Jessie's notes from Sunday

hi friends!!
or here in Mwandi, the language is Lozi, and they say "encha," which means "hello, thank you/you're welcome" all of the above. the last few days have been pretty busy, which is why I haven't been able to catch up until now; we would get to the end of the day and we would all absolutely exhausted. but it has been a really fun couple of days!!

- we put on an educational workshop for some of the local cattle farmers, some of which are actually in a dairy co-op together; which is a great encouragement for the community, the fact that they are all getting together to work with one another and learn from one another. they also have a great leader/person in charge, whose name is Mr. Samfumba - he was actually in a really bad car accident a while ago, but he's back to walking and doing just fine, which is a cool miracle he can share :) anyway, you could really tell that the farmers were excited about the workshop; they came in their collared shirts and ties, and even brought papers to take notes.
they were all super appreciative and just kept saying how thankful they were that all of us came to help them learn, so that was pretty awesome.. it was also a cool learning opportunity for me, because there are several diseases that are a primary concern here that are not even present in the US, such as "lumpy skin disease," which is caused by a pox virus (don't worry, it's not zoonotic) :)

- we've also had the opportunity over the past couple of days to serve at the local children's orphanage, which is called the OVC (which stands for Orphans and Vulnerable Children); it has been really fun, all of the kids LOVE getting their picture taken with the digital camera and then seeing their faces immediately after. there's even this one ham of a kid that flexes his muscles and totally cheezes in all of his pictures (but I was really sad to find out that he's HIV infected.. just one of the realities here in Africa, that so many times we take for granted in America). we were also fortunate enough to share a devotional time with them, which they sang some praise and worship songs to us in Lozi and in English, which was INCREDIBLE!!! they were just so into it, really shouting their songs to the point that the walls in the little room seemed to echo and shake.. it was just such an encouragement to see them so in love with Jesus, despite what we might look at as an unfortunate life and something to be pitied; but these kids were really filled with such joy :)

- Irene, Rose and Cecilia, the ladies who cook for us at the Simba house (the name of the house that we're staying at on the mission) are absolutely wonderful; I have not had something yet that I do not like!! it's funny though; they definitely cater to us being american - we've had versions of hot dogs, grilled cheese, and pizza. but a couple of times they have cooked for us traditional Zambian foods, the main one being "nashima," which is kind of like a very bland corn meal solid mash; you eat it with your hands (which is SO much fun!!), form it into bite-site balls, and eat with some greens, sauce, whatever.. it was really really good!! we ate it with oxtail, greens, and sweet tea one night, and I definitely felt like I was having a Zambian version of a meal from the South..

- we also got to meet the Chief of Mwandi, which was a huge honor; he has a "palace" build near the edge of the village by the river (I put that in quotations because it would never be viewed as a palace in the US, it would actually fall into middle-class suburbia quite well; but here it is such a luxury to have a complete roof and complete walls in your home) and he was a wonderful man; spoke incredible english, and seemed to be quite humble. I definitely did not expect him to come out in a camo jacket and ski beanie (shows how much I'm learning on this trip and how truly culturally ignorant we can be as Americans)

- over the next few days we are starting our rabies campaign in the village, trying to vaccinate as many dogs as we can while we're here; although it will barely dent the population of stray dogs here that are most likely not vaccinated, hopefully something more than nothing will be helpful to these people. it is very questionable though how the people here may respond; unlike the US, dogs here are NOT viewed as pets. in fact, the simple premise that we are wanting to work on their dogs is silly enough to them that it elicits laughter!! however the people here do understand the reality and severity of rabies disease, so hopefully that will be motivation enough to bring some of their dogs over the next few days.

a few other little highlights:
- we got to drive in the back of a pick-up through the African bush to get to some of the cattle corrals; it was one of the times that it really hit me that we are in Africa (crazy, I know..)
- we got to go to a local church service this morning!! (about three hours) with tons of praise and worship from the choir in Lozi and in English, all a capella with some African drums; as one of the vets here - Sara Louise - puts it, there are few more beautiful sounds that African voices all singing together..
- today we had the privilege to go on a canoe ride down a tributary of the Zambezi river; it was so peaceful and beautiful, God's wonder and creation was really evident to me :) it was also cool to be between two countries, as Zambia is on one side and Namibia is on the other. we also saw a lilac breasted roller, one of the most colorful birds I've ever seen in my life, which is only found in Africa (you should google it; it's really really pretty)

thanks for reading :) ya'lls prayers are really appreciated!!

In Him -
Jessie