For
P-day, we went with Kretlys and Dilles to a new Chuhascarrea - well, it
was new to us. It was pretty good. On the way home, we came to a truck
that had gotten stuck in a pot-hole. Pres. Kretly was driving and he
stopped and said something to Dad and Larry. They got out of our truck
and I thought that they were going to push the truck but they ended up
jumping into the bed of the truck. A guy walking past jumped into too,
and the weight was enough to give the truck traction and it popped out
of the hole. Just another day in Africa..... Dad and I took Kretlys to
the airport right after we got home and they flew back to Maputo.
The next day, we saw these guys on our walk to the beach. We stopped to watch them because the little guy was walking on his hands on the wall. He was so funny! When he saw us watching, he stopped and wiggled his feet in the air - all while balancing on the wall. It was impressive!!
Then
I noticed what looked like a bird in his friends sack and asked him if
that's what it was. Yes, it was a bird that he'd caught at the
beach......still alive in the sack. I asked him if it was good to eat
and he gave an enthusiastic 'yes!' Yup, that white thing is a bird wing
sticking out...
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When Isabel came to clean, we made couve and I asked her how to tie the big head-wraps that the ladies wear. She told me to get her a capalana, so I did, and then she showed me how. I videotaped it, so I'd remember.
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It was April Fools Day. Here they call it "The Day of Lies" and that afternoon, Dad got a call from a guy asking if he had called. Dad didn't have any idea what he was talking about and told him that he hadn't called him. It turned out that one of our seminary teachers was playing a joke on him and Dad. Pretty funny and pretty clever! :)
The next day, we both got sick with the flu. It was so violent that we thought it was food-poisoning but it lasted throughout the next day. Neither of us has been that sick in years. It was bad! We were so glad when it ended.
The Africans are sanguine when it comes to a change of plans and/or disappointments. It happens to them so often, they're used to it. So when Dad sent a text to a guy to tell him that his mission departure date had been delayed two months, this was his response: "That's ok. It will give me more time to prepare." That's an attitude I should have more often.
On Friday, we were still a little shaky, but we ventured out. We went and picked up a missionary call at the airport and then delivered it to the guy, Fernando. He's the best friend of Isabel's son, Jose, who's serving a mission now in Brazil - well, he's been serving in Maputo since December while he waits for his visa. Anyway, here's Fernando with his call letter.
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While we were waiting at the church for someone, I went to a belt seller on the street and bought a couple of belts.
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It was a little girl running the stand and I think I brought her some business because nobody was there, but then when I started looking, four ladies stopped to look too. I think the people are curious about what we like. When I was in a store, looking at capalanas, I had a group of women come up and look at the one that I had picked out and start telling me which one I should buy. I explained that I needed a certain color for my shirt and then they all nodded and said "Oh, I see. Yeah, that one works better." In Portuguese of course. So funny!
That night, we went to Isabel's house and watched Fernando open his call. We ran into some elders tracking there, which was good because we were totally lost trying to find which little alley went to Isabel's house. Here's the gang watching him open it:
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Isabel's husband read the letter, by the light of a flashlight.
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We saw these girls on our walk the next day. I couldn't believe they actually had a toy. They were so cute sitting up on the wall dressing their dolls with scraps of fabric. When I asked to take their picture they were excited and sat right up. But it was only after I showed them the picture, that they smiled big....
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After running around, we went to dinner.
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Then we watched General Conference, well, the first session, and I put every talk in the context of Africa so when they talked about the little boy in Argentina that invited his friend to the open house, I thought of Fidel that brought his baby sister, two younger brothers, a cousin, and friend to church every Sunday without the parents.
Sunday, the power was out and there wasn't anyone to lead the singing, so I did. I hummed the first note, counted, "Un, Dos, Tres", and we sang. When I taught Primary, the lesson was on being kind to your brothers and sisters and I had to come up with a whole new list of scenarios for them because "What if your little sister wants to play with your toy?" doesn't work when they have no toys. Neither does "Your brother wants to sit by the window in the car when you go to run errands with your mother." No car, no errands, and sometimes no mother. Sigh....
This little guy conked out for the whole meeting and didn't wake up even after it ended.
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That night, I had a tea party. Sort of. This group of girls - they range from 18-24 - have been asking to come over for a visit. I told them sure and that I would make a cake, but we had lots going on so I told them they had to wait until after Zone Conference. One of the girls tends kids every day but Saturday and Sunday and we were booked on all the Saturdays so we set it up for this Sunday.
Not one of them speaks any English, so I wondered what the heck we would talk about. I'm ok 'one on one' but when there's a group and they get going, I'm lost. So, I decided we'd have the cake and paint nails. At 4:00, they all came over. The guard came to get me and we started taking pictures.
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Then the guard asked if HE could take our picture. Pretty sure he doesn't have Facebook - or a computer or electricity - but our picture is getting shown to his buddies somewhere.
The girls were hilarious!! The cake vanished in minutes and then the seconds vanished just as fast. Africans love everything and make you feel like a gourmet cook. ;)
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Then
Brooke happened to text me so I asked her if they could FaceTime with
the girls. They were good sports and said they could. Oh boy!! That was
amazing for them! They LOVED IT!!! And when Grant blew them a kiss and
said 'Obrigata' (Thank you), they laughed up a storm and Fatima blew
kisses back to him like crazy. They were characters!!
