Yesterday I arrived back in Mshewe and I confess I wasn’t
looking forward to returning to the village, even though it’s only for a couple
of weeks. I had started to settle into town life and was enjoying some measure
of routine, which comes with more office-based work, as well as the delights of
electricity (most of the time anyhow), easy access to shops and the
companionship of a housemate and other English speaking friends. However, I reassured
myself with memories of the beauty of the Mshewe countryside and the fun I have
with some of my village friends, and so drove back to the village with at least
some sense of anticipation. My pleasure grew as I bought myself some grilled
corn-on-the-cob and left the noise of the town behind, driving past buckets full
of mangoes being sold at the side of the road before turning up the dirt track
to where I live.
Arriving, I opened the kitchen door. My friends had kindly
left me a bunch of bananas, but some other very unwelcome ‘friends’ had also
been at work. The kitchen was a mess. Someone had left a bag of peanuts on the
worktop – a fatal mistake. Mice love peanuts and the result was that not only
were peanut shells scattered across the counter but they had also sampled the
label on the bottle of oil, a pen lid and a box of matches, among other
things! Entering the main house to check the situation out there I found the
usual pile of bat droppings behind the sofa and had an unpleasant surprise in
the bathroom – a filthy mess around the bath. When I turned on the tap to clean
up the dirt, the water that came out was black and took about half-an-hour of
running to become just about clean enough to shower in.
A couple of hours of cleaning and unpacking later, I finally
took a shower in the almost-clean water and felt refreshed and ready to face
living here once again. The sunset was stunning. My friend popped over to say
hi. I cooked some food. I lit my new scented candle. I sat down to write this
blog post to the music of the cicadas outside. It’s not so bad being here after
all!
Waking early this morning to the dawn chorus and someone
calling “Hodi!” at my gate, wanting to speak to me, I wasn’t so sure again. He wanted
money for a sound system at his church! Did he have to come and knock before 6am
in the morning for such a request?! I feel weary. But it’s a beautiful morning,
I am working with my faithful colleagues today, with the chance to read the
Bible together, and so there is much to be thankful for.
I know that I need to trust God to strengthen me for whatever
lies ahead. The line of a familiar song comes to mind once again, “Strength for
today and bright hope for tomorrow.” Amen to that!
