First (and probably last) Wedding Shoot

As mentioned in the previous post, I was asked to shoot a wedding. All my co-worker wanted was a CD that he could take to Lusaka to get prints. Today I attended with quite a few others from Chodort. I felt it was both laid-back and high-energy...so a good mix. The front yard garden was a perfect location, though small. While not an official ceremony, it was close enough; according to local sources, it's called a Traditional Wedding or A Getting Together of the Families.

The bride and groom are not supposed to smile during the first part. I think it's okay once the food, dancing, and gifts come out! So a lot of my pictures looked kind of glum. But I ended up with 139 decent shots, and photoshopped three of them for style; otherwise I left them alone. There were quite a few of family and friends, greetings and gifts, so I don't know how many will actually get printed.

This Kindness

I felt a bit like Forrest Gump this afternoon as I finished off the book with the same name (it's a bit different than the movie, from what I remember). But the character is the same: the 'idiot savant' who, despite making lots of bloopers, succeeds big time in his many endeavors. Not that I regard myself as an idiot savant, a big blooper-maker, or a great success...but today I felt on the receiving end of Kindness, much like Forrest seems to be.

I've been batching and single-parenting this week...does that even mix? My better half is in Kenya sharing and learning about Education in Africa. I've never had both kids on my own this long before...and so far it's going fine. Today, particularly, I faced with a little trepidation, because I was leaving the kids at home with our maid while I went to work. Which I've done before, but I worry about their fighting or hunger or other things they're not used to reaching out to others about. But when I checked in on them at tea time, lunch, and after work, they were happily playing together. In fact before supper they went outside on a 'hike' where they packed a backpack and rode their bikes around the yard, making stops to play with toys or dig in the dirt. I made pancakes for supper and slipped them outside and they gobbled them up and kept playing until a few stars had come out. It was just cool to see them independent like that.

Then I was asked to photograph a co-worker's wedding this Sunday (and was able to arrange child care with an MCC friend) and I was also asked by a neighbourhood boy we know to make a cake for him on Saturday, because it's his birthday. I said yes to these things, not because my photography and cake making skills are great (my wife is superior in both areas) but because of the Kindness of being asked, and I know that it means a great deal to both guys.

Where does this Kindness come from? Perhaps it is an evolutionary anomaly inherited from our surival-of-the-fittest, fish-turned-lizard ancestors. But I think it comes from the Lord. Thanks for your prayers this week, you know who you are!

Spiders and Soccer

A spider was spinning her cunning web of deceit when I returned home from work yesterday. The setting sun was highlighting the thin strands, or I would have missed it. She was starting from the outside frame and working her way inwards, with quick, precise geometry. I took this picture, then went inside to get the kids so they could see too. By the time they came out, the web was almost finished.

This morning I went out early to see if I could get a good picture with the sunrise and the dew, but alas, the web was gone...I think our gardener probably cleared it out of the way. Hopefully the spider got a meal first!

Last Saturday I took a soccer ball to the dirt field a block away and counted to ten. No one showed up. But then, within a minute there were four of us passing the ball around. Soon we had a good scrimmage of 3 on 3 going! I'm hoping to make it a weekly event, as I love the exercise. One of the guys was a former Chodort IT student.

Guitar Number 2 music video: Burden Blessing

Awhile back I posted about my new guitar making hobby. I finished my second cigar-box guitar a few months ago and have enjoyed playing it. The sound is not that good, but the intonation is better than the first one. Plus, it's a cool shape!

Every guitar must have a new song played on it. This one is called Burden Blessing; it's a blessing for anyone who is carrying any sort of burden. Video footage is from around the neighbourhood.


