Zambia 2014 - Diary 7

Zambia 2014 - Diary 7

Well, Sunday being probably one of the hottest days we've had yet, it proved very difficult to get to sleep; it was unbearably hot and airless.

This morning was markedly cooler (though still very warm t-shirt weather) and the sky was clouded over (much relieved) but I felt incredibly tired this morning.  I think the heat yesterday, combined with a very long week, had taken it's toll.  Whilst eating a late breakfast, Jimmy and Farayi walked in - was so nice to see them back in Kitwe.

Soon we were on the road, Hannah and I being dropped at the church and Jimmy and Farayi heading in to town to get a few bits for the projects and do some gift shopping.  Hannah and I joined the baby class in the school this morning to present toys and puzzles to them.  We had a little time to play with them and take some photos too.  It was a good time with them, and they were so much more relaxed with us (except for Precious who still cries at the sight of us).

This afternoon I took over 20 of the literacy class in to the IT suite to introduce them to some educational websites - it was quite a squeeze.  Thunder had been mildly rumbling for an hour or two by this time and suddenly the heavens opened like I'd never seen them in all our time here.  The path outside the IT suite was like a river in no time and where we had kept the door and windows open due to the heat, the rains came lashing in.  My paperwork, camera and phone were soaked in seconds!  Water flowed in over the tiled floor making it all very slippery and the ceiling started to leak in a couple of places (a couple of the women put their umbrellas up!) Simon passed a mop and broom through the window from the church and a couple of us started to brush the water out whilst everyone else continued to work, completely unperturbed.

It was a crazy session but everyone managed to access one of the main websites and explore the different activities there.  We gathered together in the church hall for a final debriefing and question/answer time.  There is still an obvious anxiety as to how the literacy project will continue after this week so I had to continually allay their fears. There is always pressure put on, openly or in a quiet whisper, to give them my personal contact details, but I have to continually refer them to Pastor Nyirongo as the liaison, as the pressure to meet individual needs could become quite intense.   One guy, for his homework, instead of writing a formal letter of complaint to a hotel/restaurant, wrote a letter asking to be employed to set up a centre in Kitwe, under the banner of my church's ministry.

The remainder of the afternoon consisted of a session for married couples led by Farayi which was very well received, and  also the presentation of a home-knitted blanket by one of our 80 year old sisters to the youngest member of the orphanage; 9 year old Catherine.  That was really cool!  Catherine is the one who constantly asks us to take her home with us, and now she has a taste of our home with her.  The blanket has a large red cross knitted in to the heart of it :)  She was so pleased with it.

Pastor George came to find us in the orphanage to take us home.  It was still raining very heavily outside and was now very dark too, and yet it was still warm.  We had to drop a few ladies off on the way home, down some very long and extremely bumpy roads, so the drive was long and very slow.

We are now fed and both feeling very tired, and this may be my last blog as tomorrow is our last day.  In the morning we will be at the church presenting certificates to the literacy students, then off in to town to change our kwacha back to dollars, back to the church for a final afternoon saying farewells to the children, then for a final celebration meal at Stephen and Gladys's home (minus Stephen) along with other pastors from the church. 

We will be leaving Kitwe about 8:30/9am our time on Wednesday morning, landing safely at Heathrow at around 5:45am Thursday!

See you all soon x