Zim Update #4

Manheru! Good evening!

After a nice night out, having Chinese with the town missionaries (yes, they have Chinese restaurants in Zimbabwe!), I had some time and energy on my hands, so I thought I would tell you all some more about the people on my team here in Zim. I'm not sure when you will get this email, since the Internet is down (probably due to the three power outages we've had in the past two days), but I'll send it when I can.

The TEAM (The Evangelical Alliance Mission) 2013 Zimbabwe team consists of 6 people. This is one of the larger teams hosted at Karanda. Four of us are going into our senior year in the School of Nursing at Cedarville University. 

Kristy Rizzardi is from a small town near Lansing, Michigan. She has a passion for the hurting, which is seen through her work with the International Justice Misson chapter on campus. IJM helps fight against human trafficking, violence towards women and children, and poverty in other countries.

Sarah Pelletier is the only member of our group to actually live in Ohio. She and Kristy were both in the other junior nursing clinical rotation this past year, so I did not know them that well before we started preparing for this trip, but it has been a blessing to have them both as a part of my life. 

Stephanie Swanson is from Connecticut, so she lives even farther from school than I do. Steph has a vibrant and unpredictable personality. Time spent with her is never boring. Out of everyone in our group, she has the most desire and passion for learning about the culture. Steph is always practicing her Shona, and never shies away from a challenge. In fact, she was the one who convinced us all to try fried caterpillars and bought a tub of aloe vera flavored yogurt because it was the most popular flavor in the Zim grocery store. 

Jenny Webb is the only student in our group who is not from Cedarville. Jenny, who lives in a suburb of Chicago, graduated from a college in Illinois with a degree in Rehab Services. She now works as a rehab tech, and is wrapping up her year off before attending grad school in August to become an occupational therapist. Jenny's sister Katie came to Zim as a short termer 7 years ago, so many of the missionaries know her name. She will be working with the therapist in the hospital. I've really enjoyed getting to know Jenny and appreciated the flawless transition she made into the team.

Finally, Naomi Reddington is our team leader. She has been to Zimbabwe multiple times, first as a short termer through Cedarville nursing, and eventually came to stay long term for about eight years before returning to the states last year due to health issues. During her time at Karanda, Naomi not only worked as a nurse, but she also helped run some of the wards, managed Home Based Care (a program helping to care for HIV/AIDS orphans in the Karanda area), and taught some of the classes in the hospital's nursing school. We are all grateful to have such a knowledgeable and experienced person as our leader.

After telling you about my team, I would be remiss if I did not mention the town missionaries who ministered to us so much while we've been here. The Everswick family, Doug and Nancy, and their youngest daughter Rachelle, help to run the guest house and the town office, as well as provide orientation for short termers. Kirstin, Malita, and Judy have been instrumental in introducing us to Harare and Shona culture. The Jerubs are new missionaries to Zimbabwe, still taking their language classes in Harare. They plan to help with construction and nursing classes when they move out to Karanda. Please pray for these missionaries, who have such a heart for the people of Zimbabwe, and who do so much for so little.

I read a quote today, by Oswald Chambers from "My Utmost for His Highest" that seemed very pertinent. "The knowledge that God has loved me to the uttermost will send me forth into the world to love in the same way." This is certainly the attitude of the missionaries in Zim. I am humbled an blessed by my chance to work alongside them.

In His Service,

Mary

Zim Update #3

Hello friends!

I wanted to get another update to you all before I head out to Karanda tomorrow morning. The internet will be less reliable than it already is here in Harare, and I will be much busier once I am out at the hospital, so I'm not sure when you will hear from me next.  

The past few days have been spent in orientation and preparation for our stay at the hospital. We learned about the history of Rhodesia, and how it became the Zimbabwe it is today, as well as how TEAM became involved here originally. Interesting fact: the name Zimbabwe comes from a tribal word referring to large, conical stone structures built by an ancient civilization in the southwestern part of the country.

Another, more continual aspect of our training, has been becoming more versed in the intricacies of showing respect in Zimbabwe. Respect and family are the two pillars of Shona culture. You are given respect based on your place in the family tree. The line of respect starts with Sekuru, or the grandfather, and then Ambuya, or grandmother. Respect is then extended to your Baba and Amai, or father and mother. At the end of the line of respect are married men, married women, single men, single women, and then children. All of Shona culture, from greetings and handshakes to posture and titles, are dictated by respect. Our team members' place in the line of respect is complicated because, while we re single women, we are also considered professionals, which affords us a higher level of respect.

