Christmas in Tanzania

Season’s greetings with love and best wishes to all,

There is no snow to be “dashing through,” but we’ve been dashing through mud and rain a bit lately.

School was dismissed on December 17 and will resume on January 17. Joanne will continue with other Pre-Form I teachers during the break for the newer students who’ve arrived . . . and continue to arrive. We expect to have 400 in the opening Form I class this January. The rest of the student body numbers 405 to put that into perspective. We’ve completed the class time-table and distributed copies to the teachers so that they can prepare for a very busy year. We are hopeful and expectant of receiving some additional (national) teachers in February. Joanne will be teaching Form I English, as the government has made edict that secondary schools cannot demand more than three or four months of Pre-Form studies.

At the school closing ceremony, we found out that the students had requested and been granted permission to have an alternative uniform to wear two days of the week. Instead of red trousers, ties and scarves, they may wear black with their white shirts. Joanne had orders to make 35 school shirts at that time, which at this writing has grown to 43, as well as five or six pairs of pants, so she had to find out the color of pants desired by the boys, and I will need to go to town to buy black fabric . . . Joanne has developed quite a system for pumping out shirts, cutting as many as 12 out at a time, bagging the pieces with the students’ names, and sewing different pieces together in stages. Those of you who know her well can imagine she is having the time of her life; getting to sew is a form of worship with her.

On Christmas eve day, the “Second” of the school and I went to Mbeya to buy supplies . . . fabric for Joanne, more blackboard paint, and new sports uniforms. As usual, planned activities seldom play out as planned. The material Joanne wanted was not available, and the uniforms were three times the cost we had expected to pay. Fortunately, the Lord got involved, not only in keeping us from spending money on fabric, but in reducing the price of the uniforms so that we had the resources needed. As it turned out, another school had ordered netball uniforms and then backed out of the deal, so the store gave us a very big reduction on that price. They also reduced the individual and total price of the order in gratitude for our buying uniforms for all three sports. In the past, the girls’ netball team (which I think is undefeated) has had only a colored shell to wear over their clothes, the volleyball team has had no uniforms, and the football/soccer team has had only enough jerseys to field a team (subs scramble into the jersey of the person they are replacing) with only a couple of players sporting matching shorts.

I pictured us buying matching uniforms for all sports and creating “school colors,” but that isn’t how they view it over here. It was explained to me this way, “To have the same color will make us look poor . . . people will think we are using the same uniforms for all sports.” Okay, well, we are poor, but to make us look good, we got three different color combinations. I let the VP decide what would be best, suggesting we avoid the same colors as area schools with whom we compete. The resulting selections I honestly didn’t think about it at the time, but those of you in the Iowa City area should get a chuckle…The soccer team will be in West High green and yellow, the volleyball team in City High red and white, and the netball team in U of I black and yellow. (We’ll send pictures later.)

As usual, the trip going and coming is never without adventure. Going, we were in the back of a Toyota pick-up with 25 people and a large crate of chickens and other luggage. Coming back, we missed the last “transport” tuck and finally had to hire a small car, sharing the expense with four other desperate individuals. With the sun well-set 13 hours after leaving, I was met by an anxious wife.

On Christmas, I took a 2½ hour walk to Shomora. I was to go to Ikoka with one of our students, but as often happens, they decided to move the meeting to a branch church in another village. (I’m always told about these changes AFTER we are half way; I suppose they think I’ll back out.) We took the “short cut” to Ikoka, had tea and fry bread at the student’s home, then proceeded the additional 20 minute walk to Shomora. The service was attended by three pastors, lasted 3½ hours, broke for a luncheon of rice, beans, chicken and fish, and concluded with another service of special music by small groups. I was struck with the thought that some of these people are quite talented, would have promising music careers in America, but will be a blessing to just a few people during their lives. When I shared this thought with Joanne, she set me back on the narrow way, reminding me that God is being blessed by these lives, which is a far better service of worship than for the praise of man. The combined church sends its Christmas greeting to the church of America. With the sun setting 11 hours after leaving, I was met once again by a wife relieved to see me home safely and ready to hear of my adventures with God.



Joanne had a few visitors on Christmas Day, staying home to serve the students and staff of Idigima. She made two banana cakes for the teachers, each cooked in a Dutch oven on the charcoal stove. One teacher brought a dressed chicken, which we cooked on Sunday. One of our top girl students came to visit Joanne, bringing gifts of eggs, beans and passion fruit. Joanne reciprocated with gifts of rice and spices to make a favorite dish here of rice pilaf. Joanne had been sick and lost her voice for the week following the closure of the school, so didn’t want to risk relapse from the long day at Shomora, and she avoids at all costs the trauma of traveling to “town” in the back of a truck, hanging onto roll-bars while we bounce over the rocky mountain roads. Sunday night, it was my turn to feel queezy, and after a restless night and day in bed on Monday, am feeling up to some light duty on the computer and around the house.



I've arranged with the Registrar to buy the remaining glass for the classrooms, amounting to 186 panes, which we want to get installed before the students return in January. That and the renovation of the older blackboards on campus are the focus of my holiday break. I will also be serving time on the crank of the sewing machine and working on my Form IV curriculum of summarizing the Old Testament and going into the New Testament.

Busy, but joyful at this season of our Lord's birth. Please know that you, our family and friends, have been in our thoughts and comments a lot. (We’ve been singing to each other, “I’ll Be Home for Christmas, if only in our dreams.”) Our prayers for all of you, the church, is to have a joyous celebration of His redemptive love. Please let us know how we may pray specifically for you.

Love,

Gary and Joanne