Sumve

The Cycle Continues

First off, I apologize for the disappearance. I could blame the power rationing, but I will just be honest and say that I haven't been able to narrow down exactly what I want to say. The past week has been filled with everything from seeing monstrous crocodiles at the Serengeti to taking communal showers in a village. When electricity and brain power permit I will blog on that, but for now a short video of the missionary kids here in Mwanza.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEZBjauN1Xo


Once upon a time I was a drooling in awe of Chiang Mai summer interns. Jessica, Ann, Haley, Heather, Jennifer, Doug, Jody, Jeff, ect. They were the coolest thing since sliced bread (how did that ever become a saying?) They taught my brother to moon walk and hosted exciting sleep overs. Then they would leave to go back to life and we'd wait for the next summer's stock. Sometimes we'd run into old interns in the States and they would do the whole "I knew you when you were this tall" spiel. As a child I vowed never to spiel upon poor MKs when I grew up, but now I am embracing my fate (and place) in this missionary cycle. I will definitely be ooo-ing and ahh-ing over the kids on the Mwanza team as they grow up.


Last Sunday morning I showed the Mwanza team kids the Mother's Day video the Thailand MK team made a couple years ago. I told the kiddos that we were making a thank you video for their parents- but we never got past saying parent names because there was a tent pileup and xylophone duet going on in the background. Filming anything in a room full of ten children is a difficult task. This short clip is the outcome of the Thank You attempt. It sure does capture the moment.

   

This whole growing up thing is really tripping me out. I once was that small...and now I've turned into the summer intern? It is seriously blowing my mind! 


Tiny note to Thailand MKs: 
Butter and Yam- the kids here can't believe that those are your real names. I have had question upon question asking why you were named that. Even at the dinner table they will randomly talk about how funny you two are.
Ben- They think you're funny, "a bucket of love."

Summer Doodles

Imagination Makes a Man [mixed media; watercolor, pencil, cutout]

Recognize any story book characters?

 

Traditional Wear [watercolor]

Compliments to a tourist guide on Africa

Psychedelic Goat & 1/2 Yellow Head [watercolor]

Inspired by the tractor goats and Bronwyn Blume

(not suppose to look like her though)

Language Overload [pen&ink, watercolor]

Phrases from a language I wish I knew

iPhone Faces [pencil] Another 1/2head [pen&ink]

Babyface [pen&ink] Homey [pen&ink]

New Worldview [photoshop,watercolor]

My eyes trying to see from another's perspective? Wayy cliche :) 

Josafat's wife's new born baby: She delivered the baby by 10 AM and wanted to leave the hospital right away. She was ready to hop on the back of a bicycle after just having given birth...you go girl.

Anna, Asia and the leaky tire: Note to self; learn how to change a tire. On the way to a cluster church gathering the tire went out on us and on the way back another one deflated (which left us with no spares.) After repairing both tires, the spares gave out...so we drove 10 minutes and pumped. 10 minutes and pumped. 10 minutes and pumped. 

David Livingston's Guide: In front of Africa's hero, David Livingston's home. 

A Balancing Act: Village ladies take a trip to the water spot. They were so very friendly and I didn't understand a word they said. Great fun.

A Boy in a Burned Field: Upon our lake stop we climbed to the top of a water truck to see the view. In one direction was a gorgeous lake and in the other direction stood this depressed looking boy. A blog on poverty probably coming soon.

During the Tabora travels I was surrounded by four missionary dudes. Aside from potty humor and punny jokes, I took away something that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. This certain circumstance provoked some thought about the male population in ministry, and so, I now present you with my five requirements for the male missionary! While this list is not complete, it is a brief collection of important traits to have on the mission field.

The Missional Man makes yummy breakfasts

Brett makes killer pancakes. Uncle David is famous for delicious coffee. My dad and Jason have signature French-toasts, and every missionary dude some how has a break fast specialty. For some reason, the duty of breakfasts falls on the shoulders of men. Therefore, the ability to cook breakfast in bulk (for that mission trip team, intern meeting, or visitors) seems vital to being successful on the mission field.

The Missional Man can listen to Tom Waits

Tom Waits has the ugliest, raspiest, dirtiest voice you’ve ever heard, and yet his song remains on my Top 25 Most Played list. He is a brilliant musician in disguise, because you can’t be so turned off by his voice that you miss his instrumental genius. Like most ugly moments on the missionfield, joy can be found if the listener is tuned into finding the beauty in the unlikely. I guess it’s a combination of being easy going, not quick to judge, and open minded with a good sense of humor.  Clueless driving on streets in a middle-of-no-where-towns could get ugly unless you can laugh at your GPS that reads “Driving on NOT RECOMMENDED.” I think it’s those types of giggles that get missionaries through tough spots.  Finding the entertainment in doubtful situations is important in staying fresh on the mission field.

