Hard to believe we are now halfway through our time in Namibia.

The After School Program remains our largest project where every afternoon (Monday to Thursday) at 2:00 pm, around 100 children & youth descend upon the church to commence a three hour program. This program has now been running for eight years & is a testimony to the hard work & dedication of the young adults of the church (mainly tertiary students) who volunteer their time to serve their community.

Where's Kate?

Most afternoons we work with the Grade 3 & 4 class, which consists of around 25 children. Homework is the first priority & Kate finds herself in high demand for math’s tutoring from all age groups (the high school group in particular). Once homework is finished we then hand out additional worksheets to assist with ongoing literacy & numeracy skills.

Grade 3 & 4 classroom (not much room to move)

In recent weeks we’ve been very short of volunteers due to exam commitments etc. On some occasions we only had five volunteers to look after 100 kids. This is not a good ratio! On some occasions we found ourselves both looking after a class of 25 on our own without any Herero speaking leaders. This was a steep learning curve (well for Mike anyway) & crowd control was the order of the day. It’s always a relief to get home around 5:30 & put our feet up.

Mike with some of the children during a break in activities (sorry some of these photos are LARGE however there appears an ongoing glitch when they are posted.)

On these occasions where the workers are few & the children are many (& you need to do a lot of shouting to make yourself heard), it can sometimes be disheartening that so little progress is made with homework & in making any positive progress in the lives of the children. These “low” points however are quickly forgotten when kids randomly come up & greet you with a big hug or rush up to you on a Sunday morning to sit next to you in church.

These group hugs are a wonderful tonic to keep on going  

The final hour of the program (from 4:00 pm) is spent doing different activities with more emphasis on fun & interaction. We have been leading Bible Club for the Grades 1 to 4 group on a Wednesday afternoon. Many of the children’s gospel songs we sing in Australia are just as enthusiastically embraced by the children of Namibia! The Colin Buchanon song “John 14:6” is a particular favourite.   

Life Skills are also taught. One of the leaders has been taking the upper Primary group though a series of lessons on “choices”. Every choice has a consequence. Make a wise choice & reap the benefits. Make a poor choice & it may affect you for the rest of your life (or even cut your life short). The lesson touches on HIV / AIDS issues & teenage pregnancy (keeping in mind this program is primarily an HIV / AIDS based initiative).

Assembly time to say goodbye to one of the Volunteers

One of our friends from home gave us some money to purchase soccer balls for the program. We recently purchased the first ball & brought it along on Monday. Each afternoon there has been a HUGE game of soccer going on which the boys embrace with great enthusiasm. Being mindful that there is no grass in Windhoek & the soccer field is bare earth & stones, it is no surprise that this takes a big toll on soccer balls! By Friday the ball is looking very sad & will probably need to be thrown out within a week. We are always amazed that many of the boys play these soccer games in bare feet (ouch).

Assembly time continues 

We have spent some time with the three young people that recently gave their lives to Christ. We gave then some age specific Scripture Union notes & purchased a youth Bible where one was recently lost / stolen. We briefly discussed church, Sunday School & baptism. The materials were greatly appreciated. Two of the girls (sisters) told us how their father had split the scene when they were born & how he has not played a role in their lives ever since. They are now in upper Primary.

In a poor church you need to make do with what you have. On a daily basis we find seats are broken, windows are broken, tables are broken, brooms are broken, toilets are broken. The program needs to provide its own photocopy paper & toilet paper as the church cannot afford it. There is little money to go around to fix anything.   

We were blessed this last week when a group of young adults on a Christian GAP Year program from South Africa joined us for three days. We were overjoyed. Lots of helpers!!!! These young people were strong in their faith & wanted to share the good news of Jesus with their Namibian neighbours. They did a great job & during the final hour each day they led us in games, activities, & skits with a clear Christian message. Good conversations in groups then followed. The children had a great week.

Some of the ASP volunteers along with our brothers & sisters from South Africa

Who knows what the next six weeks of the program will bring but we look forward to it. The students have some great role models before them on a daily basis & we can only hope & pray that they will make wise choices in the future. Wise choices in relation to their personal lives & goals, along with wise choices in relation to the gospel message. Please pray for the program & the impact it has on their lives.  

The end of another day!

The other day whilst travelling in a taxi I overheard an advertisement for foot powder which I thought was a rather luxurious item to be promoting as something normal and necessary.

I am fast reconsidering this view as my feet stink! The weather is warm (we are in the mid 30s each day and perhaps hotter in the middle of the day) and is becoming a little more humid and my feet are simply not coping. I never realized how much sweat socks must absorb before I came here and have been wearing flats without any. I dare not take off my shoes now during Bible study or prayer meeting, as I am afraid I may overpower the poor person sitting next to me. Johnson’s Baby Powder has become my feet and shoes’ best friend.

