Picture Captions

This will give the captions to the photos I included in the previous blog. Seems I am still not able to say I am completely adept at this whole apple thingamajig.

#1 A beautiful sea star on the south coast of Kenya. It seems to be waving to you!

#2 Toby! Toby received an award at the primary school for Best Library User in his class. We are very proud of him for his efforts to study and be a part of the primary school!

#3 A gorgeous sunrise at Sand Island Tiwi Beach, where we were able to spend a week relaxing in the HOT sun.

#4-#5 A Christmas tree for you made out of sea stars!!! We had an opportunity to snorkel off the reef. God's creation is breathtaking!!! Barracuda, anemones, urchins, sting rays, parrot fish, clown fish, bat fish, crabs, sea snakes, angelfish and so much more that I can't remember them all!

#6 On December 2nd we celebrated the graduation of the students in S4 ( the equivalent of 10th grade.) This is a major milestone in their education and we host a banquet in their honor. This year the girls dressed up at our house and I'm thankful to have such a part in their special day!

#7 The New Hope Institute of Childcare and Family graduated their second class this year in Mid-November. They are commissioned to go out and live the things they've learned and to be ambassadors of the truths of God. In this picture is a time of prayer for the students.

#8 -#9 - #10 The New Hope Vocational Institute held their graduation on November 30th and 14 students graduated in the areas of catering, building and concrete placement, carpentry and tailoring. This particular class was highlighted as one exhibiting an excellent work ethic. The parents were quite proud of their children and swamped them as they received their certificates and congratulations. Picture #10 is of one of our children from Kasana Children's Center (many of the vocational students have not been a part of New Hope until their entry to the vocational school.) Mugabe has been at Kasana since 2003 and graduated in building and concrete placement. He is currently working on a small building project with another one of the graduates.

#11 Vicki Dangers and I took time to pose for a snapshot at the NHICF graduation. We value our friendship highly, yet can't seem to find enough time to spend together!!! We felt like a photo needed to mark our being in the same place at the same time!

#12 Also in mid-November we celebrated as a community the completion of our reading together of the Chronological Bible! The day was filled with dramas, song and testimony from our own children, those who listen to our radio station (Musana FM), church members and local community leaders. I shared about Jennifer's (one of our David Family girls) new-found love of reading the scriptures. She told of how she rarely read the Word before we began reading chronologically together, but now she loves to read and looks forward to what is revealed to her as she reads.

#13 We said good-bye to Jenny Aitken, an RN who had been working here for the past year. She was dear to our family and we were sad to see her go!

#14-#15 At the end of the year the guardians/parents of the children come to the children's center to receive the gifts that have been sent from the sponsors of the children. For those children who live on site with us, there is also a parents meeting regarding the holiday schedule and requirements. I had a very nice surprise visit one afternoon from the Jajja (grandma) of the girl we sponsor. She had not come to the parents' meeting the day before (which was not a surprise as she is in her 90s and is not always very well). She came to tell us thank you for the bed we had given her, so I made some tea and we sat together and talked. I don't understand everything she says, but she is a character and keeps me laughing anyway!! She is quite a joker! At one point she leaned over to the chair next to her and just stared. Then she exclaimed, "Banange!!" I asked her granddaughter if she was ok and she replied, "yes, she is fine, she is just amazed at your furniture!" Talk about being uncomfortable!!! Until that point I rarely thought about my furniture, but when someone who didn't even have an adequate place to sleep marvels at your chair as if it belongs in a palace, the disparity in the ways we live come glaring!!!!

#16 This is another picture of the S4 girls at our house getting ready for the banquet.

#17 Our family picture at the Indian Ocean!!!

#18 Our animals co-exist together quite well!

#19 Acacia's birthday party guests had a great time with cake, games and gifts!!!

#20-#21 After the NHVI graduation, the guests were given the opportunity to purchase items that the students had made in the course of their vocational training.

#22 Geoff holds a new size for the bags of posho flour we sell at the maize mill. A 10kg bag is a better option for smaller families and singles and so far is selling quite well.

Sorry for having to put the captions separate from the pictures. We'll see how much I can improve on this apple contraption over the next few months!!!!!

Christmas blessings to you!

Mary, for all the Brittons!

BANANGE!!!!!!

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Banange! Literally translated "my people" but as used colloquially is better explained "FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!!!" -- An appropriate exclamation as I look back on this and that of the month of November and the end of the year activities around here!!

As we approached the end of the school year we prepared for graduations, end of year celebrations, parents' meetings, school closings, a New Hope Staff party, staff send-off get togethers as some left permanently, a maize roast, sending the kids off to their families in the surrounding villages, and a much-needed and well-enjoyed week of rest for our immediate family on the Kenyan coast.

