Day 145 (Monday 27th June)
This week was a bit different because of a program running for all the staff from the centres. They had training from a US team on play therapy etc.
I worked from home today on the end of year exams which went well. I got a text from the Driving Licence office saying that I have to go now now as a matter of urgency so they can snap me for my driving licence. I applied for my driving licence in February and have had my temporary licence since then, but it suddenly becomes urgent when they want it to be! So I went to the government office and managed to find my way to a room with a paper sign saying road safety which is where I had been told I needed to go. They took my picture, finger prints and electronic signature and asked if the details they had were correct. They had my dob as two years younger and they just changed it without checking anything, can’t imagine the dvla being so flexible! Apparently I will have my proper driving licence in two weeks, three weeks before I come home! Better late than never I suppose.
I had nepa (power) all day which was good because it meant I was able to get lots of work done.
In the evening I went to the girls and we started our bible study on James. It went really well, and was great to have open and challenging discussion.
When I got home Postman Pat from the other compound where my post is sent had delivered a couple of letters to me. They are both from Michelle from my cell group, thanks so much Michelle! It was great to hear from home!
Day 146 (Tuesday 28th June)
Today I got up early to take the Gidan Bege boys on a school trip with the girls. We took them to Sherri Hills which is the big rocky place I have climbed a couple of times. The mini bus we had borrowed wouldn’t start because it had no oil in it, so we got one of the drivers to bring us some and we got going after a short delay. I was quite impressed I managed to diagnose the issue myself, makes me feel almost like a proper man! The boys loved the trip and did lots of running around which they can’t normally do because Gidan Bege is so small and they don’t get to leave. We played games with them, and they had a lesson on creation. We gave them minerals, popcorn, biscuits and crisps which was a bit of a feast.
When I got home I was exhausted, the generator was broken so I had no power and was sat in the dark until nepa decided to give us some power. I spent the evening making and eating macaroni cheese, and working till 1am making the most of nepa.
Day 147 (Wednesday 29th June)
I’ll be home five weeks today which feels very soon, the time is flying by as I try and get so much done before I leave. There are only three weeks of school left and I have to have written the exams, tested all the kids, marked them, and compiled all the results and provisional classes by then! Seems like I’m gunna be busy!
I worked form home again and met Sunday from Gyero at lunch time. Their program is being held on my compound which is really convenient.
I had no nepa again, but realised that mine was broken and every one elses was working. I went to the communal area and worked there for the evening rather than sitting in the dark with a candle.
Day 148 (Thursday 30th June)
After getting up and still half asleep I noticed my cleaner outside so went to ask her about my lack of power. She looked at me and the circuit breaker which happened to be next to us and said “you have to on the switch, see it has offed”. My excuse for being made to look a complete idiot by my cleaner is that it was dark when I checked all the switches, and didn’t think to check in the light before asking.
I travelled out to Gyero with the expectation of starting some of the exams and this is where my day changed it’s tone somewhat. I was surprised to find the teachers sitting around when I arrived and was told that they had lost one of the children. I quickly realised they meant she had died and not run off which does happen. Suddenly that morning one of the really little pre-school girls who would be four or five had died of a mysterious illness, possibly malaria. She was the daughter of one of the teachers, and not an orphan. We educate the teachers children as well as the ministry children. I had no idea what the Nigerian etiquette is so I very gently found out from the Nigerians what the protocol is and what I’m expected to do etc. The only other baturis (whit people) in Gyero were Katie who is the SIM short term nurse from New Zealand, and a US family who have just arrived to spend a few weeks in Nigeria. I was told the funeral and burial would be the same day so spent the day paying my respects, and chatting etc. They made the coffin there which was quite hard, because it meant I spent much of the day listening to them hammering away making it, and for some of it watching them. Another thing that struck a chord with the baturis is that one of the ministries 6 goats gave birth and had twin goats which were finding their feet next to where they were making the coffin. It is hard that infant death is so much more common here than in the west, and could be prevented in many cases by better education and health care. We were told the last child to die in the ministry was a couple of years ago from malaria. Towards the end of the day the coffin was finished and we all walked to the burial site where there were a few graves. It was a piece of land on the edge of a field in the middle of a rural landscape, a beautiful place outside of the village. There was a very simple service half in Hausa and half in English which was led by one of the teachers, Lonz, who himself came through the ministry.
By the time I got home I was exhausted, a mix of physically and emotionally I think.
Day 149 (Friday 1st July)
Gyero was closed today for a day of mourning and to show respect which meant I stayed at home.
I decided I really wanted to make kfc type chicken and chips today, but realised last minute that I had no eggs, which are essential. So I had the option of walking to the girls (their chicken Ruth is laying them now) which is twenty minutes each way, or getting an achaba to town. I figured going to town would be quicker, but when I got there the two shops I go to didn’t have any. It meant I had to go hunting in the market to find someone selling eggs. I wandered up and down trying to find someone and getting shouted at all the time by the people trying to sell me things. I got stopped by an armed military man who wanted to know what I was doing. He said he had been watching me walk up and down, and I explained I was looking to buy eggs. He wanted to know why I had been using my phone and I explained I had been replying to a text. He believed me eventually and got someone to take me to a person selling eggs.
I really enjoyed my chicken and chips when I got home, even if it nearly meant I got arrested probably my most eventful / stressful egg buying trip.
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