Sunday, February 1

This was my last Sunday to worship with Ruth on this trip. And it was communion Sunday. Once again, I loved the music the most. I recorded the several choirs and congregational singing on my little SANSA recorder, but wouldn't you know that now I can't get it from that device on to my computer. I really want to use it as partial soundtrack on the video I shall make of the trip. The computer is not recognizing it as another drive or USB devise. Hmmmm. Ruth's sister Doris and her children, Prisca and Joel, were there again. Once again, Prisca chose to wear the Congolese dress I had made with Ruth so many years ago. It looks good on her, though she is a bit smaller than I even was then, and I'm so proud that she is so proud of it. They came back to the house for lunch so I had a chance to give Joel the calculator watch Sam had found for me for this trip – in case I needed a calculator for money exchange or whatever. He seemed truly pleased to receive it.

Ruth said that after lunch we would need to go back out to Mangamba, Raphael's home village. It's something that they do every Sunday afternoon, to check on their house there and whatever matters need attended to by this villager who made it big in the outside world but who still wants to stay connected to this small, humble piece of his life story. Another of our purposes was to take a box of meds and such items (left over from the Linfield students' visit) to the health clinic there. And Raphael said he hoped to be able to visit with an elder about the possibility of there being property available in the village for the WEH vocational center. Because Joe's health had not fully returned, Barb and Ruth stayed behind for the rest of the day.

We succeeded on all fronts. Most important was the visit with the village elder. We spent a good two hours with him. He came to Ruth and Raphael's house, and then we all piled back in the car to go look at some possibilities. We saw a couple of possible sites. And in the process Ruth and Raphael got their fill of village stories and gossip. Ruth translated some of it for me later. Sometimes they spoke in Abo, Raphael's native language, and sometimes in French. It was a delight to hear even if I didn't understand most of what was said.

Once again, we didn't get home until after 9 p.m.