We finally made it to Kising’a and had a great weekend. Bariki helped us send word that we would be coming and the roads were still very good. Sue and I had a car for the weekend and were able to remember the way. One of our sponsored Form IV students, Sargent, helped translate for us. It was a little difficult for him but he did a good job and it was good for him to test his English.
We visited the secondary school and brought a donated computer. The school has a generator and is able to charge computers. Kising’a school slipped in the latest Form II exams and they now have a new head master and teachers. There were only four teachers there but six more are coming this week to revamp their staff. Recruiting teachers is a real challenge for all the schools and there is a lot of turnover. Village Schools is starting to produce their own teachers from the first two schools and this will really help stabilize the schools with teachers committed to the VST program.
We also visited all five wells to check their condition and get photos that I can use to show well operators in Iringa. This meant driving to some of the other preaching points including part of the road to luhapo which is a steep four wheel drive track with a log bridge. The well nearest the pastor’s house had been repaired since we were in Kising’a in June. This was done by the village government who collected money and repaired the well. Kising’a has a strong community organization and will plan and try to solve problems more than most villages.
Most of the surface wells in Kising’a are cloudy and colored water that can be used for washing. There is a spring well that has a pool of crystal clear water with a plugged pipe protruding from it to deliver water to buckets. This was where the water for cooking and bathing came for us. The women prepared hot water for us to bathe with by rinsing with a cup. We brought bottled water for drinking.
On Saturday, we went to the Church and the choirs sang for us. They are practicing for next week because the Bishop is coming to Kising’a for the first time in years. I am glad we had a quieter weekend. On Sunday, we went to Church service at the Kising’a Church near the pastor’s house. The adult choir, children’s choir, and secondary school choirs all sang. I read a letter of greetings from Pastor Jan Melhof, our new pastor at Lutheran Church of Peace, which Sargent did his best to translate into Swahili.
Before Church we saw a group of men in a field nearby. They were in the process of slaughtering a cow. We saw them hoist the front and hind quarters to be taken for butchering. We missed having beef by one meal. When a cow or pig is slaughtered in the village, word is sent out so everyone can plan to buy meat on slaughter day. This is just in time manufacturing. Buckets with edible organs and the head were also carried off and this alerted a couple dogs who came running to the spot to clean up what little must have remained. Being in the village make you very aware of where your food comes from, with chickens, pigs, and cattle all penned near the houses and every bit of space planted with maize, beans, cassava, squash, potatoes, yams, and more. There are also plenty of avocado, peach, pear, and banana trees.
View of Kising'a terrain with maize fields and pine trees. Pines were introduced by the Danish for lumber and they grow very fast here:
Bega Kwa Bega (Shoulder to Shoulder) with Pastor Wihale and Jesima. This will be our picture for the new church directory since we will not be there for photo taking.
Children at Kidamuka, were very impressed by the mirror surface on our car windows:
Kisitu spring is protected under the boards. The village is planning to put in a tank to protect the water better:
Kisitu well where villagers go for clean water (should still be boiled for drinking):
Ng'ombe (cow) headed for butchering:
Head to Head, nothing gets wasted:
We visited the secondary school and brought a donated computer. The school has a generator and is able to charge computers. Kising’a school slipped in the latest Form II exams and they now have a new head master and teachers. There were only four teachers there but six more are coming this week to revamp their staff. Recruiting teachers is a real challenge for all the schools and there is a lot of turnover. Village Schools is starting to produce their own teachers from the first two schools and this will really help stabilize the schools with teachers committed to the VST program.
We also visited all five wells to check their condition and get photos that I can use to show well operators in Iringa. This meant driving to some of the other preaching points including part of the road to luhapo which is a steep four wheel drive track with a log bridge. The well nearest the pastor’s house had been repaired since we were in Kising’a in June. This was done by the village government who collected money and repaired the well. Kising’a has a strong community organization and will plan and try to solve problems more than most villages.
Most of the surface wells in Kising’a are cloudy and colored water that can be used for washing. There is a spring well that has a pool of crystal clear water with a plugged pipe protruding from it to deliver water to buckets. This was where the water for cooking and bathing came for us. The women prepared hot water for us to bathe with by rinsing with a cup. We brought bottled water for drinking.
On Saturday, we went to the Church and the choirs sang for us. They are practicing for next week because the Bishop is coming to Kising’a for the first time in years. I am glad we had a quieter weekend. On Sunday, we went to Church service at the Kising’a Church near the pastor’s house. The adult choir, children’s choir, and secondary school choirs all sang. I read a letter of greetings from Pastor Jan Melhof, our new pastor at Lutheran Church of Peace, which Sargent did his best to translate into Swahili.
Before Church we saw a group of men in a field nearby. They were in the process of slaughtering a cow. We saw them hoist the front and hind quarters to be taken for butchering. We missed having beef by one meal. When a cow or pig is slaughtered in the village, word is sent out so everyone can plan to buy meat on slaughter day. This is just in time manufacturing. Buckets with edible organs and the head were also carried off and this alerted a couple dogs who came running to the spot to clean up what little must have remained. Being in the village make you very aware of where your food comes from, with chickens, pigs, and cattle all penned near the houses and every bit of space planted with maize, beans, cassava, squash, potatoes, yams, and more. There are also plenty of avocado, peach, pear, and banana trees.
View of Kising'a terrain with maize fields and pine trees. Pines were introduced by the Danish for lumber and they grow very fast here:
Bega Kwa Bega (Shoulder to Shoulder) with Pastor Wihale and Jesima. This will be our picture for the new church directory since we will not be there for photo taking.
Children at Kidamuka, were very impressed by the mirror surface on our car windows:
Kisitu spring is protected under the boards. The village is planning to put in a tank to protect the water better:
Kisitu well where villagers go for clean water (should still be boiled for drinking):
Ng'ombe (cow) headed for butchering:
Head to Head, nothing gets wasted:
You both are learning so much!!! Thank you, Dan and Sue, for keeping the blog packed with information. I really liked to hear about what the village government is doing with the water situation currently. They would be a good entity to work bega kwa bega with to figure out how we as a church can help improve their water system in the most sustainable and effective way.
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