Post #4: And Then There Were More Days (Tuesday-Wednesday, June 28-29)

Today we got busy with working on the Epiphany House. There are three things that we want to try and get done or at the very least started. The brush has grown all around the house. In order to keep bugs and snakes away it is important to clear the brush from a house at least 6-8 feet away all around the house. Also, we want to paint the outside of the Epiphany House but we are still waiting on the paint which needed to be special ordered. And finally, the original septic tank is not working right since the flood so Uncle Lenard wants to install a new one which means we will need to dig a 6 foot deep hole to get him started. So for today, we got pick-axes and rakes and attacked all of the brush. It wasn’t a difficult job but it took a lot of sweat to get it all out of the sand. It was one of those jobs where you can’t help but to think, “If I had my lawnmower and weed-wacker with me this would be done in 5 minutes.” But we used the tools that were given us and we worked hard to remove the tall grass. Malinga came over to help us for a while and worked like a superhero. His ability to do hard work is amazing. And he does it with a smile! We cleared the brush away several feet away from the house. Uncle Lenard and the other workers were building a mud hut right next to us so it was very interesting to watch their method and progress of building that structure. Uncle Lenard and I also marked out the area that the septic tank with go so that we can start digging that up. We ended up with a giant pile of brush in the back and front of the house. The pile in the front was the smaller of the two so we took pleasure in setting it on fire. We thought we would save the bigger pile for our next work day. Travis is still feeling really sick. Natalie is starting to feel better but she is still physically spent. She came out to the worksite to hang out with us for a while but was to wasted to do work.

Later in the afternoon we took the team to go visit the Cheshire Home. This is the mission that we invited to the talent show. So now we get to see their place! It was surprisingly and exceptionally nice. It is a Catholic mission for handicapped and special needs kids. I was amazed at all they had on their sight: the mission area for the kids, a church, a convent, and a pool for therapy. We got to meet the head nun of the mission who was an older woman originally from Poland. She has been working at this mission for over 23 years now. We also got to see Abby and Sarah again. These are the two college age girls who came to serve there for the Summer. They were both going to be leaving back to the USA the very next day. So the kids were sad to see them go. Lisa brought a bunch of crafts so we sat down the kids outside in their play area and did crafts. I found out that the boarding school that Dorothy attends is right next to the Cheshire Home. So Lorna, Jimmy and I went over to her school to say hi. Unfortunately Dorothy was not there when we stop but we did get to see one of the other COZV teens, Annina! She is doing really, really well at the school and has already received a scholarship to attend the local university once she is done with high school. We told her how proud we are of her! It was so good to see her! I felt bad we missed Dorothy though. So then we walked back to the Cheshire Home and wrapped things up to headed back to the COZV.

When we got back, Jimmy and I made a French toast dinner for everyone. It was great. The syrup was different over here though. I couldn’t figure it out until I read the ingredients. Instead of using maple it was made out of a toffee flavor. It tasted great.

To give you an update on things to pray for I should let you know that Natalie is starting to come around but Travis is still very sick. He can’t seem to shake whatever he has that has him down. Also, pray that this paint comes in. I really, really, really want to get everything done with the Epiphany House. Painting the outside is going to take some time and so the sooner we get it, the better. Also our last bag of luggage has yet to arrive. I am beginning to suspect that it just got sent back to Cincinnati. Or at least I hope so. Pray that we discover the mystery of where it is at.

Wednesday morning began with a special session at 7AM to say goodbye to one of their long term volunteers, Leena. She has been here for 6 months. She has been very important in helping the Curry’s get established. There were a lot of emotions in having to say goodbye.

We woke up on Wednesday looking forward to getting out and going on a safari! We thought we would try something a little different on Travis and Lorna’s suggestion and we decided to try a boat safari! Before we left though, Lorna asked me to drive her down to the motor vehicle registration office. She needed to get their trailer registered. As what seems to be typical for such places, she thought she had all the right paperwork but there were others that she needed as well. So back we go! We picked up one of the workers of the village, Simba, who was walking down the road and he came back with us. He ended up taking Lorna back as I needed to get the others for our Safari trip.

