A quiet Sunday

Today there was Mass here in the chapel. I wish you could hear the beautiful singing with the drums and other rhythm instruments. Fr. Ponder, the Provincial, is still here and he presided.

Sunday is a quiet day at the mission. I took the opportunity to walk around and noticed all the shipping containers that get put to such good use. Over the years, the Salvatorian Mission Warehouse has sent many containers filled with supplies, furniture, and many things to make life a bit better for the folks who live here. Once the container is emptied, it can be used for many purposes besides storage. I thought you might want to see some of the containers I noticed today.

Containers are often added onto and used for storage and other buildings.

Several together are used as a barn for the cattle.

Here a roof was added.

Even windows are cut into them.

Saturday

Today was the funeral for S. Valentina. The procession of the van with the casket, six jeeps, and the bus from the school filled with family and Sisters and me left at 8:30 this morning. Along our slow journey the Sisters sang and people stopped their busy Saturday morning work to stand as we passed by. The funeral in Lukaledi was very meaningful--a beautiful, grace-filled Mass. There were 11 priests including the Bishop and the SDS Provincial, Fr. Ponder. After the funeral we walked to the burial site. The pictures show a bit of the graveside ritual. It was a blessing for me to be able to be a part of this, to represent our American SDS family and accompany them in their grief.

walking to the cemetery after the funeral

prayers at the graveside

Sisters and family bless the grave

two new graves next to each other --
S. Demetria, SDS, and S. Valentina, SDS

Friday -- "How to . . ."

Today we made presentations on "how to . . ." We had a lesson on transition words, like "first," "second," "next," "finally," etc. Then they chose something to teach us, wrote their rough and final drafts, and then performed them. It was a great day. Lots of learning and laughter.

vocabulary for each project

teaching us how to grow tomatoes

how to do your laundry

how to clean the classroom

watching ourselves on the iPad

everyone is interested in seeing themselves

Thursday

Once again we are filled with grief as another Sister has died. S. Valentina Mwenda had been ill and was in ICU at the hospital in nearby Ndanda. A Sister was with her, sitting vigil. It is very unusual for such young Sisters to die. Two funerals in a short time is difficult, so class was a bit subdued today. We still learned lots of vocabulary and some grammar, though.

After lunch, S. Amani and I went to town to the ATM machine and the store. The picture shows our mode of transportation--a bajaji. It's a three-wheeled vehicle and works quite well for trips to town. The Sisters all seem to have a favorite driver, and call to have them drive out to pick us up. It's a great system and affordable. The trip there and back cost $2.56.

S. Amani with our bajaji

Wednesday -- mealtime

Another part of our language class is eating all our meals together. We try to speak only in English and have learned a few phrases like, "Please pass the . . ." or "Would you like some . . ."  Our first few meals were very quiet, but now they are talking and sharing stories. The pictures show us at the table and some of the food we enjoy. Staples at lunch and dinner include rice, beans, ugali, and greens. You can see by the captions under each picture that we can also enjoy other specialties.

eating our meals together

Grace is enjoying ugali

beans

chicken

rice

greens

fish in sauce

papaya

Tuesday's lessons FROM the Sisters

Today we had a wonderful red juice made from the petals of a rosela plant. They said it has health benefits as well as tasting good. S. Maxsensia told me they use the seeds to make cooking oil, as well. I saw some growing last week, and when I went to take a picture, it was already harvested. Fr. Mukasa came by and showed me more plants growing in another area outside the Mission walls. The pictures show the plants.

I learned another lesson today. There are lots of crawling creatures here. You just get used to them and the lizards--unless the ants are marching in long lines into my room! Of course, I have bug spray with deet. But, wait! S. Amani brought some powder to spread around. It takes care of the ants and smells good and no harsh poison. We can learn a lot from our African friends!

Fr. Mukasa and the rosela plants

close-up of the plants

S. Amani spreading powder to stop the ants

powder on my doorstep and no ants!

Monday, Monday

In our third class today we began reading a book together, called Beatrice's Dream. It's about a young girl growing up in a slum in Kenya. Her dream is to become a nurse. There's lots of vocabulary and conversation. You may notice two additions to our class. These are orphan girls who live with the Sisters in the convent. They are on break from school and joined us. I hope they will learn some English, although they already speak some. And it's good for our students to get a chance to share what they know. I think we always learn more when we teach. So, another busy, amazing day!

Sunday Mass in Masasi

Went to Mass today in the Masasi town church. It was beautiful! Lots of singing and incense. Two and a half hours, and I went to the early, short Mass! At the next Mass they have a wonderful parade with the Eucharist through the area, stopping at the clinic, school, etc. The children wear special yellow and white outfits--yellow skirts or slacks and white shirts or blouses. They dance and spread flower petals. It is quite a celebration! The picture outside the church shows the rocky hills that surround Masasi. The Mission is the Migongo Mission, named for the mountain nearby. Can you find the cross on the top?

