Saturday, March 29, 2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
98% good!
Some time ago we introduced you Thaddeus Thomas, a.k.a. Kambahu. He is a prisoner in Oluno Prison, Ondangwa. We explained that he had finished the NETS TEE course but that he begged to continue in theological studies. By bending some major NETS rules we were able to offer him a full scholarship for his first year of the NETS Diploma in Theology (which can be upgraded to a degree later).
Kambahu comes from Omega village, about 20km south of Oshakati. His father is dead, and his mother is unemployed, and has no way of supporting him. Kambahu’s sentence will be complete in about 2020, but it is quite likely that it will be cut short by a few years for good behaviour. He is a Roman Catholic, and had just begun his theological studies when he committed a big offence. It seems God had other plans for him.
Of all the students currently doing the NETS Dip (Th) he is progressing the fastest. “Not surprising”, you might say. “After all, what else does one do in prison?” Actually, all prisoners have assigned responsibilities that keep them very busy.
Moreover, there are other obstacles to overcome. Kambahu types all his assignments on an ancient typewriter. Recently, the typewriter broke down. Undaunted, Kambahu asked intrepid NETS co-ordinator, David Greeff, to fetch another broken down one at his home village, Omega. Agent Greeff, (at sea in Oshiwambo at the best of times) first had to arrange with Kambahu’s mother to meet him a certain shebeen (local pub). He then travelled deep into Oukwambi (a tribal area different to the dialect Greeff is used to) to locate the homestead. 10 kms past the shebeen (as the mother had not been able to get a lift) he found her walking on the road with the typewriter, about 10 kms from home (have you ever walked even 100 m lugging an old typewriter?).
With the mother driven back to her village and the typewriter safely delivered to the prison, the prison workshop was able to construct a working typewriter from the 2 broken ones, and Kambahu is again happily typing his assignments. (Which reminds me, Kambahu has asked me to get him a new ribbon … I hope one of the more LOCAL shebeens can oblige!)
So when does Kambahu study?
In the day? No, because he has too many responsibilities in the prison.
At night? Yes, but there are, again, problems. Most prisoners are in a cell with about 13 other inmates (cells designed to hold about 8). Cells are very noisy until lights out at 9pm. So studying is not easy. So, what Kambahu does is go to sleep immediately after dinner (6pm), despite the noise around him. He wakes up at ‘lights out’. The only place a light is allowed is at the toilet – so Kambahu either sits on the dunny studying, or lies on his mattress at the entrance to the dunny, where he can get some light. He studies like that each night for as long as he can. (How’s that for commitment?)
In addition to his usual responsibilities, Kambahu is kept busy by teaching baptism and confirmation classes, and organising church services and choirs; he is fast becoming a de facto spiritual officer. He takes responsibility for people wanting to study the TEE courses, and I make decisions based on his recommendation. He visits the sick bay where inmates are lying, forgotten, and talks with them and prays for them. He also refers officers to me who are interested in doing the course.
At a recent workshop, I had CMS novice, Simon Gillham with us. I asked the group to tell the ‘raw prawn’ (an ex-copper) what prisons were like in Namibia. They ended up sharing their testimonies. Whilst ambivalent (lol) about the amount of fun they were having in prison, they were very positive about their incarceration, saying things like “I would never have heard the word of God if I had not come here”. It was obvious that Kambahu is a key figure in their lives; talking to them about God, encouraging them to come to church, allowing them opportunities to preach, and training them to do it. The tears in my eyes were hard to suppress.
In sharing his own testimony, Kambahu said that, before he came to prison, he knew God was calling him to serve him. But he found various ways of ducking and diving and avoiding the issue. Now in prison, God has given him a congregation AND mission field that cannot escape! “How is prison for you, Kambahu?” “98% good! I accept my sentence. I am thankful God hs brought me here.”
I am beginning to realise that the pleasure I get from ministry at Oluno prison, and the spiritual momentum that I find there, has a lot to do with one person; Kambahu.
