I have not been posting for a while. In the recent days, it was due in part to the very full days preparing for and hosting Wartburg Theological Seminary, not to mention difficulty with logging on—even with data—when there is no Internet.
President Kristin Largen was the other faculty member facilitating the group of 9 students and alumni. I am on an extended leave of absence from Wartburg while I engage the Marie Curie Fellowship, thanks to the graciousness of Kristin and her ability to see the mutual blessings in this postdoctoral fellowship. Wartburg has a long history with Tanzania, having trained about 35 Tanzanians for leadership in the church.
With Naiyonde, my former student, at her family boma.
Part of the strategy of mutual blessing is bringing the Wartburg group to places where I can build upon and invite them into the friendships I have. Tanzania and the Maasai culture are intensely relational, so relationships open up doors and conversations. The mutual blessing for the Marie Curie fellowship is that I plan to return to these visit sites—Monduli and Ketumbeine—with requests to do research here. Having renewed these friendships after many years of being away and demonstrating that I bring blessings is very helpful. This includes a visit to the office of the Bishop Elect Godson Abel and Assistant to the Bishop Elect, Rev. Laretoni Loishiye, brother to one of the Wartburg students who is originally from Tanzania. There were also pastors (who teach confirmation), women’s group leaders, and the Theological Education by Extension (TEE) director, who are all research group potential collaborators.
I hope you will visit President Kristin Largen’s blog to catch up on what I’ve been doing as seen through her eyes. Visit HappyLutheran.blog and see great pictures.
Mungu akubariki! (God bless you! in Kiswahili) Mikitamayana Engai! (God bless you! in Maa)
Yes, everyday in Africa is adventure, and some are more than others!
First, a misappropriation of Scripture! Rom 13:12b “So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.” The ants and cockroaches are busy in the dark of night in my kitchen. There are nooks and crannies that are impossible to clean. So, I’m thinking about just keeping the light on in my kitchen 24/7—using the armor of light! What do you think!
So, on Tuesday, 28 Dec., Knut, Helen, and I were going to have an editorial meeting. However, Helen missed her flight on Monday from Entebbe, Uganda, due to a 1.5 hour stopping of traffic for a presidential motorcade. She rescheduled her flight for the next day, but then we didn’t want to have an editorial meeting without her. So, Knut and I went with my three other colleagues of our research team that I had arranged for them to visit a Maasai women’s project that was part of an NGO (non-governmental organization) run by my former student, Selina. She said she was doing work in Monduli, where the MaaSae Girls Lutheran Secondary School is located. Great! I even arranged for a chai break. My other student, Liz, was our driver for the day. (She is my research assistant, drives, and used her husbands 4×4 Toyota Prado for the day.)
I realized that things were going to be very different than I thought when I realized that “Monduli” meant the Monduli area—not Monduli town! We were going to meet the Maasai mama’s in Nanja, that is halfway to a national park! Ok, I’m going with the flow, and not going to stress! I WhatsApp the school visitor coordinator, the beloved teacher Ciwila, and told her we were going to be later than I planned! It only got more complicated!
When we passed through Nanja and off the highway, we hit mud and more mud! The stream didn’t have a bridge, just a crossing area. With the Prado filled with 8 people, the embankment of soft mud on the other side was insurmountable. Several attempts left me wondering what happens when we get stuck in the mud!
The embankment of mud!
The Maasai warriors, who are shepherding their livestock, seem to pop up out of nowhere! It is now a communal problem. They suggest getting the people out. I tell Liz to put the Prado in low 4, which she didn’t know about, as it was her husband’s car. Unfortunately, it is an automatic, which meant some tire spinning. (I remember Marvin saying, put the 4×4 in low 4 and first gear, and let it crawl through the mud.) Unbelievably, Liz made it up the other side. So, we take off our shoes and walk across. The Maasai warriors hold our arms and loan us their walking sticks to get up the slippery embankment. Then, we walk to a mud puddle, and Selina washes our feet. This is hospitality.
Getting washed feet back into shoeswith gracious help.
We get back in the Prado, but other muddy places mean that we are often off-roading it through trees. Eventually, the road is washed out. No possibility of going further unless we had “Maasai Landrover” or donkeys. So, we turn back.
