Skipton Baptist Church Blog

Not a season for the house-proud!
Dear all
It’s still the dusty season here, although there have been a couple of very welcome storms which briefly brought the temperature down. I can’t stop sneezing and the layer of dust grows ever deeper throughout the house in spite of repeated dusting and daily washing of all the floors. Ah well! Just have to fix my eyes on something else – the crimson bougainvillea flowering on my garden wall, 8 little black puppies curled up in the corner of my living room, the amazing colours of the frangipani trees, pink, apricot and cream … definitely an improvement on dust.
There are mulberries to pick this morning. The mangoes are ripening on the trees all down one side of the orchard and some of the avocado trees are also starting to fruit. The little coffee tree is in blossom; maybe we’ll have coffee beans this year to add to our harvest of good things.
Please don’t check to see how long it’s been since I last wrote! The long college ‘holiday’ is coming to an end with the official opening this Saturday and courses set to begin on Monday. This year I will be teaching all 3 year groups both English and computers but for the first couple of months my classes will be on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday leaving Thursday and Friday free for other things (like admin, piano lessons, preparation for an SU ladies’ retreat, writing youth Bible reading notes etc). We hope to have a good intake in year 1 to make up for the smaller classes in year 2 and 3.
During the holiday I was able to run an ‘Introduction to text processing’ for a group of half a dozen young people, with a little jiggling of the programme to accommodate power cuts! This term I’m hoping to fit in an afternoon course for another group, particularly for those who have learned typing in the past but would like to adapt their skills to the computer. Our computers need a bit of an overhaul but hopefully that can be done fairly soon by someone who knows about these things.
It had long been my intention to try and get to Kolwezi to visit friends – a former student, Kheke Kalombo, his wife Francine and their family. The dry season is the best and the worst time to undertake such a trip which takes approximately 7 hours by bus. Less chance of the bus embedding itself in a miry hole for several days but more chance of inhaling several litres of dust and being covered in it from head to toe plus all the nooks and crannies. I made it, though and was able to have time to read, relax and enjoy playing with the children. I had planned ahead and taken games and puzzles as well as puppets to make so we had lots of fun. On the Tuesday afternoon I’d been invited to speak to a ladies’ group at Kheke’s church. By then I’d acquired something resembling flu so struggled a bit but was glad to have gone. At the end of the meeting the leader asked if anyone had prayer requests and just about everyone stood up and said they’d left everyone at home ill! Must be the season for colds, coughs and flu so I didn’t feel quite so bad. The pastor’s wife kindly visited me several times, bearing gifts of lemons, wild honey, oranges, bananas, potatoes, rice, eggs and a chicken! I felt very spoiled. At the end of my stay, Kheke wanted us to take the remaining eggs and the chicken back to Lubumbashi. I suggested they keep the chicken till it got bigger and let their family eat the eggs. I couldn’t quite see a tray of eggs surviving on my knee over the bumpy roads and the alternative didn’t bear thinking about! As it was, on the return journey we all had to get off the bus at the Lualaba bridge because the authorities weren’t sure the bridge could stand the combined weight of bus and passengers. At least I didn’t have to descend clutching my tray of eggs!
28 October
College is under way! All but 2 students reported in Year 2 and 3 classes and there’s an intake of 7 new students, with at least 4 more on the way. That’s more than in recent years so we’re encouraged. This weekend I’ll be taking some of the students to the Lutheran college at Kimbeimbe, on the airport side of the city, for a lecture on Christianity in the Third World given by a German professor who has worked in Cameroun and Tanzania. We seize every opportunity that comes our way for widening the knowledge base of the students (and our own‼)
With love to you all and thanks for every encouragement you send!

Bridget