Bwana Yesu Asifiwe! God is good, all the time; all the time, God is good!
We have two very different safaris to tell about for this week’s Tidings: one to Isimani and one to Ruaha National Park.
First, Isimani. We drove there for a day trip on July 15, accompanied by daughter Julie and granddaughter Grace, who were here for a visit, and our good friend Japhet Nzagule. Japhet was a seminary student when we met him several years ago, and he has been with us as navigator and translator many times. He is now an assistant to the bishop and father of three little girls. We intended just a short visit to show Julie and Grace the parish HT has partnered with for twenty years, but of course Isimani planned much more for us. We were greeted about a half mile from the church and then escorted with singing and branch-waving to the church grounds. We met the new pastor, Fadhili Mbilyini, who arrived in January, as well as other church leaders, after which we went into the church for a meeting. In attendance were the secretary and treasurer of the parish, along with the directors of youth, women and family, adult education, and the diaconate; the evangelists from all eight preaching points (including two who walked 15 kilometers—9 miles!—to get there); the chair of the partnership committee; a retired pastor; several elders; and many other interested parishioners. After a choir number and an opening prayer, the parish secretary read a report, which is being translated and provided to the HT council. Russ then said a few words about our transitions at HT and each of us agreed to continue to pray for each other. As usual, there was tea (and chapati, boiled eggs, and chicken soup) after the meeting. As this was not a formal HT visit, we did not tour the grounds but we did visit the grave of HT member Barbara Dehne behind the church before we left.
Second, Ruaha National Park, the largest national park in East Africa. We hired a driver to take the two of us and Julie and Grace to the Mwagusi Safari Camp, where HT travelers have stayed several times and where all BKB travelers stay when they come. We were there the traditional amount of time: three days, two nights. The typical schedule is to arrive at the camp in time for lunch, to check into our bandas (fancy tents) for an afternoon rest, to take a late afternoon (4:00-7:00) game drive, and then to be back at camp for 8:00 campfire and dinner outdoors in the dry riverbed. The second day is an early 6:30 start for a five hour game drive (with breakfast in the bush) and then the same afternoon and evening schedule.
The third morning is another early game drive and bush breakfast that includes the drive to the park gate to leave by noon for the drive back to Iringa. The game drives are planned for morning and late afternoon as that is when the animals are the most active. Like us, they prefer to avoid the mid-day sun and heat. We kept a list of the animals we saw during our park visit, too long to include here, but a sample: lion, elephant, hippo, zebra, giraffe, baboon, Cape buffalo, warthog, impala, jackal, mongoose, gazelle, dikdik, and the beautiful greater kudu. There were also amazing bird sightings. A favorite was the lilac-breasted roller, a gorgeous bird with up to eight brilliant jewel tones in its feathers. It likes to sit atop bushes and pretend to be a flower so insects will be attracted to it and it can lap up them up when they come for nectar.
We hope you have enjoyed our travelogues about our work and adventures in Tanzania. We will host an adult forum in October to follow up on Kem Taylor’s September 13 program about the HT group’s travels here in 2025. See you all next week!
Russ and Jo