Selina has been told that there is a road through Mti Moja that goes to a school, and the mamas will walk there. We find the school, but the news is that the mamas are too far away. So, Selina suggests that we go to the MaaSae Girls School first and then come back. Okay!?! It is at least 45 minutes to the girls school. I had been giving Ciwila WhatsApp updates of our ever-changing plans.
We arrive 3 hours late. This is Africa! They still have food for us, and we have a powerful conversation with the Head of School, Tuli, and the two alumni, Selina and Liz, who are our guides through the mud. This is an amazing school that has transformed many lives. We have a brief tour of some key places: the chapel, library, computer lab (where I used to teach), and then we met the pre-form class. Joyce is an amazing English teacher, who has always impressed me each time I visit! Then, I ask, “Who is Sara from Soit Sambu?” I hadn’t met her before, but she is the one now that I am sponsoring through the Eric Hanson Memorial Scholarship. (See post of 2023.09.22 In Memory of Eric.) What a joy to meet her!
So, time is ticking, and we still need to get back to the Maasai mamas. We have 1.5 hours before the sun goes down, but Liz is willing to drive back in the dark. So, we are off to return to Mti Moja.
I arrange to pick up the samosas and fruit I ordered from Rebecca’s bakery, so that I can honor my ordering of food (even vegetarian samosas for Zoro).
After the 45-minutes or so, we’re back at the school. Next to the school, the mamas are under a tree waiting for us. They walked all day! And they trudged through the mud with thermoses of chai and cups for us all. They were so excited to see us.
We were so honored that they made such a major effort to see us. We learned that some of the mamas with babies turned back, as the rest would have to walk back in the dark and in the mud.
Those 30 minutes with the mamas as the sun was going down was magical. The woman sang as they gave us each some Maasai beads. We heard stories, translated by Selina, of the transformation that these women were experiencing. Check out www.piwoyot.com to see the multiple ways they are improving the lives of vulnerable people in Maasailand. Truly, there was an amazing bond that happened on the side of a road. Tina said she wanted to stay and sleep in a boma (Maasai family settlement). While Tina has been to South Africa, most of her visit has been in cities for conferences. Getting to the rural areas where guests are a blessing (Wageni ni baraka.), is a deeply moving experience.
Knut shows a picture of his 4-year-old grandson in Maasai warrior robe and a urungu (club), which the mamas love!
We had a bit of an editorial meeting in the Prado on the way home. The others in the research group actually had important contributions, so despite not having Helen with us, we made some good plans. We made it home safely around 7:00 pm. Liz was amazing getting us through that mud and driving safely all day!
This is only day one together. My budget for kilometers and driver hours is over budget, but our hearts are overflowing. Fortunately, we have some extra funds, so I’m not too worried, but I joked with the other money manager that a Maasailand day is like building a house; it takes twice as long and costs twice as much! Totally worth it!
Mungu akubariki! (God bless you! in Kiswahili) Mikitamayana Engai! (God bless you! in Maa)
Thank for your thoughts, prayers, times you’ve check the blog to see if there is a new post. Yes, things were very busy. So, I have an overview of these last couple weeks, and then I will come back to various highlighted days to fill in the gaps with some pictures and stories.
On 27 November, my research team arrived in Tanzania. This is a subgroup of our larger CollECT (Colloquium on Epistemology, Contexts, and Texts in Africa) from VID Specialized University in Norway (where I did my PhD). The group was established by my doctor father, Knut Holter, who came, in addition to 2 Norwegians (Tina and Rebecca), and a Zimbabwean/South African (Zoro). We are working on the next Norwegian Research Council proposal dealing with the Bible and the Maasai. This time, with a focus on sustainability and land. So, this was a listening trip. (Don’t worry Wartburg folks, if funded, I can do this from Wartburg after this Marie Curie fellowship!)
The other focus is that we had 4 others join us from Tanzania, Zambia, and Uganda, as part of our CollECT anthology project, for which, I’m one of the editors. Due to budget cuts, we focused on the contributors from East Africa with reading and constructive feedback to develop the chapters. As I did the majority of the logistical planning and execution for both groups, I’m glad it ended up being a smaller project than we originally hoped for. Budget cuts and the increased cost of airfare after COVID meant that our collaborators from South Africa, Madagascar, Ethiopia, and Egypt, as well as an additional Norwegian, were not able to be here. The planning and adjustments (the Ugandan missed her flight due to a 1.5 hour stopping of traffic for a presidential motorcade!) meant long days and that I didn’t get much sleep the whole week. However, all our objectives were surpassed, sometimes in amazing ways! But the night after the last group left, I ended up with the flu and 24-hours of my body trying to recover.