What is your cross to carry?
To others it appears to be joy
Only you know the patience required
The struggle with faithfulness

May your burden be light, may your yoke be easy
May your struggle free the Hope of the world
May your ears hear the whisper, may your heart be full
of the One who knows you

Halfway There

Here we are at the 'Ides of March' and it is also approximately halfway through our term in Zambia. The seasons of life continue:

The rains seem to have tapered off; while the sun is still strong during the day, it is pleasant and cool in the evening. We have quite a bit of standing water in our non-draining backyard, but almost every other puddle around has become bone-dry. We do have quite a few mosquitoes as a result of the standing water.

We released the tadpoles we had been keeping in the kitchen after five weeks of watching them grow legs. In fact, one disappeared from the tank; I think it hopped away into the kitchen someplace.

At Home School we are finished two terms of grade 1, with one remaining. We don't do too much with Malachi in preschool, but he is soaking up a large part of what Kate is learning in grade 1--she is teaching him all sorts of things. It has been gratifying to watch Kate learn to read and write. (English spelings ar so sillie somtimes, but wee all haf tu lurn them!)

The nights are always quiet...many times after the kids go to bed, you will find Michelle watching a DVD on her computer, and yours truly playing a game of Settlers online.

At Chodort we managed to finish another kitchen--painted white! I designed it and built the boxes, and some other guys made the doors and painted them. Fixing (installing) them went quite smoothly. I took some photos for the purpose of making a brochure that potential customers can read to understand our products and prices.

So, we continue to do our work here, remaining faithful to our calling, for He who called us is faithful.

Andrew

Oreo the Canine Meteorologist

We had a big rain last night, with thunder and lightning disturbing our sleep for awhile. In the morning I looked outside and saw Oreo's food dish, full of water. Oreo has an annoying habit of moving her empty dish around the yard after eating. So when it's feeding time, I play 'find the food dish' since I haven't yet convinced her to fetch it herself.

But what Oreo was really trying to do was to measure rainfall. So I checked with a ruler and it was 60mm (over two inches). Not a bad soaking; the backyard is back to its lake-like status.

There was quite a layer of sand at the bottom of the dish, which indicates a heavier type of rain, which disturbs the earth it falls on and makes it jump into dog water dishes.

Now if I can just get Oreo to predict the weather, she'll be earning her keep.

Love

Love must be sincere.

             Romans 12:9a

Happy Valentines Day!

I have been married over eleven years. I definitely do not have a corner on the romance market, although I have tried; one Valentines Day I blew up a LOT of red balloons with helium and left them floating all over the house for my wife to find when she woke up. Some years we try to go out for a special dinner on this day: once I made reservations at a Greek restaurant, and they packed us in like sardines with about 50 other couples--no elbow room! This year, I let my wife sleep in and picked some fresh roses from the garden; she gave me a dark chocolate bar. (mmm!) Looks like supper will be roasted maize and hot dogs on the braai after a lazy day reading books. I guess we're an Old Married Couple now.

It seems to me that the whole human race relies on love for survival. When we love (cooperate) with each other, we thrive. When we fight, we die off. As a father, I see this with my kids--I want them to get along so badly, as it makes my life easier and also helps them. I'm sure our Father in heaven also sees things this way:
"if only you guys would just get along..."
"It's okay if Billy got more than you, I'll take care of it..."
"You'd be so much happier if you would just forgive your sister..."
"Where is your brother Abel?" (Genesis 4:9)

And now with the recent Globalization of our world--where we no longer have an excuse about not knowing about our neighbours since world news is available at the click of a mouse--the responsibility to love one another gets even greater. Too great sometimes. "Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law." (Romans 13:8)

Yes, from living in Africa I am even more conscious of the global disparity between rich and poor, when respectful yet downcast people come to the gate very frequently, asking for piece-work, and skinny barefoot kids who should be in school jostle to help me with my groceries when I emerge from the "rich-people" grocery store. I've been working hard at Chodort, trying to help the Carpentry Production department make a decent profit so that Chodort's employees can make a living wage. And when we succeed, what then? The cost of living goes up for everyone else.

Somehow Love has to factor in everything we do.