Ewert's Christmas at the beach

My parents with us, Andrea and Paul, Emma, Benton and baby Wesley (to come April '07)

The gang at the beach. Not pictured are my cousins Phil (stuck in Denver at the airport) and Dusty (sick with the flu at home in Monmouth). We stayed Monday and Tuesday night and had a wonderful time catching up with my family. My Aunt Peg and Uncle Ken and girls were visiting from So. California and my Aunt LaNea and Uncle Steve were just back from Afganistan. Ben and Emma were a big hit and we all laughed a lot. They played the elfs as we opened gifts and it seemed Ben would find the smallest gifts to hand out while Emma got the largest ones (bigger than her little person) and would helft them across the room.

Emma and my dad... they both enjoy red.

 

Climate Change

One week ago Jeff, Emma, and I were melting in the heat and humidity in Africa. We returned home at about 1:30am on Saturday to the cold Northwest. We've been celebrating Christmas and catching up with family ever since. We're all still tired, but recovering from the time difference, climate change, and business. We had a great trip over all and I will post more pictures eventually, but they will be on my photography site . Thanks to all of you who visited the blog and remembered to pray for us! We really appreciate you!

Janice and us at her home in Lichinga on Tuesday morning before we left.

Jeff and Emma on the beach in Maputo. It was about 90 degrees at 7:30am

Emma in the Indian Ocean. She would probably still be there happily playing in the warm water, if her mommy hadn't been worried about heat stroke and sunburn. The water was like a bath (not quite at clean though) and Emma had so much fun.

 

I fit right in with these girls! Macua tradition is for ladies to paint their faces white with the paste from a bamboo root. It is considered the ultimate in beauty treatments -- watch out Clinque. This is Sonia, Lizote, and Sena and me :)

Emma's new look...


Emma with Sonia. She already missed her Mozambiquan aunties. The girls really enjoyed Emma and she loved spending time with them.

Lizote's humburger.
She said, "Thank you for making this dream of eating a real hamburger come true." You don't get appreciation like that every day! Later she asked me if I went to cooking school to know how to make it. Talk about making my day!

 

Emma's blond hair caused quite a reactions from this group of kids.
She didn't seem to mind them all touching her head.

Village kids. Beautiful dark faces. I couldn't take enough pictures. They loved to look at the picture on the back of the camera!

What's for dinner? This is white beans in curry with inseama and fish served at Mama Claira's home in a village outside of Lichinga. It was delicious!

The market in Lichinga.

 

The latest pose for Vogue magazine;-)



Emma and elephants!

We're Coming Home!

Most people's reaction to the news we were traveling to Africa involved a question about our young daughter, Emma. "Are you taking her?" They would ask in horror. My response was always, "Yes, and we are taking the necessary precautions to keep her healthy and happy." After all, children do live in Africa. In reality the thought of Emma getting sick in Africa was a real concern to me. I went to the travel clinic before we left and Emma was completely vaccinated for all the known diseases and I got medicine for all those unknown germs floating around in food and water, and mosquitoes. The rest of my worry was alleviated as people promised to pray for us. I left for Africa with peace that only comes from God.

Now, as we are preparing to leave Africa for our safe home in the States, Emma is sick. She started by vomiting all night and then the diarrhea came. I prayed for wisdom as I gave her the medicine I got for diarrhea prescribed by the doctor we visited before. She didn't have a fever at all, so I wasn't concerned about Malaria. I was still worried yesterday evening when Emma still had not been able to keep anything down for 24 hours. "Do not worry about tomorrow," that verse in the book of Matthew says. As we were getting ready for dinner last night, Peg, a medical missionary up from the Lake for one of her 2 yearly holidays, came by unexpectedly for a haircut from Janice. Peg graciously game me advice after hearing the symptoms and told me not to worry and that it was most likely Geardia that Emma was suffering from.