I was better just in time to welcome Arne, a family friend who just completed 3-months in Namibia for a study abroad. Arne stayed for 5 days, which were filled with great conversations. As his course was on conservation, environmental management, and policies related to national parks and wildlife management, I was able to expand my understanding of concepts that are relevant to my research yet done in a very different way. More on Arne in the catch-up blogs to come.
This summary post also includes two HUGE developments for my research project:
1) This last Tuesday, I was able to meet with Bishop Elect Godson Abel and receive not only his blessing for my project but also a generous invitation for permission to work with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania—Northcentral Diocese churches, schools, and related groups.
2) I received the final clearance from COSTECH, the Tanzanian research authority—a process I started in the end of April—over 7 months ago! This means that I don’t need to arrange for a departure, probably a flight out and probably to Sweden, at the end of a 3-month visitor’s visa! Hallelujah! I paid the $300 online, and I will pay a $500 research visa when I return to Tanzania after Christmas travels.
Stay tuned for more photos and stories from some wonderful days!
Pray the Internet gets fixed on Monday! I’m burning through data with a hotspot on my phone to use the Internet.
Mungu akubariki! (God bless you! in Kiswahili) Mikitamayana Engai! (God bless you! in Maa)
I’ve been working from home this week, which means I get to wear shorts. As the short rainy season is in full swing, it is great not to be walking to the MS-TCDC campus for Kiswahili lessons. There are almost daily and multiple daily downpours, which means it isn’t so hot!
The Short Rains have arrived!
Now that my work these days are in the world of English, my Kiswahili isn’t developing at the same pace.
I finished a chapter revision for an anthology project that is part of the CollECT research group for which I’m vice-chair and a co-editor of the anthology. CollECT stands for Colloquium on Epistemology, Context and Text in African Biblical Studies, which is a research group at VID Specialized University.
I also finalized by SBL (Society of Biblical Literature) presentation, that I will give in San Antonio on Saturday, 18 Nov., in the African Biblical Hermeneutics session with a them of ecological interpretations. This will be important to get feedback from African biblical scholars on my biblical eco-theological framework for my Marie Curie project. However, I’ve also put a considerable amount of time this past week as a respondent for the “Blessings and Curses” themed section for the Biblical Hebrew Poetry session. There are 4 papers to read, analyze, and develop a helpful response that extends the conversation. Two of them are rather technical Hebrew, which takes me a good amount of effort to understand. However, one paper is actually a PhD student from Duke University (supervisor Ellen Davis), who is using my PhD thesis (revised for a monograph) in reading curses in the Book of Amos. Wow! Who would actually read my book who didn’t have too?!? She has appropriated it well. I met her last year, as she came up to me after a paper I presented in the African Biblical Hermeneutics session. So, I’ve connected her with the CollECT research group, as she can join us via Zoom.
I’m still needing to get my head around one very technical paper of 16,510 words (most journal articles are 5,000-to 8,000 words). I have tomorrow before I take off, and if I need more time to process, I can do so while I traveling, but I hope to be done before I depart.
Today, Sunday, I preached at the Arusha Community Church. As it is all lay led, it is a rich, multi-denominational community of English-speaking worshipers. We had visitors from Madagascar today, and the bishop said it was like being in eternity already with all the multi-cultural representations.
After the service, Nanyoke came to greet me. What joy! Nanyokye is one of my former students from the MaaSae Girls Lutheran Secondary School. She is the first Maasai woman medical doctor in Tanzania! We caught up a bit. I saw her last in Feb 2020. In 2016, she joined one of my church groups as we traveled into the rural Maasai areas, that was on the way for her to visit her mother-in-law, who lives not too far outside the Northeastern gate of the Serengeti National Park (which used to be Maasai land).
