Aug 29, 2012
While most of you are enjoying the last days
of summer, we are seeing the first signs of spring. The noisy birds (hadeda ibis) are back, trees
are budding and the weather is mostly warmer.
At the beginning of August we had a most unusual event weather
wise. It snowed here in Johannesburg for
only the 4th time in 61 years.
The snow didn’t stay on the ground very long, but it did come down in
large flakes for a couple of hours. The
locals here in the Area Office were acting like small children seeing snow for
the first time, for in fact it was the first time for many of them. Those of us from much colder climates kept
our smiles to ourselves. There was a
YouTube made by someone in the Area Office that is fun to view. Try http://youtu.be/4TbISgQgqHU .
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| Mama and Baby Rhino |
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| Lion at side of road |
Early this month we took a weekend trip to Ndola,
Zambia. We went to train priesthood
leaders in the Kitwe District. Kitwe,
Luanshya, Kawama and Ndola are cities in the northern part of Zambia known as
the Copperbelt because so much copper is mined there. It is one of the world’s richest sources of
copper. Nevertheless, it is not a
prosperous area. There is a new,
beautiful soccer stadium just outside Ndola that the Chinese built. We did not stay in a big hotel; it was more
like a motel as the rooms all had an outside entrance. It was named The Michaelangelo and it
followed the theme in the décor. It was
warmer that much farther north; the evenings felt wonderful – like we were in
San Diego, CA. There are no LDS chapels in this
district. The Church has rented homes
and converted them for church use.
Sacrament meeting in Kitwe is held outdoors on a patio under a large
canopy or canvas. We sang without
accompaniment. It was reverent and
spiritual. The people may be poor as to
worldly goods, but they are rich in spirit.
Hardly anyone in the Kitwe district owns a car. They get to church by walking, some great
distances. What amazed me is that some
of the women wore spiked heels. How
could they walk several miles in such shoes?
In order for the outlying branch to come to the training they needed to
be transported by combie (large van used as a taxi). Tom (Elder Green) had a new
experience. Since the senior missionary
couple lived in Kitwe and we flew into and were staying in Ndola we had to find
our own transportation. The car we
rented was a stick shift. When the
driver sits on the right side of the car he must shift with his left hand. Tom did very well and he got a lot of practice due to
the hundreds of speed bumps he was shifting down constantly. The district clerk rode
with us on Sunday over to Kitwe, which was a big help because he could show us
the way. We took him to his house after
and that is how we experienced the township.
He invited us in for a minute to meet his wife. Their home was maybe two rooms. The room we were in served as a living room
and kitchen. She was cooking something
in a pot just outside the door. There
was no stove. There was a small
refrigerator in the room, a television and a couple of couches. Their landlady was sitting in the front yard
holding on to a chicken by a string which was tied to the chicken’s leg. These people have so little. He has one son who is in his second year of
university in Kitwe. It is probably through
the PEF (Perpetual Education Fund) program of the church that he is able to go.
There is hope that the next generation will be able to overcome poverty. Nevertheless they seem happy.
Tuesday night is movie night and one Tuesday this month the couples watched a film titled Mandela and LeClerc. It was about the years Mandela was in prison
and LeClerc was the president here in South Africa. I came away feeling thankful that God had
placed such great men here at such a crucial time in the history of South
Africa. How apartheid came to an end and
the blacks got their right to a democracy with majority rule peacefully was
truly a miracle. The blacks have
political freedom, but it is still very hard for them to compete
economically. Education and the gospel will make a difference. This month about 40 miners were killed in
a police stand-off and a dispute about wages and working conditions. There was an inter-faith service for the
miners which some of the couples attended.
They said it was very peaceful with talks and prayers from many
denominations including ours.
Included are some photos we took of our Tembisa Ward members participating in a Mormon Helping Hands Project. They were painting and sprucing up an orphanage close to the chapel in Tembisa. Also are photos we took on a visit to the Lion and Rhino Park near Johannesburg and of us with the priesthood brethren in Kitwe.
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| Secretary Bird |
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| Gemsbok |
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| Tembisa Ward - Helping Hands |
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| Young Orphan |
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| Kitwe and Kiwama |
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| Feeding Time |
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