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Memoir: 29 Mar – 01 Apr 2020
I was grateful for the day of rest on Sunday. I needed it more than usual. Very little happened that day. Ngunza gave a message about it being difficult to make it to heaven if we don’t have humility and faith like a child, using a reference in the book of Matthew, chapter 18. To…
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Memoir: Saturday 28 Mar 2020
The mornings were so serene. I was accustomed to the rhythm of life on the base, and I was getting used to the idea that I had little control over my fate. I was disappointed that we could not visit the elderly home or the men’s prison. But even as the coronavirus was locking everything…
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Memoir: 26 and 27 Mar 2020
Thursday Departure time draws closer For the first time since Angola closed its borders, I awoke the morning of Thursday the 26th of March with the sense that the time to go home was approaching, though I still had no clue how to make it happen. The events of that day were significant to the…
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Memoir: Wednesday 25 Mar 2020
Painting On Wednesday, I continued working around the mission base. After Herivaldo and I painted the entryways to the classrooms, Wessel was pleased with how the red paint looked and decided to paint the entire floor with it. It was a dream of his to make each schoolroom inviting and cheerful, along with providing a…
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Memoir: Tuesday 24 Mar 2020
Purpose Tuesday dawned another beautiful day. It was a pleasant time of year in Menongue. The days were warm but slowly cooling as Angola transitioned into the cooler and drier season when the mosquitoes would be less plentiful, thus less deadly. My purpose for coming to Angola had been to determine compatibility with the work…
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Memoir: Monday 23 Mar 2020
After getting stranded by closed borders, I was given some practical work to do on the base. We also made a trip to town to stock up on supplies before the real lockdown in Menongue started. And I visit an open-air African market for the first time, and just in time, because it would soon…
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Memoir: First weekend stranded in Angola
Saturday 21 Mar 2020 Neighborhood visit Saturday was the first full day after I missed my flight. After breakfast, we were sent out in groups to talk to the neighborhood around the base. I went with Ericleidy and Dorivaldo. We would have normally visited the men’s prison that day, but we were not allowed to…
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Memoir: Thursday 19 Mar 2020
Something goes wrong: I learned the morning of the 19th that Angola would close its borders that night at midnight (20 Mar 2020). After some presentations by the mission students, I made a series of phone calls to figure out how I might be able to get out of the country.
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Memoir: Monday 16 Mar 2020
Awakened early by the OM version of “reveille” – a hammer banging on a piece of metal – I joined Joan and Herivaldo for a walk. The damp and chill of the night before had not yet burned off. We were heading for a discipleship meeting in the village…
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Memoir: First Sunday 15 Mar 2020
I woke up early and refreshed on my first Sunday in Menongue. The sun would soon heat everything up, but the morning was wonderfully cool. There was a grassy hill to the east, so the sun’s rays lit up the sky long before they hit the mission base. Low and distant party sounds had emanated…
Welcome to Angola 