I was invited this week to visit the home of my watchman Mr Gondwe so that I could greet his wife and family. It was lovely to go and meet them and they said that I should also be in the photo to remind them that I had been with them!
Mr Gondwe has many members of his extended family living with him in the family home so we tried to fit in as many as wanted to be in the photo. Some if his grandchildren were a bit scared of the 'azungu' (white person) who was in their home so they stayed outside..! Mr Gondwe told me that he has 25 grandchildren. I smiled when he told me that 'only' 8 stay in the family home in Mzuzu.
Saturday was a really beautiful day. The sky was bright blue and it was really warm. I was able to be out in garden and enjoy my book and coffee in the sunshine. As this is the cold season this was a day really to be enjoyed especially as Mzuzu can get cold and cloudy quite quickly.
However it was the sound of the pouring rain that woke me on Sunday morning. Here are a couple of the pictures I took from my window at about 6.15 am.
I can be woken up with quite a start on days like this as I think that I have left the bath taps on but it is normally just the water gushing off the roof. It looks and sounds just like the stream of water from a tap. I hope you are able to see it in the photo.
So Sunday was cold, wet and very dull all day and the special bonus was that the electricity was also off! But at about 5.45pm it came back on so it meant that I was not spending the evening in the dark as well the cold! A friend of mine often just looks at me,smiles and says "This is Malawi!" and so it is...
I was able to visit a nursery school down on the lakeshore in the middle of the week and as you can see it is quite literally on the lakeshore. We had to be careful where we parked the car so that we would not get stuck in the sand. There are about 60 children attending this nursery and the caregivers are hoping to have some training later this year to help them as they work with the children.
The caregivers are actually sitting on an upturned canoe in the nursery block. The little boy in the stripy t-shirt was singing his wee heart out when we popped in to say hello. I'm surprised you couldn't hear him where you are!
Here are Diane and Kamoza, the trainer for this presbytery, having a meeting on the move! It is important to make the most of every opportunity when you meet with people you don't see very often.
I love being out and about and finding out about new things that I see. I spotted many of these plants growing as we travelled along the lakeshore. They are cassava and they grow very well in the sandy soil there. The roots are dried and eaten in different forms. One of the ladies from my bible study has said that she will make me cassava nsima (a sort of porridge) for our next end of study celebration, watch this space...
On they way back to Mzuzu we stopped to deliver some letters to a local congregation and I was treated to lots of singing and dancing from the children who were happy to stop and have their picture taken!
But I have been saving the best til last...
This week we have been enjoying very much and celebrating the safe arrival of my friend's new baby boy. He arrived on Sunday evening and came home on Monday. His 2 sisters are thrilled with their new brother and anyone holding him is monitored very carefully in case they might be tempted to 'borrow' him...!
So again another week has just sped past with it's ups and downs. Lots to enjoy and also lots to learn.
Hoping you enjoy a peaceful weekend and maybe even a little summer sunshine too!
Blessings
Fiona
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