Thanks you God for answered prayers in the form of a doctor coming for a haircut! We still have a sick baby, but I know that she will be alright. We leave tomorrow for Maputo (a 3 hour flight with 3 stops) where we will spend 2 nights. On Thursday (your Wednesday night), our plane leaves for Seattle, via Johannesburg and London. We arrive home Friday afternoon and then drive with my parents back to the valley late on Friday. Although I am ready to be home, I am dreading this trip. Pray that Emma starts getting better immediately and if she doesn't, that I will have the patience, extra changes of clothes and diapers to deal with what ever comes up. :)

Our preparations for leaving today involved one last trip to the market (Jeff stayed home with the sick baby -- such a good dad). I was looking for baskets or rugs, but there weren't any. I bought a few capalonas (African fabric), and a bamboo necklace. I also took my camera and got pictures of the market and a bunch of kids who won me over with their smiles. Could you resist a child who runs up to you with a big smile, points at his chest and then poses with another big smile? I couldn’t and once again made their day when I showed them the image on the back of the camera.

Janice is getting ready for a road trip tomorrow to Marrupa and on to Cuamba, so she is busy as well. Tonight I am making real American hamburgers (or as close as we can get) for the Mozambiquan girls next door, Peg, the doctor, and Sun Ae, the new SIM missionary from Korea. We even have strawberries and homemade ice cream for dessert (I wish I could bring you some, Dad).

See you soon!

Snow at Christmas?

Alysun and Jeff and little Emma leave Africa on December 19th, so this may be the last posting before they take off for Monmouth!!
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Janice and I went to a "Ladies Night Out" Christmas party last night
at the home of a Church of Christ missionary. The house was unlike
anything I've ever seen. It was essentially a mud-mortar mansion. The
walls were mud and it had a grass roof, but it was about 1500 sq. feet
of living space, plus a loft, vaulted ceilings, tile, custom wood
cabinets, arched doorways, running water, and electricity. The
decorating was straight from Pottery Barn and I sat back and chuckled
at what a mud hut can be. It was beautiful – this lady even had an
artificial, 7ft noble fir Christmas tree in the living room, strung
with red wood beads and white twinkle lights, and an array of cutsy
ornaments. We had a gift exchange and Janice and I had brought DVDs
(previously viewed of course). Other kits of the party was a box of
cake mix from the States, homemade bonbons, and sugar peanuts. You can
tell you are with a bunch of missionary women in a 3rd word country
when you hear gushy comments like, "Where ever did you find chocolate
chips?", and "Is this a PAL DVD from the States, or Asia? – I hope it
will work in my universal DVD player."

It was a lot of fun and I had interesting conversations with the
ladies. There were ladies from South Africa, Australia, Spain, the U.S.,
and England – it was funny to me that even though the backgrounds and
cultures of all the women were so different, we still found plenty to
talk about, from recipes, to fashion, to raising children.

It still doesn't feel too much like Christmas, so I am eager to get
home to the cold weather, spiced cider, Christmas cookies, and the
Christmas Story on a rainy day. When it is 80 degrees and sunny, it
just isn't the same. I was talking to a South African lady last night
who said she once spent Christmas in Vermont and thought it was so
strange to be cold at Christmas. She said there was snow, ice skating,
and evergreen trees and she was used to hot weather, going to the
beach and having a picnic with cold-cuts and ice-cream.

So, wherever you are and however you celebrate the season, I hope we
can all remember why we celebrate in the first place… from Africa to
Oregon and everywhere in between, it is Christ's birth that calls for a
celebration.

We are ALMOST done with the tile job today! Jeff is just grouting the
kitchen- the last and final room. He is grumbling about me blogging
while he is working (I have to find some way to convince him that
blogging is a valuable use of time). The floor looks really good and
it is a huge improvement from the rough cement floor.

Oprah and Bee Stings

Searching for the meaning in life is as old as the earth itself. Why am I here? What comes next? Is life more than just surviving everyday?