So, praise God for his providential wisdom, grace and power in sending people like Kambahu to prison. Pray to God to continue work powerfully in Kambahu’s life, enabling him to persevere, and bringing many to faith through him. Pray also for great wisdom for him, as he thinks through aspects of his church’s faith. (NETS, an inter-denominational institution, does not encourage people to change denomination.)
Kambahu comes from Omega village, about 20km south of Oshakati. His father is dead, and his mother is unemployed, and has no way of supporting him. Kambahu’s sentence will be complete in about 2020, but it is quite likely that it will be cut short by a few years for good behaviour. He is a Roman Catholic, and had just begun his theological studies when he committed a big offence. It seems God had other plans for him.
Of all the students currently doing the NETS Dip (Th) he is progressing the fastest. “Not surprising”, you might say. “After all, what else does one do in prison?” Actually, all prisoners have assigned responsibilities that keep them very busy.
Moreover, there are other obstacles to overcome. Kambahu types all his assignments on an ancient typewriter. Recently, the typewriter broke down. Undaunted, Kambahu asked intrepid NETS co-ordinator, David Greeff, to fetch another broken down one at his home village, Omega. Agent Greeff, (at sea in Oshiwambo at the best of times) first had to arrange with Kambahu’s mother to meet him a certain shebeen (local pub). He then travelled deep into Oukwambi (a tribal area different to the dialect Greeff is used to) to locate the homestead. 10 kms past the shebeen (as the mother had not been able to get a lift) he found her walking on the road with the typewriter, about 10 kms from home (have you ever walked even 100 m lugging an old typewriter?).
With the mother driven back to her village and the typewriter safely delivered to the prison, the prison workshop was able to construct a working typewriter from the 2 broken ones, and Kambahu is again happily typing his assignments. (Which reminds me, Kambahu has asked me to get him a new ribbon … I hope one of the more LOCAL shebeens can oblige!)
So when does Kambahu study?
In the day? No, because he has too many responsibilities in the prison.
At night? Yes, but there are, again, problems. Most prisoners are in a cell with about 13 other inmates (cells designed to hold about 8). Cells are very noisy until lights out at 9pm. So studying is not easy. So, what Kambahu does is go to sleep immediately after dinner (6pm), despite the noise around him. He wakes up at ‘lights out’. The only place a light is allowed is at the toilet – so Kambahu either sits on the dunny studying, or lies on his mattress at the entrance to the dunny, where he can get some light. He studies like that each night for as long as he can. (How’s that for commitment?)
In addition to his usual responsibilities, Kambahu is kept busy by teaching baptism and confirmation classes, and organising church services and choirs; he is fast becoming a de facto spiritual officer. He takes responsibility for people wanting to study the TEE courses, and I make decisions based on his recommendation. He visits the sick bay where inmates are lying, forgotten, and talks with them and prays for them. He also refers officers to me who are interested in doing the course.
At a recent workshop, I had CMS novice, Simon Gillham with us. I asked the group to tell the ‘raw prawn’ (an ex-copper) what prisons were like in Namibia. They ended up sharing their testimonies. Whilst ambivalent (lol) about the amount of fun they were having in prison, they were very positive about their incarceration, saying things like “I would never have heard the word of God if I had not come here”. It was obvious that Kambahu is a key figure in their lives; talking to them about God, encouraging them to come to church, allowing them opportunities to preach, and training them to do it. The tears in my eyes were hard to suppress.
In sharing his own testimony, Kambahu said that, before he came to prison, he knew God was calling him to serve him. But he found various ways of ducking and diving and avoiding the issue. Now in prison, God has given him a congregation AND mission field that cannot escape! “How is prison for you, Kambahu?” “98% good! I accept my sentence. I am thankful God hs brought me here.”
I am beginning to realise that the pleasure I get from ministry at Oluno prison, and the spiritual momentum that I find there, has a lot to do with one person; Kambahu.
So, praise God for his providential wisdom, grace and power in sending people like Kambahu to prison. Pray to God to continue work powerfully in Kambahu’s life, enabling him to persevere, and bringing many to faith through him. Pray also for great wisdom for him, as he thinks through aspects of his church’s faith. (NETS, an inter-denominational institution, does not encourage people to change denomination.)
