Asante sana!

Hello from Amsterdam We are at the gate waiting for our flight to Chicago.

Thank you to Sister Patrice for posting our messages and pictures. And thank you to everyone who has followed our adventures!!

See you soon. Asante sana!!

Love,
Sue and S. Jenada

Not birds?

We may be in the big city of Dar es-Salaam, but we still marvel at the beauty of nature. Every night around 6 p.m. as it gets dark, thousands of birds fly inland.

We thought they were crows, but learned they are not birds at all. They are bats! They will feed on fruit like mangoes and in the morning return to their roosts not far from here.

Some people are actually wondering what to do about the bats. They can destroy an entire village’s fruit harvest.

On a lighter note, we celebrated the end of Sister Liberata’s sewing class. She had a lot to show us. And remember these are all sewed on treadle sewing machines, because of limited electricity.

Tomorrow we set off for the airport around 7 p.m., arriving in Chicago Friday afternoon. We look forward to seeing you all soon.

Upganda Mission

Today was a rest day at the Upganda mission.

We read and visited with the sisters. We walked to the corner to buy ice cream as a treat for everyone. We were happy to see Sister Petronila who is visiting after her retreat.

The mission is a busy place with the preschool on the grounds. We hear lots of laughter as the children play and sing together.

Above is a picture of us dining together.

Back in Dar es Salaam

Our trip to Dar es Salaam went smoothly. Since the road is paved all the way, travel time is about 8 hours.

We were welcomed by Sister Mecky and Sister Palida. Sister Petronilla was also there so we had fun sharing news of the class and Masasi.

No pictures today. We have to figure out how to get the internet connection to work.

Soon we will be home! We look forward to seeing many of you at National Assembly.

Last Day in Masasi

What a wonderful and full day. We went to the parish church for Mass accompanied by Sister Trojestina.

Aftermath we visited with her Parish women's group. This very active group headed by Sister Trojestina is planting a huge garden: bananas vegetables greens to provide food for their families and the poor. They also hope to sell it to support their other projects.

When sister Sophia arranged for us to visit Ndanda Mission located about a 40-minute drive north of Masasi.

We had a wonderful visit with the Benedictine sisters including a walk up to their pure water spring.

The day ended with a wonderful dinner by the regional house hosted by Sister Sophia. We enjoyed great food and conversation and said our sad farewells.

Tomorrow it's up early to take the bus back to Dar es Salaam.

Celebrating Success

Our last classes included a review of some grammar and vocabulary, some reflection on a quote from Father Jordan, lots of singing, and a ceremony where we congratulated the sisters with their completion certificates.

It has been a wonderful learning experience for all of us and it will be hard to say good-bye. 

We are already talking about next year!

Prayer Together

Another amazing day. The sisters are doing so well. We had a prayer service today. 

One of our goals is to help develop the prayer life of the sisters. We talked about how to plan a prayer service and then we shared some prayer time together. And of course all this was done in English.

Here is Sister Jenada explaining the prayer service. 

Here is our table set up for the prayer service.

Salvatorian Hospitality

The sisters have gone out of their way to make our stay comfortable. They have welcomed us in so many ways. 

Playing cards together.

Sister Feliciana has driven us to different Salvatorian communities on Sundays. The sisters are eager to translate for us on trips to town. And sister Theresia makes us our mid or late afternoon snack.

Today was fruit compote: oranges bananas papaya. It will be hard to say goodbye on Monday.

Delicious snack!

Beauty

The class continues to learn and English proficiency grows each day. Many times sisters come early for class or stay after for individual help.

And just when you think it can't get any more beautiful here, there's a rainbow in the sky.

The Final Week

It's hard to believe we are starting our last week of classes. We had another great day. Our lessons contain some centering meditation, some verbs, and vocabulary. We also did some writing.

All of the students can write several sentences. Some can even write complete paragraphs. Pronunciation gets better every day.

The picture shows Sue with one of her favorite books, “The Three Questions.”   We will read it and discuss it over several days.

LUPASO

After Mass here in the mission, we visited Lupaso. This Salvatorian community has five sisters. They are teachers and nurses, and one is a teacher and the principal at the vocational school.

In our visit to the dispensary we met a baby and his mother. The baby was born that morning.

The primary school is on break right now, but we were given a tour of the classrooms. Some students were at the vocational school and were proud to show off their skills at sewing and carpentry.

We also saw the church and had a wonderful visit with the sisters. Once again we were impressed by all they do to help the poor and educate the children and youth. It was a proud day for Salvatorians.

Weekend Work

On Saturday we had just one two-hour class. After that we had time to do laundry and clean. The sisters are amazing. Everything gets scrubbed and dusted.

 

It also gives us a chance to enjoy our wonderful surroundings. Much of the food we eat is grown right here in the sisters’ gardens.

 

Today we also enjoyed chicken for dinner. Again from the Sisters’ Farm. There are also goats and pigs.

Masasi s a beautiful area. We are so fortunate to be here.

How To..

Today the sisters presented their “how to” lessons. After a lesson on time transition words like first, and then, next, and finally, the sisters wrote and demonstrated something they do each day.

This year we had how to clean a room, how to care for chickens, etc.Everyone had fun. They were recorded on the iPad and I they especially liked watching themselves. Another great day of learning and conversation in English.

Kindergarten

Many desks in the classroom in the Kindergarten

Today we visited the kindergarten on the sisters’ property. There are around 180 children enrolled. 

Porridge for Lunch. Yum!

The children are learning to count and sing. They are learning beginning reading skills. It is a very happy place to be.

Yesterday we were thinking of you all at 9 o'clock in the evening here in Tanzania. That is when the funeral for Sister Susan Staff was beginning in Milwaukee. You are all in our prayers.

Sister Paula with some of the children.