These days we have Oprah and Dr. Phil, sedatives, caffeine, self-helpbooks, therapists, and yoga to help us cope with life's big questions and still people are lost; people are lost from the big cities and small towns in 1st world United States to the small villages in rural Africa. Here in "3rd world Africa" there are no books to read about finding your inner power, no TV talk-show hosts to help you loseweight, improve your self-esteem, and decorate your bedroom on abudget. The living conditions may be completely different, but peopleare still searching for the same meaning.

Mozambique is a developing country and I now see why the description"3rd world" is no longer appropriate. As more of the civilized worldseeps into the culture here, technology, and also development comewith it. The village man balancing his wife and 2 children on a bike,peddling down a dirt road while talking on a cell phone is proof that life is changing here. There are 7 ATM machines in Lichinga and I canuse my Bank of America debit card at one grocery store.

The answers to life's biggest questions won't get answered with development and technology. People still need answers and that is whyit is important for Christians to be here. As life changes, the people find that what they thought was the answer is empty still. Knowing that you are created by a loving God, that you can have salvation fromthe sin that cripples you, and find fulfillment in a relationship withGod; that is the answer.

What missionaries do here is important. What Janice does is very worthwhile and I am grateful for her willingness to live and work with the people in Lichinga. The team of Christians have one goal and theywork so diligently discipling new believes, teaching Bible studies, sharing the Bible with people in the villages… all of it is so necessary if the people in this developing country are to have purposeand they continue on in the changing world. I've seen people hungry for God and that makes anything worthwhile.

I am writing this today mostly as a reminder to myself because it'sbeen a hard few days. Remodeling of any kind is always stressful, butadd 3 adults and one 2-year-old trying to co-exist to the project and it gets even harder. We are laying tile in a house that is more triangle than square! It is so frustrating. To top it all off, I stepped on a bee 2 days ago and got stung. My foot is throbbing and has the look and cramped feel of a shiny red economy car. It's easy for me to wish I was at home, enjoying my Christmassy house, watching "It's A Wonderful Life" while drinking hot chocolate. After all, I never would have got a bee sting in Oregon in December. But, as I reflect on why we are here, I know that our mission is important. The missionary's house we are working on has an important job and we are doing an important job that will make her life much easier. No matter where I put my feet up today, or walk with them tomorrow, I will encounter difficult situations. I just have to remember my purpose,the gift I have in my relationship with God and the Good News I have to share. With that in perspective, I am going to go get back to work (with a smile on my face and a spring in the step of my one working foot).

Love from Africa

Lisset and little Emma- both so precious in Jesus' sight!



Lisset, Sonia, and Sena- three sisters who love to cook











It was such a privilege to have another delicious Mozambiquan meal today. Our neighbors, 3 sisters who are tons of fun, made us lunch and were excited to share their favorite, Matapa. It was served with insema (a thick paste made with maze, a white corn flour and water), rice, and grilled chicken. We ate with our hands and had a wonderful time talking about food and culture. The girls wanted to know all about our favorite foods in America and especially the huge hamburgers that they have only seen on TV. They asked, “How do you fit such a tall thing in your mouth?” I promised to make them real hamburgers before we leave here. They are very excited.

Here is the recipe for Matapa and the chicken that I was able to write down from Lisset’s description. It reminded me of a thick soup with full, complex flavors. It has peanuts, but I couldn’t taste them. I am interested to try this when I get back home.

Matapa
A traditional Macua tribal meal.

2 cups finely chopped cabbage leaves or spinach
1 cup ground peanuts
2 cups cocoanut milk*
1 finely chopped onion
Salt to taste
Stir all ingredients together in a medium sauce pan and simmer over medium low heat for about an hour. Serve as a dressing for rice or insema.
*shred a handful of fresh cocoanut and rinse in 1 cup warm water, squeezing the cocoanut by hand to make a milky water. Add more warm water and continue to make 2 cups cocoanut milk. You can buy cocoanut milk, but make sure it is unsweetened.

Lisset’s Chicken
Mix together and rub on chicken pieces:
3 garlic cloves, crushed
The juice of 1 lemon
A little cocoanut milk
Plenty of salt
BBQ on outside grill, basting with any leftover juices.

