Bits and Pieces

    I have been trying to come up with a wonderful post about how our lives are going. And it hasn't been working. I keep coming up with paragraphs and bits and pieces. So I guess bits and pieces it will be!

  How is Covid19 affecting us?  Less and less. Masks are still mandatory but fewer ad fewer people wear them. When entering a store or building they are usually checking temperatures and have a hand washing station and/or sanitizer at the door. But most people on the street walk around like normal. Very occasionally we here "Coronavirus!" shouted at us when in town but not as often as before. A large portion of the people in Ghana till have very vague ideas about the virus. At first they thought if you get it you die. Now a lot of them think it is only a sickness for the rich people. It really hasn't swept through towns and villages like they thought it might. Schools still don't have an opening date. They closed in March and rumor has it they will be closed till January. The borders are possibly opening September 1. What that might look like we don't know. We do know they are trying to figure out a way to test everyone upon arrival. And if it will open to all countries is another big question. 

  One way Covid19 is still affecting us is church. The list of requirements for churches is shorter than it had been but still quite long. Since the beginning we have been meeting privately but in the past month have done two services for Tom and Galyn's neighbor children and one of the ladies that had attended regularly, and her children, started coming. We still aren't exactly sure how to proceed from here. Having a large number of children attending church complicates matters. How do we social distance and keep masks on or available for everyone? When over half the congregation, actually over three quarters the congregation, is children? We are hoping for another easing of restrictions the beginning of September and maybe that will answer those questions.

   School has started this week. Austin is officially doing Kindergarten. Kelsey is in 4th grade. And Brent is learning things! Like drawing circles and lines. So far it has been mind numbing for me although I do enjoy teaching! Hopefully Kelsey gets back into the routine, Austin learns to sit and concentrate, and Brent loses interest a little bit and learns to play on his own. And then maybe I can still get my house work done! I do have my wash ladies hanging out all the wash and mopping my floors once a week. And other occasional odd jobs like sweeping the porch. Being busy is good since I am one of those people that the more I have to do, the more I get done!

  About a month ago, some girls that Kelsey occasionally plays with came to our gate and wanted to play. They brought 2 of their cousins along (boys) and they wanted to play football (soccer). Next time a few more boys came and soon a few more came and this week there were 50 children in our yard. They come twice a week right now and last week Mama Justina came and we did told a Bible story and sang with them a bit. We still need to work some rules out if this is going to be successful. The boys from ages 10 to 14 play football and the rest play in the sand box, on the swings, and a version of Kick-the-Tin-Can. On Monday we had a high jump contest. It is a balancing act between showing love and demanding respect of some sort. I know they insult me on occasion in their language, but if I don't know what they are calling me, it doesn't bother me so much. I can tell it's an insult by the laughs and expressions of the other children. I know I could demand respect like every other adult in their lives does. With a cane. But I haven't yet done it. But if things keep going the way they are, I might have to, to keep order.

  Earl and Amanda Shirk were here for several months at Living Hope. Since their house was next to the shop, our children played together and we saw each other frequently. They also had church with us. After many tries and much uncertainty they got a flight home and made it safely to the US in time for their children to start school as they had originally planned. We were glad everything worked out for them, but it did leave a large hole! Our congregation lost one third of it's families. Brent lost his favorite playmate. And Kenny and I miss the good chats we had with them. There are three white families in this immediate area now and we treasure those friendships even more.

   When missionaries leave, they leave native friends behind. And quite naturally, those friends turn to the missionaries who are left. I feel blessed to gain native friends this way. I wish they were all closer to my house but I still enjoy the interaction. I get to be "auntie" to a baby. I get to have a friendly Muslim woman sewing her daughter's bridal gowns at my kitchen table. I get yummy food! I get to sit in a village with a circle of ladies that is so happy to see a white face again because I remind them of their friend who left. I can feel the open doors that others created and I was blessed to walk into. How do I keep those doors open? How do I keep that light they saw in someone else alive? How do I give them the attention they are used to and still care for the needs of my family?