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Double Trouble
Woo-hoo! We have met some Afrikaans people who have just moved to Ongwediva (from Rundu). Their children are similar ages to our two and they have started karate (where we met them). I had her children here to play last Saturday and THIS Saturday they are playing at her house! Wow! This is basically the first time the children have gone to play at someone’s house. As I have mentioned before, local children have little or no parental supervision during the day and I cannot let them go into unknown situations, especially Caris. So everyone plays here – hard work for Mum but it means I can keep an eye on them. So, thank God for another chance (other than drama) for Caris to learn to be away from me (and ME to have some quiet!).
BAD NEWS my side is that my hard drive crashed last weekend and I lost everything on it.
I had not backed up my email but HAD backed up my addresses.
I had not backed up Feb-March photos (or anything else in Feb) but HAD some low res ones of my favourite ones on the blog which I can download.
The computer had to be sent to Windhoek where it awaited a new hard drive from South Africa. Providentially, SA had one in stock and I did not have to wait for them to order one from USA. I hope to have it back tomorrow.
So, if I have not replied to a recent email from you, it means I lost it before I could. So, please feel free to resend it!
SAD NEWS here is the ongoing flooding up here.
From a press conference by his excellency Hifikepunye Pohamba, president of Namibia:
“The severe flood situation in the northern and north eastern part of our country has had a negative effect on agriculture and agricultural production. Wide-spread crop losses are expected. This will impact negatively on those communities who depend heavily on subsistence farming. As a result, large quantities of cereal will have to be sourced in order to prevent wide-spread hunger. The 2007/2008 rainy season was delayed in the north. This significantly reduced crop growing conditions and are likely to reduce the yield prospects by at least 40% compared to 2006/2007 harvest. In this context, we must act quickly. Another contributing factor is the heavy and continuous rains received between January and February this year. This has resulted in water logging and leaching which led to poor germination and stunted growth of the maize, mahangu (millet) and other crops. Many fields, especially in the Caprivi, Omusati, Ohangwena and Oshana Regions are submerged. This situation was exacerbated by flood water from Angola. The available information indicates that many communal farmers in the north have reduced the area under cultivation by as much as 50% due to wet fields and unavailability of draught animals which are in a poor state as a result of recent drought. My Government is also very concerned that recent outbreak of Army worms in Oshana and Oshikoto regions pose a major threat to crops and pasture.”
We live in the Oshana region. People are being forced from their homes all around Oshakati and in many rural places. When I have my computer back, I will post photos of the floods, and of people fishing for catfish in the oshanas (depressions which catch water in the floods – we live on a flood plain). I think, when the oshanas dry up, the fish (or eggs) hibernate in the mud until the next rainy season. At the beginning of the rainy season, down near Tsumeb, one can buy GIANT mushrooms (you could hardly get your arms around the cap) from people by the road. Then comes the giant frogs (needing two hands to hold) and now people sell fish. All important dietary supplements.
We have a young woman staying with us at the moment. We are trying to help Aune to get into a course to better her matric results. It is very hard for people here as there are so few places available at Uni and the best teachers go to Windhoek and other well-paying venues. Most people sitting Matric fail to get enough points first time to qualify for uni and then pay a fortune rewriting their matric, sometimes over a period of years.
She wrote an entrance test today. There was no clock available in the room and the woman invigilator told them the wrong time left at one point so everyone panicked for 30 minutes until she rectified it. Owning a watch is a luxury in Owamboland. Many people have mobile phones (which also tell the time) up here as land lines are both expensive and require electricity in the house. Living where there are no electricity or telephone lines, people with mobile phones can charge them at many little roadside shops – for a fee!
We in our culture take all these sort of things for granted; watches, phone lines, electricity, running water, an opportunity for a decent education (which is even given to us in our mother tongue!). David has one NETS correspondence student who is a pastor. He never had any schooling as he had to herd cattle and goats all his youth. But he has taught himself to read and write and is now doing his courses in English, can you believe it!
