A Baby Lives

When a malnourished child is brought to my front door, I admit that my heart drops. By the time, this child is brought to my door, it is usually after the family has visited the witchdoctor and attempted to use medicine rather than food to bring healing. Malnourishment is often brought on as a result of being weaned abruptly because a new born enters the family. Then, the mother's love and care for the infant takes priority over the one or two year old whose nutrition begins to decline. Families who have goats or cows would be able to continue giving that child much needed milk, but such families are few.

The situation worsens when a mother dies in childbirth. This was the case with the little boy who came to my door. Not only was his mother deceased, his father was also and he was now in the care of his aged grandmother who comes from one of the poorest villages around us.

I took one look at this 10 month old baby and thought to myself, "It will be a miracle if this child lives." But I couldn't close my door. Though the child's eyes were sunken and the bones seemed to protrude from his loosened skin; though there was no strength in his muscles and no life in his eyes; I knew I had to give what I had. I offered to give milk powder on a weekly basis. This 80 lb grandmother, stooped with age, seemed barely to have strength enough to care for her own needs but when I handed her the mixture of milk powder and sugar, she said, "I will return each week as you asked." And she has.

That first day, I handed her a tiny cup of milk and she fed this little boy sip by sip. He couldn't even finish 1/4 cup; the effort was too much. Week after week, this grandmother returned and it seemed the effort was meaningless. No weight gain. No strength. How could it be that this child was not any stronger!?

2 months later, I asked the grandmother if she had seen any change. "Oh yes! He is much stronger than before. He is starting to talk and play and hold the cup by himself." And it was true. He was now able to finish the small cup full of milk without falling asleep. He had a spark in his eye. The improvement seemed very slow but we continued. Then he fell headfirst into a fire and his face was covered in burns. They took a month to heal.

6 months of milk added to a Gumuz diet of porridge and beans and this little boy crawls with great speed. He laughs and talks and stands and is full of spunk. His grandmother was told to visit the witchdoctor because he was more than a year and still not walking. She answered, "Look how strong he is, why should I give a goat when I know he will soon walk!" And it is true. He is taking his first steps. And all who see him are amazed.

And I wonder. Has God kept this child alive for a purpose? Will he one day be one who shares the gospel with his people, his village and beyond? After all, God saved Moses against all odds. He gave Hannah, Samuel and He gave Elizabeth, John. Against all odds, God uses those who are weak to do great things. Because of a faithful grandmother, because the Lord has a purpose, this little boy who was on the brink of death is filled with laughter and strength.

A Productive Mother's Day

We do not live by the calendar. That became rather obvious when I realized it was mother's day last night as I read my own mother's email mentioning an upcoming family gathering. Ahh yes. I should probably inform my husband so that he can inform the children. It is always strangely awkward to inform one's family that it is mother's day. Really it is not so important to me but it is important to them and so I did pass on the information. And my husband told the children first thing in the morning. And the whispers began. My eldest daughter had a plan. The children left church with a long list of things they wanted to accomplish while I was teaching the Gumuz ladies. When I returned, the laundry had been rehung (taken in from the porch lines during last night's thunderstorm), a cake had been mixed together and cards had been made by all the children.

What I didn't realize is that my daughter was busy with another task that kept her in her room for much of the afternoon. Just before the apple cake was served for dessert, she announced, "I am done!" What a surprise to be wrapped in a long blue knitted scarf that she had begun just this morning. Yes I would say that my children did well with the short notice they were given. Happy Mother's Day!

For some, it is a time of sadness as they remember a mother who has passed on or a mother who is ill. For others, it is a time of rejoicing as they honour a mother that they love dearly. For me, it reminds me of two things. One, to reflect on the influence my own mother has had on my life. To thank her for raising me with godly values and the desire to pass them on. And two, to reflect on my role as a mother. My children have been given to me as a gift from the Lord. I am called to love them and teach them to love people and to love the Lord their God with all their heart. This is not an easy task but it is an honour. And so I believe Mother's day is not only a day to honour my mother but to reflect on whether I am a mother that my children can honour.

