Hmmm… where to start??

After finally returning from Zanzibar last Friday, we enjoyed a jolly conversation with some nuns at the airport while waiting for our ride (see blog entry- Non Smoking Please).  

This morning Manka arose from bed, took a couple hopeful sips of hot tea and then quickly went back to bed. Our wonderful driver convinced her to let him take her to the hospital. I will leave space for Manka to blog about this worthy experience but must comment on one thing. You would never believe who took care of her?? Yes! Its true!! We were greeted and shown much favor by the very two nuns we had met at the airport!! I am not kidding!

Not forgetting this is Africa, much time passes between arriving at the hospital and the following paragraph. Oh!Manka is feeling much better and should continue to get stronger with every hour!! 

One of Mama Lucy’s girls turned twenty today. For a surprise, we picked up some tubs of vanilla ice cream and brought her a present. She was so excited! We learned later that she had told her friend, “I am turning twenty tomorrow. I should not even expect to recieve a card.”  When asked what she hopes for her 20th year, she said, “I would like to return to school.”

On a side note… I got the priviledge of serving the ice cream. As I started dishing it out, the children reacted very differently than expected.  One of the boys touched it with his finger and then jumped back. Others were watching the ice cream paint their plates as it melted. And then!! Then there was a scream!! Not the, ”I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream,” type of scream (actually, the reaction I had expected)!! When one of the little ones touched the ice cream, he started to cry… “Its too hot! It burned me!! It burned me!!!”

Come to find out, this was the first time any of them had ever seen, touched, or tasted ice cream! Let me remind you, for perspective sake, the birthday girl turned twenty today…… 

amanda This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 12th, 2006 at 8:30 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.