USA Trip pictures

Our free layover hotel room.  WOW.  It was nice.  Doha, Qatar

Doug's little sister and family (Brenda, Keith and their son's Ross and Kyle)

Doug's parents and siblings all together for the first time in 11 years, Michigan.

Doug helping my dad out with a little project in Arkansas.

My big brother, me and my dad.  It is so good to see Dad up and around after his bad wreck in 2011!

Time with Mom and Cliff in Missouri.  We had a great visit.

Playing music with the Tafts and Norwoods in Summersville, MO.  WONDERFUL TIME!

The Middlton Church's "Church House" that we stayed in and also had service.  WOW.  What a house!

Fletcher and Rita took us to the FREE ZOO!

 

 

 

 

 

At the zoo, trying to get Fletcher to come out of his shell in the kiddie park.

Joshua (Fletcher and Rita, too) enjoying a spin at the Zoo.

Zoo, Madison, WI

The view from our hike by Devil's Lake, WI.  The fall colors were wonderful.

Devil's Lake, WI with Fletcher

After I can get some pictures off Doug's new phone and tablet, I will post some more pictures.  These were taken the old fashion way - you know, with a camera.  So I hope to get a few more pictures added when I get that figured out.  Maybe in a few minutes - or I could take a nap.  I am sitting in the Doha Airport taking advantage of high-speed internet (free.)  :)

Trip to the USA

We have been very busy over the last several weeks.  Vacation can be an on-the-move kind of thing.  We have been busy visiting family, friends and churches.  It has been a real treat for sure.
Our first day of traveling was only slightly eventful.  Our second "bathroom break" was out in the middle of nowhere.  The bus driver announced, "Dakika Kumi kuchimba dawa!"  (Ten minutes to go to the bathroom.)  The culture in Tanzania is that men only have to turn away to relieve themselves, but ladies must find a bush to discretely take care of business.  A quick look around showed NO DECENT BUSHES AT ALL!  I had made friends with the Tanzanian lady behind me previously to this stop.  I decided perhaps I would just wait a few more hours until we reached Dar es Salaam.  Fortunately, God knew we would be delayed and He encouraged me through my new friend Joyce.  After the crowd had exited, she stood up, and hit me on the should and told me to "chimba dawa!"  I said "there is not good bush here."  She informed me they would have to wait or we would have to hurry.  So off we went with a few other ladies and spotted a bit of a knoll in the distance, and we headed that way at a trot.  After getting over the horizon a bit from the bus and the men, I found a bare limbs to squat behind.  I am so thankful for Joyce's encouragement, because only 16 minutes away from our final bus stop, we had a fender bender.  I think that delayed us about one and a half hours.  We didn't realize we were so close to our destination.  It took a long time for the police to show up and to get things squared away.
The next day we flew to Doha, Qatar via Qatar Airlines.  It was very nice.   They actually got our meals correct (and we each had a different special meal preference.)  I highly recommend them.  The hotel that they put us up in was the nicest I have been in.  The restaurant had things on the salad and fruit bars that I had not seen in a long time (like all kinds of dried and fresh fruits and nuts.)  There was a multitude of lettuces to pick and choose from.  Joshua sat down with his plate and wanted to know which of all those forks he should use.  :)

Our flight to Chicago also went very well.  There were several documentaries and "infotainment" options to watch along with other things to do.

Fletcher picked us up in Chicago and then we went to Lake Michigan while we waited for Doug's sister Brenda to arrive from the Detroit area to pick us up.  It was WINDY and a bit chilly by the lake.  We enjoyed the seagulls (which Joshua chased) and all the beautiful rounded stones of various colors along the shoreline.  Then we had our transfer into Brenda's vehicle and the additional drive to her house.  (Brenda gave us an extra special treat of apples, dried sweet cherries and walnuts!  OH! WERE THEY GOOD!) All three of fell asleep at various times during this part of the trip.  Doug's older sister Sue had come up from Kentucky with her daughter to visit with us, also.  We had a lovely couple of days visiting with them.
Then we rode up with Doug's sister Sue to visit his parents for 5 days.  It was a lovely time.  It was the first time in ELEVEN YEARS that all four siblings and their parents were under the same roof.  We had some wonderful food, fellowship and fun.  We picked up gallons and gallons of apples from under the apple trees, helped deliver "meals-on-wheels" to the shut-ins, and I took advantage of some down time to do some puzzle-putting-together.  (We were VERY well fed at both locations including a couple of restaurant visits!)
Then we took a bus from East Lansing, MI to Chicago, and another bus from Chicago to St. Louis.  I learned why they call Chicago "the windy city."  It was cold and windy.  Doug had lost his jacket somewhere on the trip, and he suffered the most of all three of us.  We enjoyed using the free wi-fi internet and powered plug-ins.
Alan Savoy picked us up in St. Louis.  We had two very nice nights with him and Ruthlynn.  They are dear Catholic friends of ours that we will treasure forever.  They loaned us their Volvo, gave us a home-base to station ourselves, fed us, collected donated items for us and treated us better than we could have ever hoped to be treated.  Their place is out in the country with ducks, chickens, horses, a donkey, a rabbit, guinea fowl, fish, cats and dogs.  It was a great quiet place to retreat to between visits all over Missouri and Arkansas.
We visited (so far) 6 churches (Summersville, Pioneer, Rogers, Mountain Grove, Ava and Elk Creek) and did presentations at each.  Lots of friends came out for the presentations.  It was so nice to see everyone and visit with so many friends.  I can't even start to list all the people who came.  I would surely miss a lot of names!