As my shoes become so dirty by the end of the week from the amount of dirt and dust they pick up working in the places we do, I have taken to washing them thoroughly each Friday afternoon in the hope that this might also deodorise them as well.

Needless to say I don’t think these shoes will make the journey back to Australia with me, they will have served their time faithfully over here. So fear not fellow Australians, your nostrils are safe (at least from my feet).

Kate

“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? Any how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news”.  (Romans 15:10)

In the interest of public health there will be no supporting photos for this blog! However to brighten the subject, here are a few more from Etosha......

Elephants at waterhole (night shot)

Can you spot the lioness hiding in the thorn bushes?

Another Ground Squirrel (this is for you Bec!)

Whilst we were very blessed to visit Etosha, some things did make us stop & think.

Our safari group consisted of ten passengers all of whom (bar one) was not African. Eight of the ten were white & western educated who had good, well paying jobs. During our two days in the National Park, 99% of the tourists we saw were white. Our tour guide & his assistant were both black Namibians as was all the staff we saw working in the various locations. Creating jobs for Namibians is a great thing (keeping in mind the country has 51% unemployment), however why were 99% of the tourists white?

Packing up our camp on the second morning, we noticed all the breakfast scraps & partially consumed loaves of bread etc were carefully wrapped up & left next to the bar-b-que. This was done deliberately. Apparently the workers who clean the campsites are given this ‘gift’ so they can then eat the scraps & leftovers that the white folks leave behind!

During the past week we have asked many of our Namibian friends if they had ever visited Etosha. The great majority said they had not, however would like to one day. Etosha is perhaps the best tourist location in Namibia, however most Namibians have never visited. This is despite it being only 500 km away from the capital on good sealed roads. Many of these people were in their twenties & thirties. Why is this?

In this developing nation jobs are hard to come by and, even if you have one, wages are poor. Tourism is not on people’s mind & quite simply they can’t afford it (not even the camping option which is popular at Etosha). Most Namibians will never cross the border of their country & if they do it would only be into neighbouring countries (eg Botswana or South Africa). The concept of travelling to another continent & spending weeks on holiday would be totally out of the question & unthinkable.

One of our colleagues from the After School Program has just secured a receptionist job in a Game Park some 300 km from Windhoek. She was very excited as we said goodbye to her this week. She is in her mid twenties & has studied tourism at College (she too has never been to Etosha). She will have to leave her nine month old son in the care of her mother so she can concentrate on her job & being able to earn money for the family.

We asked her how she would travel the 300 km to her new home & she said she would hitch, suitcase in one hand & her nine month old son in the other. We commented to her a few weeks back what a lovely dress she was wearing, & by way of a parting gift she gave Kate her dress! As affluent westerners we are not used to receiving second hand gifts however for our friend this was all she had & she wanted to honour us & our friendship. It was from the heart & we very humbled to receive it.  

The world is a very unequal place. Most of us reading this blog have always known where our next meal is coming from, however for many around the world this is not the case. There are enough resources in the world for everyone’s need but not for everyone’s greed.   It seems the rich get richer & the poor get poorer & most in the western world are not too fussed by this (or at least not interested to see how the other half lives). 

The Bible has a lot to say about loving our neighbour & justice. It’s easy to slip into tourist mode & enjoy the blessings we have received, however that is not why we have come to Namibia. If you lift the curtain of the tourist industry you will find real people who work hard to meet the demands of the wealthy. Whilst they are very thankful to have a job, life remains difficult & their life goals & expectations are well below that of western tourists.  Average life expectancy for Namibians is 62 (& this is quite high compared to other African nations).

During our time in Namibia pray that we will look behind the scenes & ask the difficult questions (to others & of ourselves). It may not be easy & what we find might not be pretty, but pray that we will look & endeavour to make a difference where we can.

If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger & malicious talk, & if you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry & satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness & your night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land & will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail”.   (Isaiah 58:9-11)

Elephant at sunset

African tree with salt pan in background

Elephant bath (with kids in the middle)

Elephant family at waterhole

Giraffe at waterhole

Giraffe drinking (an awkward moment)

Lion walking in the early morning

Lioness not far behind

"Hundreds of Zebras"

Zebras & Springbok

Springbok & Kudu at waterhole

What do a medical student from Finland, an archaeologist from Denmark, an Ethiopian tour guide, a German lawyer and art auction-house worker, a UN envoy from Canada, a Chinese middle-aged mum, an Australian teacher and two Australian mission workers (us) have in common? A three day camping safari to Etosha National Park, that’s what.

