It's a small world after all

Chocolate and creativity were part of our latest women's meeting.
I used the candies as a "get to know you" activity.  Red meant you
had to tell your favorite fruit, green your birthday and so on  Their
favorite was brown, which I told them they could just eat.  Chocolate is
a universal favorite.

I explained the custom in the US of  sending cards to people.  It is not done
here, but with the stamps Liz had sent me, they had an hour
 of creativity stamping and making a card for someone special.  Yet
another sign of how small the world is; they loved stamping!

In Primary all over the world, dish towels and table clothes make
great props for Bible plays.  Here in Marromeau they are portraying
Noah and Lehi and Sariah.  

The world over people love to look at themselves in photos.  Toby has
great fun with his iPad.  Here he took a small video and you can
see by their expressions how much they loved seeing themselves.
He is a natural with the kids everywhere.

life in the fast lane

All of the following pictures, excepting the last couple, were taken from the window of our little truck as we wheeled along the byways of Mozambique. The last couple of days, we drove to Marromeu (that is the jungley part of our area) to deliver supplies and to speak in church and to deal with some church administrative issues. The last 150 km is dirt road which is sometimes ok but sometimes not. This time followed a torrential rain which had left the road in really bad shape--so going was slow and very rough--and much of it in 4WD.

We saw about four troupes of baboons along the way--sunning or otherwise hanging our on the road. These are chacma baboons--also called dogfaced baboons because of their long snout. They have fangs larger than those of a lion.

The red and inflamed posterior is not terribly attractive to me--but the male baboons apparently find it so--as it is oestrus related. We parked for a few minutes and watched these and listened to them. They have a surprising vocal range and are anything but quiet.



These are guinea fowl--a variety that we hadn't seen before. Very blue in color and called a crested guinea fowl--perhaps because of the crest on their head. They are a bit larger than a chicken and one will often see them for sale on the road )people holding them out to traffic at meal times. They are locally called galinhas do mato or jungle chickens. I thought of buying a couple because they look so cool and keeping them in the back--but I was told that they make enormous amounts of noise.



Or living room, such as it is, is decorated by some African batique art--which is hung from rods--or lacking rods, sticks. Debbie having purchased a new artwork, sent me off into the jungle to cut a new piece of wood from which to hang it

These folks were moving along this river as we went over the bridge. I am a bit fascinated by the success of their dugout canoes and pledge to take one out for a spin before I leave Africa.

The recent rains have got the rice growing everywhere--the result is green--often as far as you can see.

Because Marromeu has no lodging available, if we want to be there early Sunday morning for church, we have to stay somewhere else. We found the CuaCua lodge, consisting a a few stone based cabins and a nice restaurant on the shores of the Zambezi. A surprisingly delightful place.



Debbie refused to be in this picture--showing the Zambezi river flood plain at the Cua Cua lodge. Someone said I looked skinnier today so I am hoping that it is true. I suspect that they were just being charitable.

Hairaising

As we mentioned, we have been on the road to Beira this week.  We are amazed at the number of accidents and destroyed or overturned vehicles that we see as we travel.  We suspect that at fault are the twin causes of  very poor roads and very poor drivers.  There are some holes in the road that are so deep that they could truly break an axle and send the truck or car careening off.  Road shoulders are soft and narrow and anyone drifting off the main surface is likely to get caught and turned over or around.  Couple those unfortunate conditions with the habit of truck drivers to 1) drive without lights at night and 2) use the whole road and force oncoming traffic off the road.  Many is the time that I have literally had to leave the road with my truck at full speed to avoid being hit by an oncoming commercial truck.  We are blessed to be alive and hope for continued legions of guardian angels to watch over us on the road.  We do not know the specific cause of the accident above but are happy to report that the red on the pavement is from a load of tomatoes that the truck was apparently carrying.

Sister Osborn, emerging from a mid-trip leg-stretch--no snakes were encountered.

Changing subjects a bit--but still fitting under the heading: we are often surprised at the number of interesting ways in which women wear their hair here. The following four pictures do not even scratch the surface.

Much like the United States or Brasil or anywhere else.  Some people here are blessed with great physical beauty and others are not so blessed.  We will assume that they have compensating gifts.

And in conclusion, more cute children.