Once we finally left we traveled down the road for a while and then noticed guys on the side of the road selling handmade wood-carved elephants. We pulled over at one and the teens and Lisa bought some stuff. But wouldn’t you know, as soon as we got back in the van, it would not start. A little bit of panic set in with me. But then I got the guys out to push the van and eventually I popped the clutch, it started up, and off we went. We also found some gift shops that were closer to the place we were going so we stopped there too. There was a lot of cool stuff.

Then we headed off to our final destination. The guy who owns the business met us on the main road and then led us down a dirt path in the middle of nowhere until we came out to his little boat business area along the water. It was beautiful. He had a beautiful hut facing the water with a large table and chairs for us to sit and eat our lunch. Then we headed off on the boat. The boat was very much like a pontoon boat. We were cutting through very narrow tunnel-like paths through the tall brush in the water. At a certain point he stopped the boat at a shallow part of the river and told us if we wanted to we could go swimming here. We all looked at each other for a second because none of us brought bathing suits and we weren’t sure if this was such a good idea. I, on the other hand, was not going to pass up this opportunity so I stripped down to my shorts and jumped right in! Most of the teens and our guide joined us and we had fun getting wet.

Then we got in the boat and headed off to see animals. At one point we saw a giant crocodile. He slipped into the water right beside our boat. We were tracking him with the trail of little bubbles that were coming to the surface. Our guide said, “Now if you fall in, you will die!” So we dangled Natalie over the edge to try and get the croc to resurface but no luck. Just kidding!!! We all respectfully staid within the confines of our boat. We continued to travel along and throughout the day we saw a lot of birds, a cheetah, an impala that for a moment we thought was being tracked by an animal. I was REALLY hoping to see a take down from a cheetah or tiger. We saw a lot of deer like animals and many, many birds and hippos. The cool thing about the hippos was that they were in the water with us. Their heads would pop up and they would watch us. Then their heads would go down and then pop up somewhere else, sometimes closer to us. There were also times that there were a heard of hippos blocking our path so our guide had to quietly and skillfully try and get around them without being attacked by one of them. We had some exciting moments.

The only bummer about the boat safari was that for whatever reason, we surprisingly did not see any elephants, giraffes or zebras. I thought for sure we would see a lot of elephants because last time at Chobe we saw most of them down by the water. But we looked, and looked, and looked until the sun practically set and we did not see them. At one point Lisa attempted to do an “elephant” call. We have it on video. We laughed and laughed and laughed watching it back at our cabin that night. Just wait. I will make it on YouTube. In fact, we may just do a whole “Lisa Kerwin Tribute” video. And now that I am thinking about it, Lisa’s “elephant call” just may have been the noise that scared all the animals away from us! It did not sound like an elephant. It was more like a cat caught in a lawnmower. Other than that, the boat ride was a really neat experience. Our boat guide said that he was a civic engineer but got sick of his boring job and decided to do something he liked. So he started this little business and for the most part lives on the boat and knows that whole area like we know the streets of Loveland.

On our way back, it was DARK! All of the teens fell asleep and the driving was up to me. I began to get a little freaked out. I did not like to be on the roads of Africa at night. Instead of a “Duck Xing” or “Beware of deer” sign, I saw beware of elephants signs. That was troubling because I knew if we ran into one of those, the elephant would win. Plus, along the side of the road all you would see are random fires. There were brush fires and camp fires. And then I would see the random persons walking along the side of the road in pitch black darkness coming and going to who knows were. And then just to change it up, there would be a random dog in the middle of the road that would casually get out of our way after staring at our headlights coming towards him. There were no markings on the road, no street lights, no fences or walls or sidewalks. No corner stores or gas stations along the way. Just pitch black darkness. I was so relieved to get back to COZV when we finally arrived. And I think that I pretty much swore to myself to never be on the road again after dark here in Namibia. Also, if I ever bring another group of teens again, I definitely would want to go back to Chobe National Park for our safari. Lisa was really bummed about not seeing as many animals but I thought that since the teens are already telling me how they are coming back again I figured they will get to go to Chobe then. That’s right. The “I am coming back” talk is happening. And I know what you parents are thinking. Once in a lifetime experience will NOT be a repeat! But this is normal and natural for them to say this especially on the weeks after the trip. Some may actually return. That is a possibility. But others may not. Life has a way of having one experience fade a little as new experiences take priority. So I would encourage you to not get caught up in a “You wanna bet?!?” argument. Just let you teen talk all about the trip, show you their pictures, and let them enjoy and soak up their experience over the rest of the Summer.