On the weekend of October 6 to 8 we were privileged to be able to join this mix of people and explore some of the country of Namibia. We have been in this country for just over a month and had not seen anything apart from the capital city of Windhoek. It was time to get out and do a bit of exploring. When in Africa, what do you have to do? Go on safari and see some animals!

Etosha National Park is approximately 500kms north / north-west from Windhoek. Namibia has good infrastructure and so we were able to make the journey on sealed roads the whole way. Once in the park, however, the four-wheel drive / gravel roads begin and so do the animal sightings.

We were told that this was a good time to go to Etosha as it is the end of the dry season and so the animals are fairly restricted in their movements to be centred around the more permanent waterholes. We were so blessed by what we saw.

There is something so majestic and wonderful in the “big” animals of Africa. We really do not have anything equivalent in Australia. The slow and purposeful tread of a herd of elephants as they emerge from the dry bush, ears flapping as they make their steady trek to get a drink, just takes your breath away. At one point we had to stop the bus to let a herd go by (22 of them in total!!); mainly mothers and their babies. We saw elephants taking mud baths, playing with each other, caring for their babies, telling other animals in no uncertain terms via the swishing of a trunk that this was their turn at the waterhole and no one else’s, appearing suddenly out of nowhere and disappearing just as easily. How does something that large do that?

Giraffes also have a lazy way about them as they stroll through the bush seeking greenery. It was amazing to see their heads peeking over the trees from time to time; they have a very distinctive silhouette. Funny thing was, even after we left the park to come home we were still looking for those heads. Watching a giraffe make the awkward adjustments with knocked knees and delicate balance in order to drink from a waterhole is also quite humbling.

The highlight of the trip for many, because it is uncommon, was the sighting of a number of lions, including at one point a whole pride consisting of male lion, three females and their cubs strolling about in the early light making their way back to shelter to get out of the heat of the midday sun.

God’s creation is truly wonderful and diverse: zebras whose stripes are as individual as our fingerprints who blend effortlessly into the grass plains; antelope ranging in size from that of a cow to a domestic cat; hyenas who look as ugly as they do in “The Lion King”; powerful rhino who like to make their presence felt at waterholes, particularly at night time; brilliant orange sunsets signalling the end of another day plus the arrival of the cool of the night; strange trees thriving in the midst of shimmering dust; birds large and small, flying and flightless; ostriches whose flexible necks enable them to clean their feathers no matter what the angle. 

We felt blessed and privileged to be given this opportunity and have come back to Windhoek refreshed and ready to go.

“God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, & all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.” (Genesis 1:25)

OK, you’ve been waiting for them (& so have we). Here is a selection of the best.

Blue Wildebeest

Lion in the early morning

Social Weaver nests

Albino Zebra

Ground Squirrel

Oryx

Watch out! Elephants on the move. 

An unbelievable sight. Twenty two elephants (with many babies in tow)

Giraffe - who me?

Hyena

Lions at rest

Zebras at sunset

On a weekly basis we are attending a Bible Study & Prayer Meeting at our church.

Bible studies are held in a number of different locations throughout Katutura & beyond. Our group meets at the church & we usually have around 15 to 20 attending. It’s a wonderful thing to be part of a small group who take delight in gathering around God’s word on a regular basis.

We have been studying “The Call to Fruitful Living” & have been challenged by what the Bible has to say about how we should live our lives & grow in Christian character. As we have personally found, the more we study the Bible & apply it on a daily basis, the more the Holy Spirit transforms us to be like Christ. The Bible talks about becoming a “new creation” where we no longer live for ourselves but for others. How different this is to the self-centered, wealthy & consumer-driven culture we come from.

As the weeks go by we are getting to know our brothers & sisters a little better. Lots of conversation & laughter at coffee time!  The study is conducted in both English & Otjiherero & many have sound Biblical knowledge to draw upon. Others are new to the faith & keen to learn. Life is not easy for many in Namibia & there is little in material wealth, however Christian joy & contentment is evident, as many have found new life in Christ.

The weekly church prayer meeting is also well attended. Once again a wonderful opportunity to come before the Lord in praise, give thanks for answered prayer, & bring our requests before His throne. Individual prayer requests are also shared as we encourage one another through prayer. At the prayer meeting tonight we had 37 in attendance & the meeting went for 1.5 hours.

We may be in a different country & attending a different church however some things just don’t change.  God’s word & the power of prayer are there for everyone. 

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, & self control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions & desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking & envying each other”.     Galatians 5:22-26.

Sunrise over Windhoek