Double Digit Best Birthday Ever by Joel Kruse

On Wednesday, July 23rd, I had the best birthday ever. I turned 10 and I woke up really early. My dad was up and he took me behind our house and gave me my birthday present. It was a live chicken. My favorite color is orange and this hen had orange eyes and orange feathers. 

 We had pancakes with butterscotch pudding for breakfast so I named her Butterscotch. I spent the morning fixing the old coop which is off the ground on bamboo stilts so that predators can't get her. My sister and I made a bamboo ladder so she can climb up into her house.

Our garden is not growing all that well since a herd of cows came through and ate all our corn but our okra is doing great! It is my favourite vegetable and so my mom and I picked large handfuls of okra so she could make okra stew with rice for lunch. My sisters all made me things and my grandparents gave me a baseball, glove and badminton racket. We don't have any stores near us so gifts are pretty special and unexpected.

 I really wanted to have an angel food cake for my birthday but my mom tried making it from scratch once and it didn't work well. It also needs a lot of eggs (which are hard to get) so I didn't think I was going to have that kind of cake. My mom kept it a surprise but she asked some visitors from Canada to bring a cake mix a month ago and so I got an angel food cake with blue whipping cream for my cake. It was awesome! We also had tortillas for supper and another missionary family joined us. We played some games and got treat bags with candy from America.

 Two teams racing to collect 2 L water bottles from all over our large yard.  We had to follow clues.

 Shooting at 2 L water bottles with slingshots.

 My mom didn't think it was going to be the best birthday ever because I couldn't invite my friends over but I think it was special because there were so many surprises. I think when you can't get stuff easily, it is even more special when you do get something special. I am 10 now and even though I don't look different, I feel a little older. It was a great birthday.  By Joel

From mom - We are so proud to call you our son. You received a card on your birthday that said you are Jovial/Joyful/Joker, Optimistic, Enthusiastic/Energetic, Likeable/Loving. 
It's true (though your sisters may not always agree).  You are growing up without all the privileges that so many boys your age have and yet you are thankful, creative and serve those around you cheerfully.  You are a blessing to our home. Happy Birthday Joel! We love you.

Mushroom Collecting Girls

For Gumuz in Gesses, it is mushroom collecting season as there is little else to make into soup or sauce these days. Most people have finished off their beans from last season and are waiting for the okra and pumpkins to ripen. In the meantime they send out their little girls to collect mushrooms. 

I must admit I was not aware of the numerous kinds of edible mushrooms that were available in this area. Mushrooms ranging from head size to pea size with varying colors. Though we have tried a few, I must admit I prefer knowing whether the mushroom is mostly safe or entirely safe to eat. But Gumuz know their mushrooms well and fill up basketfuls while browsing through the forest.

You can imagine how surprised Rolf was one day when a mushroom collecting girl appeared at our door with a wrench in her hand. 

"Is this yours?" she asked. 

Indeed it was. She had found it 2 km away where it had fallen out of the tool kit when riding his motorcycle. 

Then a few days later, another group of mushroom collecting girls appeared at our door. "We found your tortoise. It is over there." They pointed deep into the forest past our house. 

The children raced to find the spot with them and sure enough, there was Joel's tortoise that had escaped its cage several days earlier.

We are still waiting to see whether Kalia's escaped tortoise (second time now) will be found by these highly observant mushroom collecting girls. In the meantime, mushroom soup for everyone!

Forest, our Chameleon

One of the men that works with our dad is a friend of ours.  He knows how much we like pets.  So one day, he found a small chameleon near his field.  Gumuz don't really like chameleons and some of them think they are dangerous.  But, he walked for a whole hour from his field with this chameleon on a stick.   Forest was a very special chameleon.  Usually when we have a chameleon for a pet, we only keep it for a day because it turns grey which means it is unhappy.  Other chameleons have been afraid of us (probably because they are older and wiser).  But Forest was special.  He liked spending time with us. 

Nadia:  I didn't get to hold him a lot.  He was really green.

 Joel:  Forest sometimes turned the color of his environment (though not completely).  He was usually green.  He liked climbing up on top of my head.

 Ariana:  He was such a nice chameleon.  His claws felt like our budgie claws.  

Kalia:  I loved it when he ate a praying mantis.  This was his favorite food and there were plenty of mantises in our back porch.  We loved watching his LONG tongue grab the mantis from a foot away!  He became so tame that he did this while sitting on my hand.

But we decided to let him go back into the wild because we were going on a long driving trip to a large city that didn't have much green space.  We loved having Forest for a whole week and hope we find another one like him.

 This is a much older and wiser chameleon that our dad found the next day but we didn't keep him for more than an hour.  He was kind of mean and hissed at us.

 So we just kept him on a stick and then let him go.

Photos with Tippy

It was time to say goodbye.  There is nothing quite like a camera to capture a memory (though a few can do it just as well with words).  Personally, I think the children holding Tippy are worth capturing all alone but this was a unique and special kitten.

We were able to send Tippy with a family travelling from Gesses to Addis Ababa and we were relieved to hear that she was well received by Born Free, an organization that cares for rescued orphan wild animals (and I believe some of the lions and other wild cats were in the homes of certain officials).

 About 24 hours after Tippy arrived in Addis, she crashed physically.   I wondered if it was the shock of leaving a hot climate with 5 doting children but it seems that something had been brewing.  A vet took care of her and she is apparently gaining strength.  So we might even get the chance to see her again:) 

 Although I am not a huge animal lover, I was once a child.  It is not so long ago that I forget my deep affection for animals.  In fact I am quite sure that it equaled my own children's love.  And so I find, that I open my arms and even my heart to God's little creatures and allow my children the experience of loving all things that He has created.

  Can't you just see the love? 

Until Tippy came to our front door, I didn't even know these wild Caracal cats existed in our "backyard".  I am always amazed at God's hand of creativity in each part of the world.