Nanyokye, the first Maasai woman medical doctor in Tanzania
After church, I was invited to dinner at the home of the ELCA East Africa Director, Daudi. He has a Maasai dad and an American mom, and he grew up some of his life in Chicago. The other guest was Laura, who is an ELCA Lutheran on a Fullbright Scholarship doing anthropological research on the effects of climate change on education. She was also a volunteer in Monduli 25 years ago, and like me, has continued to relationships and looking for opportunities to be a blessing to the Maasai. There are some significant shared links despite the different projects. However, I sense we will be good collaborators until she returns to Minnesota next April.
Tonight, the power is going off and on. In addition, I see the lights dim and return to bright. I’ve heard a rumor that Tanesco, the Tanzanian electrical company, has gone bankrupt. I’ll have to check this out. With the rains now, there should be a good amount of water accumulating in the hydro-electrical dam reservoirs. So, hopefully, it will get better.
One prayer request: My gardener, Jackson, (he basically came with the house I found out), got 4 bee stings on Saturday. I gave him some Benadryl pills and water to take right away, helped him put on some topical Benadryl gel (which I love for mosquito bites), and sent him home to rest with 2 more doses of Benadryl. On sting was to the right of his mouth on his cheek and another sting on the eyebrow above it. The side of his face was rather swollen. The colleague here, Randy, has his phone number—which I don’t, so I asked him to check in on Jackson to see if he is OK. I haven’t heard back yet. So, say a prayer for Jackson.
On Sunday, I was invited to dinner at Daniel and Naiyonde’s home, with their three kids (see blog post 2023.09.24 The New Maasai Warrior). I’m always happy when I don’t have to cook for myself, but it is even better when in the home of friends. I had a fascinating conversation about many things that I’ve been reading, and I wanted to process them through with Maasai who know the culture.
One interesting aspect was socialism. Now I’ve lived in colonial territory (Hong Kong), independent former colonial territory now socialist (Tanzania), uber capitalist republic (USA), and Scandinavian social democracies (Norway and Sweden, of which Sweden has a history as colonial empire).
After independence, Tanzania started with African socialism under the leadership of Julius Nyrere. The Arusha Declaration laid out their dependence upon human capital while alienating anyone with capital from leadership. It put all the resources—including land—under the control of the government. So, no one owns land in Tanzania. They buy a 99-year lease. At the end of the lease, the government doesn’t have to renew it, and any building assets will be assessed by their assessors for remuneration. The Nobel winning economist, Amartya Sen, talks about living capital and dead capital. Living capital are assets you can leverage (take a loan against) for investments, such as a business venture or education to raise one out of subsistence poverty to a sustainable livelihood. Sen’s argument (as I remember from a long ago reading) is that the number one way to facilitate development is to give land rights, then people have access to living capital.
In Tanzania, it is zombie capital (my metaphor here), as it is the living-dead capital. One can take a loan against their 99-year leased land, but I’m guessing if it is not toward the end of the lease time. And compare this with my condo mortgage in Sweden that is a 99-year mortgage. Yes, really. (This is a bit weird for me who had a 15-year mortgage on my house in Bellevue and made extra payments to shorten the time horizon, and then paid it off early with Eric’s life insurance payout.) Yes, I have 2 properties, so I would be excluded from leadership under the Arusha Declaration.
The curious conversation was that Daniel didn’t really see Tanzania as a socialist state, because now there is a capitalist-driven economy. This has raised Tanzania out from the dubious distinction of being one of the 10 poorest countries in the world in the early 21st century to now ranking 160th out of 190 countries and moving into the lower middle-income rating, according to the World Bank. https://blogs.worldbank.org/africacan/what-does-tanzanias-move-lower-middle-income-status-mean
My understanding is that because the government owns all the land, it is still socialism. When the people have permanent land rights, then it could transition to a social democracy—the language used in Scandinavia, though with significant differences, as Scandinavia is a welfare state which works relatively well due to high taxes and good transparency with government finances.
I’m sure I’ll keep having good conversations and learning more.
So, the day started with the frustration of trying to get my Christmas plane tickets. The Internet has been down when I had the time and mental capacity to think through all the variables for buying a ticket. The challenge is magnified when US credit cards want 2-step authentication with my USA phone number, which is “on snooze.” I ended up having to buy it with Swedish kronor, because the Swedes have an app on a phone that isn’t dependent upon an active phone account.
