My final weekend in Tanzania

So, this weekend, I went to the Lutheran church with Paul’s cousin, Rachel. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, and afterwards, we had chakula cha mchana [lunch], where I tried my hand at making ugali. Check it out below!

What really made my weekend though was visiting Joseph. He lived extremely far, but it was absolutely beautiful. In the evening, the stars lit up the sky and just ultimate beauty. Just being there, I felt this love and appreciation for the land, seeing maize as far as my eye could see.

I discovered that Joseph’s family was enormous, having four brothers, three of whom lived nearby, and then five sisters. In the morning, we visited his older brothers, and it was truly wonderful to meet them, as his family was Maasai, the tribe of Arusha, the people who had been there for years. I was a bit jealous, I must admit, and then today, as we left his home, he took me to see the Cannossian Sisters. The place was phenomenal, as they had a kindergarten, a dispensary, and then of course, their beautiful chapel. I discovered that prior to his arrival at the school, he had been working for the Cannossian Sisters and they were now supporting his education to become a welding fundi [worker]. It really made me appreciate the work of these religious institutions, helping the community and giving their lives to a cause.

So, I end this blog with a picture of me with Joseph and one of his many nieces and nephews.



Oh, and just in case you were wondering, we did end up finishing our second mobile maize sheller, and it seemed to work splendidly. The students basically made them all themselves, so I’m sure once they start making money, they’ll be on their way to beginning a revolution in maize harvesting. We’ll see though. I’m pretty excited though.

I’m really going to miss Tanzania though. My relationships with the students have been incredible. I told them they couldn’t call me mwalimu because I’m not really their teacher, and thus, they gave me the name “Mama Mkubwa”, which literally means “Big Mother” or aunt who is the eldest and most important in the family. I hope that I will be able to come back some day, to see the distances they’ve come. I’m definitely going to miss them, for Africa has forever changed me.