 

 

  

Never A Dull Moment

We’ve had such a full week and that is part of the reason I haven’t been able to post. On Tuesday, when the tile was still nowhere to be found, Jeff, Emma, and I took off for Cuamba, Mozambique with Janice’s car. Some SIM missionaries there had a room to be tiled, the tile, cement, and grout ready to go. The journey was about 300 kilometers (roughly from Monmouth to Olympia in comparison) on a dirt road. It took about 5 hours and we finally arrived shaken, literally. There were pot-holes, ridges, bumps, pedestrians and bikers in massive quantities. Cuamba is down in a valley and was about 95 degrees with humidity at about 90%. We ate a quick bite for lunch and started on the tile job since the plan was to tile the room in two days and grout in the morning of the third day and leave for Lichinga. Almost immediately Jeff started feeling sick. The room was really hot, so we thought it was a bit of heat exhaustion. For those of you who know Jeff, hard work isn’t a foreign concept, but he was having a really had time. He had an extremely high temperature, was dizzy, achy, and nauseous, but tried to work through it. At the same time, Emma started having diarrhea. I didn’t bring the antibiotics with us and I didn’t have nearly enough diapers for the many she was going through. The night in Cuamba was miserable. The temperature never dropped and we lay sweating, Emma crying, and me, worrying that Jeff had malaria. I decided we needed to get back to Lichinga, so we were up at 4:30am trying to take advantage of the slightly cooler temperatures. Jeff helped me finish laying the tile and we left for Lichinga. That was a long journey and we were so glad to be back at Janice’s house. I immediately got Emma started on the anti-biotic and Janice took Jeff to the hospital for a malaria test. It was negative and they had no other diagnosis, but he came back with a whole lot of pills. He’s steadily doing better and Emma is already completely recovered.

While we were gone, Janice was supposed to be working at the office, catching up on all the work we had been distracting her from. Instead, the electricity went off and that means no water, and no email as well. She spent 4 days this week trying to get the power company to fix the problem and encountered many frustrations. Also, there were many “people” issues for her to deal with. Many people coming and going, needing help, needing money, needing counsel. One of her SIM team members suffered in a very bad accident while camping in Botswana and had to be air lifted to Johannesburg. Because Janice is the area director, her job is to keep other team members informed. Also this week, one of Janice’s guards (the one whose wife we brought back from the village last week) was sent to prison for threatening to beat a man he thought was having an affair with his wife. Generally, a small money donation (some would call this a bribe) would release him from prison, but they are saying it may be four months before he is released because of the holidays and all the paperwork. Life is never dull in Lichinga!

The tile for Janice’s house is supposed to arrive today! We still have time to finish the whole house before we go, so pray that all goes according to plan (God’s, not ours!).

Thanks for your prayers.

Genuine Hospitality

When what the last time you watched TV in a mud hut? Yesterday we were the honored guests for lunch at Omar’s house. We drove from Janice’s house in the city out to suburbia only about 1 mile away. None of the roads are paved and all the homes are huts. Some are just mud, while others are mud bricks that have been fired. The walls are then plastered smooth with cement. All of the homes have a practical grass roof.

So, we arrived at the home and were greeted by our host who led us in to his nicely fenced yard (with grass tied to bamboo posts) and on in to the house. The door was about 4 ½ feet tall, so we all stooped to enter. Inside the room was windowless and only about 8 feet square. Omar seated us at a tiny table and took a bench in the corner for himself. There was a TV in the corner playing a fairy cartoon in Portuguese and a single light bulb hung from the ceiling. The electrical wires were plastered into the mud walls. It was an interesting little room, besides the TV blaring, there was another table with a large radio/tape/CD player sitting on it. They had posted a Christian newsletter on wall and I read that it was about missionaries in India and it was all in English. It struck me as a little odd (not that the rest of it didn’t, this was just especially different) because Omar and his wife speak no English and the newsletter was over 2 years old. Omar remarked to Janice that he thought the white guy in the pictures looked like Steve, one of the fellow missionaries here. The man in the pictures really didn’t look anything like him, but it was decoration.