I did get a ticket purchased. I will be spending a few days in the Seattle area before Christmas to reinstate my residency there with my permanent address at my house in Bellevue. Then, I will be able to vote without Herculean efforts. Iowa only allows Republicans, Democrats, and Libertarians to vote in a primary. As an independent, I’m feeling disenfranchised. Even if I was affiliated with one of these parties, I would have to send by snail mail a registration to arrive not more than 70 days in advance of EACH election. Then, the ballot would be sent to me in the post, and I have no personal mailing address here but only c/o a neighbor teacher. Then, it has to be snail mailed back. Three international mailings within 70 days is dubious. I also found that the online information was more limited in Iowa. So, I will go back to being an absentee voter in Washington and vote by email, which is standard for military and expatriates. A friend here says voting by email is also standard in Vermont.
After Seattle, I fly to Boston to spend a Hanson Christmas hosted by my niece. Anya will arrive from Sweden. My father-in-law’s health is up and down, and we want to make the most of our time together.
I have been dealing with the challenges of Internet & WIFI. On Monday evening, there was no connectivity, so I tried resetting my WIFI router. It wasn’t the router, but rather the Ethernet cable had no Internet connection. However, I ended up discombobulating the WIFI router. I could get it reset, but then my laptop couldn’t connect. I had to have the Ethernet cable directly connected. So, Joseph was my answer to prayer, as he came by and had his IT friend here come to help. Between power outages and just the weird situation where I have connectivity at one moment but not the next, they were able to get the WIFI router reconfigured. Yes, the connectivity keeps dropping out rather frequently.
The other answer to prayer was that I was finally able to connect today with the dean of the theology faculty here at TUMA. She is a lovely woman and very personable and capable. We have been tasked by our superiors at VID and TUMA to prepare an academic seminar or guest lecture, as well as time for the Norwegians (including my doctor father/fellowship supervisor) coming from VID to talk about ways to collaborate. We now have a draft plan that will be run past the vice chancellor. Some opportunities will be easy and free to implement. Some may be seeds planted with hopes for germination, and perhaps even fruition.
The last “answer to prayer” was a WhatsApp text proposal. The Pentecostal preacher I met on the bus over a week ago wrote me this message:
“I was praying for a long time about asking God to choose and give me a good wife from him whose fearing God and God Choosen for me,Yesterday God showed me, it’s you, and he came with your really photo on my spiritual face when I was in dreams after praying and sleeping. So you are my God’s choosen wife. Very congratulation”
As my friend and former Bible college teacher, Jean, used to say, “Well, God has not confirmed that to me.” So, how shall I respond to the Pentecostal preacher? While I clearly am not going to respond in any positive inkling, shall I block the dude? Maybe this is a teaching opportunity. I am a Bible teacher!
There is a concept of sugar daddy and sugar mommy here. No doubt sugar mommy motivation was also behind the 20-something young man at Rebecca’s house that blurted out, while heading out the door. “I don’t know how old you are, but you are very beautiful!” No, this stuff will not go to my head, as my mirror keeps me grounded in reality! I’m actually rather content with being single! As I’ve told Anya many times, “It takes a really good man to be better than no man.” So, the final answer to prayer to mention is my contentment.
We arrived at around 9:15 for the funeral, and I was sitting close to the family section. The funeral started at 10:00 and ended after 4:00. Because I was seated close to the house’s front door, like others, I was able to walk into the very nice house to use the bathroom (and I saw that there actually is some descent painters of walls—unlike my bathroom!), strategically emptying my bladder before the end of the funeral when things were very congested. It is very hard to estimate, but I’m sure there were at least 1,500 people there, if not more! I counted 16 professional videographers and cameramen (yes, all men).
Very close to the action!
The big potato served as the Regional (think US state-level) Police Commander for 3 different regions, was a District Commissioner (sort of like county) and a Regional Commissioner (like a US state governor), and recently was the Regional Chairperson for the leading political party, CCM. The CCM party’s color is kelly green, so there was a lot of green. And it is the party of the current President, Samia Suluhu Hassan (a woman!). So, there were many with dresses and fabric wraps that had her picture on it. There was a very strong political party vibe in the mix of a Lutheran funeral. There were also quite a few wearing sun glasses while under the tent. I have rather sensitive eyes and keep sun glasses handy, but I didn’t need them under the tents.