We visited my mom's place (her and Cliff, also) and also my dad's (Barbara, also.)  We had a family get-together at Dad's and a lot of family came by along with some friends and my dear brother.  It was such a joy to spend time with all of our family members and friends.
We had a lot of fun at Mom's also.  We worked on putting together a puzzle, made LOTS of waffles, enjoyed feeding the fish in the pond and all the animals.
Then we took two nights at the Taft house.  That was such a blessing.  Three-fourths of the Norwood family were there, Hal, Janet and Alfreda also came to visit us while we were there.  It was such a retreat from all the travel and being busy.  I would sit down to play the piano, and many of the children (up to EIGHT!) would pick up an instrument and we would play hymns together or some would sing (including adults.)  I played until my thumb felt like it had a blister, and some of us were getting hoarse from singing.   It was a grand time.
All the children have grown so much.  Ah, my hearts is so full of new good memories that my eyes are a bit teary.
We had a very nice visit back to Baker Creek Seed Company in Mansfield, MO also!  We had been regulars there at the festivals (both Spring and Fall and then the Heritage Days) for six years (would have been eight if we had not been Africa for the last two.)  It was delightful to see old friends there.  There were so many, some came up all the way from Arkansas (Thank you Darin and Elaine!)  The only thing I could have asked for more would have been that there had not been any wind and that the temperature hadn't dropped.
 Then we were back to the Savory house to gather ourselves and start packing, and to unwind a bit.
Yesterday, Alan drove us to the other side of St. Louis and we met up with the Farrells.  Doug was in the Navy with Blake.  They were so much fun to listen to as they shared stories and pictures.  We had a nice visit with them.
They delivered us and ALL OF OUR BAGS (10 at the moment including backpacks and food bag) to the bus stop.  I am typing this up as we cruise along I-55 in Illinois as we head to Chicago.
There Fletcher will pick us up.  We will then make it to our last stop before flying back to Africa.  I think he has a busy schedule planned for us (which is great.)
We have enjoyed our visit immensely.  Thank you EVERYONE who has been a part of it (through visits, calls, support, donations, prayers - or even reading this!)  I will treasure this trip in my heart.  God has been so incredibly wonderful to us through all of you.
PS - We are still looking for recruits to Eden Valley Foster Care Mission and also Kibidula.  If you think you might be interested, contact me to start getting your questions answered.
Tafts and Lisboas - looking forward to seeing you there. :)
Our camera batteries died a while back and we haven't gotten them replaced.  I don't even know where my camera is!  I will try to upload some pictures of our trip on a later post.  Thank you everyone for everything.  Prayers mean so much to us.
(We are currently on the top level of a two-level bus - Megabus and the scenery is nice!)  I recommend Megabus, by-the-way.  It is NICE.
PPS - We are also looking forward to being back in Africa soon!

Kigoma/Kibigwa Photos

These go along with the two previous posts (since I am in Michigan at the moment with high-speed internet - today is the day to upload!)

Always a cow wondering around

The village houses are so different from region to region.  I was surprised at the flatness of the roofs here.

A different mud hut with grass room under some mango trees on our way to (or from) Kigoma area

There is always a chicken around, even on the bus. 

How to travel a chicken. 

The cows would be herded down past where we were doing the heath outreach each day.  One had HUGE horns!

While the bus brake lines were being repaired a herd of sheep passed by.  We drew a crowd of people too.

Cracked windshield, no problem.  Just use tape and make a vine design on it. (The choir bus we rode back.)

Chickens and goats abound, as does rubbish at times.  This is in Kigoma by Lake Tanganyika.

