Updates from Tanzania

Habari - Greetings,

Here is some information about Language School and the area where we are staying: 

·         The Catholic Diocese of Musoma has a large piece of property on Lake Victoria which includes Epheta Retreat Center, which is operated by Franciscan Friars;

·         the Seminary for young men in high school is located next to the retreat center,

·         the Language School is next door to the Novitiate and Mother House, where the outdoor Stations of the Cross are located.  There is an artist named Ndege who has painted several murals on these properties.  By the way, ndege is Swahili for bird and airplane. 

In the pictures Frank is in front of the mural on the outside of the church at Epheta.  The Franciscan priest in the mural on the right is now stationed in Rome, but his brother is a Franciscan Brother still at Epheta.  The large mural is in the Chapel at the Language School.  Many missionaries come to the school to learn Swahili, so the mural represents missionaries from many countries to go forth and spread the Gospel.  There are also paintings by the same artist on the outdoor Stations of the Cross at the Novitiate, next door to the Language School. There is a painting by the same artist in the dining room of the Language School; he has managed to capture the local spirit of the people.  Also, since we are in Lent we are posting two of the beautiful Stations of the Cross outside the school.

After our trip to Bukoba, we have been back at the study routine and school schedule.

The visit with Regina, Rachael, and Polina couldn't have been better. We have a good sense about the activities of BUWEA and can see where our contributions would be helpful. So, we are anxious to get settled there. Besides Regina, there is one other person looking for suitable housing for us. We are optimistic with initial reports from this other person.  Bukoba is totally different than here, having more of a hilly terrain and significantly more rain in the wet season. It is also much cooler; we saw winter coats for sale....go figure!

Regina is an absolute delight and we are having some very productive visits with her.  Her English is better than many of our fellow students in language school, who speak English as a second language.  Today we went to the BUWEA office and tomorrow we will see some of the projects, as well as have a tour of Bukoba. 

As you look at the photos you will see the progress on the future soy processing factory.  In the one where everyone is single file Frank and the women are going to check out the water supply that will service the factory.

The visa issue is still a work in progress. We had to get an extension as a student here at school which was not in our plan, but we can get over it.

These 4 months here are well worth the effort as it will give us a better foundation not only with the language but with the culture. Part of the curriculum here is learning the culture.   We are adding some photos of the wonderful aftrenoons we spend with the orphans here.

So, that's it from Musoma TZ.  We pray that all of you in San Antonio are well.

Blessings,

Frank & Karen Wimbush, IWM Candidates

Notes from Peru on family: our own and our adopted one

On Sunday, March 18, the Peruvian government issued a presidential decree that it would come down much more harshly on informal mining. Later that day, hundreds of men and women who work in informal mining got together all over the country to voice their opinion, which, in Peru, means going on strike.  This time, it meant blocking the Pan-American Highway in a town about 2 hours south of Chimbote, thus restricting any travel whatsoever to the capital, Lima, from anywhere in the northern part of the country.  Normally, it wouldn’t phase me too much as I really spend most of my time in Chimbote, but this time I was especially grateful for the strike.  I happened to have a visit from two people that I love very much, and because of restricted travel, they spent a whole extra day in Chimbote. Yes, my parents have now experienced cuy, anticuchos, crazy taxi drivers, dust upon dust upon dust, hand-washing, 24-hour cars honking and dogs barking, the delicious odor of the fish factories, Peruvian rice, fresh maracuyá juice, the sparkling waves of the Bay of Chimbote, the serenity and poverty and diversity of the agricultural zones surrounding the city, cold showers, ceviche AND chicarrón de pescado (yum!), Peruvian hospitality, and lots of others things that make up my daily life… (by the way, if there are words above that you don’t understand, that means you need to come visit Peru!)  But most of all, we got to hang out, catch up, get to know each other again (I’m only begin to discover all the characteristics I’ve inherited from them), have fun, laugh, talk about God and a little about politics (but not too much, ha-ha), and as my dad said, just “be.”  And as my mom commented, meeting the people of Peru is much more meaningful than seeing even the most beautiful sites.  Many people know the richness of Peru by its gold, beaches, jungle, mountains, and ancient ruins.  But both my parents agreed that visiting a family member living abroad is really the way to travel, because they got to see that the real richness of Peru is in its people, and you don’t need a packed site-seeing itinerary to realize that.

Emily Ruskamp, Incarnate Word Missionary

So often I get bombarded with questions from friends, family, acquaintances:  What do you miss the most?  Is there a food from home that you are just dying to eat?  Where do you want to visit when you get home?  What do you want to do?  Personally, I don’t get too caught up on missing food items (the food is actually quite amazing, fabulous, I can’t believe I haven’t gained a billion pounds here kind of good), or material comforts, and these days I’m actually not even delving into what I might possibly do when I return to the States other than being with family…the ones I love like crazy, miss the most, and who give me the greatest support.  I want to hug them, love them up, and share stories in person.  They are who I miss the most!

My parents and I have a phone date every Sunday night to catch up and chat about the latest happenings both here and back home.  Whoever answers the phone can expect a little chat with my dad before passing it on (we all get a kick out of this!).  We share reflections on day-to-day activities, challenges, celebrations, and so much more.  I’ve come to really love this tradition of ours because I feel that they are very closely walking with me and I with them…We’ve always been really close and before leaving for Peru I was worried about being away from them for so long, but they’ve been so great in terms of staying connected.  Sharing my Peruvian life with them with their encouragement and interest is a huge blessing that means the world to me.  They love and appreciate Rita and Julio (my Peruvian adopted parents) just as much as I do, they question about my housemates like they were their own kids, our friends, my co-workers, and the sisters I work with like they’re here.