My Roasted Sunbird by Joel Kruse

One early morning last week, I decided to go hunting with my Gumuz bow and arrows. I walked up to the top of the hill to hunt a rat but I saw a bird land in a fig tree. It was v

ery small and black. I pulled back the bow string with my bird shooting arrow. It has an arrow with barbs attached to the top of the shaft and eight pointy thin sharp pieces of wood surrounding the arrow tip a little lower. The arrow hit its target. The arrow went through the bird and it was stuck in the "cage" made by the eight pieces of wood.

The arrow took the bird a far distance away. I ran to get my arrow and bird and sprinted home to show my family. It was almost school time but my mom (teacher) said that I could roast the bird and eat it for breakfast. I built a small fire and started plucking the feathers. 

 A Gumuz lady passing by helped me (I didn't actually want her help). She told me to just put the bird on the fire and not take off the feathers. So that's what I did. The feathers just burnt off. Then my sisters, Micah (our 3 year old neighbour boy) and I ate the bird. We ate all the parts even the head. The feet were burnt off so we didn't eat them.

Later we looked up what kind of bird it was and it was a sunbird. It was really small maybe 14 cm and had black feathers and its chest was kind of a shimmery purple. It was a good breakfast but wasn't very filling so I went inside and ate french toast with strawberry sauce. Then we went to school.

Green Mamba Dies by Ariana Kruse

One day, last week, when we were in school, we heard a great commotion. Our teacher (mom) said we could go outside to see what was happening. There was a group of 6 Gumuz men by our mango tree. They had their bows and arrows and were all shouting. They had seen a snake in the tree and were all taking turns shooting at it. Some of their arrows got stuck in the tree and some of their arrows went flying into the forest. Then they shot the snake and it was wriggling in the tree and they dragged it onto the ground. It was a long, bright green mamba snake which is very deadly.

Then the Gumuz took rocks and hit the snake on the head until it was smashed and cut off. Then they all took turns spitting at the snake. They put the snake onto an ant hill so it would get eaten up. I am sad that snakes like our mango tree because we can't sit in it anymore.

Shelly's Adventure by Kalia Kruse (two weeks ago)

Kalia: One sunny afternoon, my mom walked out of our classroom and saw a surprising sight. It was a tortoise crawling at quite a speed. She called us to come and see if it was one of ours. It was! But how did Kufkuf, Joel's tortoise, get out of its enclosure? We went to see and sure enough there was a gap in the fence. Then we saw that Shelly, my tortoise was also missing. We searched and searched. We searched around our house and through the forest but we couldn't find her anywhere. We were really scared that Gumuz children might find her and cook her for supper. They eat tortoise stew. Here is Shelly's adventure from her perspective.

One day, I escaped from our large but boring enclosure. It was exciting! I climbed up a slippery rock and there it was....an opening. It was like Kalia left that for me so I could experience the great outdoors. I slid down the other side and voila! I was out.

I started out right away. First, I discovered the big fig tree. A perfect, juicy fig sat in front of me! I ate until I was full of the delicious fruit. After several days of wandering through the forest, I felt warm hands touching my shell. Up, up, up, I flew! "Oh great." I thought. "Now I am caught." The young Gumuz girl brought me to a different home. I liked my old one better. Then after another day or two, she brought me back to my old home. Kalia handed over a leaf and I was hers again. It was good to be home.

Kalia: I was so happy when Yampu brought Shelly back to me. She is one of our closest Gumuz neighbours. I gave her ten birr (the leaf) as a thank you.

The Spirit moves on Easter Sunday

On Easter morning, we were expectant. We believe that God is using the Gumuz believers on Gesses mountain to bring the good news to the villages around us. Two weeks earlier, Rolf had encouraged the leadership team to plan to celebrate Easter by inviting unbelievers to the church, by bringing the gospel songs into the village and by celebrating with goat meat and coffee or keya. We left for a week in Addis and returned just two days before Easter. We were disappointed to hear that the leadership team had not planned anything and in addition most of them were absent! Rolf spoke with the remaining elder of the church encouraging him to use this holiday to share the gospel and to fellowship together.