There were also representatives of the police guard and a gun salute (sorry, I didn’t count the shots). Honestly, I’m a bit confused by what seems to be a police army (jeshi) and police. Maybe, I’ll ask about this.
Lots of pomp!
During a bit of a lull, I was able to see a dear friend, Janet. Another widow in these past few days of events. I first met Janet and her husband, Justo, around 1990. It was lovely to see her, as she is on my list of people to connect with now that language lessons are over.
So great to see Janet!
During the closing procession, Nangole ushered me into the clergy line to enter the house with the large circle of bishop, bishop elect, and 8, or so, other clergy.
After the prayers, I had perhaps 2 minutes to be introduced to the Bishop Elect, Godson Abel. Nangole made a nice connection, and then when Dr. Abel heard “Mama Anya,” he knew me from just getting a girl into Mwika Bible College just 2 weeks ago (see post 2023.10.19 Hosiana). So, he knows that I’m continuing to be a blessing. Then, the current Bishop, Masangwa, was gathering everyone for the food, and I had just a few seconds with Masangwa. He knows me from the 2016 work going to Arash and dedicating the new clinic there in a dedication celebration there (started by my home church, Cross of Christ, and especially championed by Ann). Nangole brought me into the food line behind him, cutting in front of the other people (yes lead by the bishop, yet it is a bit awkward for me as a mzungu (one of 4 in the huge crowd). So, I sat to eat with Nangole, then the Bishop, the Bishop Elect, and then I was talking with the person to the right of me, who was the Assistant Bishop Elect. I knew of him, and I told him that he is the brother of my Wartburg Theological Seminary student! Wow! So, I introduced myself! He is Maasai!!! Perhaps he would be a great person for the group of stakeholders for my project.
I was given a ride home by a Maasai woman who is just starting her PhD with a project on how the church is incorporating (or not!) women pastors. I told her this is a very interesting project, and because I teach PhD courses and supervise a PhD student, she could ask me questions to help with her project proposal if she thought that would help. I met another Maasai woman pastor who is one of the few—if not the only woman—who serves as the district pastor. So, there were many lovely and Providential connections! Who would have thought that a funeral would be so strategic for networking for this research project!
I couldn’t bear to make it to the first service at the Lutheran church that starts at 6:00 am! I did take Joyce (the 8 y. o. niece) and her best friend to church for the 8:30 service. They were adorable in their pretty dresses. All the girls are in lovely dresses, with tulle, lace, and sparkles being cherished.
The first service ended late, and then the waiting people rush in to get a seat. It is packed. I was on a bench without a backrest in the very back of the church. When the 150 or more kids went to Sunday school, I moved up to a bench with a backrest. It was behind a pillar, so perhaps that is why the seat was open. Later, I was glad for the pillar, because when the sermon started, it was so loud that I had my fingers in my ears quite a bit! My decibel meter app registered a constant high 80’s and low 90’s level, with peaks up past 104 decibels. The NIH website states, “Long or repeated exposure to sounds at or above 85 dBA can cause hearing loss.” Yes, the sermon was “long”—at least 45 minutes if not closer to a hour. The service ended at noon, 3.5 hours later! Typically, I advise my students to bring earplugs to the Pentecostal worship services, but I didn’t have any this morning for a Lutheran service! Perhaps the pastor saw me at the end—as I do stick out as the only mzungu (white person)—and I think there may have been a comment in the free-flowing sermon, but my Kiswahili is still not able to track everything.
The girls and I walked back to Rebecca’s home (perhaps a kilometer) and I asked for recordings of the Lord’s Prayer by Joyce (who has the sweetest voice) and Rebecca in Kiswahili in order to memorize it fully.
Then, we had lunch. We chatted, practicing Kiswahili, and I had a short nap.
In the late afternoon, Pastor Nangole stopped by to adjust our plans for Monday morning. We were going to go to Arusha to visit the Bishop Elect in order for me to request a blessing for my research project. It is prudent to start with the bishop when I am planning to invite church-based organizations to partner (and receive an honorarium) in this research project. Due to the death of his cousin, there would be a funeral on Monday. Nangole and the bishop elect planned that I would come to the funeral and then there would be a moment or two to at least have a very brief introduction. Ok, I’m going to a funeral of a person I don’t know. Not only that, but this person was also a very big potato (I even heard this during the funeral). The current president of Tanzania was said to have cried as they had a formal sending of the body from Dar es Salam, where he was when he died in the hospital.