The exciting thing that happened at COZV while we were gone was the fire! Apparently one of the workers noticed our rather large pile of dried grass that we leveled all around the Epiphany House. I believe very strongly that he knew we boys like fire and we wanted the joy of setting it ablaze. But being a guy himself, he stole our glory and lit it himself! Well apparently the brush wasn’t cleared around the pile and the brush caught on fire while no one was paying attention. All the brush that lead up to the line we cleared around the Epiphany House burned. Had we not done the job that we just did the day before, this fire probably would have ruined all the plumbing and electrical around the building. It may have done even more damage. But thank God for his perfect timing that we did the job we did and cleared a good 6-12 feet all around the house the day before. The fire was put out but the concern was that it could have gotten a lot worse. Thank God it didn’t. The tree with the electrical lines going into the village was somewhat caught up in the blaze but it was put out before any significant damage was done. If that tree would have gone up, that would have fried all the electrical lines going in the village also. But all is well now!

Sickness update: Natalie is feeling better but Travis is still really out of it. They were going to come on the boat safari with us but because he was still not feeling well they stayed back. So keep him in your prayers and thank God that the fire was contained and actually helped to finish our job without doing any damage to the transition house or the rest of the camp for that fact!

Post #3: The Next Couple of Days (Sunday-Monday, June 26-27)

We began the day with church! Travis started with some announcements. Josie and a team of girls helped to lead worship. Lisa lead a prayer time for the kids. And then I had the opportunity to bring a message to them. I used everyone from our team in the lesson. I began by focusing on Romans 1:16 were Paul talks about the gospel being the power of God. So I then had the teens explain when they have been in the presence of something very powerful. One of the girls talked about the windstorm we had in Loveland about 3 years ago. And then the rest of my entire team said, “She took mine.” Lucky for me I usually think with options of where I want to go so I then proceeded to have the teens come up one at a time as I asked them questions about why they train in their sport and how they practice to be more powerful than their opponent. Tyler of course came up and I asked him a bunch of questions about football training. I asked him to explain his position. I then ask him to show the kids what he typically does. So he and I squared off and someone said hike. Wouldn’t you know that Tyler saw an opportunity to flatten me HARD on a concrete floor in front of all of the kids. The kids loved it. But I assure you that Tyler has awoken the devious side of me now and it is totally focusing on him and his soon demise. The rest of my lesson focused on Jesus’ talk to his disciples in John 14. Jesus explains that they will have the power of the Holy Spirit within them and they will be able to do the same things that he has been doing and even greater things than that.

After the church service, our teens took out the kids who are under 12 years old to play with them in the afternoon sun. Lisa and I got to sit in a group discussion with the older kids. The two college girls who are serving at the Cheshire House which is for disabled kids, gave an abstinence talk to the teens. It was very good and interactive. It was definitely a talk that needed to be made as it is so obvious that the “children” are growing up fast. So many of the kids are growing into being young men and young women. At the end of the talk, Uncle Lenard and Aunt Jenny both strongly affirmed all that the girls were talking about. This gave a powerful punch to the whole presentation. Auntie Jenny talked about how this information has the power to save lives. That previous generations did not have this knowledge so they made poor decisions that lead to death. But now they have the information that can give them a full life. I couldn’t help but to reflect on our American culture in which we have had this knowledge for a long time now but yet so many still choose to make poor decisions.

After sitting for such a long time, I got a bunch of our teens and the COZV teens together for another hike. We hiked for a while and then made our way to the sand dunes. These dunes have a lot of small pockets of water everywhere that are still receding from the rainy season. We started out by throwing clods of sand into the water. Then people began to become targets. And then some of the boys decided to dig out a trench along one of the sand hills and found great joy in picking out an innocent bystander and proceed to grab them, throw them in the makeshift trench, and then bury them. The COZV teens focused on some of their own the first few rounds. Then they set their sights on Noah. And then Olivia. And then Natalie. At this point I thought it wise to start heading back to the village but I could tell their sights were focused on my movements. I got part way down the road until I heard the stampede of footsteps coming my way. Sure enough, I got picked up, thrown into the trench, and then buried in about 10 seconds. Not a problem other than I know Tyler is instigating so much of this! The rock throwing and the sand graves! So I told the teens to go after Tyler now but they said almost in a whisper, “Nooooo, he’s too big!” This made me mad because I definitely did not hear them say that about me! Well, 3 of the teens finally decided to try and go after Tyler. All they really needed to do was hold him from running until I got there. Then I threw him in a headlock / crossface combination where he really couldn’t fight back. We buried him quickly and I made sure that large handfuls of sand made it down his shirt.

