Monday morning we stopped by the clinic to say goodbye to Anatashia, who is well enough to go back to the Crisis Nursery. We also saw Taona - her leg is healing very well and Sue has shown her Mom how to do some exercises to make the knee flexible again and to strengthen the muscles. It really looks like this little girl will have an essentially normal leg after her near death (due to sepsis) experience.
After the clinic stop, we headed to the lake. Lake Malawi is considered one of the 12 most beautiful lakes in the world, and we try to take all of our visitors down there to see it. Plus the fact that the Maseko family is part of our family! They graciously fix traditional foods for our visitors and us. So, off to the lake we went. On the way we saw some guli wamkulis (fetish dancers) on the side of the road and managed to get some quick photos. They do not like their photos taken and actually chased the car!
We stayed at a little lodge on the lake, Baobob Lodge, which Sue and Katie seemed to enjoy (except the cold shower, which all of us hated). Monday afternoon we went to Stuart Grant's cichlid farm - they ship wild caught cichlids all over the world. We had a tour of the tanks. Mr. Grant died a few years ago, I am sorry to say, as he was a most interesting fellow. I don't think the tanks were as full as they had been when he was alive, but it may simply be the season. Sue has cichlids so she was excited to see the fish in their environment. We also went to the Crocodile farm. They raise crocs from the eggs onward, harvesting them at age 3-4 (but only when they get an order). We saw lots of crocs of different ages, then we saw the breeding crocs. Oh my, they are big! The oldest, biggest male is 53 years old, but they can live to be 150. We had a nice dinner with the Masekos, although Emma was gone - she had left for a WMU meeting in Zambia- and Peter was in Lilongwe until late, trying to sort out the container issues.
The next morning we ate breakfast at the lodge, then had a chance to walk along the lake shore. I almost hate to tell our Texas friends this, but we were cold!! I have a photo of Joseph looking downright chilled even with his jacket on!
We went with Peter and Wezzie to see the project, Pothawira. This is the orphan / school / clinic project that is being built by the Masekos and several groups in the US. Our initial hope in this trip was to help open the clinic while we were here. Unfortunately, the clinic was not completed and the container had not arrived. The container is now in Malawi, but there are complications with off-loading. Trying to get things accomplished here can be unbelievably tedious! However, we knew that Peter had made progress on the clinic since we had been here earlier in the trip and we wanted to show the Cantrells the project. On the way, Peter stopped at a village where there was a 'sick child' he had been asked to see. It turned out that the sick child is a significantly brain damaged (from birth) little guy who is about 7 months old. Sue showed the Mom some simple exercise to help him focus and straighten his neck, but that is all we had to offer, literally on the side of the road. Anyone out there interested in spending time in Malawi doing physical therapy? I am sure Peter will help you set up a space in his new clinic or school!! We visited the project - walls are being plastered, the floors are being finished, the clinic itself is very, very close to being done. It is quite a huge undertaking for Malawi and it is amazing how much Peter has done in the last year. After viewing the project and having another wonderful meal with the Masekos, we headed back to Lilongwe. Of course, we stopped at the curio stands to let Katie and Sue do a little shopping. I spoke to my friend, Phillip, the drum maker. I even ended up buying a couple of little things myself. When we got ready to leave the curio stands, we found that we had a flat tire. Once again, I am in Joseph's debt as he changed the tire (and the Malawians watched!). I think seeing an azungu doing manual labor is quite entertaining to them! We traveled onward to Lilongwe, arriving after dark, but finding fuel on the outskirts of town again. It was a good trip, with time spent with our precious friends in Senga Bay. Thanks to everyone for the prayers for travel safety.
Thanksgiving / Praise - travel safety; good friends; the Pothawira project continuing; functional spare tire; the recovery of Anatashia and Taona; and Joseph!!
Prayer requests - continued safety; for the little boy in the village, that he will live to his potential, whatever that might be; for his parents as they cope with the knowledge they have a child who has has special needs; for the clinic we have scheduled on Thursday.
Pictures:
Anatashia on the day she was leaving for Crisis Nursery
Sue Cantrell showing how much flexibility Taonoa has in her knee.
Guli wamkulis on the side of the road.
Children carrying firewood - always lots of kids in Malawi
Joseph in front of the oldest croc at the croc farm.
Katie, with Blessings and Alpha at the Masekos
Marie Maseko cooking
Wezzie
Joseph on the lakeshore, looking cold!
Peter, Wezzie and Joseph in the dining hall at the project.
Mebble and Marie.
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