I revel in the beauty of my expanding family that is both Peru and Isanti, MN through our sharing.  And, the wonder of this expanding notion of family, or home is that it’s always with us wherever we go and always growing the more and more we let others in and continue weaving the story.  So, I guess with this, I want to say thank you to family!

Kelli Nelson, Incarnate Word Missionary

I am an only child. As a result of this, while I was growing up all of my parent’s attention was on me. I got all of the praise but also all of the lectures, all of the joy but also all of the worry. Growing up as an only child was something I always enjoyed (I do like my alone time a lot, and I am very close to my mom and dad) but never thought too much about. After being here in Chimbote, where it is normal for a family to have 6 children (and live with their parents until they are 35), I am often asked how many brothers and sisters I have, and every time it is the same response….

Other person: So how many brothers and sisters do you have??

Me: None, I am actually an only child.

Other person: (Huge gasp) Seriously?? Really?? Wow, your parents must really have a hard time with you being here. I would never let my only child go to another country. (Another gasp). REALLY?? I can’t believe it. Wow. You must miss them a lot too after having all of their attention for your whole life.

And so I go on smiling and laughing and nodding, while inside thinking “Actually, yeah, it is really hard to be away from my parents who are also two of my best friends.” And I know it was really hard for my parents to let me come also (thanks again mom and dad for letting me follow this missionary vocation!! I love y’all).

What I have found in this vulnerability though, is a whole new source of family here in Peru. Every morning Señora Flor and Señora Cata make me hot coffee and a warm breakfast roll before I leave to go out into the community for Hospice. I have lunch with my three other amazing community mates where we share funny stories and doubts and sadness and joy. I kiss my cat between the ears before snuggling down with her for a nap. I am greeted by the smiling faces of the old couple that run the corner store that I visit every evening to buy bread. I give a big hug to Axel, the 4 year old boy next door, and lift him up in my arms and spin him before walking into our house. When I am sick, Kelli makes me soup, Emily makes me laugh, and Kyle sits with me in the clinic for hours by my side. At the end of the day, we sit on my bed and read a story or recount our days before saying “Buenas noches!!” and crawling into bed.

I would have to say that while nothing will ever compare to my family back home, these people have a very special place in my heart. And while I know I am not their “only”, I know I have a special place in theirs as well.

Katie Langley, Incarnate Word Missionary

Emily’s parents visited us here in Chimbote making this past weekend pretty fun for all of us. We don’t have people visit us often, so when they do we really enjoy it. Emily’s parents were great. They spent time with all of us, took us out to eat, helped make some home improvements and even shared some embarrassing family stories about Emily. It was nice to have family visit, even if it wasn’t my own.

During their visit, my family coincidentally celebrated all our March birthdays with one big event in Brownsville, Texas. I was able to be with them, and not just in spirit. If it weren’t for Skype, I would have heard about how great it was after the fact, over the phone or by email. Instead, I was able to see and, kinda, talk to everyone.

Even though I may have just been a floating head passed around the party, and even though the sound quality was pretty bad, and even though I couldn’t have any of the boiled crawfish they’d cooked up, it was worth it just to see everyone. My mom and Uncle Andy stood in front of the screen once I logged on. Then I saw my aunt Brenda cooking in the kitchen, my cousins talking in the background. My grandma said hi and I got to talk to my aunts Ofie and Carmen. Then my uncle Len pointed to a table full of boiled seafood saying, “You missed one heck of a meal.” After getting to see pretty much everyone there and talk to some of them I was able to join them all in singing happy birthday to the birthday group which included my dad. Although it wasn’t the same as actually being there, it’s the closest I’m getting to a family reunion for the next two years. Emily’s parents visiting made me realize how much I missed mine, but being able to Skype with my family made me realize that I don’t have to miss out on everything just because I’m far from home.

Kyle Seymour, Incarnate Word Missionary

Ash Wednesday

This Ash Wednesday we had 832 people come to our house to receive ashes on their forehead.  We have a chapel attached to our house.  The chapel used to be normal church size, but when the city widened the road from two to four-lanes, they cut the chapel so that it is now only about 15-20 feet deep.  It still is on a busy street and is open for Eucharistic adoration every Thursday.  People stop by outside daily, mid-walk, to pray and/or light a candle.  The doctor down the street from us donates flower arrangements in the shape of animals: lions, bears, butterflies, dogs, cats, etc to decorate the area.  Other people leave their flower donations outside, or push them through the small opening people use to leave candles. 

On Ash Wednesday, the youth group came over and from 10am-8:30pm we opened the chapel doors and gave out ashes to whoever stopped by.  Micro-bus drivers would stop outside, rush out, get their ashes, and then rush back into their bus to continue their route.  Other bus drivers going in the opposite direction would stop their buses and motion out the window for us to come to them to give them ashes in their bus.  People came from everywhere, some mid-walk, others purposely coming to our chapel to receive ashes. 

Altogether we gave out ashes to 832 people, while other places in the city gave out hundreds more.  After mass Ash Wednesday, the blessed ashes and little buckets for donations were sent out to different parts of the barrio.  There are capillitas, little shrines, everywhere around here.  People from the church took the blessed ashes and set up little tables next to the shrines and were giving out ashes for the day.  One shrine close to where Emma and I work gave ashes to over 500 people, and they were just on a street corner leading down a hill.  The faith of both the people giving, as well as receiving ashes, still puts me in awe.

Kirsten Kyle, Incarnate Word Missionary
Santa Fe, D.F., Mexico