My very special birthday

The kids helped me celebrate my birthday COZV-style: cake! I even got blue icing! There is no way not to feel loved by having over 50 children singing "happy birthday." The least enjoyable thing was when they got to the "how-old-are-you-now" part of the song. I told them it wasn't polite to ask a woman her age.

My housemate Melissa and our new Auntie Carrie treated me to a big night out on the town. We visited Galinhas, a new cafe, but it closed at 7. Since I felt kind of pathetic going home at 7 on a Friday night and on my birthday we visited the Zambezi Lodge for dessert. Never can have too much cake for your birthday, right? So I had Malva pudding which was really good.

Happy 31st to me!!

Auntie Becca (not to be confused with Mama Rebecca)

I’ve been blue for nearly a week now. Auntie Becca went home. She traveled back with me at the end of May and we became fast friends. She has to be one of the most genuine and amazing people I’ve ever met. Here’s just a few of the characteristics I observed about her: amateur snake killer, speedy dune climber, expert manure shoveler, tireless raker, professional goat handler, ketchup lover, copious carb eater, photography enthusiast, superb traveling buddy, practical jokester, listening ear, willing encourager and has no fear of getting her hands (or face) dirty. She laughs freely, her glass is ALWAYS half full and even though I’m not the most touchy-feely person she gives really good hugs. She might not be the most adventuresome eater, but she never complained about all the weird foods like oatmeal, black beans, and couscous we fed her. (Can you believe she had never eaten oatmeal before she got here?!) Though she may not be as big as Elton, she can still hold her own in any task. The only time I ever heard a cross word out of her was during a heated debate regarding the legitimacy of cow-tipping (topic open for comment).
She was only here for a few months, nevertheless I feel her absence acutely. Every time I go out to the barn, I expect to find her hunched over some leprous goat scrubbing her heart out. Or into the office photocopying till she turns blue in the face. Or in the workshop sorting out endless buckets of nuts and bolts.
May God richly bless your senior year and swiftly return you to us. T-minus 9 months, 3 weeks and counting….

Baby Josiah

Our newest addition to the COZV family is baby Josiah. He joined us at the end of May when he was 8 days old. He was a preemie 2.3kgs when he came to us and now he’s about 5kgs. He’s quite the cutie and has stolen our hearts.

Where’s Waldo?

Almost two months ago, one of my housemates decided to bring home a chameleon. She had him in a plastic margarine container which he could very easily escape from. He went missing for about two weeks so we thought he had decided to go on his merry way. I was quite surprised to find him living on the back of one of our kitchen chairs. He stayed there for quite awhile before again disappearing. He was next found living in our basil plant on the kitchen table. I think he wanted to feel like he was going on safari. It’s become like a game of “Where’s Waldo?” He was last seen living under the Colgate box on the bathroom sink about two weeks ago. I’m slightly concerned that since he hasn’t been seen he’s become a Scooby-snack for Klepto.

Bonita aka Klepto

I promised pics of Bonita weeks ago. Here she is! Her name has been a bit of a challenge. (Marsha, this one is for you!) A name is a very important thing. When she came to live at the SPCA in Windhoek they didn’t know her name, so they named her Bonita. But it was never really her name. She doesn’t answer to it. When you say, “Bonita” she looks around like you are talking to someone else. Not to mention I feel like Bonita has too much Spanish flair to be an African dog’s name. So we tried to give her a Lozi name: Naleli which means star, but it also didn’t stick.
While we were sorting this whole name thing out, Klepto just sort of stuck. Given her proclivity to steal things it seems fitting (klep·to·ma·ni·ac [klèpt máynee àk]: somebody with an obsessive urge to steal). And she seems to like it. So really there is no argument. Now she’s more X-Men than Hispanic.
Since coming to live with us, when she’s not busy stealing our socks, she is digging to Hawaii in the front yard. I seriously expect her to pop out of her hole wearing a lei and grass skirt one of these days. While she enjoys stealing and digging, her true joy really seems to come from barking at men, especially Namibian men on bicycles or playing soccer. Seeing that’s something we have a lot of around here, we’re trying to break her of that habit. She and Mordecai, the boerboel puppy that guards the school, have become fast friends and joined forces to rid our compound of any suspicious intruders. On the other hand Cassie, the full-grown boerboel that lives on the other end of the compound, has not been so friendly and tried to eat Klepto.
Right now she’s sitting by my feet looking at me with those sad-I’m-dying-of-hunger-from-all-that-digging-so-feed-me eyes. So I’m going to give her a treat before she faints. I’m sure this isn’t the end of Klepto’s adventures in Africa. Stay tuned…

“We have cows.” ~ Twister

So I know it’s been a month since I left the USA to come back to Namibia. Let me recap what this month has been like so many you’ll have a better idea why I haven’t written.

On May23rd, I traveled from NYC with Becca, a short-term volunteer from PA. She was a great traveling companion and our travels went very smoothly. We arrived back at COZV on Sunday, May 25th and were warmly greeted by all the children and staff. It was good to be “home.”

