Beehives and Gardens

Back from the edge of sickness…..

Well, it wasn’t that bad. I got very sick with a virus here. It was difficult because of being out so far and living in a tent. I finally realized it wasn’t getting better and decided to get some help and was given antibiotics from India and in three days the hallucinating stopped:) I feel so much better.

Now that I got that bit of information over with let me tell you a little more about my life here. I am always torn because I want to tell you all about what I am doing in the villages. I want you to see the children, taste the food, smell the wood burning, and see the chickens running every which way. But the truth of the matter is that currently I am only spending a little time in the villages, and more time in classes learning how to serve the villages. However, my classes are amazing! I can’t believe how much I am learning!

This week has been particularly busy. We dug a well using large drilling pipes and learned all about hydro-engineering. We took apart a formidable diesel engine and replaced the cylinders and gaskets. We began welding together a new water tower to hold the water we are now pumping from the well. We are still continuing with our Bible courses using a book called “The Bible in the Light of Our Redemption” by E.W. Kenyon. We learned the basis of planting gardens so that we can replicate the theories all over Southeastern Zambia. AND this week we are doing a Wilderness EMT course. Of course I will be using the EMT skills elsewhere probably than the United States. Medicine is such a powerful way to serve the poor of the world.

We are working in the villages as well. We are working to set up gardening projects that will help with school feeding programs. The children in Zambia are almost all experiencing malnutrition. Many times the only meal that they can depend on is at school and those are served chaotically. The basic school (grades 1-7) is government sponsored. The government of Zambia is not organized and often the teachers don’t get paid regularly and the children frequently don’t get their meals. With this being the primary meal, we are trying to find ways to sustain the meals in self-supporting ways; hence, the garden. Also we are working on beehives. These ideas require us to teach the local farmers how to grow things slightly different than what they are used to. We also have to fix the wells for water to irrigate the land with and we purchase the seeds to be planted. From there we are monitoring it to make sure it is self-supporting. We are also bringing in teachers to learn how to make beehives as another means of nutrition. We are very excited about it.

So another update is written. I hope you enjoyed the breakdown of my life:) Again, I thank you for taking the time to read this! I am so excited about what God is doing with my life! I feel like my brain grows everyday. I am so blessed to be used by Him to learn and serve.