INCREDIBLE NSOBE WEEKEND

We left this afternoon for Nsobe which is an establishment in the bush and very rural. There is a school there that caters to the neighbouring villages and is run with minimal supplies. We are headed there for 2 days of teaching at the school and providing the teachers with supplies and instruction on how to implement them. As we turned off the highway, we had to go along a dusty sandy road for about 1/2 hour before we arrived at the school and then the camp. It was Sunday afternoon so we arrived and were checked into our accommodations which were permanent tents on the lake. As stunning as they were, I was quite concerned that my tent did not zip up at the bottom and monkeys abound! I was worried that some specimen or another would find my way into my tent so I was graciously moved to a chalet with four walls and a door!!!! It was already 3:30pm so we rented bikes and decided to do a riding safari. We took off on our bikes and what an experience!!! I was riding through the bush in Africa on a bike and surrounded by nothing but the wilderness and any animals that may be close by: waterbuck, impala, bushbucks, sable, giraffes, zebras, snakes!!!! (I have to say I wanted to get through the grassy areas as quickly as possible!!!!) We rode until sunset and as we pulled into the lodge a beautiful red sun had just disappeared behind the hills. We showered (as we were solid dust!) and went to the lodge restaurant for dinner, but not before some amazing photos on the lake. We couldn't get cell reception and all of a sudden my phone started dinging …. apparently if you sit at the very farthest picnic table on the left it is the only spot for reception in the whole park……and we just happened to plant ourselves there!!! Back into my chalet and settled under my mosquito net feeling so blessed to be here! Tomorrow we teach at the school and I am rather terrified! No idea what to expect ….

TIME TO SAY GOODBYE

We had to say farewell to our team today, and it was sad. Mike, Jane and Bev put their heart and soul into their time at Grace Academy, and they will be sadly missed by the kids. The children just love and appreciate the gift of our time, no matter what we are doing. Colouring in is always a favourite pastime and it is so lovely and peaceful when everyone is focused on the art….except when two people want the same colour and then … "kids will be kids!" I will especially miss everyone as it has been so great having familiar faces from home to share this beautiful experience with.

HOSPITAL CARE PACKAGE DELIVERY

Got up this morning to head into the hospital and drop off the care packages. We arrived and were taken up to the "Machinga Ward" which is where the most severe and critical cases are located. We opened up the bags and took several care packages each to distribute and began heading into the rooms. Each room had about 8 cribs in it with a child in each one and a mother (or care giver) sitting with the child. Children in the hospital must have an adult stay with them and be responsible for feeding them. The hospital does not provide meals so people need to support their own families. The children's eyes brightened when they received their care package and I made sure to take the stuffy out and hand it to the child so they knew it was for them. It is a humbling experience every day in this country and I consider it a privilege to be able to deliver the packages made with so much love by our own Grade 5 and Grade 2 students at Hazelgrove. We arrived back at Grace in time for lunch, and just in time to see the pre-school children outside playing on their break. Such sadness and joy all wrapped up in a few hours…

FIELD TRIP FOR GRACE KIDS

We had arranged to take the Grace students to a copper mine in Kitwe, which is a neighbouring city, today; however, we were told yesterday that the mine had cancelled. So, in Zambian style, we quickly re-arranged our plans and so as not to let the kids down, we managed to organize a swimming trip to a local hotel (well actually the only hotel) in Nsobe. Getting everyone organized was a bit of an ordeal as the children do not have their own swim suits (as they really only get to swim once or twice a year) so they are kept a storage room with other clothing and supplies. We finally got everyone suited up and sorted with a life jacket and boarded the bus. The pool was an outdoor pool and was clean and well kept; however, it was VERY COLD!!! The kids didn't mind and had a wonderful afternoon. We returned to Grace, and promptly turned around after dropping the kids off and headed back into Ndola for some shopping and dinner. It was our final dinner before the team leaves on Saturday as the next two nights are booked with events with the children. We returned from dinner and went over to the cafeteria to colour in with the kids. Was a great day.

