November Update

Dear friends and family,

I bet it’s getting colder and colder at home now.  It’ll be interesting coming home and dropping 30 degrees!  This cold that I have right now could last a little longer with a temperature change.

Everything is going smoothly here at Sakeji.  We are finishing up the term next Wednesday.  The parents are coming starting in the morning.  In the evening the kids will perform their Christmas show for their parents.  It’s all starting to come together.  The kids will have 2 or 3 full rehearsals on Monday and Tuesday. 

Everyone, including myself, is very happy to be done with report cards.  They’re all due by today, so Mr. Ronald can have one  more look over before they are printed and ready for Wednesday.   I only had to write comments for two classes, so my load is considerably less than the other teachers.  I have learned so much from my time here.  I am excited to pursue my education next year.  It’ll be weird going back to school and being a student again.

Right now the kids are going through the Sakeji triathlon.  All of the students and staff have finished the bike part, with a few broken chains, and the last of the students just ran by my house.  Next the team has 50 laps in the pool.  I am very proud of the students and staff members who are going through the race. 

I leave Sakeji on Thursday morning with Jessica Russell.  We’re heading to Lusaka.  Her plane leaves on the 8^th.  Hannah is driving down so she will meet me in Lusaka around the 8^th or 9^th.  This is the best time for Jessica and I to fly because the other kids who are flying home are going on that day.  I’ll miss the kids so much, but I know God has a great plan in mind for me.  “For I know the thoughts that I think towards you saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”  Jeremiah 29:11. It’s so cool that God knows my future.  He’s in charge!

Well, the next time I send an update I’ll either be in Lusaka or home.  God has been so good to me for the past 7 months.  Please continue to pray for the students as they return home.  Pray for the students who are leaving Sakeji for higher grades.  Pray that they will be a testimony and remember what they have learned here.  Also, pray that the students who are going home for the break will be good testimonies for God.  Most of all, pray for their salvation! 

God bless!

Yolanda

The kids make me so happy!!!!

Today, after the kids went down to river, I wrote in the sand, "If you're happy, and you know it, write your name".  i thought it would be cool to see how many people would right there names.  I wasn't really expecting any because I thought they would come from the river and start playing soccer.  After I was done I went home to work on an assignment, and I didn't come back until it was almost time for supper.  When I was walking up to the dining hall, I saw a few kids kneeling down in the sand. I excitedly went over to see if they actually were writing their names.  I was really happy to see that there were many names, plus the kids who were still writing.  It's the little things that make my day! :D I wish I could have gotten a picture of it, but it was too big!  I love my kids here!!!

I am so blessed to be a part of this school for the past 7 months!!!  Please, keep praying for the kids here and their salvation and growth in their relationship with God!

10,000 REASONS

I had been planning a girl’s night with the gr. 7-9 since last Sunday.  I wanted to do the whole shebang: feet soaking and massage, hand massage, face mask, music, etc.  I also wanted to leave the girls with a special message they would remember.  I had a difficult time thinking of what topic I wanted to do.  On Thursday night I finally decided on something, but.... on Friday I received a very special package!!!  In it was the camp video from Girl’s Camp at Joy Bible Camp.  I was very excited to get it.  I watched the video and quickly changed my mind on the topic for that night.  The girls at camp had made a poster titled “10,000 REASONS” and had everybody write a reason to worship and praise God.  I thought this was a great idea so I made up a quick poster.  During the events of the evening the girls went over to the poster and wrote all the reasons they could think of to praise God.  I was very happy to see a full page at the end of the evening.  We had such a great time with the girls, and they all seemed like they really enjoyed themselves.  They were very happy for a “Friday Night” without the boys!  Thanks JBC and Emily for the inspiration!!

Here are a few pictures of the night!

 

 

 

 

Thanks to this great group of ladies.  The night wouldn't have been possible without them!!

 

 

 

October Update

Dear friends and family,

We have had quite a busy month.  Zambia’s Independence Day was October 24^th.  We started with raising the flag and seeing the Zambian anthem.  Well, I listened.  At 9:30 we all went down to the pool for house races!  Jessica and I are a part of Poole so we were in charge of making sure the next competitors were ready.  I nearly lost my voice from cheering so loudly!  I felt like the head cheerleader for Poole, reminding everybody to cheer for our racer.  I had so much fun! 

We split into different teams after lunch for the fun races.  There was Cardiff, Belfast, London, and Edinburgh.  I was the team mistress of Belfast, and Mr. H was the team boss.  All that means is that I got to ride in the tube when the other team members had to push, pull, or drag the tube across the length of the pool.  My tube was not my friend today.  More often than not I fell out of the tube when trying to sit in it.  In one of the races the kids had to pull me with a rope from the shallow end.  (I was at the deep end)Once I FINALLY got in the tube the race started.  When they pulled me to the other side Mr. H tipped me out!!!  I was completely shocked.  I really shouldn’t have been though.  He did it again in the next race!  After that I was ready, and I was determined that I would not be dumped in again!  The kids would try to tip me out, but before they could I would jump out. 