The other couples

We had some financial training in Beira this week and enjoyed some relaxation as well while we had our truck serviced at the Nissan dealer there.  We have a unique situation here where we disperse money through a petty cash system.  Each couple is responsible for the petty cash in the areas where they oversee the work.  Petty cash is used for housing repairs and supplies, travel and other things specific not personal to missionary work.  Each month we and the Elders in our areas have to give an accounting of the money sent, complete with receipts and reconciliation.  Then we disperse the next months funds.  All of this then has to be sent to the area office in South Africa.  Then a check for the new balance is sent to us through DHL.  All in all, we have to do more accounting here than Toby has done since college.  It is a team effort, so I am learning as well.  (no jokes about me and money management, please. I am careful with the Lord's money, you can be sure.)  So we learned the IMOS (Internationale mission operating system) forms for recording and also learned how to record and deposit tithing (our church donations.)
     I thought I would talk about the other couples and their assignments.  The Bonini's are from Brazil and are CES missionaries.  They train the other seminary and institute teachers as well as do teaching themselves.  He is also in the mission presidency.  They also help with the any Elders in Beira with transportation and logistics.  They are very busy and have been traveling this month doing Seminary graduation in the various branches.  The Halls, who are the shorter couple in the group pictures, are the office couple.  I feel like they are in charge of everything.  They are the "go to" people when anyone needs anything.  They are in charge of all the finances for the mission, no easy task.  When we cannot find something here, they find in for us in Maputo.  They also gather and store the packages for the missionaries and try to get them in the right car going the right direction for their areas.  The Banks, Elder Banks is a really tall guy, have a similar assignment to ours.  They live in Chimoio and have eight hours drives to their other branches.  They are about a year ahead of Quelimane as far as church growth goes and should be made a branch soon.  They have activities almost every night in their building (which is also their home) such as family home evening, seminary, English classes, etc.  They have a big group of young women, as well, who are starting work on personal progress.  Elder Banks loves the area for its agriculture as that was his subject as a teacher.  So he is helping a few people with getting better chickens, etc. for a better economy.  Sister Banks often calls me for a Sunday night to visit, which is great.  The two other couples in the mission are the Wollenziens, who are the new humanitarian missionaries and they work in the distribution center in Maputo.  ( a headache in and of itself).  The Ross's are here on their second mission.  The were in the office but he is in charge of building a house in Marromeau for the Elders to live in next to the chapel.  It will have a room for couples visit's as well.  This is a huge project using returned missionaries for laborers and we will write more about it later.  So, you see you can find your niche as a couple missionary here.  We do not have any new couples in the pipeline and the Ross's are going home at the end of April and the Bonini's in December, so there is still time for some of you to apply.  Here are some pictures of our days together:

We all bought these carved small tables, so we bartered well.

On the beach near a lighthouse.  I now remember that Elder Banks was at the dentist.

We went out to Manga to get some more nativities from the local wood
carver and this lesson was going on near his house.

Don't they look valiant!!

The peanut scoop is bigger than she is, but kids help selling things all the time.

The lovely ladies of the area.

DHO

Far more readers of this blog are fans of Sister Osborn than her missionary companion and husband. This is of course with good reason. This being the case, let me give a brief report on her.

It is unfortunate that Debbie does not have nearly as much fun on our mission as I do. She would desperately like to communicate better than she does (though she communcates better than she believes or admits). I admit that I love speaking portuguese--not that I do it particularly well but I think that it takes me back to my youthful mission to Brasil which was such an enjoyable and transformative experience. She is a good sport about it all however, and is having a good time, despite her poor companion and the general deprivaton of life in Quelimane. She is also frustrated with the shortness and flatness of her hair (which I cut last time) and the general inavailabilty of most things that she likes. The major swarms of ants have abated in the house (they congregate in small groups still, but not even a tenth of the volume that we used to see). I believe that this greatly increases the general happiness quotient around here.

Debbie regularly teaches her english classes--a few dedicated students that she teaches by appointment and an open-for-anyone class on saturdays that is less than enthralling to her. Two of her english students joined the church. She has requests to give more private instruction to a small group of businessmen--which request she is considering. She also teaches keyboard to a couple of young men here--who will likely never see the stage at Carnegie Hall. But they are making progress.

Debbie really is actively involved in teaching the gosple as well. We tag team in lessons and are slowly becoming more effective together. She speaks in church, gives lessons, provides leadership training and takes charge of both the women and children's organization at church. I think that early on, Debbie felt that she was not accepted nor supported by the women here. That might have been true. That has changed dramatically. She is loved, accepted and cheered on and assisted in her efforts to communicate. The young missionaries love her too.