Some other observation about our teens:

1) Tyler has become the brother that Natalie and Josie have never asked for.

2) Natalie and Josie have become the sister that Tyler has never asked for.

3) If I make a glowing comment about how wonderful Max is, that gets Olivia rolling her eyes and saying, “If I hear one more thing about Max why I oughta . . .”. I have found much pleasure in this.

4) There was a time when I thought Noah was just shy but that is clearly NOT the case.

5) I cannot tell who has more sass: either Natalie or Josie. It might be a tie.

We then headed back to the village and had a big game time. We introduced the games Apples to Apples and Mad Gab to a group of the kids. They loved it. We had a lot of laughs and a lot of fun. In fact Lisa jumped into the middle of Mad Gab and totally got into it. Get ready Timmy because I think this will become the new family game!

Later in the evening we had dinner over at the Curry’s. Lorna and Travis cooked a big pot of beef stew that was amazing. Our debriefing went well also. We needed to address a few things with our teens just to pull back the reins on them a little. This normally happens on an extended mission trip like this. As the teens get comfortable with their surroundings they tend to get lazy on the rules. So we reflected on Paul’s challenge to Timothy to always set an example to the believers in faith, life, love, speech and purity. Travis also added that we need to watch our language with a few key phrases because what might be casual in American culture can be offensive here, so no more telling one another “shut up” and no more use of the word “crap”.

With that we headed back to our cabins, had a brief hippo watch along the fence (once again, we heard them but could not see them), and then went to bed.

Monday we woke up and headed off to our morning duties. Lisa went to go help teach a class and the rest of us went to the staff devotions. We prayed, sang songs and then I did a talk on understanding that we are responsible for planting the seeds of faith in children but it is up to the Holy Spirit to make those seeds grow. And we must learn to trust that the Holy Spirit will do his work in the lives of the children in His timing.

When we headed back to our cabins we unlocked our door (a big padlock) when all of a sudden Noah jumped up and said that we locked him in the house and he couldn’t get out. It turns out that Tyler left the cabin while Noah was taking a shower and put the padlock on the door without noticing that he was not the last one out. When Noah tried to leave, the door would not open and then he realized he was trapped. We all had a pretty good laugh about that.

After that, we all grabbed our stuff and headed down the Mafuta Feeding Center. Everything about this area was quite impressive since the last time I was there. When we pulled in we were greeted by about 15 very happy and excited pre-school children. We began to get to know the kids and play games with them. We played their version of “Duck, Duck, Goose” and a chasing game. Then we took the kids into the main building on the property while the main lady in charge lead us in a “Sing-Off” of sorts. She would have the kids sing us one of their songs. And then she would look at the teens and expect them to now sing a song. It worked for about 2 rounds until the teens began to panic trying to remember songs we could just sing. I began racking my brain for all of the old-school camp and VBS songs I grew up on. We did a few of those until it was time for lunch. We went out and the children were lined up getting ready to get their lunch. Their lunch pretty much consisted of a corn or rice based paste that they ate with a plastic knife. Once they were done eating the older kids went back to their school while the young ones went back to their pre-school and had class. We got to sit in and observe their class as they reviewed their numbers, colors, and vowels. It was a lot of fun.

After that, we spent some time cleaning up the property. There was some general garbage that got collected along the fence that surrounds the property. But there was also a whole lot of broken beer bottle glass covering a large section of the property that never gets used by the kids for fear that they would cut their feet on glass. So we attempted to clean up any glass we could find. The problem was that before this was a feeding center, it used to be a bottling company. And for whatever reason, it seems that they just disposed of their bottles by burying them or smashing them on the ground. The more you began to move the dirt around you began to realize that this is near impossible to clear all of this in order for it to be safe for barefoot children. But we managed to collect three large wheelbarrows of glass and dispose of it in their trash pile. Also, at a particular moment in the middle of all of this, I needed to find a bathroom. There is a school right next to the feeding center so I went over there. I was able to casually observe this school as I walked by their classroom to find a bathroom. I was very impressed with what I saw.

