We rise around 6:30 a.m. and meet together on the upper terrace of the motel for a time of prayer and singing together. It is a wonderful time to watch the sun rise and to rest in the quietness of the day, because the rest of the day is never quiet. Tanzanians play their music very loudly and at night, the music in the motel is so very loud! And of course, during the day it is just very busy and active with so many voices, so the morning time is a blessed sanctuary for us. This morning, while we were singing, a small bird came and plopped himself on the railing and sang right along with us!...it was wonderful.
After devo time, we head to the open dining area and usually breakfast involves some sort of egg...lots of eggs around here! We've also been enjoying some fresh pineapple and orange juice lately...which has been so fantastic! In Tanzania, it is very important for the people to see you wash your hands before you eat and so there is a sink right in the dining area to do so.
After breakfast, we load up our supplies and head to Urafiki for 8 a.m. Usually some of us walk and some ride. I quite enjoy the walk along the dusty street, as I've mentioned previously - it's a wonderful way to connect with people and to see the life of Igoma, in our small section of it - the "barber shops" and market stands, the small children playing in the dirt (thus...the worms in their bellies!) and the variety of shops along the way. Once at Urafiki, we meet with the staff from there and prepare to head out for the day's Clinic. We re-stock our medications and load up our rickety van and start the journey out with a prayer - -either in English or Swahili. The beauty of God is that he has no language barriers! How I wish!
The first two clinics we had to journey quite far, but today was a short distance which made coming home so much quicker after a long day! The clinics usually last until 6 p.m. at the earliest and 7 p.m. has been our latest. The sun sets before 7 p.m. so it is hard to do much after that. Our clinics have been very full! We have seen an average of 200 people a day and I think all of us (Canadians and Urafiki staff) are counting down the days of how many we have left! It is a frantic pace and by the end of the day, we are happy to have a shower (and so far have had water every night!) and then eat supper around 7:30 p.m. And after supper...usually a debriefiing time and then some time for blogging and journaling, if possible.
There is a little girl who lives just outside our motel gate - she and her sister: Latifa and Lea. I cannot wait to post the photo of have of the two of them. They are simply beautiful. Latifa has the most radiant smile...she is a lovely, lovely little girl who thrills every time she sees us come out in the morning or come home at night.
It's almost supper time now, so I'll try and move on to some other blogs. Know that we are all well. We are staying healthy and despite the tiredness, we have known remarkable strength. We pray a lot together and that plays a huge part in our endurance, I know. God is good...that's not just a catch phrase...He really is...in all things.
The street we walked to the Clinic every morning (note the sign on the right - watch your soccer there!)
Charcoal for sale
Moving cattle down the main street
Another cutie just outside our hotel
Some of the kids that live near Urafiki - the boy in the blue shirt at the back and the young girl below are two faces that I recognized from three years ago.
Latifah and Lea :)
Our devo songbird
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