NSOBE BUSH SCHOOL

Today we took 9 students for the day on an excursion. Our first stop was the Nsobe Trust School which is a school in the bush that has about 200 community students. The students walk from surrounding villages and one little girl in grade 5 walks 7 km each way to school and home. The school has minimal supplies and funding, but they are sponsored by Seeds of Hope and are able to provide a porridge breakfast and small lunch to the children every day. The kids start grade 1 with no English and are learning the basics academically which will hopefully give them a chance in life. Next week Gerry and I are going to teach at this school for 2 days in the hopes of opening up the teacher's minds to different approaches to education rather than standing at the front of the room to deliver a lesson. After our visit to the school, we drove into the game farm which is a small but lovely location on a lake. It is a fish farm with some wildlife and a reptile area. The kids from Grace just love this field trip because at the end of the day they get to go swimming in a pool. This is a highlight for them as they rarely get to go swimming and a few times a year they might get this opportunity. The lifejackets are necessary because being around water is so foreign to them. It was delightful to watch them hanging onto the sides and splashing around with squeals and laughter.

BACK AT GRACE

We have settled into life back at the Orphanage and the team has begun teaching. Today we did a trip to an Ndola Compound which is where the poorest people (other than street people) live. Most of the children in the compounds don't get to go to school because their families have no money to pay for the uniform that is mandatory. We were going in to deliver food to the widows that Seeds of Hope Supports and as soon as we arrived we were surrounded by the local children. They desperately wanted their pictures taken because it was the only times they ever get to actually see an image of themselves. They would push each other out of the way to pose, and then all huddle around to look at the viewfinder and burst into giggles at the images of themselves. It was so incomprehensible to see them so full of joy and laughter when their living conditions are deplorable. They were all filthy dirty, and some of their skin was so dry the dirt was caked into their skin. Sugar and oil is sold by the tablespoon in little baggies because they can't afford to buy more than that much at a time. Everyone was outside sitting in the dirt, just waiting for the hours of the day to go by. This type of scenario is what World Vision goes into to support, and until you walk through one of these villages it is impossible to comprehend the poverty. The guilt and privilege I feel tonight does not feel pleasant and reminds me of the importance of drawing attention to this global issue rather than pretending it does not really exist. These people are human beings and we treat our animals better than these beautiful souls get to experience. Something is very wrong with that picture :(

DRIVE LIVINGSTON TO NDOLA

7 sleepy travellers up and into the van at 4am this morning for the long drive back to Ndola. Jane and I were crammed in the very back with a cooler and food box between us so we lay on each other and snuggled up to sleep the best we could. The trip was extremely bumpy with all of the potholes along the way and Gerry did an amazing job navigating them and minimizing the jarring. This did not aid our attempts at sleeping though and we were all jolted out of a doze abruptly countless times. We were about 30 minutes away from Grace Academy when I heard a strange sound in the back left side of the van. I listened and heard it again but didn't say anything so as not to cause unnecessary drama…..5 minutes later the van suddenly dropped on the left side with a horrific scraping sound as Gerry struggled to gain control of the vehicle and veer us off to the side of the road. We came to an abrupt halt as the tire of the van went bouncing by and on down the shoulder of the highway. With the vehicle safely on the side of the road, we all exited the van and tried to regain our composure as we looked at Mike, who was apparently unfazed and had began to spray himself with bugspray!!!! (This is after he had picked up the missing pieces of the van!) We contacted Susan who was immediately on her way to pick us up, so while we anxiously awaited we unloaded our luggage and piled it all up on the side of the highway. The problem with this as Jane quickly deduced, was that we foolish "Musungu" or white people were now advertising we had all sorts of things that might be worth a lot to poor African people who don't even own a toothbrush! We promptly piled all of the bags back into the vehicle!!! We waited on the side of the highway in the dark for Susan to pick us up, which she did promptly and got us all back to Grace safe and sound. Our trip has been nothing short of an adventure day in and day out to say the least.