Once we left we headed into town to exchange some of our American money for the Namibian equivalent. It took quite a while for each one of us to get through. After that we stopped at a couple of stores downtown before we headed back to the village.

When we arrived back, 3 of the teens needed to be taken to a basketball practice downtown. So Jimmy, Tyler and I took them to the Sports Complex. When we arrived it seemed that no one was there to run anything. After standing around for about 30 minutes, the coach finally arrived in a taxicab. He began his practice and it seemed very confusing to the kids as the coach was trying to get them to run some basic drills. Some of the teens seemed to understand what was going on while others did not. It was a little hard to watch because Tyler, Jimmy and I wanted to jump out of the van and run the drills ourselves so the teens would see what it was supposed to look like. But after about 40 minutes we started up the van to let the COZV teens know that we are going. The coach wasn’t thrilled that they were being pulled out of practice but we needed to get back for dinner anyhow. Timing and scheduling seem to be concepts that not only do kids and teens wrestle with, but also many adults her in Namibia.

When we arrived back we went down to the meeting house when the kids were having their dinner and we presented them with a letter that Trent sent with us and a whole lot of colorful bandana’s that he got for them. They loved it! Then we had dinner at the Curry’s house. The only issue was that Travis was not feeling well and could not join us for dinner. Natalie starting to get pretty sick as well. Now Lena, who is one of the college students who has been here for a several months, made a German style dinner for all of us. It was basically noodles with potatoes and chopped up hot dogs. All things considering, it was delicious!

With Travis not feeling well we decided to push off our debriefing for later tonight at the boy’s cabin. So we went down to see the kids until it was time for them to go to bed. We hung out and goofed around for a while until that magical time that the kids wait with anticipation each night during the school days. Once it is 8PM all things must stop immediately as the lights are turned off and the TV is turned on. THE show is on and all must watch! It is called “India Love Story”. I forced myself to watch one episode with them. It was basically a soap opera from India with voice dub-overs. The acting was cheesy. IT kind of reminded me of an Indian version of “Dallas”. But since it was from the culture of India it was not sleazy like a lot of what passes for American television. It was very tame, and with the overacting, it was humorous at times. But one, and only one, episode is all I could take. No more India Love Story for me. But I did like how whenever a character was frustrated or perplexed he would yell out “Ali Baba!” That has become my new catch phrase with the kids here.

So we go back to the boys cabin for debrief. The team all grabbed the chairs that we had here so there was no place for me to sit. So there was this little plastic kid table that I pulled up to our main dining table to sit on. We had a great discussion and I closed with a reflection on the person of Barnabus. In every situation we find him in the Bible he is always sticking up for the outsider or outcast. In fact his name literally means “Son of Encouragement”. So as I am wrapping up my point drawing the day to a conclusion, the table I am sitting on completely shatters and the next thing I know, I am looking up at the ceiling. At that point I don’t think they remembered anything I said about Barnabus as they all laughed hysterically at me. So then we called it a night!

Continue to pray for Travis and Natalie as they are both feeling really, really sick. Also please pray that our last piece of luggage gets delivered. We are afraid that it might not make it here and that bag had almost all of the soccer jerseys and quite a few CD’s and DVD’s that we bought to go with their new projector. We really hope that that bag in particular does not end up lost in the system somewhere. Also, pray that the paint arrives for the Epiphany House. We are really, really wanting to paint the outside of the house but the paint needed to be special ordered and it is taking a long time to arrive. We check the hardware stores every day but it has not come in yet. We are going to begin to work on the outside of the Epiphany House with landscaping and painting. We would like to have all of this completed for our dedication of the house on Sunday. And speaking of the Epiphany House, now that I have been here for about a week, I really do see the importance of this house and how necessary it is. There is a wave of teens here at COZV who are coming of age and all look like young men and young women now. They are no longer kids or teens. But yet, for them just to be asked to leave cold turkey would be extremely hard on them. This house will be a critical step to help them find their purpose in life as a young adult and then go out and make a difference when they are ready to go. It will be amazing when COZV will have their first generation sent out into the community as adults making a difference for Christ. Then to have them come visit the village to talk, share or sing with the next generation of kids will be so cool. The teens I got to know just 2 years ago, now all look so much older and mature. Mature physically that is. They are still very goofy and animated in their personalities. The Epiphany House is a very critical piece that I think will add significantly to the success of this program for our kids. I am very proud of our church for taking the initiative on this project. You have no idea how this is so necessary right now.