The Missional Man has buns of steel

Patience and endurance are mandatory for long sittings on wobbly, wooden benches because missionary men must value relationship more than their own comfort.  They must value people over schedules. Whether these guys are stopping for roadside coffee conversations with old men or randomly befriending the police, I am constantly reminded that every African moment is centered in relationship.  I am encouraged to live my life at an African paced so that I don’t miss out on seeing people for who they are, not what their profession is in relation to me. 

The Missional Man can laugh at a sphincter

“What are we eating? Is that a sphincter?” Oh the stories you hear around a dinner table full of missionaries! Did you know that Sonny Guild has accidently shot a cow on a Safari trip? He has also sipped cow-urine tea during a drought. Jason has run over a donkey. Eric has hit chickens and goats. Fried tarantulas and lizards/jingjoks that fall on you while you’re sleeping make for the best table talk. The guys on the mission field are filled with stories. Also (sidenote) do American churches not send out missionaries who can’t make puns?

The Missional Man sees adventure in toilet rolls

I was standing by the sink when Jason caught himself throwing away a perfectly functional paper towel roll. He held it up and said, “This could be a toy.” He walked away spotting distant lands through the new household spyglass. The Missional Man is creative and family oriented. My best friend’s dad in Brazil, Kevin Blume, keeps the most entertaining blog on hysterical kid conversations and Blume activities. I don’t think that moments slip by undocumented in the Blume household because that man is set on family. Toilet rolls turn into toys and lost teeth turn into major achievements. Family is where its at.

Header Change

Beans, Rice, and A Slice of Heaven

Father: Kids, lets have beans and rice this Friday! It's healthy and yummy, what do you think?
Children: Yay! Sounds good daddy.


[Next Friday]
Father: Kids, do you want to have beans and rice again? It's Friday!
Children: Yay! We love beans and rice on Friday!


[5 Fridays from then]
Father: Its beans and rice day!
Children: Oh it must be Friday!


[10 Fridays from then]
Father: What would you like to eat this Friday night? 
Children: We always have beans and rice on Friday! 


[10 Years from that Friday]
Children: It's Friday, we will be eating beans and rice.
Grandchildren: Why? 
Children: Thats how it is. We always eat beans and rice on Friday.


[Fast Forward]
Children: You will eat beans and rice this Friday or get a spanking.


[Fast Forward]
Grandchildren: Beans and rice on Friday is a rule in this household! 


[Fast Forward]
Great Grandchildren: If you don't eat beans and rice on Friday you will not be a part of this family.


[Fast Forward + Exaggeration]
Great Great Grandchildren: If you refuse to eat beans and rice on Friday we will kill you.


Ect. 


        Jason frequently has bursts of brilliant conversation, and he used this analogy to explain some sillinesses of tradition. This Sunday I was honored to attend a church that wasn't bogged down by the "beans and rice"church drama that has become a staple meal for many Christians. This morning Jason, Ezra, Judah, Garrette (a soon to be missionary to Taborah, Tanzania) and I went to a little church I will call A Slice of Heaven. This was a simple and beautiful church that met around the rocks and trees of a member's yard-ish area. This was a church where everyone stood up and gave a personal weekly update as a part of the service. This congregation had a hand shaking closing where every baby or babu participated in a family recognition. There were men dancing and children clapping. The cooking reports were just as important as the fundraising announcements. There wasn't an arguing about instruments, theology, communion styles, or leadership because this family was practical in actively living out God's love towards each other. In a sense, they didn't carry the baggage of christian drama.


    Tradition can be incredibly dangerous when we forget why we do what we do. What was a preference might become an absolute, and what was a historical hiccup might become a choking hazard for the future. I think that family-esque churches are becoming endangered partly because of mass divisive habits. I by no means am saying that I understand the motivation behind each Christian practice, nor do I think tradition is "trash" in anyway- I am just wondering what we would find if we retraced our steps. Beans and rice is a cuter way of putting this point because homosexuality and abortion make for a messier meal. With "controversial topics" our "thinkers" are suddenly switched off by our feelings and biases. Learning about the formation of non-Western churches has helped me question my auto-assumptions and views on tradition. All that said, I have no conclusion, just an adjusted lens and an excitement for new perspectives from here on out. 

Quote of the Week

Some quotes are only funny if you were there in the moment, and I don't know if this is one of those instances. This makes me smile every time. 

ไชโย! เอเชียทำอาหารไทย!

พะแนง, ไข่เจียว, and สลัดไก่

A Short Thought on Circles

           Tanzania is a land of circles. The roads in town have round-abouts (“keepilefties” in Swahili) instead of stoplights. Church communion is taken in a party-esque circular fashion. Clusters of brethren sit in circles as they eat Ugali. Church is held in a ring-like manner. No joke, the speaker has to be mindful of a 360-degree audience.  Everywhere I go I see circles, and I think its because this culture is a community centered phenomenon. Equality. Connection. Something about the face-to-faceness of this place really hits home for me. 

(photo by Kandinsky Wassily)