I apologize that it has been awhile since you've heard anything from us in this space. I (mary) am the one typically keeping you up-to-date with our news from here and I have to confess to defeat in the whole transfer from oranges to apples. (In early November the Costa Mesa team brought us our new apple computer and we switched from HP to apple. In the process of new fruit navigation my brain became scrambled eggs.) How to load a picture, move a picture, paste, etc, etc, etc, was just too much for me to learn amidst all the activities and events of the end of the year! Banange!

Geoff and the kids open the new apple!!

Exercising Thanks

Because I prefer to begin a blog with at least one picture, let me start with my thanks for the abundant harvest in our gardens!!!

Geoff, Kakande and Medie returned yesterday from our garden with some of the harvest of our black beans, yellow beans and another pumpkin!!! Soon we will be enjoying more sweet bananas and carrots!! YUM YUM

I exercised this morning. I am thankful.

I am thankful that I am able to exercise. Two and a half years ago we were in a serious automobile accident and for quite a few months I was unable to do my favorite stretches or even take a leisurely walk a short distance without pain. As I walked with my friend, Tiffany, and my dog this morning over on the farm I realized what a blessing it is to be able to walk. Then later as I was kneeling for a certain stretch exercise, I was again reminded that my ability to do so is a blessing.

I don’t take lightly my ability to freely move about.

My children are “grounded” this week from their usual weekend iPad games. They were careless with their privilege last weekend and as a result, they are spending this weekend “electronic game-free”. I smiled as I spent the morning listening to them playing nicely together – they played football and nerf missile outside and inside they enjoyed “The Dangerous Book for Boys” board game for about an hour. Then they happily trotted off to the secondary side to spend some time playing with the Anderson’s children. I am thankful that they play so well together! I am blessed by their laughter, smiles and jokes. I am glad they are free to move about as well! As I opened my journal to write this morning I found that it was the first entry I’ve made since mid-August!!!!! My previous writings were words of thanks. I looked back over the weeks since August and realized that I’ve not spent anytime at all writing down what I am thankful for, and I am the less for it! Seeing before me my neglect has been a catalyst for exercising thanks and nurturing a thankful heart—I am now on the lookout again for blessings!

This week I was able to weed in the garden with a few of the kids from David family. I so enjoy getting out in the dirt and spending some quiet moments with the kids. . . .especially because after the quietness I was blessed to talk for quite awhile with one of my favorite kids!

We were able to share supper with someone almost every night this week!!! On Monday we welcomed back Aunt Nancy who has been in the U.S. since May. We are so happy to have her back here—AND she brought us two bags of our addictive substance (STARBUCKS!!!!) On Wednesday we had Aunt Kate over and shared a meal, smiles and some prayer time. On Thursday we enjoyed Uncle John for the last time as he is leaving to return to the U.S. for an extended amount of time. He brought his DVD of Tim Hawkins—a comic who makes us laugh!!!! And last night we were blessed with one of Geoff’s former NHVI students, Kambo, and his brother. They survived eating our mzungu food after Geoff and the boys had gone out to see the land Kambo has been working on this past year. They all left this morning at 6 to travel beyond Jinja for a wedding of one of Kambo’s brothers.

So, here I am in the quiet of my house—Geoff at the wedding, kids at the Anderson’s and no visitors for the past hour or so.

Aunt Lydia and I, the wife of a fellow staff member and a dear friend, don't get to spend a great deal of time together, but we sure enjoy it when we find the time!

I am thankful to God for so many things—where we live, what our “work” is, who we live near, the kids we have the privilege of loving and teaching and all the fresh fruits and vegetables you can imagine. A fellow staff member, Uncle Godfrey, who enjoys the abundance of our garden!!! He and his wife, Olga are always looking for another branch of matooke (bananas for steaming)!!

This afternoon I am walking 4km to the Kiwoko market with Aziza—one of my very favorite kids of all time. She tells it like it is!!! Last year when all the other girls wanted me to get my hair braided in corn rows, she looked straight at me and said, “Aunt, that would look BAD!!!” When I showed up to work with her in the garden for the second week in a row (normally I am busy with other things and not able to go), she stopped her work and asked, “Aunt, WHY are you here?” and last year when I brought her a pretty little scented candle from the U.S. she queried, “Aunt, what is the purpose of this?” (After all, it was too small to read by its light). So, in a few hours I’m off to the market and most likely I will receive along the way many more things for which to be thankful, and more quotable quotes from Aziza!!!!!
Uh oh, a knock at the door . . . Oh, it is the loaf of bread I ordered from the David family bakery . . .warm and smelling heavenly!!! The reasons to be thankful just keep on coming . . .

Bless you on this day and may you find MANY things for which to give thanks!!

