Weekend at a River

Last weekend, we were invited to visit another missionary family that works 2.5 hours west of us among the Gumuz people. These Gumuz speak a different dialect that here in Gesses and they also have the luxury of living near a large river. The last hour of our trip was on the roughest road I have driven in Ethiopia. Rainy season makes it even more challenging. The kids were thrilled to be able to take Friday off of school for our "field trip" and we arrived just before lunch. The first thing I noticed was that the Gumuz men and women had fishing nets. The second thing I noticed is that their bodies and clothes were much cleaner than the Gumuz here and for good reason. The shallow river gave plenty of water for washing bodies and clothes.

These friends have been living in this village for 8 years and it was wonderful to see the fruit of their labors. Visiting them in an even more remote location made us appreciate some of the luxuries that we have: cell network and a fairly decent road. It also made us yearn for the beauty of a river. Growing up in Manitoba with numerous rivers and lakes made swimming a daily activity in the summer months. So here in the heat of the dry season, we yearn for water and yet these are the very months we must ration our water supply.

So we spent two glorious days at the river. The kids swam and waded. They slid and tubed down little waterfalls and the little ones dug in the sand. It was encouraging to visit with this family and Rolf had the opportunity to visit one of the evening church services as well. It was supposed to be a 5-8pm event but it became much lengthier. An hour drive, a 20 minute walk, a 2 hour wait, an hour service, 1/2 hour hospitality, a 20 min walk home, an hour drive home and they arrived sometime after 11pm.

The kids and I went to bed in our tin roofed and tin walled guesthouse and I was glad I wasn't a newcomer to Ethiopia. The river sounds were plentiful and the sound of hyenas seemed somewhat close. I imagined that the car had broken down and the men were walking home. Without cell phone network, there was no way of knowing. The 104F temperature of the afternoon had dropped and the night was cool and comfortable.

We had a lovely time connecting with this family who have 3 children, one studying at a missionary school and the other two Joel and Ariana's ages. It was so special for our kids to have playmates that live in such similiar circumstances and for me to connect with another missionary mom who homeschools her kids in the morning, does ministry when able and attempts to creatively feed our families with limited resources (no store or market to buy food from). It was good for Rolf to share ministry challenges and joys and be encouraged to persevere joyfully.

It wasn't just a weekend at a river but a time to share with another family who has left the comforts of home to bring the gospel to the ends of the earths. There are times that we question if what we are doing is worth the cost. Somehow knowing we are not alone in these unusual struggles fills me with renewed joy.

Two weeks with guest teachers and mom at work

Well it has been two weeks since a lovely couple joined us here in Gesses. I find myself worrying about whether they are managing okay with all our inconveniences. Is the heat too much? Are they able to put meals together with enough protein and vegetables? Are they enjoying teaching my children? Will they be able to look back on their month and feel that their service was worth it? But then I push the worries aside because they are managing. They are always cheerful, always ready to serve and the two weeks has already been worth all the effort that they put into coming.

The children are doing well. I can even say that my youngest three are thriving under Johanna's caring spirit. The older two are "typical" older students who struggle against schoolwork and yearn for freedom. Yet I am always pleased with their positive responses to their morning of classes with John. Each afternoon, the girls wait for rest time to be over and then run over to the Moe's house for an afternoon of arts, crafts, and sewing.

Last night, Rolf and I enjoyed a quiet supper and evening together which is a rare and treasured event. The kids returned at 8 pm from their evening with the Moe's and they were bouncing with excitement (maybe all the sugar). What a treat to have people come who are grandparents. The extra touches are exactly what our kids need! Special suppers and desserts and a good game of Uno!

My mornings have been spent learning language through translation work and song writing. It is a special opportunity and in so many ways the timing is just right. Andrea (wife of Travis who is doing Bible translation in a town an hour away) has been able to join me these past 2 weeks as well though she will have to leave for Addis for the next 6 weeks. Our vocabulary has been growing and our confidence in speaking as well. Neither of us are aiming for fluency but only that we might be faithful in using what we know.

