Photo Roundup

Formatting in Blogger is a pain, so I'm just going to describe them first and then put the photos in.

1. Tent Revival - went with my friend Philip who manages the farming projects for MCDC and moonlights as a preacher at night. It was a big boost to me and the beginning of a better trip.

2. Jacaranda Trees in Pretoria - these trees are all over South Africa and especially in Pretoria. When I get back to Philly I'm going to see if it is possible to grow one there. Probably not.

3. Mandela Square - Statue of the big man himself. He is adored here by both black and white. I like how in this photo you can see some diversity. It wouldn't be possible withouth Mandela and friends.

4. Kids playing a game with rocks - One thing I've noticed here is that kids don't really know how to play games. These three girls are playing a game sort of like Jacks, but without any kind of score keeping or clear winner. Just throwing up the rock, grabbing as many as they can from the bunch on the ground, and then catching the rock before it falls. Rinse and repeat.

5. Patrick ironing clothes - This is Patrick in his living room/kitchen/dining room. His whole house is about the size of my living room in the states. My house has five people living in it and his has seven. They do have water, cold only, and electricity. The tin roof leaks. Patrick and I shared a bed during my visit and his side of the bed was wet. I told him I might have had an accident during the night, but it was just rain. Riding down with this intelligent, articulate man, I assumed that he probably lived in a nice but modest home. When we pulled up to his shack it hit home that even though he might be "just like me" his life is very different.

6. Patrick preaching in the nearby squatter village - This tin church was constructed by a preacher who died shortly after. So Patrick is using it to start a new church and this was the second week of service. No electric, no water, and an open door that allows the scent from the nearby pit toilet to waft right into where we sit. About 15 people showed up, mostly kids, and both Patrick and the other two leaders were very pleased.

7. Patrick, Gilbert, Message, and James - Patrick and the three guys who showed up to the church. Patrick wants this church to be a ministry to men, since he has noticed that mostly women attend church, and so he was very glad to see these three young men. They are Zimbabwean and live in the shack next to the church, but I think they could pass for Americans. With no water, no toilet, no electricity, and only pooridge for food, they're looking pretty good. I would be a mess.

8. Power Lines Over Centurion - Patrick's neighborhood is called Centurion and there are power lines everywhere. It seems that all the illegal and low budget development happens under power lines.

9. Zebra - I went to Pilanesburg game park with some missionaries yesterday. We got up close and personal with zebra, giraffe, rhino, monkeys, elephants, wildebeasts, hippos, impala, warthogs, and a lot of pretty birds.