At the end the men and women had jumping competition.  The women had to jump of the 4 different diving boards on to a tube.  The men had to jump/dive/freestyle off the four diving boards.  Pam felt the full impact of the tube from the nine foot.  She was the only one to actually be able to make it fully on the tube from that high up.  Hannah got the tube.  She went right through the whole!!  A couple women backed out by the six foot because they are terrified of heights.  It was all good fun though!  On the guys’ side, the most impressive dives were Mr. O’s flip off the six foot and Mr. T’s back flip off the nine foot!! 

Unbeknownst to me, the 3^rd grade classroom was switched all around.  The 3^rd graders have wanted to change their seats for quite a while.  I walk into the classroom Monday morning about 3 minutes before the kids came down from assembly to quite a surprise. I had just enough time to get used to the change.  The desks are all angled rather than facing the front.  There is also a new whiteboard on the wall.  It was great watching the kids’ reactions as they walked into the classroom.  There was a lot of “Wow!”s and surprised faces with huge eyes.  We only had about 2-3 ft in the front of the class the way it was before.  The way it is now the teacher has a lot more room to walk around.  The 2^nd graders join the classroom for some of the classes, such as Scripture and Science.  Before it felt like you had to either talk to grade 3 or grade 2, not both.  Now it’s possible to face the whole class. 

I am very excited that 2 or 3 kids were saved this month within the last couple weeks!  It’s so amazing to hear of a child giving their life to Jesus!  Please pray for them as they grow in their new relationship with Christ. 

I pray that you are all doing well.  Hallelujah, that we can praise God in the storms as well as the light.

With much love,

Yolanda

Jackels and Chickens and Dams, Oh My!

We have had quite a busy week!! To start with the dam directing the water into the channel for the pool has started to leak. I don't understand all the details, but they are having to fix it this week. This means we have been praying for no rain until they have it fixed. All week long it has either been sunny, clouds threatening, or light and short rains! God is so good! We also have visitors from Scotland this week. One of them happens to be an engineer and is able to help supervise the work on the dam. It's amzing how God provides the right people even before we ask! It rained quite a bit last night, but I haven't heard anything about it wrecking the work they have done so far. I assume no news is good news!

Yesterday, the the seniors and some of the staff went through the process of slaughtering the chickens. I don't know what the number was, but I'm sure we have a full freezer now! Even the girls got into beheading the poor chickens! I have heard that chickens still run around after the head is chopped off, but this was the first time I had seen it! The chickens had to be held still, upside down, until it stopped moving. If they moved around too much we would end up with broken chicken wings. At the end of the term break we had killed another batch, and I helped pluck those ones. Only I forgot my camera then so I don't have any proo so you will just have to take my word for it. This time I didn't dress for the occasion, but I did get pictures. Even though I didn't actually help my dress still smelled like chickens at the end of the day.

They were in the middle of killing the last batch when I jackel came around! Jessica and one of the workers were the only adults there. Jessica is used to seeing foxes in Scotland so she thought nothing of it, but the kids were so scared! The worker quickly ran to a bamboo plant and broke off one of the branches and threw it like a spear in the direction of the jackel. All I saw of it was the kids and Jessica walking back, with no chickens, and Mr. R walking back to the chicken coop with his rifle. I had no idea what was going on. I was trying to firgure out why they would need a rifle for killing chickens. When Jessica was telling me about it later I wished I had been there. It would have been interesting to see it all firsthand!

Last night, after all of that excitement, we had the gr 7-9s at our house for games. We definately do not have enough chairs in our small house for everyone so we had them all bring a chair from the hall. We barely had enough room for the 24 people who came. Four of the visitors from Scotland are teens so they came for the evening as well. We all had a blast!! We played Signs, "Not Me Sir", and Mafia. It was the perfact number for the games to to work. Hannah made cookies, I made popcorn and there was pizza left over from supper. We had just enough food. There was one cookie left over, which is great because I didn't have one earlier. :) It started pouring about 5-10 min before the kids left so they borrowed our umbrellas. Hannah was originally going to walk up to the dorm with the girls so she could bring the umbrellas back, but one of the girls lost her shoe in the muck. They had a flashlight, but I ran out with my flashlight, for extra light, to shoe hunt. We found the shoe and I ended up taking the girls to the dorm and bringing the umbrellas back home (with a couple more lost shoes).

We ended the night with "Annie" in the dark becasue the power had gone out. I had just enough battery on my laptop to finish the movie. I'm ready for my weekend off.! :) Praise the Lord for is goodness, providing, and protection!

Miss Russell's first time plucking chickens! :)

Miss Russell's first time beheading a chicken! :)

Posing with the poor chicken on the way to the chopping block.

 

Have a heart!

Shoes!! We had so much fun with all the kids!!

Food after all the fun!

 

How On Earth Did Women Wear So Many Layers of Petticoats?

04/10/12

(Sorry for the delay!  The internet was out for a week and I have been quite busy lately!)