Nice short coconut variety

Lake Tanganyika

Ladies and others hauling water from Lake Tanganyika back to where they need it.

Another fascinating mud structure

Water being hauled without hands even, and drying racks for the small fish found in Lake Tanganyika

Lake Tanganyika

Lake Tanganyika

No close line - no problem.  Dry your things wherever

Morning activities along Lake Tanganyika

The road that passes the church and health outreach site looking downhill

Looking up hill - This is part of the path we rode on the back of the motorcycles (me with a bruised tailbone.)

One of those baby goats that we often hear in the background somewhere.

And there are always the children that gather around, especially Joshua.

A view from the outreach location in Kibigwa - Always dust and smoke making visibility limited.

Burundi is just over the second hill I think, so you can see it from here.

The ladies' outhouse at the site/church.  Squat style outhouse.  Watch your step.

Hauling firewood

Lots of chickens and baby chicks.  All the way in the back you can see the bases of some HUGE banana plants.

Doug on his motorcycle taxi, and Joshua and I are on this one behind the driver.  Zipping down the loose dirt road

This area close to Kibigwa is covered in massive banana plants.  They are so pretty.

More locals waiting to have health tests, learn about health and to see the doctor for counseling.

People waiting to go through our health outreach.  Aren't the colors magnificent! 

This picture doesn't do justice, but after being so sick I was blue a couple of days!  Yikes!

This is just after we finished our third bus ride coming to the Kigoma area.  That is not suntan that is DIRT from the bus ride.  My feet were clean at the beginning of the day!

Our bags got a bit dirty also.

Doug with his Tanzanian hair cut (does he look a bit like a Africa Doug Batchelor or is it just me?)

From the inside of the choir bus.

No Toy 'r US.  No problem.  Make a toy car yourself.

Kigoma/Kibigwa

Kigoma/Kibiwa (August 12-27, 2013)
(time to get caught up a little on the blog)

We finished teaching the 4 weeks of intensive medical missionary work/health at the evangelism school for this session on a Friday.  We helped the students do their second Health Expo (one in one village and this one in another) on Sunday, and Monday early in the morning we got a ride to town to start our trip to the Kigoma area.

It was a long bus ride to Dodoma the first day (we arrived about 7 pm at night.)  We rushed around trying to get bus tickets for the following day for the next two days of journey, got a hotel room and found some food for the next day or two that we could take with us.
On Tuesday we boarded the bus that was coming from Dar es Salaam and headed to Kigoma.  We were seated in the very back row of the bus.  Looking at the inside and outside told us that part of our journey was going to be rough and dirty as there was red-brown dust coating parts of the inside of the bus.  It was true.
The bus driver seemed a bit over tired and didn’t slow down (much if any) for the huge speed bumps that are common on the roads here in Tanzania.  Thus we were air-born many times in the back of the bus.  We hit our heads on the roof and then would have a very harsh landing.  We groaned and yelped, and prayed.  We also sent out text messages asking for prayers from our team members because it was taking it’s toll on us very much and seemed dangerous (and PAINFUL!)  During the night we hit the worse bump and at a fast speed.  I was trying to sleep at the time.  We flew up, our seat cushions also flew up, we banged on the top of the bus (even breaking loose the trim on the luggage shelf above us) and landed on the metal framework that had been beneath our cushions.  Again we had a lot of pain, but this time, I told Doug I thought I was bleeding.  He turned on the flashlight on his phone and sure enough, I had two puncture wounds on my hand and was starting to bleed pretty well.  I noticed as we started putting the seat cushions back on the seats that something was sticking up, maybe a screw or nail to hold the cushions in place?  I guess I came down on that with my hand.  The bus sort of threw us up and to the left so I landed left hand down to that side.  This commotion woke up the back end of the bus and many started yelling at the conductor who turned on the lights and came back to see what was going on.  He was so funny!  I am sitting there holding my hand calmly and he starts to say “don’t panic, don’t panic!”  I said, “I am not panicking.”  God was merciful to us.  We had not been able to put our red bag under the bus in the luggage area when we boarded (not enough room.)  So we had it with us.  God knew we would need it.  We had a few wet wipes that we still have from the US and some other things.  It took TWO wipes to clean up the blood and my hand.  Then we had tea tree oil and I started to put it on.  The conductor was still standing there (or he had come back.)  He said, “oh good.  Yes put some on.  No, no, not so much!”  He didn’t even know what it was.  Then Doug gave me two band-aids.  Again the conductor piped in, “now don’t cover it.”  I probably gave him a funny look and covered each wound with a band-aid.  It was a probably a few more hours until we got to the next bus stop.  We were so thankful that it was a stop for almost 8 hours and we could get off the bus.  My hand was hurting too much to try to get anymore sleep.  Doug was telling me that his side was hurting that perhaps he scraped it.