David has had Simon Gillham (the new CMS missionary who, with his family, arrived in Windhoek in January to work at NETS) with him this week. They have braved the floods and gone on ‘safari’, doing workshops. It has been good for david to have someone to show around and I think a good time was had by all!
Request:
I have lost all the freeware graphics I had downloaded for Caris to print out and colour in. If you have one you could scan in and send (not too high a resolution!), she would be very happy. We were getting a bit tired of the collection we had anyway. And I think I have exhausted all the colouring sites online!
BAD NEWS my side is that my hard drive crashed last weekend and I lost everything on it.
I had not backed up my email but HAD backed up my addresses.
I had not backed up Feb-March photos (or anything else in Feb) but HAD some low res ones of my favourite ones on the blog which I can download.
The computer had to be sent to Windhoek where it awaited a new hard drive from South Africa. Providentially, SA had one in stock and I did not have to wait for them to order one from USA. I hope to have it back tomorrow.
So, if I have not replied to a recent email from you, it means I lost it before I could. So, please feel free to resend it!
SAD NEWS here is the ongoing flooding up here.
From a press conference by his excellency Hifikepunye Pohamba, president of Namibia:
“The severe flood situation in the northern and north eastern part of our country has had a negative effect on agriculture and agricultural production. Wide-spread crop losses are expected. This will impact negatively on those communities who depend heavily on subsistence farming. As a result, large quantities of cereal will have to be sourced in order to prevent wide-spread hunger. The 2007/2008 rainy season was delayed in the north. This significantly reduced crop growing conditions and are likely to reduce the yield prospects by at least 40% compared to 2006/2007 harvest. In this context, we must act quickly. Another contributing factor is the heavy and continuous rains received between January and February this year. This has resulted in water logging and leaching which led to poor germination and stunted growth of the maize, mahangu (millet) and other crops. Many fields, especially in the Caprivi, Omusati, Ohangwena and Oshana Regions are submerged. This situation was exacerbated by flood water from Angola. The available information indicates that many communal farmers in the north have reduced the area under cultivation by as much as 50% due to wet fields and unavailability of draught animals which are in a poor state as a result of recent drought. My Government is also very concerned that recent outbreak of Army worms in Oshana and Oshikoto regions pose a major threat to crops and pasture.”
We live in the Oshana region. People are being forced from their homes all around Oshakati and in many rural places. When I have my computer back, I will post photos of the floods, and of people fishing for catfish in the oshanas (depressions which catch water in the floods – we live on a flood plain). I think, when the oshanas dry up, the fish (or eggs) hibernate in the mud until the next rainy season. At the beginning of the rainy season, down near Tsumeb, one can buy GIANT mushrooms (you could hardly get your arms around the cap) from people by the road. Then comes the giant frogs (needing two hands to hold) and now people sell fish. All important dietary supplements.
We have a young woman staying with us at the moment. We are trying to help Aune to get into a course to better her matric results. It is very hard for people here as there are so few places available at Uni and the best teachers go to Windhoek and other well-paying venues. Most people sitting Matric fail to get enough points first time to qualify for uni and then pay a fortune rewriting their matric, sometimes over a period of years.
She wrote an entrance test today. There was no clock available in the room and the woman invigilator told them the wrong time left at one point so everyone panicked for 30 minutes until she rectified it. Owning a watch is a luxury in Owamboland. Many people have mobile phones (which also tell the time) up here as land lines are both expensive and require electricity in the house. Living where there are no electricity or telephone lines, people with mobile phones can charge them at many little roadside shops – for a fee!
We in our culture take all these sort of things for granted; watches, phone lines, electricity, running water, an opportunity for a decent education (which is even given to us in our mother tongue!). David has one NETS correspondence student who is a pastor. He never had any schooling as he had to herd cattle and goats all his youth. But he has taught himself to read and write and is now doing his courses in English, can you believe it!