Post #2: The First Few Days (Friday-Saturday, June 24-25)

Thursday evening we concluded the night with our question of the day that we must all answer: Where did you see Christ today? This is a very simple yet profound question that is a good way for all of us to end the day with, but it also helps us to start looking at our world with a spiritual mindset throughout the day. We concluded our evening with a devotional on the Rich Young Ruler who was not willing to step out of his comfort zone in order to follow Jesus. Also we addressed the issue that God’s love demands first place. Jesus is not (or better yet should not) be considered as just an accessory to our lives. God’s love is a jealous love that will never take a backseat to anything.

On Friday we were able to sleep in. It felt good to get caught up from all the sporadic and infrequent sleep that we dealt with on our journey here. Once we got moving Jimmy and I took the girls on a manure run that lasted a few hours. On our trip out to the brush we encountered villages, adults and kids waving to the girls, and 3 little boys who came out to watch the girls shovel manure. They were entertained. The girls and I had a lot of great conversation as we worked to fill up the pick-up truck. They told me that they thought they heard strange animal noises last night until they realized it was Pastor Lisa snoring! That got a belly laugh out of me. During the same time we were on that trip, Tyler and Noah were helping with building a mud house. They managed to get about half of the posts in the ground. Noah also went off to help Lisa with the kids in their school classes.

Early in the afternoon the teachers let us know that they were going to let the kids out of school early today. So we got ready for our first real opportunity to play with the kids and teens. I approached the boys of COZV and told them that I wanted to teach them a new game I thought they might like called basketball! Of course when we all got on the court, I was the one who was taken to school. We had a very intense and fun game of basketball. The one thing that disturbed me greatly was that the one older boy, Malinga, who cannot speak, seemed to be making jesters at me that appeared to be making fun of my basketball playing. I got the impression that he was trash talking me as I think he was trying to mimic my style, all while he laughed. Oooooh that boy! I did notice that Tyler played the game more like a football player than a basketball player. Jimmy and I progressively got worse at cheating as the game went on. I think they call that a “handicap” in golf so it was all good.

After that game many of our teens and the COZV bunch went and played soccer. I saw Lisa leading a fun “youth group” type game that involved sitting so I went over and joined in. We all had a lot of fun that afternoon as we really got to spend some quality time with all of the kids.

It was also amazing to see how many of these teens are growing up. Simasiku’s voice was cracking like crazy 2 years ago. Now he has a manly voice and looks all grown up. I suspect that Davis is eating all the leftovers because of all the kids here, he has grown the most. I think he may be taller than me now. Many of them are coming of age.

That evening we were treated to a Namibian-style meatloaf at the Curry’s house. It was delicious! After that we had our “Where did you see God today?” roundtable discussion. Our devotion also focused on Peter and the one time that he actually did take a few steps out of his comfort zone only to start falling into the water after walking towards Jesus. When he kept his eyes focused on Jesus he was able to do the impossible, but as soon as he took his eyes off of Him, he began sinking. We wrestled with how sometimes this seems to be the pattern of a mission trip. We see Jesus throughout the entire trip, but once we get home we get caught up in the stress and worries of life and we begin to sink.

Once we were done with our Debrief, we headed over to the meeting hall and had fun with the kids. The one profound lesson that we all learned during this time is that Olivia can’t dance. But her attempts at dance are very entertaining. In fact, I would go so far as to say that Olivia is becoming the “Queen of Comedy” on this trip.

