Mulishani! :)

That’s ‘Hello’ in Bemba, the language they speak here in Kabwe (the part of Zambia I’m in).
Life in Zambia is totally different from life in South Africa. I’ve been here for just 5 days, but I can confidently conclude that my time in South Africa was a honeymoon – Zambia is the real Africa. Here’s just a taste of what I’ve done (the more unconventional, non-Singaporean ones).

1) I have hand-washed my clothes for the first time in my life, using detergent paste and 3 pails of water in total… 3 sounds like a lot, eh? No, it’s not really. The pails are really not that big.

2) I have brisk-walked to the school in 45 minutes, passing through slums on the way, and walked back to the base under the blistering noon-day sun.

3) I have very bravely decided not to carry hand sanitizer around because I know if I do, I’ll be worrying about using it all the time, when people here just immerse themselves in nature and all. So using a long-drop toilet and not cleaning my hands thereafter does not bother me that much anymore! (I’m sure some of you are going “EEEW GROSS!!!” but hey, I’m learning to adapt to the environment I’m in!)

4) I have fallen down 2 times because of the wrap-around skirt that I wear over my jeans when I go to the school. Once because I couldn’t stretch my legs as far as intended and fell into the drain, and another because I was chasing a little boy during a game and lost my balance because the skirt hindered my running… Hahaha I’m just amused because I haven’t fallen down in such a long time!

5) I have learnt to survive without receiving smses on my Singapore SIM Card which has no reception here because M1 doesn’t roam all the way to Zambia, and also to survive without having easy access to the Internet. There’s none here at the base, and I have to head to an Internet café to use the internet, or miraculously end up at somebody’s house where they have a connection.So I’ve learnt to just spend time with God when I’m free, or pick up a book to read. I’m thankful they have a library here, so I’m reading the best book I found – Keep Going by Rodney Hui… hehe. I realized I haven’t read it, so what better time to read the “User-Friendly Guide to the Christian Life & Missions” than now! :)

6) I have eaten nshima, a staple food which is made from corn and maize, if I’m not mistaken. And I have eaten it with my hands :)

7) I have drunk a traditional Zambian drink. On the first sip it tastes much like a salad dressing, with a very tangy zest to it. I’ve forgotten what it’s called…

8) I have cycled on the dirt roads.

9) I have made friends with 2 people from Madagascar, who say I look like I’m from there. I have also found out the reason behind this strange comment – Madagascar is filled with Malaysians, Indonesians, Arabs, and Cantonese! And they speak more French than English there! How cool is that!

10) I have become open to having more than 2 kids… (I’m sorry that this is highly random, but I think 10 is a nicer number of points to have than 9…) Being with a family that has 6 kids who are really close and loving yesterday has broadened my perspective that 2 is the perfect number of kids to have. Right. Awkward point number 10.

Okay, those are the more interesting things, I think. The past few days, I’ve visited the Mother Teresa’s AIDS orphanage, which houses babies, children, and even adults who suffer from AIDS, or just children/babies who are left orphans because their parents suffer from AIDS. I went with a few others and wasn’t sure what to do initially – we were in the babies’ ward (if that’s what it’s called). There were around 30 cots in the room, with a baby in almost every one. The rest started carrying or stroking the babies, so I followed suit, but the first few babies that I touched started crying so I didn’t dare to do anything else other than walk around the room and smile nervously at them for a while.

Eventually I started carrying some of them, one of whom refused to be put down again – if I tried to do so, or anyone else for that matter, he’d cry non-stop. And I was just thinking to myself at that moment, “He’s obviously faking it to get our attention just so we’ll carry him again… at this rate he’ll just get carried the whole time and I won’t get to spend time with the other babies. I’ll just leave him alone and not give him the attention, and maybe he’ll stop crying.”

And as I was walking away from him, I was hit by a wave of guilt as I realized my inhumanity: I’d just judged a little baby. A baby who suffers from AIDS, who has no care and affirmation from a family, who just wants to be cuddled and loved, like any other human being does. How could I have judged a little baby? How could I have expected him to be “mature enough to let me spend time with other babies”?

I was appalled by myself, by the severity of my problem with judging people. I’d always known that I tend to judge people in my own self-righteousness, and I’d been very conscious of that and had been trying to stop it, but this experience revealed to me that the problem was much bigger than I’d realised… And I’m thankful for that realization, because now I can deal with it better and continue to grow in the Spirit, knowing that I am still far from perfect and that God is still working in my life each day as I learn and serve Him here in Zambia.

So besides that, I’ve also been to Nakoli Community School, which was set up by a Christian lady to cater to children from the slums. The cool thing is that the teachers visit their students’ families monthly, and I had the privilege of joining one of them on a particular day of visitation. Unfortunately, some of the students are absent from school because their parents are unable to afford the school fees – 10 000 kwachas for 3 months, equivalent to just SGD3 for 3 months. But for those who are actually in the school, they really enjoy it and make full use of their time in the classroom to learn. Kids in Singapore really should come here and learn from the Zambians.
What I’ve been doing there is just to teach the children new games and songs, many of which we used in the Transkei, so I’m so thankful for that trip with St Columba’s or I’d have nothing to offer! And also to help supervise the children as they do their work.

It’s been a lovely few days here, I’m definitely being challenged to grow in the Spirit and trust in the Lord to strengthen me each and every day as I reach out to people and learn to love them with Christ’s love. I’m slowly, but surely, adapting to life in Zambia, and learning to live like a Zambian too.

This week, I’ll be involved in various outreaches such as visits to the hospitals, working with the disabled, playing games at different places with the kids, going to Nakoli Community School, visiting the children at the AIDS orphanage, and painting a new building they’ve built for the missions training or something… before going to Lake Tanganyika on Friday for more outreach, then coming back to Kabwe for a major conference.

OM Zambia/Pro-Christo (the 2 organisations here have merged and conduct outreaches together) have a variety of amazing ministries here – working with hospitals, the disabled, orphanages, schools, and they’re also involved in building buildings for training and such (basically all the things I’m doing this week).

I’m looking forward to the rest of my time here. God is good, He’s been providing really hospitable room mates and friends whom I can talk to and share my life with :)
Thank you all for praying, do continue to do so because I really need it! Nutotella! (At least that’s how it’s pronounced… it means ‘thank you’ in Bemba!)

Till next time, take care and God bless!

With love,
Marianne