Pamela, and Hazvinei (another AU alumnus) were also on-board. Simon and his posse set up a barbeque out on the lawns and we had a Braai – a picnic or barbeque. We started by pairing each of the nine students with a team member for individual conversation and then gathered everyone together for introductions. There are actually 11 students with connections to Indiana but two of them are on attachment (internship) and were unable to come. Then we descended upon the buffet and the conversation continued – between bites and later between raindrops! We finished our meal on the verandah and in the lounge when we started getting seriously wet. Then before dessert we continued with the introductions and had a chance to hear from each of the students why they chose Africa University.

It was interesting that they all mentioned in some way that one of the things that they have appreciated is the cross-cultural environment. So many of them said something about how they had never met someone from a different country until they arrived at AU; that they were glad to learn about all of the diversity in Africa – not just the languages (remember many arrive speaking neither English nor Shona) but the customs of their fellow students. Of the nine students we met tonight we had kids from Zambia, Liberia, Mozambique, DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo), Nigeria, and Angola.

They were also very eloquent about why they wanted the education from Africa University. Some planned to join an NGO to help their country, others plan to teach, some to contribute through public health initiatives, and others through the church. All of them were appreciative for the VIM (Volunteers in Mission) teams that they see at AU, across the valley at Old Mutare Mission, and in the various mission stations where many of them grew up or attended school. Some amazing stories.

We had a wonderful time. The students were pretty tentative at first but once the conversation started flowing it was hard to shut it off – even when the lights went off (electricity is fairly reliable but every now and then it just shuts off!). But part of the party favors were glow stick bracelets so when the lights failed you could still see Moses gesturing with his hands while he continued what he was saying. Just a wonderful chance to get to know a few students a little bit closer. A true blessing for all of us.

Friday, October 28

Our ranks have thinned out today (thank heavens something is thinner – the food at LaRochelle certainly isn’t to be missed so no one here is "slimming"). This morning we sent Dona Lou and Mary Beth off to Lovemore’s mission station (Murewha).  Dona Lou wants to see those choir robes that she carried over the ocean!!  Michael the driver was charged with keeping them safe and returning them to us tomorrow. So now we are ten.

And last night Gene came down with something – Bonnie thinks flu from the flu shot he had just before we left. Whatever it was the community advice was to stay in bed and take any of a number of remedies. Not sure who he listened to (but we’ll say it was Bonnie) but he stayed at LaRochelle and slept. By the time we came back he was better – sore throat but not so sore that he couldn’t make jokes. Simon made sure he had some chicken soup at dinner so the cure may be complete.

So nine of us headed for our morning’s work. We dropped Jeanie and Pat at the Hartzell Central Primary School (to give it it’s proper name) at Old Mutare Mission. Jeanie was to give her 3^rd graders an art lesson. Yesterday on our way back from the tour of Maria Humbane’s ministry we stopped at a stationer’s shop and she purchased paper and ink pads. The project was for them to make pictures using their thumbprints. Jeanie said that even the teacher wanted to make a picture!! Pat ran into a bit of a problem. The printer that was printing the photos blew a fuse (or something horribly technical) six photos short of completion. So while she is looking for a solution to that problem she continued to observe the class and share with them about life in America. She says that the teacher has used the promise of the photos as an incentive – they were getting a bit lax in completing their work and he has said that if they do their work they might get a picture of themselves!

We stopped at the bishop’s house to let the workers know that Gene and James wouldn’t be there to work but that Bonnie and Jeanie would be there later (after the art lesson). Then on to the campus. James went to work with the Intensive English students. Conversation is the best way for them to learn – both the students and James!! He is really enjoying the interaction with the students. So is Ron – he holds court with the chess board and learns all sorts of things in the meanwhile. There are benches in a little garden area around the peace pole and that is where you will find Ron.

Jerry and Jerry Jo headed for the farm again and Mary and La Donna went back to the library. Good to know that we are all accomplishing good things!

After a pit stop at LaRochelle so that we can pick up the gift bags (prayer calendars and Aldersgate tapestry bags) and Jerry Jo could change out of her ... umm ... chicken clothes we headed for Mutare and the churches where we were to attend UMW (called RRW here ... Rukwadzano Rwe Wadzimai) meetings. UMW/RRW units all over the district meet at the same every (yes, every) Friday from 2-4. Jeanie and Jerry went back to Hilltop UMC for the meeting there, Bonnie and Mary attended the meeting at Stream View UMC, and La Donna and Pat were at St. Peters UMC. The meetings include sharing testimony, singing, praying, sharing news about those who need assistance, and lessons and discussion about how to live a Christian life. We delivered greetings from UMW of Indiana and presented each of the units with the gift bags. We also presented a UMW Assembly Bible for the district president.

While we were at the meetings the guys (James, Jerry and Ron) went with Douglas to visit the shops. They were amazed at the number of electronics shops – none of which had the thing they were looking for! Some experiences (like technology deprivation) are universal!

Now we have had another wonderful dinner (Simon’s daughter Courtney and her friend Michelle made a lovely glaze for the ham tonight), devotions, and we are watching a DVD of "The Number One Ladies Detective Agency." The night critters are singing and we need to get to bed. Tomorrow we have the day off but we do need to get ready for the party. What party? We’ll tell you all about it tomorrow!!