As we were heading back to our cabins, we boys detected some noises on the other side of the fence that goes around the property. We stood up against the fence shining our flashlights into the darkness. All of a sudden, we heard it! It was a hippo! We must have spent at least 30 minutes scanning the bushes and the Zambezi River for the source of the noise. About 3 times whatever it really was would belt out a noise that sounded deep, loud and ominous. Lisa came out, heard it once and went back to the safety and security of her cabin. Of course we had to consider every possible scenario if the hippo came charging at us through the fence. Chances are the actual animal was on the other side of the river and the water made its voice sound like it was closer than it really was. But it was still fun to get ourselves all worked up. We even had one of the guards come over and use his spotlight, but we actually never really saw anything.

On Saturday morning, Lisa had a very, very unique opportunity to go see a Namibian funeral. According to her, it was amazing in how personal the whole process was and the rituals that were done in their service. Very different than what we are used to. I am sure she will want the pleasure of sharing this experience herself so I will stop here from giving away anything.

Saturday was a really fun day for all of us. Once we woke up we all got outside and played with the kids. Some of us got a basketball game going again, others played with the young kids, while others made crafts in the meeting hall. It was a beautiful day. When lunch time came, I decided to go hang out in the meeting hall and sit with the students. I observed the lunch crew that prepared the meal and let’s just say it was fish, but not like I have ever had it. They fried the fish whole. It was gutted but it still had the rest of its body – tail, fins, scales and head. I was curious to see how they would eat this. So I joined them for lunch. The only problem was that as I was sitting with the kids, a plate of food was placed in front of me. I wasn’t sure what to do, but then I just went for it. I learned how to pull apart the fish and eat it like they do. It was decent. And my stomach handled the test all day long!

At 3:00 we had a group come over from a mission that cares for disabled children. They came so that we could put on a talent show. It was awesome! There was singing and dancing, and silly skits and a clown who filled in as the moderator. Our teens participated in two skits. We did the “Death on the Tennis Court” skit and the “Getting ready for the Day” skit. Both were classic! The finale of the show was when the clown went over to Travis and Lorna and got them to dance. Then they invited everyone else to come and dance. To see COZV kids, adults, and disabled kids (some in wheel chairs) all dancing to a song praising Jesus was in many ways electrifying. This was one of those moments that you felt like you were brushing close to the edge of heaven. The presence of God’s Spirit and the sense of his pleasure permeated that place.

At the end of the program I got to talk with the 2 college students who came over with the disabled kids. Their stories were fascinating as they gave up their whole Summer to come over and serve at this mission. I was amazed at their courage and boldness to be doing what they are doing. Here at COZV we also have 2 girls and Jimmy who have been serving here for an extended period of time. I have been in awe of these college students who choose to serve is such a powerful way as an act of faith.

After the talent show we ate dinner at the Curry’s. We had a chicken pot pie dinner that was great. We shared our God moments and many people were impacted by the talent show and, more specifically, the dancing at the end. Then we rushed off to the meeting hall to play games. We played one big giant game of Bible trivia. They loved it. Then after that we broke up into several different games. Some played Uno, others Jenga, and others just danced away and hung out. It was a great day!

Tomorrow we will be doing the church service for the kids. Also Lisa and I will be joining the girls from the disabled children mission as they are coming over here to do an abstinence talk with the teens here at COZV. I am really looking forward to the whole day.

Continue to pray for our team. Everyone is getting along really well. And the bonding that is taking place between our kids and the COZV kids has been quick. It is exciting to see some of the networking with other missions in the area too. Our teens are fully throwing themselves head first into loving on the kids and helping and assisting however they can here at the mission. All of you parents should be mighty proud.

Post #1: Children of Zion Village - The Beginning (Monday-Thursday, June 20-23)

The Beginning

Sorry this took a while but we have been having internet connection problems!

Scott is a wimpy girl and can dish it out but can’t take it!

Love,

Prestige Worldwide a.k.a. “The Dream Team”

Lies, all lies. I can take on anything Natalie, Josie and Olivia want to dish out. They have now been named “The Queens of Sass” - Scott

