Our poor little missionaries were having it a bit rough this morning.They hung on to every word I read from the messages from home and then suddenly they were dropping like flies!!! First one and then another burst into tear and ran for the haven of their room. Those who didn’t run were fighting it. Not just the young ones, either. It was pretty tough even for my mom to watch. So, she thought up an outing quick and we packed all 18 of us into the faithful little pickup and we took off for Mekete.
What a time we had! It was market day and the market section of town is quite large and very interesting. It was raining, but who cares… we were all wearing our raincoats and had shillings in our pockets. It was great!It doesn’t stink quite as bad as I remember Zambian markets smelling, but they don’t have quite so much fish and meat in this market as I remember, either. There were lots of fruits and vegetables, grains and beans. There were fabrics, baskets, machetes, and headwear of all kinds. I look a lot and don’t buy much, but it is fun to see. I finally found a shatanga I liked that I will use in a quilt someday and I found another one of those black and gold shawls I like so much. This one has a village scene on it. We first saw the shawl on a lady. I’m like, “mom look!!! That’s what I want!!!” She just walks right up to the lady and says, “Mamma, where did you buy?” She pointed us to the next duka and sure enough, they had just the one I wanted. I bought a flat basket for sorting beans and rice… I’ll hand on the wall at home. The kids on the other hand go for the bright Kangas and shatangas and headscarves, etc.
There were probably a hundred donkeys staked outside the market waiting for market to be over and everyone to head back up and over the mountains with their burdens. People were quite interested to see this whole gang of white people all together.
Lunch was a bit of a deal. Trying to find a restaurant - or whole in the wall café with enough food to feed us was impossible. Christina and Bethany ate French Fries (they call them chips) at one place while Steve waited for them. Teresa, Brianna, Steve and I ate beans and rice at another place. Jon and the boys found a place and Mom found some chips for her and Izzy. The Kirbys found another hole in the wall where all they made was chips and rice. Mom was very careful to make sure that they didn’t cook meat in the potato oil.
The countryside is so green with misty clouds hanging over the mountaintops. Everything is lush and the mud gets deeper. The drive out to Mekete and back was beautiful. There is a Catholic mission between here and Mekete. You can see a beautiful large church in a big courtyard behind some buildings… mom pointed out that in front of the church is the Catholic bar. That’s where they make all their money. The children lined the road on our way back. I think they were waiting for us to make our return trip. We stopped at the Mago teacher’s and the Lupalilo teacher’s to make sure they are ready for our clothes distribution for orphans tomorrow and Tuesday.
All in all, we had a good day and it seemed to heal all homesickness for the time being. So, we are ready to hear more from home J
We hear from Antionette that we are all invited to Thanksgiving potluck with the Ross family at Kibidula. We are looking forward to that and by the way we are still working out how we will get there, but some will likely be on the bus. Probably me :-)
Untitled Comment
Posted by haflinger on Sunday, November 23, 2008 at 10:36 - Link
Sounds like a start of a rough day but ended well. Oh how I wish I could be in Africa its always been a dream of mine..
Blessings Sister Brenda/haflinger
We miss you!
Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, November 23, 2008 at 01:53 - Link
Hi Everyone,
It is good to be home but we are missing you all very much. I Woke up with a fever this morning and headache, no other symptoms. My temperature kept going up so I did a malaria test which I am grateful was negative. We are all really tired from the trip home. The jet lag has been worse this direction but not too bad. We are adjusting. We are really missing Kristen and Dave. Dakota read Vanessa's note to the church Sabbath during announcements, Tom was elder and commented on how he feels like Dakota is one of his other kids now. We had a lot of fun traveling together and it is sad to have it all over. We miss being a part of all of you still also. It is strange to read the blog and not be a part of what is going on.
I am glad you were able to do some shopping. Kristen and I both wished that we had been able to do some earlier than the last 2 days. We were running around like crazy trying to find things for everyone on our lists. Slipway, the market we went to the day before we left, was really expensive and the wood carvings were not that good of quality. So on the morning we left Kristen and I ended up going out to the woodcarving market with a lady named Stella who had taken Tom and Dale to the bus station when they arrived. She went with us and helped us some with getting reasonable prices. Kristen was still trying to finish up her list at the airport, where she found her final items. We even did a little shopping in Addis Ababa.
You should check your flight times before you head home. Tom and Dale's tickets were issued several months after our original tickets and had earlier flight times listed than the rest of us. Several of our flight times ended up being significantly earlier than what we had on our tickets.
We miss you and love you all,
The Kahlers
Bethany
Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, November 23, 2008 at 08:28 - Link
Dear Bethany,
It was wonderful to hear you over the phone!!! It really was such a surprise. It was funny this morning when I asked Emily if she remembered me waking her up to talk to you and she didn't remember a thing! The lights were on, but nobody was home...She rolled over and was out before I was out of the hallway!. Hannah didn't even stir. They were pretty tired.
We went to the Donkey basketball game at CCA Saturday night. It was quite funny to watch. Imagine trying to shoot a basket from a stubborn ol donkey ambling in just the opposite direction that you want it to go...! and trying to stay on as all of a sudden it decides to gallop to the other end of the gym!
Tonight, we're watching the Planet Earth on Lake Malawi, thinking of what it will be like there for you if you get to visit it.
Tomorrow is another day for the little girls to get busy with school again. I don't think we have anything else planned for the rest of the week except that Grandma and Grandpa Wallace will be here for Thanksgiving.
I hope you have a wonderful day. As the sun goes down here we kind of imagine that you might be looking at it just as it's coming up there. We look ever so forward to your coming home. I guess this must be a little taste of what Heaven is feeling right now too. "Just a little longer" must be the whisper behind every thought there too.
Love Daddy
Sam
Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, November 23, 2008 at 10:13 - Link
Sure wish you were here to help today. And last night. I helped Uncle Dave move tons of stuff from their old house to their new house. We could have used some of your big muscles. Also helping were Frank, Jon, and Matt. And of course Dave, Kristen, and Cathy. And Grandma. She and Anna made lunch for everyone.
Your five cousins were here for Sabbath dinner. Matt changed all the plugs and switches in Dave and Kristen's new house today.
Auntie Kristen brought us your letters on Sabbath when she came over. Grandma and I sure liked them. Thank you! That was a real treat.
Tell your Dad that the packout on the Bartletts from C*shmere was 89%, Eric's was 86%, Home 91%, and they were all big. And Jerry Kenoyer has been back to work for about one week. And we had 10 guys pruning today.
Tell Jonah that yes, I hold WW and rock him in the rocking chair every night. Then Grandma gives him a big kiss and tucks him into his doghouse.
I'm sorry but I ate your big piece of pumpkin pie. Since you weren't here I didn't think that you would mind. Maybe you can have my piece at Christmas time. OK?
And you can tell everyone there that Max Torkelsen is the new North Pacific Union Conference president. Now UCC has to get a new president.
Remember that we love you all and are looking forward to when you get home. We pray all the time that God will keep everyone healthy and happy as you do His work there in Africa.
Love, Grandpa and Grandma
Edited by safords on Friday, May 29, 2009 at 02:34