She misses her children and grandchildren. She has not found it particularly easy being with her companion 24/7--though she is a good sport about that too. I was sort of hoping that it would be unmitigated joy for her--but I note definite signs that it is mitigated


We did manage to sneak out after training for a little break on the island of Savane.  Beautiful clear water though a few more waves that we would have liked.
I would include more pictures of the spectacular place--but then people might stop believing my tales of woe and misery.  It was a beautiful afternoon.  We spent it with Elder and Sister Bonini of Braxil--and then had a great dinner together.

We are in the large city of Beira for a couple of days to receive some training--Debbie was drawn (much like a moth to a flame) to the local fabric store. The woman never changes.

Econ 101

We met this woman the other day who was attempting to sell a pot and frying pan to us.  She was just wandering from house to house in a rural area.  Upon further inquiry, we found that she was a widow and, like everyone, trying to make enough money to live on.  I looked at her pans.  They were were very very rough.  I asked her where they came from and she told me that she made them herself.  She buys junked car engines and the like and melts them down and pours the aluminum into casts that she has made.  The lid even fit fairly well on the pot.  The pots are sturdy--just a bit rough and ugly (a bit like me I guess), and maybe poisonous depending on what you think of the link between aluminum and Alzheimer's.  But I was impressed by her effort and ingenuity and drive.  The pot and pan were selling for $10 each.  I declined to purchase though I did give her a little something as she took a long time from her sales to visit and explain her process to me.

The woman is representative of Mozambicans everywhere.  There is a little bit of industry at the individual level.  Craftsmen (or those claiming to be such) create things and sell them.  But there is very little if any manufacturing capacity beyond the craftsman level.  There is NO industry in Quelimane, which is the 5th largest city in the country.  If you have a job here, it is as a government functionary, health worker, teacher (and all of those are really government), or you work for an NGO (non-profit aid organizations).  Then there are retail and service workers and laborers for hire (like our maid and guard) and those who work on their own small farms (machambas) or for others on theirs.  There is nothing else. Everything sold at the retail level here is imported--except for locally grown food.  Nothing is made here.  Kids going to school who want to get a job generally prepare to be a teacher, health care worker, or government drone.  There are no jobs for enterprising people to find.  It is a very very sad state of affairs.  The government kicked out the Portuguese (or most of them) about forty years ago--and with them went a great deal of technical and managerial know how.  .  Perhaps it had to be for other reasons--but economically, the nation has not progressed since then and the infrastructure of Quelimane at least has been in steady decline.

The poverty here is grinding--and I don't see how people can get out of it.  I have always counseled people to get more education but here, there is just not enough work to go around.  More education will indeed improve your chances-but it is a zero sum game with no economic growth that I am able to discern.  I am actually fascinated by this problem--and would love to have the job of Mozambican Minister of Economic Development for a few years to build up an industrial base and create some employment.  On a smaller scale, you may recall the island that we visited a month or two ago.  It is a very isolated place (we think of it as a petri dish) with no employment of course and very few options for its 10,000 residents.  We have been looking at a couple of economic experiments to see if we can find anything practical and productive that might bless the lives of the people there.

The following pictures are unrelated to my economic exposition above--but are just everyday street pictures as we wander about trying to do good.

A favorite pastime of kids on the street is to run along with a stick and a tire--keeping it upright and moving.  I'm not quite sure that I get the  gist of the game ("how do you win?" I ask) but it does seem to keep a lot of children occupied.

The air conditioner in our room has broken down.  We are searching for someone who can dive in and replace or fix the fan.  Life is tough until that happens.

life and death

We read the following on the internet today (so it must be true:) 

Black Mamba Characteristics: The Black Mamba's nickname is "bottom up snake", the victim supposedly has time for one quick drink before death. As said earlier, it is the dreaded snake species of Africa. Treat it with great respect and always stay away from it. Mamba is not only highly venomous but also aggressive and its victim has very little chance to escape from a bite. Its venom is highly neurotoxic. Hence Black Mamba's bite is always 100% fatal if antivenom is not administered quickly. Despite the name this snake is actually brownish-gray or green in colour. When threatened, it opens its mouth wide and gives the victims a good view of the black internal lining of its mouth. Black Mamba is the fastest land snake in the world, reaching top speeds of 16-19 km/hr in short bursts. 

The inquiry was made because of our sudden acute interest in Mozambican snakes.  One was spotted by a church member here at the house on Sunday and the same one, we think, was killed today in the yard by our guard (having been given an 50 meticais incentive).  The black mamba is a nasty snake.  I have looked at a hundred pictures and compared them to ours and I really don't know for sure whether ours is one or not.  Feel free to opine in this matter in the comments section below.