David has had Simon Gillham (the new CMS missionary who, with his family, arrived in Windhoek in January to work at NETS) with him this week. They have braved the floods and gone on ‘safari’, doing workshops. It has been good for david to have someone to show around and I think a good time was had by all!
Request:
I have lost all the freeware graphics I had downloaded for Caris to print out and colour in. If you have one you could scan in and send (not too high a resolution!), she would be very happy. We were getting a bit tired of the collection we had anyway. And I think I have exhausted all the colouring sites online!
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Shopping in Owamboland
I turned away children again today, who had come for Bible club. To write lessons, I ideally need an hour or so uninterrupted time - which I simply don’t get at the moment. My mornings are taken up with teaching the children and afternoons are spent with visitors, taking children to drama lessons and karate, admin for David, etc. I want to write the lessons so that I am, at the same time, working towards the completion of the Sunday school manual. However, I have determined to start Bible Club next week anyway, even if I just tell a story and sing some songs.
However, a blog can be put together in spare moments so I will do this.
HOMESCHOOLING
In home schooling the children have learnt the names of almost all the countries of the world. We just have Middle East and the Americas to go. It never ceases to amaze me how much they can remember and how little we utilise this ability in children. The have learnt the books of the NT and now have started the books of the OT as well as the apostles’ creed and the latest Psalm.
I want to do a project about Australia this year in preparation for coming home at the end of the year. I have a couple of books we can read but does anyone have any ideas for fun projects (with minimal resources!)?
In science we have just looked at deciduous and coniferous forests. I had never clicked that conifers were so-called because of their cones (duh!).
In history, we are up to Mohammed and Charlemagne.
Étienne has moved onto piano now and has already overtaken Caris who is not as fluent as he is at reading music (well, he has had an extra 6 months of music). She has started the typing tutor course and is enjoying it.
The man with the horse promises us there will be riding lessons once the flooding goes down – we have been waiting over a year for these ‘promised’ lessons (first, the horse died, then the instructor moved to Windhoek then the next teacher lined up also moved … ) so I am not holding my breath but do hope it eventuates as Caris LOVES riding.
DAILY THINGS
Yesterday, I visited a friend of the children, who is in hospital after an op. I was horrified at how primitive it is there. I plan to go back with my children today and hand out colouring crayons and paper as there is nothing for these children to do all day but sit and look at the ceiling or wander around outside.
A woman, whose son is at karate with Étienne, grew up in Ondangwa and thus was there when the war was on and South African troops were based there, fighting against SWAPO who hid over in Angola. She said there was a strict curfew and that going to school in Oshakati meant joining the morning armed convoy. I was once help up at gun point in Mocambique during the war years when driving through the ‘gun run’ and that was a heart-stopping moment for me. I cannot imagine living daily in a war zone. We have a house help who comes in a couple of mornings a week. She is OshiKwambi. During those years she goes beaten by the SA troops more than once for providing food to the ‘rebel’ forces, who were mainly Owambos, the people who live here in the North, against the Angolan border. Those ‘rebels’ now run Namibia. Because the OshiKwanyama people are the biggest tribe among the Owambos, they have the position of power in the country.
SHOPPING
As many of you know, Namibia is mostly desert and almost all our food stuff comes from South Africa by truck. Unfortunately, as we are at the end of the run, there is often a shortage of things. There has been no fresh milk for over a week now (but long life is in stock), and fruit and veggies (esp green) have been scarce. Thursdays is delivery day so Friday is a good shopping day for fresh produce … sometimes it is over-ripe, though, by the time it gets here. And frozen food (including ice cream) has a tendency to melt and is then refrozen (not very encouraging when it comes to chicken!). Windhoek has a butchery for red meat and a dairy for milk, cheese and yoghurt. Oftentimes there is only processed cheese available, though. However, one can never say we do not have what we NEED. Bread is baked on the premises of a number of places, as commercially-produced bread would be stale by the time it got here.