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and asked me how old I was when I got married. Oh and how old I am now... They didn't believe me when I told them and made me write it down - which I guess is a good thing. ;)
Two and a half hours later, they got ready to go. It was raining so they asked for some plastic bags to put on their hair. I told them that I wanted a picture but they immediately snatched the bags off of their heads. When I told them that I wanted it WITH the bags on, they said no, but I told them that I'd taken a picture with a bag on my head when I needed a shower cap.
When I showed them the picture of me, they said I could.
.jpeg)
Long day. Fun, but long.
Well, that's the skinny. We love you more than yesterday. I guess absence really DOES make the heart grow fonder. ;)
xoxoxo
The next day, we saw these guys on our walk to the beach. We stopped to watch them because the little guy was walking on his hands on the wall. He was so funny! When he saw us watching, he stopped and wiggled his feet in the air - all while balancing on the wall. It was impressive!!
When Isabel came to clean, we made couve and I asked her how to tie the big head-wraps that the ladies wear. She told me to get her a capalana, so I did, and then she showed me how. I videotaped it, so I'd remember.
It was April Fools Day. Here they call it "The Day of Lies" and that afternoon, Dad got a call from a guy asking if he had called. Dad didn't have any idea what he was talking about and told him that he hadn't called him. It turned out that one of our seminary teachers was playing a joke on him and Dad. Pretty funny and pretty clever! :)
The next day, we both got sick with the flu. It was so violent that we thought it was food-poisoning but it lasted throughout the next day. Neither of us has been that sick in years. It was bad! We were so glad when it ended.
The Africans are sanguine when it comes to a change of plans and/or disappointments. It happens to them so often, they're used to it. So when Dad sent a text to a guy to tell him that his mission departure date had been delayed two months, this was his response: "That's ok. It will give me more time to prepare." That's an attitude I should have more often.
On Friday, we were still a little shaky, but we ventured out. We went and picked up a missionary call at the airport and then delivered it to the guy, Fernando. He's the best friend of Isabel's son, Jose, who's serving a mission now in Brazil - well, he's been serving in Maputo since December while he waits for his visa. Anyway, here's Fernando with his call letter.
While we were waiting at the church for someone, I went to a belt seller on the street and bought a couple of belts.
It was a little girl running the stand and I think I brought her some business because nobody was there, but then when I started looking, four ladies stopped to look too. I think the people are curious about what we like. When I was in a store, looking at capalanas, I had a group of women come up and look at the one that I had picked out and start telling me which one I should buy. I explained that I needed a certain color for my shirt and then they all nodded and said "Oh, I see. Yeah, that one works better." In Portuguese of course. So funny!
That night, we went to Isabel's house and watched Fernando open his call. We ran into some elders tracking there, which was good because we were totally lost trying to find which little alley went to Isabel's house. Here's the gang watching him open it:
Isabel's husband read the letter, by the light of a flashlight.
We saw these girls on our walk the next day. I couldn't believe they actually had a toy. They were so cute sitting up on the wall dressing their dolls with scraps of fabric. When I asked to take their picture they were excited and sat right up. But it was only after I showed them the picture, that they smiled big....
After running around, we went to dinner.
Then we watched General Conference, well, the first session, and I put every talk in the context of Africa so when they talked about the little boy in Argentina that invited his friend to the open house, I thought of Fidel that brought his baby sister, two younger brothers, a cousin, and friend to church every Sunday without the parents.
Sunday, the power was out and there wasn't anyone to lead the singing, so I did. I hummed the first note, counted, "Un, Dos, Tres", and we sang. When I taught Primary, the lesson was on being kind to your brothers and sisters and I had to come up with a whole new list of scenarios for them because "What if your little sister wants to play with your toy?" doesn't work when they have no toys. Neither does "Your brother wants to sit by the window in the car when you go to run errands with your mother." No car, no errands, and sometimes no mother. Sigh....
This little guy conked out for the whole meeting and didn't wake up even after it ended.
That night, I had a tea party. Sort of. This group of girls - they range from 18-24 - have been asking to come over for a visit. I told them sure and that I would make a cake, but we had lots going on so I told them they had to wait until after Zone Conference. One of the girls tends kids every day but Saturday and Sunday and we were booked on all the Saturdays so we set it up for this Sunday.
Not one of them speaks any English, so I wondered what the heck we would talk about. I'm ok 'one on one' but when there's a group and they get going, I'm lost. So, I decided we'd have the cake and paint nails. At 4:00, they all came over. The guard came to get me and we started taking pictures.
Then the guard asked if HE could take our picture. Pretty sure he doesn't have Facebook - or a computer or electricity - but our picture is getting shown to his buddies somewhere.
The girls were hilarious!! The cake vanished in minutes and then the seconds vanished just as fast. Africans love everything and make you feel like a gourmet cook. ;)
Then they
painted their nails .jpeg)
and asked me how old I was when I got married. Oh and how old I am now... They didn't believe me when I told them and made me write it down - which I guess is a good thing. ;)
Two and a half hours later, they got ready to go. It was raining so they asked for some plastic bags to put on their hair. I told them that I wanted a picture but they immediately snatched the bags off of their heads. When I told them that I wanted it WITH the bags on, they said no, but I told them that I'd taken a picture with a bag on my head when I needed a shower cap.
When I showed them the picture of me, they said I could.
Well, that's the skinny. We love you more than yesterday. I guess absence really DOES make the heart grow fonder. ;)
xoxoxo
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