My name is Glenda Rountree from Louisville KY. This is my second year at this location for a Medcal Mission. I volunteered to come with the early group, hoping to contribute something worthwhile prior to the team arriving.
The jury is still out on how much I am contributing, but the journey has been extremely touching and my outlook is changing daily. Joe has been diligiently taking care of many tasks, including being the chief cook. Today I tried to relieve that burden and volunteered to prepare the evening meal. Mainly, northern beans and cornbread. Easy - right? Well, things are slow in Zambia. You can't just run down to the corner and get the needed ingredients. The stove works in slow motion and the end of that story is.... we ate the beans and everyone was very complimentary... but I am a very good cook and I know they were not that great.
Yesterday I witnessed the demonstration of Zambia Christian counselling. There is a major problem with theft - loss of jobs - loss of trust - and other emotional events occuring at the school. The wife of one of the accused came to Lori to explain the reprecussions that her family were experiencing. I sat and listened as Lori passionately talked about forgiveness, love and the need to go forward. It was so humbling for me to realize this family was in serious trouble and
I complain about such minor things as the weather.
God has been good and I am very blessed to be here. My prayer is that I will be the arms and feet of Jesus and touch many lives in a postive way.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
fish for dinner?
Today I was helping the building crew. They let me install the 6 panes of glass for Stella's new office. They actually were impressed. I never told them I had glazed windows from my childhood. After lunch, we were laid block preparing the foundation for the new grocery store.
I asked James,"How much are the fish?" She was selling 8 for 30 thousand kwatcha. That is about 9 dollars.I went inside my guest house to get my camera and while there checked my cash. I went back outside and gave 30 thousand kwatcha to Kelvin. I told him to buy as many fish as he could with the money and divide it among our workers. They all scrambled for a piece of plastic wrap off the ground to carry their fish.
It is amazing what you learn while you are doing a job along side guys from another culture. I have to admit they have not taught me any new techniques over the past two years of working with them. Their ways are usually primitive and nothing I would choose to use back home. What I have learned from them are more in the ways of their culture,views on life and their curiosity of me and my country. Today a lady passed by us with a large tub on her head. She stopped and set the tub with it's contents on the ground. The guys stopped working and gathered around. I went over to see the excitement. She had a tub of freshly caught fish for sale.
I asked James,"How much are the fish?" She was selling 8 for 30 thousand kwatcha. That is about 9 dollars.I went inside my guest house to get my camera and while there checked my cash. I went back outside and gave 30 thousand kwatcha to Kelvin. I told him to buy as many fish as he could with the money and divide it among our workers. They all scrambled for a piece of plastic wrap off the ground to carry their fish.We went back to work but with a different attitude. These guys were pumped. They were having fish for supper! I had no idea how many people I just fed for less than $10.I am sure there are many biblical applications I could ponder and apply. Maybe at a later date I will. For now I will rest tonight knowing the abundance of my life and the new friends I have met will have fish tonight for supper.
Corn is Survival
I have always liked corn. Cream corn, corn caserole, shoepeg corn, and corn on the cob I enjoy corn. Being from the southern United States and growing up on grits, I grew to have a great appreciation for the finer points of corn. My grandmother lives in the town where they had the International Grits Festival. Corn has intricately tied into my life.Of course, corn was a side dish. Eggs, bacon, toast, and grits that was the order of the morning at Hink's Grill in Albermarle, North Carolina. But corn as main dish, corn for daily survival, corn as a staple food, that would be a stretch for me. Stretch or not, Zambains survive on corn. Shema, as it is fondly referred to, keeps a nation from starving to death. Shema or Mealie Meal, another common name, keeps Zambia and Africa from starvation. Never has corn ever been so important to me, you, and the world. Corn one of the most common crops in the United States.
It was not a year ago that I told my son-in-law that if I had the money I would open an Ethanol Plant. With the high prices and fuel shortages and Ethanol Plant, might bring a windfall of money. Well, that was a year ago. Today I fear that such production would bring about the starvation and possible genocide of many nations in our world. Do you feel these are strong words? Wild words?
Somebody has to be concerned about the starving, underprivileged peoples of this planet. Somebody has to speak a word for the hurting. Fuel or starvation....you pick!!
Monday, May 26, 2008
Happy Together
What a great team we are assembling here at Mapepe! The early team is inspired by the enthusiasm we are encountering from people both on and off campus.
We have gone through our supplies that remained from last year and found everything in good working order. Let me say a personal thanks to the work of Charlotte Bradsher and Linda Myers who purchased and organized all of our medications. Every med was labeled and placed in a storage trunk. They did a super job.
Another very special person, who I met only a few days ago is Susan Brownfield. What a servant! Susan has cleaned things, counted things, and washed things!! She has made it possible for our team to stay focused on our mission, instead of being distracted by basic daily chores of life. I feel really spoiled. Yet Susan never minds to complete even most common task. Thanks Susan for showing us what it means to serve.