We have two more weeks with John and Johanna and I won't be surprised at all if the next two weeks are even greater than the first. Pray that the children would grow in understanding and willing to be stretched in new ways. Pray that the Moes would joyfully continue to serve here in Gesses and not grow weary. Pray that I might grow in confidence and skill in the Gumuz language and have wisdom in my ministry this month. Pray that Rolf would persevere joyfully through some tough administration and that there would be great fruit as he walks alongside the young Gumuz men in church leadership.

Two days with new teachers

It is Sunday night and our family gathered around the fire outside to share food, conversation and song. I found myself guiding the conversation around the upcoming week of school and how to improve classroom etiquette. 

Everyone survived day one - students and teachers - two sibling arguments and one happy 6 year old who finally got unlimited one on one time. Two teachers with 5 kids is a pretty good ratio!

Meanwhile I spent the morning in the translation office and by noon, I was certainly ready for a break. Working in 3 languages has its challenges and one of them is feeling a strange sort of weariness. One of the things we did was put together a song reflecting God passing over the sin of the Israelites through blood sacrifice and God passing over our sin by the blood of Jesus.

Day two went a little smoother, I think. Joel is used to doing his work on the floor, in a tree, and most of all on the window sill. I forgot to mention this to his teacher. I also forgot to mention that when Joel gets restless, I send him for a run around the house (which can be every 20 minutes sometimes). How is a boy supposed to sit still for 1/2 hour after all?

Meanwhile....I went to visit my friend Yagufok at her home, drank a cup of keya at the chief's house, then ate thick porridge with bean stew and hot pepper. Sonia chased baby chicks around, I was able to practice conversational Gumuz and record two songs that Yagufok created for the church.

The rest of my morning was spent in the translation office and I was glad it was already Friday.

Kalia is loving (already) the crafty person that Johanna is and she spent the whole afternoon doing sewing projects! Her dream come true! She is finally getting to learning how to use a sewing machine and spent all day Saturday sewing a pillowcase dress!

We are only a few days into this new experience but I know it will benefit us all in special ways. Of course that doesn't mean it is going to be all that easy.

Each of us is in a place of vulnerability as our weaknesses are exposed to each other. Yet my prayer is that as we willingly humble ourselves, God is glorified.

A new season: homeschooling to translation work

Yesterday John and Johanna arrived in Gesses, today they observed the Kruse School life and tomorrow they will take on the task of managing our three children in three different grades, a preschooler and a toddler. I realize that this one room school room has become normal and routine but I wonder what it looks like to those coming from a classroom teaching experience. Overwhelming, fun, chaotic, spontaneous, orderly, creative, difficult or fantastic?
For myself, it is a lot of all those things mixed in with the best bonding experience I could ever imagine with my very own children. Although it is unlikely I would have chosen to homeschool in normal circumstances, it has become a time in life that I will treasure forever.
Yet I also treasure the new experiences that both the children and I will have this month. They will have the privilege of having experienced teachers who have come to serve and to love and invest in them. They will bring new and fresh ideas, challenging them in new ways. I am excited for them because I desire for them to have godly role models in their lives. 
In the meantime, I will attempt to invest in language learning, teaching, translation work and song writing. I am not sure my brain has the capacity to actually function at the level I need it to for the next month. It is quite likely that I will be eager to return to my comfortable chaos over analyzing language and grammar. 
But it's only a month and it's only the mornings and so my prayer is that through this time, we will all grow in knowledge and in love. I pray that the children will remember all the teaching I have done on love, joy, peace, patience and self-control and that they will honor each other and their teachers. I pray that the younger ones will become more independent and remember to communicate their bodily needs! I pray that John and Johanna would be filled with energy, joy and patience in a challenging and inconvenient environment. 
PS - I just returned from prayer time and my 6 year old prayed (without any prompting from me). "Help us Jesus to have our best behaviour tomorrow when Mr. and Mrs. Moe teach us." I often say Amen to her prayers!