We got off the bus and got a place to sleep for 8,000 TSH (about $5 US.)  It was not a 1 star place by any imagination, but we were happy to get off the bus and lay down.  There we looked at Doug’s back and he had a big scrape.  More about that later.  We prayed and thanked God that He had protected us during the ordeal.
We had to be back at the bus by 5 am so after a few hours of sleep, back to the bus we went to wait for 1 hour before we left.  Then we rode until around 1 pm.  After about one hour of paved roads, the rest of the way to Kasulu was dry, dusty roads.  Some of the windows were missing in the bus and at least one window was tied onto the bus to keep it from falling off.  So we had a LOT of dust blowing around inside the bus for the next many hours.  I started feeling sick to my stomach after a few hours. 

We arrived in Kasulu and got a taxi for another hour or so ride to Kibigwa where we met the pastor that had requested us to come.  We talked of our travel and he told us this story!
He said that in the last couple of years, a young couple was riding one of these busses on the same route.  They were in the back of the bus as we were and the same thing happened, but they didn’t fare so well.  When the young man landed the fall broke one of his ribs and it punctured his heart stopping it immediately.  The young man (who had just gotten married) died.  We were so thankful that Doug didn’t break a rib.  If he had landed differently, he certainly could have.  With my hand hurting so much Tuesday night, I didn’t realize until Wednesday morning that I had damaged my tailbone area.  By Wednesday I was WELL aware that there was an additional problem.  Even after one month, I still have a bit of an issue with it, but not like I did the first two weeks.  Wow.  I feel for anyone that has a tailbone injury.  I sat leaning forward almost the entire third day of travel on the bus and in the taxi to try to have relief.  We were tired, and I was feeling really bad by the time we reached our destination.  I was having fever, chills, no appetite, and diarrhea.  We got a nice room at Heri Adventist Hospital about 10 kilometers from the event site.
We took the rest of the day to clean up and get some rest.
I spent a few days here and there at the hospital when I was really not feeling well.  (Not IN the hospital, but AT the hospital.) 

God really blessed at these meetings.  Kibigwa is a village about an hour between Kasulu and Kigoma.  The event site was so close to Burundi that our cell phones thought we were in Burundi and we had challenges with “roaming” issues.  We could see Burundi and could have walked there if we had the time and strength to climb the mountains and valleys.
The pastors and choirs did a three week public effort for the surrounding villages and HUNDREDS of people came out.  The pastor said that there was at least 1,500 people one Saturday!  We set up the health posters and started doing health testing and counseling (when we could but we had a LOT of people!) each day.  People would be waiting EVERY DAY for us when we would arrive.  We were SO blessed to have a doctor helping us each day.  After all the health tests (height, weight, BMI, blood pressure, pulse, and peak flow meter) he would then review their information, answer their questions and give them health advice and direction.  We tried to educate them along the way and we had the posters up so they could read them or read them to each other, but with so many people each day and a few helpers, we didn’t do as much teaching during the health expo as we like to do.  We were thankful for the few volunteers that would come and help with height and weight and registration each day.

We had 715 people register and come through for health testing and advice.  Each evening after choirs singing, teachings on family life and other things, and the main spiritual talk, Doug would use the projector and show pictures and do a health teaching for an hour.  He taught on many subjects and the people would “pour in” (Doug’s term.) from the surrounding areas to attend the “picture show.” I would return back to the room after the health expo each day and Doug would stay for all the afternoon and evening events and teach. 

