Monday 17 March 2014

Multiply Zambia/Kenya 2014 Day Nineteen - Sunday

The cockerels in the neigbourhood are in competition.  The one next door cranks up, and I rush to the window to get a recording so I can use it as a phone alarm.  He goes dumb on me.

By 8.00am I've had some breakfast, including a couple of Weetabix the full milk that reminds me of days when food tasted proper.  I've enjoyed my last dose of morning fresh air from the balcony.   I pop downstairs to pay the landlady, and promise I'll be back next year.  The four of us who went to Bangalore shared a similar self-catering apartment, and Sundowner here would be a great choice for a visiting team for 2015. 

George arrives at 9.00am prompt and his younger boy, who's incredibly curious and pokes at everything, tries to bool my smaller case downstairs.  George relates that his car got stuck last night (I'll later find out from Johnstone that Gregory, too, did get stuck on Friday night) and had to be pushed.  But he hadn't got any cash to tip the guys with,  However, they just smiled and waved him goodbye.  Later, he gives this as a testimony in church.

Wakey rings from Brighton at 9.15am and I ask him what he's doing up at such an unearthly time!  Pastor Benard is giving bible teaching about the pharisee and the publican.  The church holds an early service from 8.00am to 10.00am, then has a half hour's worship before continuing seamlessly into the main meeting from 10.30am to some time after 1.00pm.  I'm due to slot in an hour's teaching.  It's turning out to be the sunniest and warmest day Nairobi's delivered.  The church lacks any of the pretentions I witnessed in Dar es Salaam last week - they're a real family.  In the prayer time, they give thanks for the 79 new white plastic chairs, after interceding for the county's president.  As I stand up to speak I'm dismayed to discover that my notes got wet during breakfast and all the scripture references I carefully ordered have disappeared from the piece of paper.

Without any fuss, we transition to the leaders' workshop I'm due to take.  Oscar sets up the projector and a couple of mics.  After about 20 minutes, they concede they would be better with translation into Swahili.  Thereafter the whole event carries obvious engagement and vigour.  The 30 folks who've gathered include some invitees from other churches.  They all enjoy my description of the one-man-band, with the boom-boom, ching-ching, ting-ting which needs no translation.

I explain to George that I'll need my cases to do a bit of repacking.  He replies that it's no problem - we'll do it at his home, as they've arranged tea there before heading off to JKIA.  They're a really warm-hearted family, and for grace George gives thanks for the privilege and blessing of having a visitor to give hospitality in their home. 

Soon we're on our way to JKIA, and the boys have fallen asleep in the car.  At one roundabout and Toyota saloon piles straight into the side of a mutatu tow vehicles in front of us.  I'm glad that George didn't give way to impatience.

After checking in, I sit in the departure area and doze for an hour-and-a-half.  I'm about the last to board the plane, which seems fully booked.  I have an eastern side window seat and the next seat is empty.  To my complete surprise and delight Farayi appears and sits there!  He'd been trying to get to UK from Lusaka since Thursday, and this was the one available slot.

We chat happily about the conference in Tanzania and his father's birthday.  I hear first-hand how he an Jimmie had to hitch-hike to Ndola after their bus from Lusaka broke down.   He's even managed to get his chief's chair accepted as hold luggage.  We take of half an hour late at 20 past midnight, and I doze off again while waiting for the final African meal.


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