Fragments of our lives

We do not often succumb to the allure of technology here, but from time to time we will show a video to help us in our teaching.  It is always an exciting thing for most of the people who have never seen a computer before, nor a movie--and it helps them sometimes to grasp concepts in a different way than by just hearing our oral lessons (exciting though they undoubtedly are).  We brought our two new converts Edna and Aissa with us to this lesson to teach and befriend the 15 year old girl of this family.

Seated above are Edna, Neusa, and Aissa.  Neusa is a very impressive young woman who has outpaced her parents in her pursuit of the gospel message.  She described for us tonight the strange but energizing something that she always feels when we teach or she reads the book of Mormon.
As a side note, we took Edna and Aissa to dinner with us one night this week.  It was a pleasant evening with these two girls with whom we have grown close.  Edna explained to us, that it was the very first time, in her eighteen years that she had ever been in a restaurant. 

Neide, is 7 and has begun participating with her family in our lessons.  She also has a devastating smile.

You cant really see enough detail here, but this little girl is squirting utterly filthy water from her bottle into the teacup of her brother. It was quite cute.

Ines Mariana above is lugging in her hand a 12 pound Mozambican iron.  She and her husband, though they have not a speck of food in the home nor nothing but a single bench as furniture, always dress well with clean and freshly pressed clothing.  She has a beautiful smile, but is terribly shy--just beginning to warm up to Debbie and I after several weeks of teaching.  We like her and her pastor husband, but wonder if they are "getting" the width and breadth of the gospel message and the level of commitment and change that we are really talking about. 

The heating element for the clothes iron is the box within, into which is dropped charcoal--the same charcoal that they use to cook their meals. 

These frolicking rain-soaked unclad boys are part of a neighborhood soccer game.  Until the rains begin, everyone has clothes on.  I have made this picture low-res and smaller size to spare you details of the sight.  After one such more adult encounter today, Debbie claimed to be scarred (or at least profoundly affected) for life.

We had another "first" in Mozambican experiences today.  Going through a rain swollen pond in our path, we got stuck.  It was deeper and muddier that we had imagined and there was nothing we could do to move, even in 4 wheel drive.  It was something of a shock as we go offroad and into serious water several times a day and 4WD has never failed us--until today.  I hesitated briefly before sending Debbie out to push us out.  As I did, the four men pictured above waded out to us and lifted and pushed the truck back to terra firma.  We tipped them generously at about a dollar apiece and they kindly walked in front of us through the pool shown above, to show us a path that would not cover the windshield.  This pool was the second and shallower of this particular fine Qulimane road.

 We are leaving for some travel to distant cities in the morning--where phones have been down for days so we will not likely have email for a couple or three days.

 I must mention just one more "first" for the day.  We sat in a home this evening, Debbie and I were teaching a great lesson to a wonderful family, one who is working hard on their marriage documents so that they can join the church.  As I spoke to them, something wet and sticky dropped on my arm from the ceiling.  A very very fresh bit of rat poop.  I said a silent prayer of gratitude that it was I and not Debbie, who, though strong and steadfast in innumerable ways, would have screamed to high heaven, run out of the house, and sworn never to return.