Bingham Academy Field Days – our first experience

We have never been able to make it to Addis for the annual field days held at the end of January. This year we made a special trip for the event and then added a few days to get some needed business done like renewing Rolf's 3 month expired driver's license and car inspection.

It was well worth the 11 hour drive to participate in a 2 day event where the children could try different field events and spend time with friends. The highlight for me was seeing my children not only succeed in their events but to really put their heart into it. They were so thrilled with just a couple of ribbons which seemed to be unusual in a setting where many kids are aiming for 1^stplace in as many events as possible.

Hearing children who are disappointed with 2^nd place somehow dampens the whole experience. In general though, I would say the attitudes that I saw were unusually positive.My 4 hopes for my children were that they would have fun, gain confidence, do their very best and not get injured. All those things happened even for Ariana, who didn't participate in the events, as she independently ran off to play both days with her best friend.

What was the best part of field days?

Kalia: I enjoyed running the 100 metre race and the 50 metre hurdles. There were 4 hurdles 10 metres apart. I also had fun doing the ball throw and the 3 legged race with my friend Hadassah. It was so nice to run on grassy fields in barefeet. In Gesses the ground is very rocky.

Besides races, there was lots of food at field days. We brought some picnic food along but we could also buy popcorn, frozen drinks, injera and hamburgers. I also liked spending time with some of my friends. I only get to see them every 2-3 months.

Joel: I enjoyed my races. I liked doing the 50 m sack race, the 200 metre sprint, ball throw, and hurdles. It was my first time to be at field days. I didn't like the loud music but I liked the snacks.

Ariana: I liked watching my friends race and also Kalia and Joel. I just wanted to cheer this year. I spent lots of time on the playground with my best friend.

Nadia: I liked doing the race with daddy. I had to hold onto his back really tight and we raced. We were fast!

Rolf: I liked watching my children do their best. I kind of enjoyed the 400 metre sprint. I love racing but it was kind of painful and hurt my chest. The altitude in Gesses is 1500 feet and Addis about 8,000 feet so it is not easy to make the transition quickly. I also enjoyed seeing friends some whom we only see once a year.

Our Butterfly field trip

On Monday, we went to the Menagesha Mountain. It is the oldest forest preserve in Africa. It is 400 years old. It took us about an hour to drive to this forest and it was beautiful. There were newly planted pine trees among eucalyptus, cedars and indigenous trees.

As soon as we arrived, we could already see the forest was full of beautiful butterflies which we later found out were called the yellow king swallow tail, sulphur butterfly, etc.

This field trip was for homeschool families in Addis and downcountry and there were about 12 families represented. One of the dads is an expert on butterflies and so he gave an hour teaching time and then we drove to the forest.

His knowledge and enthusiasm was incredible and the walk was beautiful. There were dozens of baboons that were roaming around nearby after our picnic lunch.

We were all pretty tired from field days and our Sunday events but we were so glad that we went. It reminded us somehow of home.

Here are some of the things that we learned:

Kalia: Butterflies have different dances. Each different kind of species has a different dance. It is a mating dance. They find out if it can be their mate if they do the right dance. Males and females do opposite dances. Two males might dance with each other but because their dance is the same, they fly away.

Joel: Butterflies can split their proboscis in half when something gets plugged in this “straw” like banana or something big that they are sucking. Then they use their legs to get the stuck chunk out and then the proboscis closes again.

Ariana: Butterflies have 17,000 eyes and can see in every direction. The eyes are all joined together but have little hairs between them. They can see for 200 metres. They have good smell too. They can smell 5 miles away.

When you hold a butterfly, you should hold the butterfly by holding the 2 wings together at the front of the wings.

Rolf: Butterflies do not only see regular light but also ultraviolet light. On every flower that they drink from, God has put little rows of dots that can only be seen by ultraviolet senses. These dots point the way to the nectar kind of like a runway at night.

Nadia: Butterflies can hide themselves by closing up their wings and camouflaging themselves.