Family is viewed very highly in Zimbabwe. Your aunts and uncles are considered mothers and fathers, while your cousins are siblings. Members of the family are expected to care for each other, without question. One part of the family that I found rather funny was the role of the "tetè", or the aunt (from the father's side) in choosing a husband for her nieces. The tetè is in charge of the entire process, while the father does not even learn anyone is interested in his daughter until the potential son-in-law shows up at his house to arrange the bride price. I'm not exactly sure that my dad would be pleased with such an arrangement but apparently it works in Zimbabwe.

Another interesting part of our training is trying to comprehend the dichotomy of Zimbabwe culture. One side of the culture is more Westernized. These Zimbabweans typically dress much like we do in the states, carry cell phones and other electronics, and are most likely employed and living in an urban setting. They are also almost exclusively from the Shona tribe, which makes up approximately 75% of the country's population. So far in our trip, we have mostly come into contact with this side of the culture. In fact, during our shopping trip today, we heard American music at both the grocery store and the craft fair. Everything from Taylor Swift to Michael Jackson was playing.

The great majority of people living in Zimbabwe are from the more traditional side of the culture. They live in rural areas and typically are subsistence farmers or peddlers. They live on a much less varied diet than their urban counterparts, eating sadza, a form of cornmeal, at every meal, with occasional vegetables, and meats, on special occasions. The traditional Shona also observe more conservative dress, which is why we are required to wear flowy skirts that extend beyond the knee.

Orientation has been fascinating. I have certainly learned a lot, about the Shona people, the country of Zimbabwe, and the hard working missionaries here at TEAM. Today was our last day of preparation in Harare. We bought a month's worth of food for six people without spending our entire food budget, which I found impressive. It was sometimes difficult to figure out amounts of food since they use the metric system, but we learned to rely on certain people in our group as mental calculators. We also learned that it is socially acceptable to openly laugh at people, even if you don't know them. I was on the receiving side of quite a bit of laughter as I pushed around my cart full of 8 KGs of milk, 8 KGs of juice, and 20 loaves of bread.

Tomorrow we leave for Karanda early in the morning. Prayers are appreciated for travel, as we need to transport 9 people and a month's worth of food and supplies out to rural northern Zimbabwe. I would also ask that you keep in mind our health. Most of the team is still feeling under the weather, due to allergies, remaining jet lag, and continued lack of sleep.

Thank you all for you prayers and support!

In His Service,

Mary

Zimbabwe Update #2 May 9

Hello friends!

Just wanted to send out a brief email letting you all know that my team and I are now in Zimbabwe. It took slightly longer to arrive here than we originally planned. Our flight from DC yesterday decided to refuel and change the crew while in Rome, which took hours longer than expected, causing us to miss our connecting flight to Zimbabwe. We stayed in Addis Ababa last night, where Ethiopian Airlines kindly put us up in a hotel, provided meals, and gave us transportation to and from the airport. Our delay was a blessing in disguise, allowing us to rest and adjust to the jet lag, even if we were forced to check our carry ons at the last airport, leaving us without a change of clothes for the night.

Our flight from Ethiopia to Zimbabwe today was largely uneventful, except for another unexpected detour-this time to Lusaka, Zambia, However, this stop only lasted an hour. We arrived in  Harare in the early afternoon, and made it through immigration and customs relatively quickly and without hassle.

The rest of the day has been spent moving into the guest house, sharing our testimonies with our fellow group members, learning how to make a "proper cup of tea" and being introduced to Zim pizza. We also experienced our first blackout, losing electricity after dinner. Thankfully, we all brought the headlamps our host missionaries suggested, and were able to carry on with our work during what is a normal life occurrence for Zimbabweans.

Tomorrow we start our orientation and will get a chance to travel around Harare before we start our work here. Prayers are appreciated for rest for the group. Most of us have slept very little, and poorly over the last few days, and we want to make the most of our orientation time.

Thank you again for all of your prayers already! They have been such an encouragement and a blessing.

In His Service,

Mary