Outside the church

Migongo Mountain

Sudoku for Saturday

On Saturday, we just have one class from 8:00 to 10:00 a.m. After that they are busy cleaning and doing laundry. You can hear the sounds of brooms in the dorms. They also sweep the dirt paths. It looks terrific!

For our one class, we pray, sing, and today we learned how to do Sudoku puzzles. They had to practice using English numbers and communicating in English.

A note to all Salvatorians--congratulations on your Jubilee celebration today! I'll be thinking of you all.

Sue teaching Sudoku

Students and Sudoku

Students working together

A Song for Friday

The Sisters love to sing and add harmony to everything. Here's an audio file of one of our songs. We get lots of grammar and vocabulary lessons from them, as well as adding a bit of joy to the class.

Thursday. Focusing on classes

Today I will focus on our classes. We eat all our meals together, which gives us time to practice our English. We have three classes each weekday -- 9:00-10:30, 11:00-11:30, and 3:00-4:30. By the end of the day I am exhausted! We start the first class with something from that day's Gospel. We have heard it already at Mass, in Kiswahili, of course. Then we have a vocabulary or grammar lesson. For the second class, we start with a poem or saying from our Founders, and then we are divided into ability groups and work from the textbooks. The third class starts with a song and then we read and discuss something from the Reader or from the books we brought. They are working hard and everyone is speaking and writing something in English. The pictures show our groups during our second lesson.

S. Amani and her advanced group

Sue and her small group of beginners

Timeline time

One of our first activities is to create a timeline of our lives. There's a lot of basic vocabulary and we learn about each other's lives. The pictures show them working together so they can read the numbers in English and also answer questions like, "When did you first meet Salvatorians?", etc. Then we share them with each other. Everyone is speaking some English already. After our own timelines, we study the Salvatorian Timeline. So we are teaching English and also a bit about our founders and ministries.

Practicing reading timelines

Group sharing of timelines

Reading the Salvatorian Timeline

A very good first day

Today was our first class. We have six students. Two of them, S. Sesilia and S. Pascalina were in the class in past years. The other four are new to the class. They are candidates. The language abilities are quite varied, from very beginner to some skill. The pictures show Sue leading a song and S. Amani providing some guidance. A very good first day!

Monday, and ready for class

We are ready for our first class tomorrow. Our plans are written and checked over many times. A few of our students are back from past years. Some will be beginners.

The folks at the regional house are busy preparing to install the new leadership team. There's lots of work. I'm pleased to be here to celebrate with them.

S. Amani prepares for the first class

S. Maxsensia working on the laptop at the regional house

Sunday Celebration

Today is the celebration of Fr. Jordan Day. A big feast for us in Africa and all over the Salvatorian world. It started with a beautiful Mass, with at least 30 Sisters, 15 Priests and Brothers, some townspeople, and one American. The singing was amazing. There was a great dinner: tomato salad, chips (French fries), rice, and beef. In the afternoon, S. Amani and I cleaned and arranged the classroom, unpacked books and class materials, and began planning. Because of the funeral and because some Sisters are not here yet, we will start the class on Tuesday. Below is a picture of the empty, but cleaned, classroom.

We also said goodbye to two visitors from the Sisters' Generalate in Rome, S. Jacqueline and S. Marie Yaneth. They have been here for about a week for the Sisters' Chapter. The Sisters elected new leadership who will begin their work on July 1. Our friend, S. Yasinta, was elected the new Provincial here in Tanzania. So, she will be preparing for her new responsibilities and will not be able to teach the class with me. S. Amani and I will do our best!

The empty classroom

Dinner at the Regional House

Saturday in Masasi

Today was the funeral for S. Demetria. Almost everyone went to Lukeledi for the Mass and burial. I stayed behind. My jet lag is almost over. To help me stay awake, I took a walk around the mission. There's more to see; this is just some of the buildings. It is a beautiful community here in Masasi. More about that in other blogs. The weather is cool at night, but it gets hot during the day. Stay in the shade if you can. As my friend, Fr. Tigatiga says, "So far, so good!"

The chapel in the mission

The hostel provides housing for students and other guests.

The kindergarten, which serves over 90 children

Jordan Hall is a meeting space. Retreats are held here. Last year the Festival for our Founder was held here.

Masasi is the headquarters for the Salvatorian Sisters in Tanzania. The Provincial Team lives and has offices here.

The Sisters are building a school to teach tailoring. This building is just past the hostel.