Multiplication

A simple multiplication math lesson for our blog today . . . five years ago I taught the girls in our David Family how to make bread. They have turned it into a successful family business. One of the girls then taught our houseworker to make bread (it was easier for her to teach in Luganda--instead of me in English--as Jessca, our worker speaks limited English). This past week, a catering student from the New Hope Vocational Institute was taught by Jessca how to make bread. When Josephine (who washes our laundry) heard there was a bread-making lesson going on in the kitchen, she joined in to take notes and learn as well!!!!! I love that something I taught five years ago is still yielding fruit!!!!! (and great tasting bread!)

This past Tuesday a few of the staff ladies went to Kampala to celebrate two of our birthdays! (Jill's and mine). We ate breakfast at the Rocks and Roses Tea Room. From front left, Kim, Marian, me, Vicki, Jill

Same group and place minus me and add in Tiffany! Multiplication lesson: ladies x laughter x lots of yummy breakfast treats equals joy (and a few more calories to exercise off!)

Feeling in the mood for a natural, organic snack?? We have white ants (termites) in abundance this week! Kevin and his friends took advantage of the afternoon flight from the ground to the sky--catching and eating many!!! Multiplication PROBLEM: little children x white ants = stomach aches (but, they are good protein--they are even listed on the nutrition charts for East Africa!!)

Left to Right: Acacia, Kevin, Sammy, Joshua, Solomon

What’s up with maize

I have heard that this is Mary’s blog since I never write here…Well today I thought I would dispel that rumor. One of the things that I am involved with that is a large part of what I do here is the Enterprise Maize Mill. The mill has now been functioning since 2008 and this year it began fulfilling it’s purpose. We have began funding $400 per month to the ministry general fund with expectations of that growing in the months to come. The past 2 weeks have really been busy there as the harvest has fully come in. This week we purchased about 16,000 KG.



One thing that is always interesting to see is the guys off load the truck as it arrives. To off load a shipment it usually takes 4 guys, 2 to offload the bags from the truck and then 2 to carry them into place. But this week we had a truck show up with only 3 guys and 4,000 KG, due to the shortage of workers 1 guy carried all 4,000 kg by him self. Can you imagine 225 kg at a time until 4,000 has been put away? Impressive. It is amazing how God has given some of these people the ability to work.





Right now we have over 55,000 kg in stock. That is enough maize to keep our business going for the next 4 months. The concept is buy when the maize prices are low and as the market prices increase farther from the harvest we see our profits increase.



Pray that we continue to make good business decisions as things are constantly changing and this business is key in funding the ministry into the future

New levels of understanding . . .

We recently were blessed by a team of volunteers from the state of Washington. Most team members were medical professionals in some capacity and ALL of them desired to be a blessing and succeeded in being a blessing to the ministry of New Hope Uganda. They worked diligently in our Kasana clinic, serving the needs of our staff and children and then traveled quite a few hours east to hold village clinics in the vicinity of our Musana Camps site. The ways in which they gave were far-reaching, even in part only known to God Himself, as we never truly know the extent to which He uses us when we are submitted to Him.

They further blessed us as staff by showing an interest in us as individuals. In an effort to strengthen us as we work here long-term, they brought books, DVDs and CDs to give to us. Geoff and I received a biography on Dietrich Bonhoeffer which is absolutely fascinating and extremely encouraging as well as challenging us to deeper layers of commitment to our God. We also are devouring “Radical” by David Platt. If you haven’t read it, you NEED to get a copy and start chewing. “Radical” has motivated me to take a good, hard look at the Gospel I am teaching to the kids here at New Hope. I’ve begun analyzing my words and bent as I disciple and mentor children and staff here. What has been my overall emphasis as I teach with both my words and my life? Am I presenting a Gospel—good news—that is centered only on what God has done for us as individuals rather than moving beyond our personal salvation and setting a focus on His Kingdom agenda? Of course I have an interest in the individual hearts of the children to whom I minister. I want them to KNOW the love of God and that He is FOR them. But does that message of truth drown out the full scope of who He is, what he has done for ALL of creation, the BIG picture of His sovereignty and subsequently what He demands of us?

The other day I spent about an hour with a young man who wrestles greatly with the sin of stealing. He had come to me asking for a job in order to earn back the money he had the night before taken from a family member. First, I wanted to talk with him in order to revisit the reason for the repeated problem. We thought he had progressed past that sin and I wondered why we were back again in the struggle. This is a child whom we brought in from the village a few years ago and who has demonstrated growth in his overall attitude, behavior and interaction with others. He loves to pray for others and frequently remembers to pray for those who are battling health issues. As we talked I assumed I was speaking to a “saved” person and approached the discussion based on that assumption. After talking for a few minutes, the Holy Spirit stopped me mid-sentence and said, “Ask him if he is saved.” I did. He said, “No.” Wow. Face-to-face with the reality that sometimes I just don’t have a clue as to what is really going on in the deepest places of the hearts of the kids with whom we live!!! One on one is the best way to delve deeper to be sure!