Our snake--when I asked the guard if this was a venemous snake, he answered in his pidgin portuguese "no, it's dead"

an internet black mamba

our snake

Ye Elders of Israel

I was going through my pictures and thought I would share some of the day to day life of an Elder here in Mozambique.  These are great young men, full of the spirit and full of fun.  They mean so much to us as we try and help them with the work here in Quelimane.

Whenever we have visiting Elders they clean up the kitchen.  They
are much more creative than I am when drying the dishes.



One set of Elders helps out each week in the English class.  Elder Ostler was
playing our game of matching words that mean the opposite.  He was pretty good at it.



This was an outdoor lesson for some children in a family we are teaching.  Excuse the
pg-13 nature of the mother's dress, this is the Africa the Elders face every day.



The Elders walk kilometers and kilometers in the intense heat and humidity
every day.  They do a lot of contacting as they walk each day.



Ever resourceful, Elder Steele saw the lemons on the tree in the back yard and the
whole group made copious amounts of fresh lemonade.



Eating is a big part of every day life for the Elders.  They are
never full.  We usually eat out for lunch one day a week with them.  This was
a farewell lunch on transfer day.

Always musical, the Elders also do special special requests, like this one
for my birthday last month.  They harmonize so well and are just great!

Oh what a beautiful morning!

    The last few days have been the hottest and most humid of our entire time here, maybe of our entire life.  But nothing could put a damper on our baptism Saturday morning of Abel and Adozinda.  You may recognize their pictures from the lovely dinner we had with them on New Year's Day.   Abel is the most educated man we have met in Mozambique.  He has a doctorate, although we cannot tell how that compares to the same degree in the United States.  He works for the federal fisheries and does some travel, so that is also unique among people we have met.  His wife works for the television company here.  When we first came, he was attending, but his wife still had her own church and was attending sporadically. .  They have a son who lives in Maputo and is a member of the church.  When she visits there doing her grandma duties for a new baby, she always attends church with them.  A few weeks ago, my husband challenged the missionaries to see why this couple wasn't setting a baptismal date.  They had a testimony of the Book of Mormon and were just taking their time in the "African" way.  When we were traveling last weekend, we got a text saying that the had agreed to their original baptismal date of February 11.  This was fabulous news.  They are a couple who will add such strength to the church here.  Of note, they were legally married just last year.  They had told us they thought this decision would have a lasting impact on their lives, they just didn't know how.  Well, here it is!  You can see Toby's mind at work in a few additions to the baptismal font.  He had a ladder made and a platform made so people could sit and get in and out of the water more easily.  Abel is not the smallest of men and he was worried all week about being able to get out of the font.  They bore strong testimonies at their baptism and it was a great day with lots of support from the other investigators and members.
Here are some photos that tell the story of their happiness and ours as well:

When they saw this picture of the bulletin board at church this
morning, they loved it and wanted a copy.

Elder Peterson was transferred here only a few weeks ago.  Elder Rios
is from Brazil and has worked hard with this couple

I took this photo from my position behind the keyboard to show
what a great crowd we had at the baptismal service.  Our kids will recognize
my ever present water bottle!

Can't you just feel the love!!  You will notice Abel holding a bag.
It is the custom here to give a bag full of scriptures, marking pencils, etc.
to people when they are baptized.  It includes a Bible(which is very valuable here), a triple
combination and a Principles of the Gospel manual.



After her baptismal interview, we had Adozinda try out the platform
to give her some confidence in our creative endeavors.

Progress in Quelimane

This week we were suprized one evening to find a brand new traffic light at the busiest intersection of the city. This is the first ever traffic semaphor signal in Queliman (the fifth largest city in the country). It was weirdly placed and difficult to see from a driver's perspective but actually a blessing in that particular intesecton.  We think that it was a campaign promise of the recently electd municipal president.  I was reminded of a business trip many years ago to the island of Saipan (american territory in the Marianas chain)--it so happened that the week I was there they installed the first ever traffic light and posted large signs around the island for the preceeding month explainining to everyone that red meant stop etc.  There was no such preparation here but people seemed to welcome it fairly nicely.

Madelena wearing her brand new reading glasses couresy of blog readers.

Three of our four young missionaries from Cabo Verde--converging on our home for a day or two.  Impressive young men they are.  The fourth is here as I write, one of the assistants to the mission president. driving through.  As an aside, the white pipe to their left is the pipe which leads from the rain gutters to the cistern underneath the house.  As another aside, today was by far the hottest and most humid insufferable day of our mission thus far.  But it was great for other reasons--about which Debbie will blog tomorrow.