Last night was Sakeji’s tri-annual birthday party.  This term’s theme was Wonders of the World.  A few people came over from Kalene on Tuesday to decorate cakes.  There was the pyramid, the Eiffel Tower, Stonehenge, and many more.  There were 15 cakes decorated in total! 

We had a day full of regular classes with only half of the usual attention from the kids.  Swimming lesson finished early so the teachers could get their costumes ready.  Supper was at 5:00 instead of 5:30 to give extra time to enjoy the special birthday meal. 

All the teachers looked great dressed up in their various costumes.  I took the suggestion from a friend and dressed as Mount Everest.  In order to add dimension, I wore many layers of skirts under the grey dress I wore for the actual mountain.  This brings me to my title.  How on earth did women wear so many layers of petticoats?! I had five layers of skirts on, and I was roasting all night!  Miss A. made up a new version of the song “I may never march in the infantry”.  She sang “I may never see the wonders of the world” and had all the teachers who dressed up come on stage and yell out their wonder.  The temperature went up a few more degrees when she called us on stage!  Then after the song was done the MCs had a costume contest.  The kids had to hoot, holler, and cheer for their favorite costume.  Mr. and Mrs. T won hands down.  They were dressed as the Tung Su Warriors who guarded the tomb of the first emperor of China.  I was standing at the end next to them so I got quite a loud “hoorah” as well from the overflow of their cheer. 

The kids did very well with their skits and songs.  Usually the seniors’ skits go on and on and the MC has to start clapping to cut them off because they are going on too long.  This time, however they were all short and very funny.  They had me in stitches with every skit!

As promised I have added a picture from the birthday party of my costume!  Thanks Em for the idea!

 

 

September Update

Dear friends and family,

I have been quite busy this term.  I am gaining more responsibility as the term goes on.  I am in a sort of student teacher position.  I am following Mr. R. in all of his classes.  He teaches 2&3, 4&5, and 8&9.  I am now teaching 3 classes with the 3^rd to graders, Spelling, Language, and Science.  I will only be teaching Science for the next two weeks, but the other classes I will have the whole term.  I will also be taking either the grade 3 Math class or the grade 4&5 Scripture class.  I haven’t decided which class I will take, but I am leaning towards Math. 

We have had a very interesting week.  We were told last week that a lion escaped from the Congo!  I sometimes forget that I live in Africa, but that definitely reminded me where I am!  There was a trail of dead cattle and other animals from the Congo coming towards the game park that is near the school.  The kids were quite nervous all week.  The seniors walk to the nearest church once a month.  They went this Sunday and Mr. R. was teasing them about the lion coming out of the bush to get them.  Then they saw the guy who was tracking the lion, and Mr. R said that he was pointing out where the lion was.  It wasn’t actually there but I don’t think the kids appreciated his sense of humour. 

Also, this week we have had an outbreak of chicken pox.  One of the boys came to school with chicken pox, but his spots hadn’t shown yet so it spread to some of the other boys in the dorm.  Now that the first boy is over them 3 more boys have it.  A teacher’s wife has a 7 month old baby, and she is trying to keep him at home so he doesn’t get chicken pox.  Between chicken pox and lions it has been an interesting term so far.

Jessica, one of my roommates, and I take the junior kids for games on Mondays.  It’s a constant battle trying to figure out games to play with 42 kids and have everyone enjoy it and play well together!  So far this term we have done a scavenger hunt and a water fight.  The water fight went really well.  I got totally soaked, but the kids had a blast.  This week Jessica took half of the kids, and I took the other half.  We split it grade 1&3 and 2&4.  We each took one group then switched groups half way through.  It seemed to work a lot better.  I had a lot more control of the kids and I didn’t have to yell quite so loud.  I actually didn’t lose my voice this week!  I think we’ll try it that way again next week. 

Wednesday is the big birthday party.  The theme this term is the Wonder of the World.  All the teachers dress up, and the senior students make up skits and sing songs.  I am going as Mount Everest.  I am wearing 4-5 layers of skirts with a grey dress over top, a grey sweater to make my arms the same color, and a tall pointing cone for the mountain top.  I have a feeling I will be very hot by the end of the day!  I am very excited to see all the other costumes!  The staff members here are very creative when it comes to using the limited resources they have at Sakeji. 

God has really blessed us so far this term.  One of the girls as either committed or recommitted her life to Christ!  We were all very excited to hear that she growing in her faith.  Her parents were very excited when she told them when she went home for the weekend.  The spiritual focus is really strong at the school.  The staff members may not agree on everything, but they agree on the most important point.  They all want the kids to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior.  Since some have already become a Christian, they also have a huge focus on discipleship.  The grades 8s and 9s have a Bible Study on Monday nights with one of the couples.  I am so blessed that God has called me to work at Sakeji for the past few months.  I am really thankful that I still have over two months left.  I will be really sad when I have to leave, but I will enjoy it while I am here. 

God bless you all at home.  I pray that you are all living for God in the moments!  “Step by step He leads me, and I will follow Him all of my days.”

With love from across the ocean,

Yolanda