Tanzania Water Well & Construction Team, Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Breaking up is hard to do!
What began as one team is now four as we subdivide again to get some additional tasks completed. Rob, Alan, and John head out with Robert to monitor the water well drilling at Maseyu and hope to complete it quickly then move on to another area. Mike and Luca go shopping in Morogoro for a variety of items. Earl and I head to the wood shop to cut strips to frame the blackboard material and cut the pieces for church benches. Mary Ann meets with Linda Spitaleri and then heads for other meetings of the day. She will end with Alan, Mike, Herb Hafermann, and Luca at Tuka for dedicating the church.

The dividing and rejoining is common for short term mission trips. Each of us must be flexible as circumstances change on an almost moment-by-moment basis. This is not due to lack of planning but on the abilities of the teams to identify activities which will harvest more good than those initially planned. For too many individuals this causes significant frustration and causes friction within the team. For the group who was brought together for this mission trip it has only provided satisfaction as we quickly reset our commitment to the new tasks at hand.

An additional problem with many short term mission trips is the leadership. Not the team leader’s but each of our own desires to be in control and have our ideas be the ones used to design the truss, or bench, or put the stake in the ground for where to drill. We are professionals who have run multiple projects, supervised many people, and made important decisions on our own. With this group we have all volunteered our suggestions, added comments as to why those should be chosen, then wisely backed off and enabled one person to lead the specific task allowing many happy hands to finish the project. What a blessing as each of us has had an opportunity to provide input or to lead, or more importantly to assist another team member.

We are now about half way through our mission trip are enjoying our dependence on each other’s capabilities and forgiveness from each as we laugh at our silly mistakes. We are absolutely operating under God’s grace and receiving his rewards as our infectious attitude spreads through the villages and endears the people to us. I personally believe this is more important than the tasks we complete. Setting aside personal difficulties or desires allows God the opportunity to show himself through us and to the villagers. It ensures his work is being accomplished and strengthens the people here to take on more work through faith in him.

It was late this evening as we gathered: dirty, tired, disappointed yet grateful, and recounted the many stories of the day. We had physically and emotionally touched and been touched by many of the local people. Our group was like those close friends who remain after the party guests leave so we can linger over deeper conversations and prolong the satisfying emotions which bind us together.

We shared about the people at the seminary who talked and shook hands with Earl, Jim and I and expressed satisfaction about our wood working capabilities but who dwelled on their thanks for our visiting their country and helping their friends in the villagers. We laughed at how Earl tried his best to teach English to Jim, Luca’s employee, by continuously instructing Jim on the wood working steps. While Jim did not understand each word, he did understand Earl’s intentions and the two worked well together. By the end of the day the blackboard materials had all been cut and five completely framed ready for painting. Our design for the benches provided nine long, sturdy benches instead of six and all the materials were cut and ready for assembly.

Maseyu produced a dry hole and the team and village was saddened by the event but reinvigorated by the backup plan to design and construct a water harvesting system from the church roof. This project would be completed later but the immediate discussion allowed everyone to regain hope.

Rob, John and Robert managed to get the drilling rig to Mazizi to attempt another well at that location. Upon inspection of the original well they found it to have mechanical problems and still had water in the well. They made arrangements for a mechanical service to come next week to determine and most probably make the needed repairs.

Alan was picked up at Maseyu by Herb, Luca, Mary Ann, and Mike and they headed back to Tuka for a dedication service for the building that is being erected. The current tiny thatched roof structure was bursting at the seams as more than 50 people squashed into the shelter and huddled around the outside perimeter. If nothing else, the quantity of people showed that the new building is appropriate for the people of Tuka.

As well, those in Mazizi were highly encouraged about being able to repair a working apparatus instead of throwing it away and starting over. This is incredibly important as the peoples are learning the value of long-term maintenance and ownership. For a village such as Mazizi who sits on top of a blanched hill, has no natural resources, and even with a water well has to carry it a long distance to the huts, hope is fragile and is directly associated with their faith in Christ. As projects fail, they can easily think Christ is failing them. Certainly a similarity in this culture and the immature Christians of the early church who needed the letters from the apostles to remain encouraged. Our short term mission teams here are living letters of this age.

We all miss our families back at home but are so well loved by the people here that we rest peacefully in the hands of Christ each night. Nothing can express enough our thanks to each of you who has either gone before us, will come after us, or who is supporting us through finances, service or prayer. We are overwhelmingly blessed to be here and acknowledge you as our extended team.

Bwana Safiwe!
Brett Tabler