Upendo's graduation

Jacob's graduation

Weddings

My friend Paulo got married at the end of December. I was at the back of the church so I didn't get very many good pictures. The bishop came back from Arusha to preach. My neighbors Raymond and Flora stood up with Paulo and Paulina. If I understood correctly they took on the responsibility of mentoring Paulo and Paulina in their marriage and will be the mediators in any disagreements.
In January Tisho and I went to Leena's wedding reception in Dar es Salaam. We studied Kiswahili together at the Lutheran Junior Seminary. She and Mark had already gotten married in his family's village in Kenya on New Year's Eve, but they had a reception in Dar for all of us that were unable to travel to Kenya. The reception was a lot of fun. I was able to see a number of Finnish missionaries (Leena's from Finland) that I met at language school. The reception was very similar to receptions I've been to in the States. I did learn 2 interesting and fun Finnish wedding traditions. The first is that games are always a part of the reception. Erne and Hannah had us play various games throughout the reception just like they would play in Finland. Also during the cutting of the cake the bride and groom are supposed to fight to have his/her foot on top. If the bride wins, then she will be the 'powerful' one in the marriage. If the groom wins then he has the power. Leena won, but I'm not sure Mark knew he was supposed to step on her foot!

Water Troubles

Having water issues is normal for Tanzania. This fall we received more rain then usually so I didn't experience many of the difficulties I did my first year living in town. Not having water really affects every aspect of life. I can't tell you how many times I've gone to wash my hands, have squeezed soap into them and then went to turn on the faucet only to remember or discover that there isn't any water! This year my water problems usually involve problems with the pipe. I've been told the water comes through the pipes with lots of force from the mountain and that when it reaches the church the pipe gets too small too fast and the pressure damages the pipes. There must be some truth to that since we've been mainly without water since Wednesday morning(it's Friday afternoon now). The pipe is broken right outside my fence. I can see the water coming out and pooling next to the road...it broke in the same spot in December. Raymond, my neighbor and pastor of the church, has called the city so there is really nothing we can do not except wait. When they decide to come, they'll come. When we do have water often it comes through dirty, muddy or a strange whitish color that I've been told is a chemical added to purify the water. The picture I posted isn't coffee; that's the water I had coming through the pipes a few days last week! So far I haven't decided if it is worse to have no water or to have it come through so dirty that it is practically useless! I'm praying for the day that when the church follows through on their promise to put in a water tank next to my house!

Bible Study

Wow, it has been a long time since I've updated my blog! I have lots of stories to share but will space them out instead of writing pages today. Last night I joined a women's Bible study with some other missionary women. Since my closest friends left in June and the death of a teammate in November which led to his family returning to Germany I've been thinking about how eventually I may not know any other missionaries in town. I have to admit that meeting other foreigners hasn't been a priority before so I have never gone out of my way to get involved in missionary activities outside of Lutheran church. Maybe some of you are wondering why that is even important. It is really nice when you've had a bad day to be able to talk about it with someone. If the reason you've had a bad day concerns cultural issues or misunderstandings it is sometimes difficult to share that with a Tanzanian...I don't want to sound like I'm bashing the culture but I need someone to talk to who understands. That is where having a good missionary friend can be so important. Or maybe I want to go out for a 'Western' dinner or on a vacation. Most Tanzanians can't afford these things. Then my choices are not to go or invite a friend and pay for everything. Those aren't great options. So with this in mind I've begun making more of an effort to get to know other missionaries in Morogoro town.
Last night I went to my new friend Dena's house to join a Bible study. Dena has been here for a few months and is a single missionary like me. It seems easier to connect with other singles, regardless of age, because we don't have family commitments like everyone else. She had me over for dinner before the study so we could catch up on what's been happening since we saw each other last week. Right now the women are reading and discussing the book "Expectations and Burnout: Women Surviving the Great Commission". I just got the book last night and am excited to begin reading it to catch up with the others. There is also a monthly prayer breakfast that I went to last month and plan on attending again this month. It is great to be able to get together once in awhile to pray and worship in English.