Waiting

Had I set my camera on “forced flash” for the shot just before this one, it would have been perfect. I would have caught Dwight, my dad and the gentleman behind them reading their newspapers while lined up at O.R. Tambo Airport in Johannesburg. As it was, I got dad tucking his newspaper away. Anyway, you get the point. A boring wait in a long line up. At least the news in the papers was captivating, what with the whole Zimbabwean saga unfolding as it is (http://uk.news.yahoo.com/skynews/20080704/twl-un-call-for-action-on-zimbabwe-3fd0ae9.html).

Dad, thanks for being such a bold and willing soul, coming to serve out here and facing the challenges of the Mozambican bush AND your daughter’s cooking :P

After seeing dad off and getting some business done in Joburg, we returned to Nelspruit to do some power shopping for building supplies and other business before heading home. But first, we thought we’d try to squeeze in a few days break at a nearby park to get some much-needed R&R. I guess it wasn’t meant to be since Kruger Park accommodations were booked solid. We went for the next-best option: a few days doing business at a slow pace. For the following 3 wonderful days, we didn’t rush up in the morning and hit the ground running. That is the norm when we come to “civilization”. Rather, we began our mornings at a leisurely pace, then took our time getting to the paint shops, tile centres, building warehouses, farmer’s co-op, vet, pharmacy, post office, bank, office supply stores, etc.

"Taking time" in traffic...

We have a number of construction projects underway at the mission in Mozambique, but two major ones on our minds right now are the main mission (“our”) house, and the training centre. Both of these need decisions, one sooner than the other thankfully, regarding finishing details like flooring, paint colour, light fixtures, and so on. And if there weren’t quite so many great options out there, decision making would be much easier. As it was, it took literally hours to look at, price, compare, and decide something about every item on our extensive shopping list!

One of the cartloads of supplies we picked up this week.



At the end of each shopping day the number of bags and boxes of goods, waiting patiently by the door to be loaded for our return trip, increased.

Among the maze of packages is this Perkins Brailler (a Braille typewriter).

Picking up this machine in Joburg was one of the highlights of my week because I know the compassion with which it was given, and the immense gratitude with which it will be received. It is earmarked for a blind young man (click here for link to story) who desperately wants finish school, but who is having a hard time keeping up with note-taking in a normal classroom setting. I’ll try to get a good shot of his initial reaction when he’s presented with the Brailler. It should be priceless. IF I remember to set my camera on “forced flash”, that is.