As a side-note here, let me say that as a ministry we are currently honing and intensifying our focus on the kids--are all 500+ known by us? Where are we lacking? We sent a list around to all staff so that we could write our names next to the ones we know. Likewise, we asked to kids to name staff members with whom they comfortably relate. Some kids were identified by many staff members as known, but some of the same kids said they were not close to anyone. EYE-OPENER!!! It is true that working with “orphans” requires an understanding of the hurts unique to their histories and realizing that they often relate in a guarded, mistrusting way. We are very aware that issues of rejection become prime motivators in interaction and lack thereof. Yet, for all of our “awareness,” we still are sometimes surprised at what we find behind the smiles and agreeable words--words usually aimed at “telling the staff what they want to hear.” And often there are walls up of which we may not be aware.

Going back to my conversation with the young man. . . the entire conversation shifted with his honest admission and I was grateful. I want to KNOW him and what he is dealing with, his heart and what he has come to believe or NOT believe regarding God. I certainly didn’t want to spend time talking one thing when he was not in a mind to hear it!!! So, we backed up. Before his honest confession, we were trying to find out why he was still struggling with the same sin over and over. I now realize that there will not be victory over that sin until he allows Jesus to change him! But, he couldn’t clearly tell me who Jesus is or why He died as a sacrifice for man. Often the kids “hear” the elements of the Gospel, but they label it the “white man’s Gospel” and so tune it out, even though there is solid evidence that Christianity was present in this part of Africa hundreds of years before the first European missionaries arrived! So, I backed up further. We started in the garden. We visited Abraham and his faith. We visited Moses and the Law. We visited the Israelites and their inability to live successfully by the Law. We visited the need for One to bring us into a right relationship with our Creator God—a relationship that the Law ultimately couldn’t give. We visited the prophets and their news of the One Messiah to come who would be a perfect, once-for-all sacrifice and WHY He was qualified to be The One. We visited other religions whose leaders had also died, but DIDN’T RISE to life again!! We visited the power of God’s own Son, Jesus Christ, coming and living among people and ultimately making things right again between God and His creation! From the garden to the cross and resurrection and beyond! What a journey in 40 minutes! I did not push him to tell me anything further, but I prayed for him and told him he needed to decide for himself what he would believe about Jesus. I certainly didn’t want to hear a confession of belief in Jesus just because we were sitting together and I was waiting, staring at him!!! I hate hearing words that are said for my benefit only! I’d much rather wait a long time for a real change of heart rather than a quick “Sunday School” answer complete with a “put-on” smile!!!

During this past week, he hasn’t yet said anything further to me regarding what he believes about Jesus. He worked hard last week and paid off his debt. I continue to pray for him to be TRULY changed by Jesus. It’s his decision. I invite you to pray with me for him.

So, what are we doing and what Gospel are we preaching??? Is the power of who God is and the power of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ our central focus? Or are we ourselves and OUR ministry our main focus? Do we seek most of all to be “comfortable” and/or “comforted” in what we do, or are we set on responding to and doing what God has asked us to do regardless of the “stretch” it may require of us?

Just like my young friend who needs to decide what he believes about Jesus, and ultimately how he will relate to the truths of God, I leave you to also decide your response. . .

Appetizing pictures

I am currently writing another blog, but in the meantime I'm posting these pictures as an appetizer! We are coming to the end of September and it has flown by! This month has seen the first four weeks of the final term of the school year, two teams of visitors, the return of a former staff member who is here to clean out their things so that they may minister to aging parents at home in the U.S., a visit to Kampala to see where the Browns are now living, two days of rest in Entebbe, and the ongoing work of the maize mill, timber mill, enterprise farm, vocational school, mentoring and teaching/preaching. In addition, I was privileged to work in the clinic two days one week in order to help out when our medical staff numbers were down.This is a bug we call, "Acacia's jackfruit bug" because we frequently find it hovering around the jackfruit trees
beautiful roses in our garden

Kathryn graciously cut off Toby's surfer hair, which I love, but he hates . . .

Havin' a bit'o tea because, for crying out loud, the Browns are English!!!!!
Acacia and Anya also enjoy a cuppa
The boys and Joel Brown hanging on the Brown's balcony in Kampala. We visited them two weeks ago in Kampala where they now live as a satellite house for our older children who have internships and advanced school in the city.
Acacia and Kevin practice a duet for their piano lessons
Toby dances to his own beat
Crystal is a great mouser! Yummy!
"Bite they lil' heads off . . ."
Bubbly gets a bath
"Do you see the trouble they put me through for NOTHING????? In five minutes I'm gonna go roll in something nasty anyway!!!"