Beginning of Week 2

Didn't make it out dancing over the weekend...had too many things to do. Maybe next weekend??

Friday night I was in charge of helping another make dinner for our group. Well, I was running late because I had to walk back a few miles from where I was. But it was great to have my UNZA friend, Salome, join us. She pitched in a cooked the chicken, which was fabulous. She taught me a bit about the traditional way a woman is to prepare the chicken for the man and the family. Quite interesting. I have yet to master it. There is even a particular way to cut the chicken. It was interesting prepping dinner in the kitchen....we had no running water for a few days. Imagine how my body felt not having a shower for a few days. When we finally did get water, it was freezing cold. I took a deep breath and endured a very cold shower. It was just nice to be able to wash my hair. We now have water and even warm water, so that's just a blessing.

Saturday I joined an UNZA group back at Kondwa. They were there playing with the kids and helping out where needed. I walked a couple miles to UNZA with my friend, Kabanda, and we joined the rest of the San Jose State and UNZA students for a BBQ at a friend's house in a different part of the city. Both Zambians and Americans brought traditional cultural dishes to share with everyone. Just before it got dark (which is about 6pm here now), the power went out. By that time, it was time for me to get back. My Zambian friend's (from Minnesota) family was waiting for me at their home.

What a great pleasure to meet them! Barbara's family is just great! Her parents call me one of their other daughters. They are so hospitable. After eating dinner and visiting a bit, I went to sleep. My friend's mother woke me up for church and had a warm bath prepared for me. It was my first "sponge bath", as they do not have either a shower or bathtub. They simply connect a hose to the faucet and run the water into a bucket. That's they way they do it. So first time for everything. Church was just great. Everyone was sooooo very nice! I'll probably visit again next week. Later in the afternoon I was given a brief lesson on how to cook nshima, the staple food here. I need more practice.

Today I visited an orphanage called House of Moses. I was in a room full on infants to 18-month-olds. How precious! I helped feed them and held them until they fell asleep. I was told that many of them are abandonded and some are left at the gate of the orphanage. They work with social services to place them for adoption. Again, I'm thinking....."some day".

Today was my first day working with the girls on griefwork. I was fortunate to have a great Canadian girl help me out with the activities. She helped me with the assessments while I conducted and facilitated some activities. I utilized the finger puppets, some stuffed animals, crayons, and paper. The girls talked about what it feels like to be sad, scared, and happy. They drew pictures as well. I was surprised how open they were about talking about the issues that bother them. They openly talked about being sad when they father or mother died. They talked about being scared at night when it's dark outside and some have bad dreams. The girls were great and sang a handful of beautiful songs at the end of the session. What a blessing they are! I will be working with the same group tomorrow afternoon....about 20 girls ages 9 to 11. They have such beautiful smiles and are anxious to show me their drawings and receive praise from me. I am so happy to work with them! I've prepared memory books for them to work on. So I hope to start that tomorrow. I want them to have something to hang on to with words, pictures, etc. about the loss of their loved one....something great to remember them by. Keep them in your prayers.

Thanks all to those who are staying posted with my blogs. I apologize for not being able to blog more often. The internet here seems to take foooooooreeeeeever. Lol. Things we take for granted.

Take care everyone!