We waited for 15-20 minutes and finally Omar’s wife came in to great us. Considering she had probably been cooking for the last 3 hours just to prepare for our arrival, she wasn’t late at all. We said hello and then she left again and Omar went to get the food. Janice warned us when he left that it is a custom for the host to leave his guests alone to eat – they never eat together. So, when Omar returned with our bowls of food, he did not join us at the table, instead her went to sit in the corner to watch us eat. The food was really delicious. The fish was similar to a Sardine, very salty, but good. It is customary to eat the whole fish, bones, head, eyeballs and all, but we didn’t. We ate the meat out and left the rest… the beady little eye stared at me through the whole meal. We had rice instead of insema which showed we were very honored guests indeed. Insema is maze flour cooked with water to form a very white, tasteless ball of gelatinous goop. The Mozambiquans eat it at least 2 times a day, so rice was a real treat. The rice was seasoned well, although I couldn’t figure out what the combination of flavors were.

Omar expressed his gratitude to us for coming to his home. He said it was such a blessing to him that Christians would visit his city so that more people could know God.

Next time you hesitate to invite someone over because your house isn't perfect, think of Omar and his kindness. You don't need to have a big house or even a kitchen to entertain! You just need to be willing -- even when all you have is a mud hut and 3 chairs.

A Chapter in Time

An interesting, bumpy day…

Janice, Jeff, Emma, and I went out to a village about 30 kilometers out of Lichinga today. We brought along Omar, a man who grew up in the village and is now a believer. He shared with Janice that the village people are hungry for the Truth and they have been traveling out there for the past few months.

It truly feels like the end of the earth when a paved road falls off onto a bumpy dirt road and later becomes a muddy trail. Janice’s little pick-up took the challenge and got us all there in one jostled piece. We arrived in the village and went to sit on little boards under the grass roof of the chief’s house. We were greeted by some of the men in the village and the chief came along after while. We talked to him and learned that the other men in the village were building a house and would be delayed. This is really not a surprise since no one care too much about time in this place. The meeting began and I slipped out to watch the restless Emma. Many of the people there spoke some Portuguese as well as Chi-Yoa, so the meeting began with a reading of Luke chapter 2 in Portuguese and then Omar and Janice translated it verse by verse into Chi-Yoa. Janice later described this way of teaching as a tedious way to evangelize, but still there were 30 people who came to listen to God’s word. They accepted the truth willingly, telling anyone who disagreed with what was taught that God’s word is for each person individually. They were very thankful for the teaching and asked for more. “Can you come tomorrow?” They asked. “Can you send someone to live in the village with us and teach us more Truth?” They asked Janice again. It was such a cool experience to witness eagerness for Bible teaching.

While Jeff sat on his little board “listening” to the meeting in Portugese and Chi-Yoa, Emma and I roamed the village. She loved the goats and followed them through people’s yards and into their huts. We got our fair share of stares and I took a lots of pictures, trying to catch just one person in a natural pose. The highlight was when I took a picture of a group of village children and then showed them the back of the camera. Disney Land doesn’t get such a good reaction!

One thing I learned on our last visit to Africa is that a vehicle is never full. Traveling out to the villages inspired many people to ask for a ride. The back of the pick-up with full (by my estimation) on the way there and the way back. We even brought a wife back to her husband, as well as all her things and children. Janice has a watchman whose wife left him awhile back. She went back home to her family in the village after an argument. Family involvement in marriages is the culture here, so the uncle who arranged their marriage had to come along to negotiate the wife’s return. It was quite the experience, but they are back together now and hopefully they will stay that way.

We are all doing well and keeping busy. One thing you can pray for is the tile to arrive so we can do what we came to do! The tile Janice ordered 2 months ago did arrive in Lichinga last week, but the man who owned the shop was not in when it came, so it was sold to someone else. Now we are waiting for another shipment from Maputo (1,500 miles away). Where is Home Depot when you need it?