The delay in posting blogs is significantly due to either the power outages, no Internet for at least 4 days, or glacially-paced Internet when I’m home from my Kiswahili lessons. Yes, even the Gmail homepage won’t load!
Eunie Simonson was the matriarch of the missionary community in Tanzania. She passed on 30 Sept, but to have family from the USA present, the funeral was delayed to today. Having arrived in 1956, she and her late husband, David, transformed so many lives—even mine. To put the length of life in Tanzania in perspective, 1956 was the year that William Shockley started Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Mountain View California, which was the beginning of Silicon Valley. (Check out Malcom Gladwell’s podcast, Revisionist History, and the episode, “Silicon Valley on the Couch.”)
One of the many projects initiated by David was the MaaSae Girls Lutheran Secondary School, where Eric and I were volunteers with the ELCA for three years (2002-2004). During those years, Eric and I went through 3 miscarriages. (It was diagnosed that I have a septate uterus, a congenital deformation.) Eunie was one of the women from our missionary community who stopped by to express her condolences. She empathetically shared in our loss, as she and David also experienced a miscarriage. Not only at this time, but anytime I was with Eunie (the first visit was in 1992), I felt that her world revolved around me. She was an amazing woman, who touched so many lives and even survived a plane crash!
Eunie rests in peace and showered with love
Funerals/memorial services are always filled with mixed emotions for me, the deep loss mixed with the joy of seeing other special people. This was again the experience, seeing members of the Simonson family, the missionary community (Bethay Friberg, as the missionary community is appropriately dwindling with the established indigenous church), and teacher (Ciwila) and former students from the MaaSae Girls Lutheran Secondary School (MGLSS). There was also a 6-member MGLSS choir, directed by Rev. Joel Nangole, my Monduli head pastor (now retired but still very active), and collaborator for the mission projects done through Cross of Christ Lutheran Church, Bellevue, WA (3), and Saint Andrew’s Lutheran Church, Bellevue, WA (1), and friend.
MGLSS choir
Three former MGLSS students whose lives are testimonies to power of education, and on the right, Mwalimu (teacher) Ciwila, with 22 years of impacting lives at the school. She is a rock at the school.
It was also a time for meeting others at Ilboru Lutheran Church, the oldest Lutheran church in the area (about 170 years old), with a walk to the Simonson home for the burial, where I had a lovely chat with Nashesha, (a playmate of Anya’s at the Arusha Community Church preschool in 2003-2004, with whom we did things together (confirmation retreats, Pasanki Easter egg decoration lesson, Great Wolf Lodge water park) when she spent a year with cousins close to Bellevue. I also met a German missionary, Stephan, who can speak Kimaasai. (This is the sign of an amazing missionary.) We had a wonderful chat about diaconal ministry in Maasailand, which is his passion. I look forward to connecting him to Wartburg, which was established through the work of the Lutheran pastor and theologian, Wilhem Loehe, who also had a passion for diaconal ministry. Stephan knew all about Loehe!
A full day after morning language lessons. Again I’m grateful to get rides from Randy, the former ELCA missionary who works here at Tumaini University Makumira with the music program and Cultural Arts Center.
Mungu akubariki! (God bless you!)
Pakistani Easter egg painting? Sounds interesting. I’d like details and even pictures sometime.