On the eve of Easter and again Easter morning, Rolf and I committed the Easter service to the Lord. We truly desired to see glory come to God whatever that looked like. We prayed that the Spirit would lead the Gumuz to celebrate Easter the way that He desired. And so we arrived at church expectant.

Church was filled with 80-100 men, women and children and the singing began. As the second song began, two women were called to pick up the drum pole standing against the wall and lifted up the large drum that was being drummed. Then the song leader led us out of the building, out of the church property and out on the road. Several women and children came running to join in the singing. We continued to move along singing the Gumuz Easter worship songs as we walked. More men, women and children joined us and our group grew. 

We walked to the edge of an unreached village and spent 1/2 hour singing songs of praises and the song of Jericho. The walls were coming down.  

Gumuz who have never entered a church building heard the songs of praise. The Spirit led the believers to boldly and joyfully enter villages worshipping and they were received gladly. And as we walked, our numbers increased and we returned to the church double in number. 

Two goats had been prepared and the meat was unusually plentiful. Coffee was served and all who came not only heard the gospel but their stomachs were satisfied. May the Spirit continue to lead Gumuz to take the gospel into villages that have not heard of the One who Saves.

Yes, even the little ones enjoyed goat meat this Easter.

What is Sister-Exchange Marriage?

One of the first Gumuz cultural practices that I learned about was sister exchange marriage. Despite seeing the challenges that Sudanese face in getting a bride, this practice seemed to trump them all. In most cases, Sudanese brides are "bought" with cows and goats in addition to a new house, clothes and houseware.

But the Gumuz practice a very complex marriage custom which requires that two men from different clans are willing to exchange sisters. Ideally both young men have sisters of approximately the same age. Ideally these sisters are also what we would deem marriageable age. (Yet we have seen on numerous occasions when this is not the case and one girl is under 12 years old.) Although the girls are at times given the right to say no, there are many times when they have no choice in the matter and are traded as if they were materials rather than girls of value.

Of course, most practices have a purpose and this one does as well. It "secures" the marriage for if one marriage fails, the other marriage is forced to separate. If one man is unhappy with his bride and beats her or sends her away, his sister will also return home so the relatives put pressure on them to live at peace. It also "secures" a potential peaceful relationship with another clan and pacifies enemies.

But like most things, sin has corrupted a potential good idea into something devastating. When a woman is unable to give birth, she is seen as useless and returned to the family within a few years. If she is returned, the other marriage (which may have already produced several children) is also broken and that wife compelled to returned to her parents as well.

If one wife is beaten by her husband, the other man is required to beat his wife, regardless of whether he is happy with her or not. If and when he refuses to do so, his family will become angry and place increasing pressure on him. Recently, this has happened to one of our Christian staff. Because his sister is unwilling to return to her husband (because she is being beaten) and because he is unwilling to beat his own wife, he is no longer allowed to live with her. It seems as though there is no way for him to continue living with his wife if his sister refuses to return to her husband.

This sister exchange marriage sounds "simple" until one asks: What if a woman births only boys and there are no sisters to exchange? Then wives must be "purchased" for 10 cows, numerous goats and other items. This becomes so costly that some men must wait many years. A woman might birth only girls in which case, they must wait for a potential suiter willing to buy them. 

A woman might birth girls first and then some boys at the end in which case the girls must wait until their brothers grow up before they can wed. I have a dear friend who has already "promised" her 5 year old son to a family who will take him for their 8 year old daughter. This allowed my friend's 18 year old daughter to marry the older brother of the other family. Sound confusing? It is.

Then polygamy enters the picture. Consider, for instance, a family with one boy with 4 sisters. He is able to trade each one of his sisters for a bride allowing him to have 4 wives without payment. If he refuses to do this, his sisters will have to wait until a man is willing to purchase them.

I don't claim to understand it fully but there are pressures and difficult decisions that believers need to make as they find themselves in situations they have no control over. What if their wife does not produce children? Will they go against their culture and keep her? What if they have unmarried sisters? Will they take a second wife in order to allow her to be married? What if their wife is taken back against their will? Pray that believers would have wisdom and that God would intercede on their behalf.