There are decent supermarkets though the stuff stocked is mainly for the local palate; tripe, lung, tongue and trotters are the standard offering at one of the 2 local supermarkets. We have Spar and Shoprite (like Bi-Lo) nearby. There is a Game (like K-Mart but without the vast selection of K-Mart), there is no newsagents but some magazines and newspapers can be bought at the Spar. There are furniture shops and clothing stores. The quality of stuff tends to be quite poor generally as it is made in China and cheap, which makes it attractive. But one can buy better quality stuff in a few places. We have what are called China shops. They are run by Chinese (many of whom speak only Chinese!) and they sell loads of cheap stuff, rather like a $2 shop. They are very popular.
In Ongwediva we also have a little post office (but no mail box!), a telcom shop, a hairdresser (the only one in Owamboland where European hair can be cut nicely!) and a bank. Newly-opened is a private hospital – the only one north of Windhoek – and an optometrist. So we are not too badly off at all.
Guavas and marula fruit are two of the few locally grown fruit. The marula nuts are cracked for their oil (for cooking) and the fruit is fermented into a popular (very intoxicating) drink (not my cup or tea – or wine, should I say!). It has LONG been the custom here, in the season for this drink, for men not to be allowed to carry knives as fights break out so easily.
Markets will sell you cooked or raw cow or goat meat, dried spinach, dried beans, millet flour, oshikundu (a drink made from millet which has a communal cup – you pays and you drinks and you leaves the cup! – this drink can also be fermented into an alcoholic one, but the ‘soft’ version is nutritious though a bit too crunchy for me. David likes it.)
It is a bother when one buys chocolate and finds it dry and crumbly from age, or a pizza that has processed cheese tinned mushrooms. But we are here by choice and know we can look forward to a decent pizza in Aus. We are out of our comfort zone in many ways but one discovers new ways to measure a comfort zone.
- When there are water and power cuts, I remind myself that at least we have running water and electricity most of the time – a privilege.
- When the shop shelves are empty of certain products, I remember that many people would not have the money to buy it, even if it was there.
- When I miss having people of my own culture and language to talk to, I thank God for email and books (in my mother tongue).
- When I have sat through yet another almost meatless sermon, I am grateful for good sermons on CD and the knowledge that we have many excellent preachers in Aus.
- When I struggle to write Bible studies and Bible sessions for children, I am amazed at the vast resources available to every Australian – with the added bonus that it is in our mother tongue. (There are zero Bible study resources available in any of the languages of Namibia except for English and Afrikaans, nor Bibles in many of them.)
So, let me not count our difficulties but rather our privileges, which add up to a huge blessing!
However, a blog can be put together in spare moments so I will do this.
HOMESCHOOLING
In home schooling the children have learnt the names of almost all the countries of the world. We just have Middle East and the Americas to go. It never ceases to amaze me how much they can remember and how little we utilise this ability in children. The have learnt the books of the NT and now have started the books of the OT as well as the apostles’ creed and the latest Psalm.
I want to do a project about Australia this year in preparation for coming home at the end of the year. I have a couple of books we can read but does anyone have any ideas for fun projects (with minimal resources!)?
In science we have just looked at deciduous and coniferous forests. I had never clicked that conifers were so-called because of their cones (duh!).
In history, we are up to Mohammed and Charlemagne.
Étienne has moved onto piano now and has already overtaken Caris who is not as fluent as he is at reading music (well, he has had an extra 6 months of music). She has started the typing tutor course and is enjoying it.
The man with the horse promises us there will be riding lessons once the flooding goes down – we have been waiting over a year for these ‘promised’ lessons (first, the horse died, then the instructor moved to Windhoek then the next teacher lined up also moved … ) so I am not holding my breath but do hope it eventuates as Caris LOVES riding.
DAILY THINGS
Yesterday, I visited a friend of the children, who is in hospital after an op. I was horrified at how primitive it is there. I plan to go back with my children today and hand out colouring crayons and paper as there is nothing for these children to do all day but sit and look at the ceiling or wander around outside.
