Monday

This morning Helen and Laurie got up bright and early in order to visit a school for chapel and a word of encouragement. Isaiah, their chaplain, is a friend of theirs and has been very sick for a couple of months, and unable to be at the school so they surprised the students not only by showing up to share God’s Word, but they were also able to bring Isaiah to see his school family – what an amazing blessing!

The rest of us appreciated a relaxing morning, enjoying breakfast while socializing together and we got everything organized for the day so we were ready to leave the house when the other ladies returned. Somewhat unexpectedly, they were back at the predicted time and we were off to start our day at 9. 

Our first stop was visiting the Arise and Shine Preschool School again. The Arise and Shine Preschool is run by Beatrice, a lovely lady who has a heart for the underprivileged young children in the area. The children who come to the school come from difficult homes where they are not well cared for, so Beatrice bathes several of the children when they arrive and changes/washes their clothes.  We arrived just in time for breakfast! The children filed out to the well and washed their hands before heading to the kitchen only to discover that breakfast was too hot so they returned to the classroom where they sat quietly until Beatrice told them it was time to go back to the kitchen. All of the children eagerly ate/drank the Uji (kind of like porridge) while chatting and giggling together. Back in the classroom, Mary read the children a Bible story and we enjoyed colouring together – one piece of paper and one crayon each made for 17 very happy children – no fighting or arguing but rather eagerly sharing colours with each other. Following colouring we went outside with the kids, all who were thrilled to see that we had brought bubbles to play with them! They very quickly picked up that nicely asking “please bubbles” was much more effective then screeching “ME! ME!” whenever they wanted a turn to blow bubbles. Soon enough Everlyn, Helen, Laurie, Linda and Marcia returned from visiting 3 nearby ladies and it was time to say goodbye to Beatrice and our young friends. 

After a stop at the house for a delicious lunch and a short rest, we were off for a full afternoon of visits. We stopped in to see Jessica, a dear lady whose body has been afflicted by physical sickness over the past several years and is left unable to move independently yet her trust and love for her Heavenly Father was so very abundant both in her eyes and her words.  Jessica sang psalm 23 for us and pointed out how even through her many trials, she has always been able to see God’s goodness and mercy shine through in her life, even today as she received some reusable incontinence supplies which were lovingly sewn for her by Mary. We were able to share the words of Matthew 11: 28-30, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”with Jessica and her family before walking a short distance to visit Sulumena and Miriam and share God’s Word with them as well.

After a winding drive around, we enjoyed hiking through the beautiful scenery to visit, Syphrosa, another lady VOH supports, before heading over to our young friend Yvonne’s to drop off the adjusted stroller – a huge thank you to Johanna for her amazing craftsmanship in fashioning strap covers and a soft but wipeable footrest that can be used for both seats!! After a riveting game of ‘Duck, Duck, Goose’ with several of the children in the neighbourhood, we loaded up and headed back to the house for supper and an evening at the house.   Kim.

Today was the last day one group of the sewing class joined us for lessons. They worked on a little dress they had started on last week and then learned how to put in a zipper.
We are pleased with the progress they have made, but there remains much to learn. We did notice they turned to their new instructor when Joanne was not available. This is encouraging!
Tomorrow is the last day for the other group. They will get the same lessons as today.
We arrived at the sewing room this morning and watched the local workers cut a piece of metal. It is a precise job despite the tools they used. We teach one skill, but can certainly learn much from their skills.  Johanna