So after a week and a half, it was time to head back to “home bases.”  We were offered a ride on the bus that the choir had come on from Dar es Salaam.  So we made the appropriate arrangements.  We traveled two days starting VERY early in the morning Sunday with our group.  They are a fun group and I loved to hear them sing.  We enjoy very much working with Pastor Twakaniki (from Dar es Salaam.)  The village we were in was his home village (and his wife’s.)  We met several of his family while we were there.  We worked with Pastor Twakaniki in Dar es Salaam at the beginning of the year in three of his churches.  We hope that we can be of assistance again in his work to reach hearts of Jesus.  It is amazing how the health work breaks down prejudice and opens hearts to spiritual matters.  Our goal is always to point people to our loving Lord Jesus!  Even people of non-Christian faiths will come when we do health outreach, and then many will stay for the spiritual meetings or be willing to have someone visit them.  Sunday’s trip was eventful also.  I don’t even think I can go into the details!  What a ride.  We were doing a LOT of praying.  We got a bit lost a few times as the bus driver had not traveled this way before and it was night a part of the time and there was a LOT of construction so our dirt path would cross and cross over the new main road that was being made (currently also dirt) and it would get confusing which way to go.  Then we broke something important on the bus.  It was part of the suspension on the back right side of the bus so we would drag at times and we were on a tilt in the bus even when the bus was on even ground!  This is the same bus that broke down on our trip to Kigoma (that was a nice treat going there!)  The brake-lines stopped working correctly.  We were beside the road for a few hours, but all worked out. 
We stopped at Nzega for the night.  The next day the bus was repaired (partially) and we made our way to another town where the final welding took place.  They dropped us in Dodoma rather late in the evening and we had our good-byes with all of our new friends from the Angaza Choir from the Manzese, Dar es Salaam church.  (They are a lively group for sure.) 
We got a room in Dodoma and got the early bus to return back to our territory.  We arrived in the evening happy to be alive and home.  God is doing wonderful things.  If we didn’t need to prepare for our trip to the US (which starts in less than 24 hours, now) they asked us shortly before we departed the bus if we would continue on with them to help in another effort that was starting right away.  Truly there is enough work to keep us and several more people busy around here!  God’s is opening the way for much to be done to reach hearts for Him.

If you could see what I see

Today as we sped along the rough, dusty dirt road to the health outreach, I
was thinking, if only I could record what I see and share it with others.
No camera can really take in what the eye sees it seems. At least not with
my amateur abilities! We sped past many groups of African people as many
stopped to stare at the white lady and child behind the driver of the
motorcycle speeding past. We could hear "wazungu, wazungu" being yelled as
children excitedly announced the sight of white people. Ladies are carrying
large buckets (5 gallon size) on their heads from the river back to their
homes. Many are washing their laundry in the same river. Some are carrying
large heavy loads on their heads, perhaps a large basket or even a log of
fire wood. Babies are tied to their mother's back, some sleeping and some
peeking out to see. Bicycles are being ridden or pushed with loads of
lumber, multitudes of bananas stalks, or large loads of pineapples.
The scenes that pass my eyes are common to me now, but what would they be
like to those who have never been to Tanzania or never left the "developed
Western world?"
We go by small mud-brick houses some with a metal roof but many with only
grass to keep the sun and rain out. In this area most are surrounded by
very tall banana trees with coffee bushes planted in between. It is very
different than any of the other places we have visited up to this time. And
the land is NOT FLAT in the least. I don't know when we have been on a
level piece of ground since arriving, come to think of it! It is very
mountainous and hilly here. If it weren't for the dust and smoke, the view
would be spectacular, I think.
The ladies wear such an amazing rage of colors and patterns.
Except for the children that are walking to and from school in their
uniforms, the children are in great need of baths, as their cloths and skin
match the color of the dusty roads and fields.
There seems to always be a small goat crying in the background, with its sad
whiney cry. I often have to listen to see if it is a child or a goat. Here
there are many cattle with BIG HORNS. Some are very impressive, and when we
are zipping by on the motorcycle, I am thankful they are accustomed to it
and barely give us a look, let alone a challenge or a start! The people are
taking them down to the valleys to get something to drink and for them to
find something to eat for the day. We see small groups of sheep and goats
along with many of the cows. There is one lone cow that goes by the church
each day. He moos and moos all the way. I wonder why each time. And since
we are in Tanzania, there are always chickens around. There are at least
four that stay around the church grounds where we are doing the health
outreach each day. One has a limp that appears to be coming from her hip or
upper leg, one is blond and the other two are lean and faster. They look
black, but when the light hits them just right, they are blue, green and
purple iridescent. I think it is just wonderful how God made even the
chickens so pretty. It made me think how amazed we will be when we get to
heaven and see the earth made new with no taint of sin or death. We will
delight over and over again at all the beautiful and wonderful things that
God has created!
So I hear the groups of people talking among themselves as they wait to be
tested or to receive health advice. I understand bits and pieces of some
conversations, but a lot is being spoken in the local tribal language which
I can only use to greet. "Mwakeye" Good morning "Mwidiwe" Good afternoon or
good evening. Most also speak Swahili, but among themselves Kiha is what
they speak.
So I think about all these sights and sounds which have become part of my
everyday life, and I think how strange this must all be to some.

When we travel back through another city with high speed internet, I will
try to post some pictures from here. By the way, we are in the Kigoma area
VERY close to Burundi (like about a mile away.) We can see it from the
church. We will travel back to Kibidula sometime next week. And next
month, we will be back in the USA for a visit. Looking forward to seeing
many of you then!