Unfortunately, as life has a way of turning on a dime here, one of our older girls needed some medical attention that could only be gotten in Windhoek, 14 hrs away. So after one night of sleeping in my bed and only unpacking as many clothes as I’d need to take, I was off to Windhoek with Rebecca and two of the children. After almost a week there, I’m happy to report the girl seems too be doing much better, so we started home.

At dusk on Saturday, we were about 3 hrs from reaching Katima. We had just stopped to refuel and switch drivers. I had been driving since about 8am so now Rebecca was taking over. The little six year old girl we had with us had just been reprimanded for not having her seatbelt on not 10 minutes before life decided to take another turn on us. We came over a rise in the road to find a herd of cattle crossing. Not really an unusual sight, but one brazen black and while horned heifer decided to make a dash for the other side right in front of us. Try as she might, Rebecca wasn’t able to avoid hitting the massive beast. After quite an impact on the hood, the cow went sailing through the air like a scene out of the movie Twister. She landed on her side off the road in the grass. We quickly realized the car was badly damaged and we were stranded. By the grace of God, we had a very small amount of cellphone coverage and were able to call back to COZV for help. When I got out of the car to assess the damage, I saw that crazy cow standing back up chewing her cud looking only moderately ruffled from her flight. We moved the car off the road into a lay-by and waited for Gary to come tow us home with the mini-bus (It’s not like you can just call AAA here). After a few cable breaks and one rest stop, we made it home at 6am. I kept dozing off in the car, but one time I woke up just in time to see us passing by a HUGE, and I mean HUGE, bull elephant on the side of the road. We were very blessed the accident wasn’t worse and that God gave us safety as we towed the vehicle home.

As luck would have it, I seem to be the only one that suffered any lasting result from the impact. My left shoulder and back have been quite sore and bruised probably from the seatbelt. Since there are no chiropractors in Katima, the doctor prescribed massage treatment 3 times a week until I’m feeling better. The insurance agreed, so it is all being covered under the accident. Now some people would rejoice to get a massage for free 3 times a week. But for me, the non-touchy-feely person, it has been a bit torturous. No offense to my massage therapist. She is a lovely, professional young woman, but I’d rather poke myself in the eye than get a massage. But since eye-poking doesn’t fix my back, I will continue to endure the torture for the sake of getting better faster.

In light of that story, the rest of the month has been relatively uneventful. After returning from Windhoek, we had a team from OH join us. They were quite a blessing to us and the kids and we were sad to see them leave us.

Three weeks after our first whirlwind trip to Windhoek, Becca and I accompanied Rebecca, her two sons and two children from COZV back to Windhoek to see them off on a plane to the US. God blessed us with smooth travels and the US Embassy granted the two COZV kids VISA documents. This is the boys first time in the US, so please pray for them as they speak in a few churches and deal with culture shock. One boy will be in AR learning blacksmithing and Ferrier skills. The other will be spending most of his time in a dude ranch in TX learning to be a cowboy.

So off they flew off leaving Becca and I to travel back to Katima alone. Well… not completely alone. While in Windhoek, I adopted Bonita (name subject to change), a very loveable 1 ½ year old black and white border collie mix. She had quickly charmed her way into the hearts of all the aunties living in the East House and many of the children. Unfortunately she seems not to like men, especially African men riding bicycles or playing soccer. Seeing as those are two things we have a lot of around here, please pray that she becomes more accustomed. She had been living at the SPCA since February, so she is quite attention-starved. I’ve promised her that she’ll never be lonely living here but I’m not sure she believes me yet. She’s also quite camera shy so when I finally get a good picture of her, I’ll share.

Other tidbits of news: Sometime this month I’ve killed my first snake all by myself (don’t be too proud of me, it was a baby black mamba the size of a really large worm), COZV got a new 8-day old baby named Josiah, got tackled by a bunch of kids at Mafuta who apparently missed me while I was gone, hosted a number of British medical volunteers, and a zillion other misc tasks too mundane to bother discussing.

So as you can see, I’ve been quite occupied since returning and my head is still spinning a bit from all the excitement. I’m finally all unpacked and ready to get back to life as usual. Hehe, as I write that I’m waiting for the next bomb to drop… but you know what I mean. Part of the charm of living in Africa is that you never know what to expect.

Many Thanks

It is long overdue for me to say, “THANK YOU” to everyone for the many blessings you bestowed on me while I was home. In the six short weeks I was home, I can’t believe how may people I was able to see… some old friendships renewed, some new friendships made. Many people caught the vision for the work I am doing and have blessed the children here and I tremendously. So a simple thanks seems so insignificant, but please know it is from my heart!

Ways to continue praying:

~ For my continued fundraising both for my yearly ministry funds as well as extra money to purchase a vehicle (more details to come…)
~ For the few people I have met over my travels that are considering volunteering at COZV
~ For continued safety and good health
~ For the children of Namibia, the children of COZV & Mafuta, and the approx.12,000 orphans in the Caprivi region where I live
~ For a cure for HIV/AIDS
~ Praise for God’s continued blessing and provision