A woman, whose son is at karate with Étienne, grew up in Ondangwa and thus was there when the war was on and South African troops were based there, fighting against SWAPO who hid over in Angola. She said there was a strict curfew and that going to school in Oshakati meant joining the morning armed convoy. I was once help up at gun point in Mocambique during the war years when driving through the ‘gun run’ and that was a heart-stopping moment for me. I cannot imagine living daily in a war zone. We have a house help who comes in a couple of mornings a week. She is OshiKwambi. During those years she goes beaten by the SA troops more than once for providing food to the ‘rebel’ forces, who were mainly Owambos, the people who live here in the North, against the Angolan border. Those ‘rebels’ now run Namibia. Because the OshiKwanyama people are the biggest tribe among the Owambos, they have the position of power in the country.
SHOPPING
As many of you know, Namibia is mostly desert and almost all our food stuff comes from South Africa by truck. Unfortunately, as we are at the end of the run, there is often a shortage of things. There has been no fresh milk for over a week now (but long life is in stock), and fruit and veggies (esp green) have been scarce. Thursdays is delivery day so Friday is a good shopping day for fresh produce … sometimes it is over-ripe, though, by the time it gets here. And frozen food (including ice cream) has a tendency to melt and is then refrozen (not very encouraging when it comes to chicken!). Windhoek has a butchery for red meat and a dairy for milk, cheese and yoghurt. Oftentimes there is only processed cheese available, though. However, one can never say we do not have what we NEED. Bread is baked on the premises of a number of places, as commercially-produced bread would be stale by the time it got here.
There are decent supermarkets though the stuff stocked is mainly for the local palate; tripe, lung, tongue and trotters are the standard offering at one of the 2 local supermarkets. We have Spar and Shoprite (like Bi-Lo) nearby. There is a Game (like K-Mart but without the vast selection of K-Mart), there is no newsagents but some magazines and newspapers can be bought at the Spar. There are furniture shops and clothing stores. The quality of stuff tends to be quite poor generally as it is made in China and cheap, which makes it attractive. But one can buy better quality stuff in a few places. We have what are called China shops. They are run by Chinese (many of whom speak only Chinese!) and they sell loads of cheap stuff, rather like a $2 shop. They are very popular.
In Ongwediva we also have a little post office (but no mail box!), a telcom shop, a hairdresser (the only one in Owamboland where European hair can be cut nicely!) and a bank. Newly-opened is a private hospital – the only one north of Windhoek – and an optometrist. So we are not too badly off at all.
Guavas and marula fruit are two of the few locally grown fruit. The marula nuts are cracked for their oil (for cooking) and the fruit is fermented into a popular (very intoxicating) drink (not my cup or tea – or wine, should I say!). It has LONG been the custom here, in the season for this drink, for men not to be allowed to carry knives as fights break out so easily.
Markets will sell you cooked or raw cow or goat meat, dried spinach, dried beans, millet flour, oshikundu (a drink made from millet which has a communal cup – you pays and you drinks and you leaves the cup! – this drink can also be fermented into an alcoholic one, but the ‘soft’ version is nutritious though a bit too crunchy for me. David likes it.)
It is a bother when one buys chocolate and finds it dry and crumbly from age, or a pizza that has processed cheese tinned mushrooms. But we are here by choice and know we can look forward to a decent pizza in Aus. We are out of our comfort zone in many ways but one discovers new ways to measure a comfort zone.
- When there are water and power cuts, I remind myself that at least we have running water and electricity most of the time – a privilege.
- When the shop shelves are empty of certain products, I remember that many people would not have the money to buy it, even if it was there.
- When I miss having people of my own culture and language to talk to, I thank God for email and books (in my mother tongue).
- When I have sat through yet another almost meatless sermon, I am grateful for good sermons on CD and the knowledge that we have many excellent preachers in Aus.
- When I struggle to write Bible studies and Bible sessions for children, I am amazed at the vast resources available to every Australian – with the added bonus that it is in our mother tongue. (There are zero Bible study resources available in any of the languages of Namibia except for English and Afrikaans, nor Bibles in many of them.)
So, let me not count our difficulties but rather our privileges, which add up to a huge blessing!
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