Today is my 28th wedding anniversary, with 13 of those celebrated with memories.
The big celebration today was the MaaSae Girls Lutheran Secondary School Form 4 Graduation (about a 10th grade equivalent in the British educational system that Tanzania adopted).
I took a taxi over and was wonderfully greeted from the long-term math teacher. He is so kind and said, “You always have a home here.” There are 3 teachers still on the teaching staff 20 years after my departure. There are also 3 of my former students teaching and working at the school. Several of the other staff, guards and the water man, still are around and greet me enthusiastically.
I was escorted to the chapel (with a student carrying my bag—which is normal). I sat down, seeing the OBA leaders and guest, as well as a group of 9 Norwegian teachers finishing a 5-week practicum at MGLSS. (They loved their experience, and feel they had the best school of all of the other Norwegians doing practical experience in Tanzania. More later on the Norwegians.)
The blessing of the Form 4 graduates
Pastor Nangole previously informed me that he would ask me to bring a greeting. So, while the other guests (wageni) stood up and introduced themselves, I was invited up front in the chapel to share a few words. I had prepared a very short story adapting the story from the first Form 6 class. (I’ll bring this into a later post, as this will already be a long post!) It seemed well received, as even the Diocese education director referred to it later when he spoke to the graduates, and later he greeted me and thanked me for the message.
After I spoke, a guest was ushered in to sit next to me. It was Selina, a former MGLSS student and her two daughters. We have kept in touch, as she has been a great one to connect with for groups to visit a boma (a traditional Maasai settlement). I’ve arranged for a group of visiting Norwegian biblical scholars to visit her parent’s boma on 1 Dec. She is a widow after her husband died in a car accident (same as my Kiswahili teacher, Joyce). She saw me, we hugged, and she cried with joy. Selina was one of 2 MGLSS students who patiently earned Anya’s trust and became like a big sister to Anya. Later, you’ll hear a bit of Selina’s story and the blessing of educating girls—one of many who at the beginning of her secondary school, her father was opposed to her schooling, as he would not get the cows as her bride price.
The other person I saw was Linda Jacobson, the dear friend that developed as a missionary colleague, supporting Eric and I through 3 miscarriages, and me supporting her through her husband, Mark’s brain cancer. Mark and Eric died from the same glioblastoma multiforme brain cancer, one of the most aggressive cancers. We hugged and cried after the service. What an amazing gift to see her!
Linda, Susan, and me
Then, Providentially (with a capital P), Linda brought a friend along, Susan, who is a professional conservation researcher working with the Maasai! Susan’s group are scientists hired by organizations like USAID to do the technical science behind their project goals! So, Susan and I had one of those first conversations that we know could go on for a long time. We will connect again, and she will be a super resource to help me with some research model questions. Yes, Providence again!
I don’t know any of the approximately 64 Form 4 graduates, but I am the contact sponsor for a girl in Form 6 who will graduate in the spring (another Joyce). Joyce carried by bag and sat with me, Susan, and Linda during the graduation ceremony. Joyce is planning to be a nurse and pursue the nursing program that Mark started! I’ll be back at MGLSS for the Form 6 graduation in the spring for Joyce!
The graduates do not wear a cap and gown, a Western symbol that seems so culturally misplaced when one sees the gorgeous Maasai attire. Even the sound of the tinkling oromboi (metal disks) is amazing!
Procession of the Form 4 Graduates
Graduates Receiving the Form 4 Certificates
After the lunch provided, we had pictures with the MGLSS graduates. What an amazing demonstration of the power of education! Girls freed from forced marriages to study and choose their own husbands and/or careers.
Me with an amazing group of MGLSS alumni!
I was able to catch a ride with the Norwegians back to Rebecca’s house, which is just off the road back to Arusha. They rented a dala dala van for their group. While waiting for the dala dala to show up, we talked for perhaps half an hour about their experience. They were moved and very grateful! And the one male and myself help to build a bit of a boundary between a pretty drunk Maasai who wanted to touch the blonde hair of some rather beautiful Norwegian young women!
The day ended with playing some simple games with the small Joyce and other small children from the neighborhood in Rebecca’s home. A lovely day!