Serving on a Medical Mission is not just about medicine, there are a lot our tedious tasks that have to be completed each day. With a large group, there is plenty of food to be bought and cooked, there are a lot dishes to be washed and floors to be swept. So when you lay down to pray tonight, please pray for every aspect of this mission trip.
We were created to serve not to be served!!!!
We have gone through our supplies that remained from last year and found everything in good working order. Let me say a personal thanks to the work of Charlotte Bradsher and Linda Myers who purchased and organized all of our medications. Every med was labeled and placed in a storage trunk. They did a super job.
Another very special person, who I met only a few days ago is Susan Brownfield. What a servant! Susan has cleaned things, counted things, and washed things!! She has made it possible for our team to stay focused on our mission, instead of being distracted by basic daily chores of life. I feel really spoiled. Yet Susan never minds to complete even most common task. Thanks Susan for showing us what it means to serve.
Serving on a Medical Mission is not just about medicine, there are a lot our tedious tasks that have to be completed each day. With a large group, there is plenty of food to be bought and cooked, there are a lot dishes to be washed and floors to be swept. So when you lay down to pray tonight, please pray for every aspect of this mission trip.
We were created to serve not to be served!!!!
THE COMPOUND
Today I went to the compound with some of the locals. The compound is a "neighborhood" near where we are staying. We went to the compound to pick up some bread, tomatoes, and candy. We also were able to visit Stella's home on the way there. For members of Sycamore View, that has meaning. I plan on adding pictures of the home later.
Back to the compound. This was my second experience in which I was the only white person around. This experience was different because of the setting. In the compound there are several shops and run down homes. This is the environment you see on movies and the stereotypical thought of Africa. As the locals shopped I waited and drew a crowd. At the football game I only received stares. At the compound I drew followers. Children followed and self proclaimed "drunkards" wanted to talk. I could not understand a few of the guys, but the white man was an attraction with or without conversation. Also, it is worth mentioning that I was asked if I knew J. Lo, P. Diddy, Eminem, and Denzel Washington.
The funny thing is that I was not intimidated. In Memphis if I was surrounded by black men who were drunk I would be much more intimidated. I wonder why that is the case. The only reason I can come up with (other than assuming they don't have guns) is that I feel like I am better than them. I naturally have a confidence that comes with being the only white person. Although I am supposed to relate to minorities being here I feel even more important because they are in awe of a white man's presence. I feel very transparent right now and am trying to sort all of this out. I knew this would be a new experience, the hard part is processing it.
Back to the compound. This was my second experience in which I was the only white person around. This experience was different because of the setting. In the compound there are several shops and run down homes. This is the environment you see on movies and the stereotypical thought of Africa. As the locals shopped I waited and drew a crowd. At the football game I only received stares. At the compound I drew followers. Children followed and self proclaimed "drunkards" wanted to talk. I could not understand a few of the guys, but the white man was an attraction with or without conversation. Also, it is worth mentioning that I was asked if I knew J. Lo, P. Diddy, Eminem, and Denzel Washington.
The funny thing is that I was not intimidated. In Memphis if I was surrounded by black men who were drunk I would be much more intimidated. I wonder why that is the case. The only reason I can come up with (other than assuming they don't have guns) is that I feel like I am better than them. I naturally have a confidence that comes with being the only white person. Although I am supposed to relate to minorities being here I feel even more important because they are in awe of a white man's presence. I feel very transparent right now and am trying to sort all of this out. I knew this would be a new experience, the hard part is processing it.
VISIT FROM A CHIEF
Chief Chibala pictured with his entourage. He came by the French's home today for a visit, we will be visiting his village again this year.
starting the store
Today we laid the first blocks on the store at the front of the property. The store will be for the selling of vegetables grown here at Mapepe. The front wall will have an access window for walk-up traffic. While helping the guys lay block and lay out the walls I learned so much from them. We covered various topics during our working together. They asked me about the US.
While trying to describe my job,home and family,I reflected. When describing my home,it made me appreciate it even more.While explaining the process we as males go through in asking a women to marry,I thought about my family.When asked if I had a car and I answered that I had 4,I thought of the abundance. Our cultures are miles apart yet we are all God's creatures.
I tried to grasp the idea of being hungry on a semi-regular basis. One of the workers said he is almost always hungry to some degree. I stopped mid-day to walk a short distance to our guest house for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I thought as I ate an often unassuming lunch.....this is pretty good. Every meal has been that way for me.I think of the people a stone's throw from me with very little. Everyone should come to a country where things we have at our finger tip are a fantasy for the poor.
Last year I fell while in this country of Zambia. I messed up my shoulder to the point of surgery upon my return to the US.If something to that degree happened to these people they would be in terrible way. Each worker told me of injuries or illness he or his family had suffered. They had no idea what a MRI or CT scan is. We often can choose the day before dinner we will eat the next night while laying in our private modern room hospital bed. These guys had never heard of a drive thru window at a fast food joint. Next time you feel slighted because they put pickle on your sandwich at the burger joint,whined over the under cooked bacon for breakfast,the cost of fuel or your pitiful lot in life...Come to Zambia !!!!
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