I begin with an apology. I know that there are some parents and a wife and kids who have been anxiously checking the blog to see if we have arrived. Well after 2 very long days and 4 flights, we finally made it to the Children of Zion Village! The flights were relatively uneventful until we finally landed in Botswana. We made a b-line to the boarder as it was about to close at 6pm and we were less than an hour from that time! We quickly made it to the Batswana boarder and we got our passports stamped. Our driver finally came out with only minutes to spare. Once we got in the van we made it to the border crossing on the Namibia side. The gate was already closed with a very stern guard looking at us. But then after a moment passed, he was willing to unlock it and let us through. Then we made it into the office but the person responsible for letting us in already left. The other people in the office told us to just go on. Soooo we did. BUT, we woke up at 5AM the next morning and booked it to the border post to make sure we were legal first thing when they opened. There was some frustration and hesitation on the part of the person responsible for stamping our passports. I was deciding to take the angry papa-bear approach with this guy when all of a sudden Lisa jumped ahead with the sad grandma approach, feeling so bad last night with how hungry and tired her dear children were and in good faith we came right back first thing in the morning. Now it took some time and convincing, but we finally got back into the country.

It was exciting to see the teens and kids again for both Lisa and I. Many of them have grown so much and look more mature. Lisa was bummed when she learned that many of the animals are no longer here. But we learned quickly that the priority has been the children, especially in the transition they have been through and many of the changes were made for their best interests.

Our first full day was great. We started very early with trying to make things right with our border fiasco. On our way back from the border we had to drop off our driver, Elton, at his village. We were able to see a very large mud house that he just built for his wife and child. The teens were also able to visit and observe the village that Elton’s family was a part of.

Once we made it back to the village, we were off and running to all of the stores to buy food for our stay. We visited their open market and their 2 grocery stores. Of course we had to find all of the “Yum Yum” peanut butter in all of its glorious flavors! There was much rejoicing.

When we got back to the village we got all of our food situated in our living quarters. The boys are in the bungalow and all the girls are in the East cabin. Both of these cabins are right next to each other which is nice that we are for the most part all together and not spread out. As a side note, the boys had great conversation and then went to bed without any problems. I read for a while and then went to sleep peacefully. Lisa on the other hand said that the girls would not stop their giggling and loud bursts of laughter. I foresee a possible powder keg here. Will I see Pastor Lisa erupt like a volcano? Time will only tell. I just don’t understand how Lisa can’t control these teens. I never have any problems.

After we got settled down in our cabins, we split off into a variety of activities. The girls went and took a nap (which ensures even more giggling and burst of laughter tonight! And, I almost forgot this, but one of the girls left the little spicket water-thingy running by accident so they flooded their cabin.) So far, Lisa is doing really well but we are only on the first day! The boys on the other hand, shoveled manure all afternoon. We drove to the middle of nowhere for about half an hour and then found a plot of ground that was about 6 inches deep in dried out cow manure that has been there about a year. We loaded up the pickup truck and brought it back for fertilizer for the gardens. Tyler had the joy of riding in the back of the cab both ways. Without manure one way, and with a giant pile of manure the other way. I asked Tyler after it was all done what he thought. He said it was awesome! So if this chore ever comes up at home, remind him of the extreme amount of joy this job brought to him in Africa!

Lisa made Cincinnati Chili tonight for dinner and we are just about to get ready for our debriefing time. So with that, I will pick up on the rest of this story every day or two! All is well with all of our team. Jimmy has already been here for 2 weeks and has been doing great. He and I have had a lot of time to catch up (while shoveling manure) and here all his stories so far. There are also two very cool college age girls who are here. Lena from Germany and Kim from Texas. We have enjoyed getting to know them. And finally, Travis and Lorna have been great. I want to make absolutely sure that we are the best possible team ever in all that we do. We are their first mission team and I am very much wanting us to serve them with our best efforts, humbly follow their guidance and leadership, and be absolutely no burden whatsoever but a support and source of encouragement during our time here. Lisa and I have already had some great talks with them and are getting even more excited about the rest of our time here. We went through all of the gifts that we brought them. The only problem is that we are missing one of the bags that had a bunch of soccer jerseys, CD’s and DVD’s. We were told that that bag got left back in Washington D.C. and that they would ship it over to us right away. Just pray that it gets here safely.

Also, begin to pray that our team would start to feel pushed way out of their comfort zone so that their faith in Christ can begin to deepen in a powerful way. And begin to pray that you as parents and a church congregation can be used of the Holy Spirit to help these teens integrate all that they learn here back into the context of their families, communities and church! Be open to God’s leading in your teen’s life knowing that this may or may not lead them to what you may want for your teenager. But know that God’s plan will always be better than ours.

Till next time . . . .