September 4, 2007

Dear Family and Friends,

It was wonderful to be back in the United States for four months, and it is wonderful to be back in Malawi. I traveled to the United States in April, exhausted, fighting burnout, mourning, and heartbroken. After four months of no on-call nights and all of your tender loving care, I came back rejuvenated. The amount of love you all gave me—through sharing joys, sorrows, questions, activities, and silly stuff (including walking with cousins and dog in Seattle’s Fury 5K, and my first pedicure)—heals my soul and keeps me going. That many of you traveled hours so that we could have a few precious hours together humbles me. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

Of course, the time was too full with too many places and congregations to visit, and I also had to study for my American Family Practice Boards (I took the exam six days before returning, and I am awaiting the results). Unfortunately, I did not make it to the southeast nor to Colorado, so I will start with those areas next time, which may be as early as late 2008.

For those of you who are interested in hearing and visiting with my Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) mission co-worker colleagues, you will have a chance through Mission Challenge ’07. To raise awareness of all our missionaries and increase church participation in sending and receiving the missionaries, 47 mission co-workers will speaking in about 700 churches in 143 presbyteries during October 2007. In addition, all churches in the denomination will receive a DVD focused on the World Mission work. Check with your local (PC)USA church and presbytery for local details, or go to the Mission Challenge '07 Web site.

My niece, Flory Olson, traveled back with me to Malawi and spent three weeks here before returning to Wisconsin to continue her studies in civil engineering. Fiskani Chirwa had her in the villages participating in shallow-well trainings and installation, and Henry Soko explained the diesel and solar deep-bore wells, rain collection tanks, and many things I only vaguely understand. We also went on Safari in Zambia and to Lake Malawi. I am asked every day when she will come again.

The day Flory left, Bill and Beth Rule returned with representatives from different churches for the dedication of the close-to-finished Preventive and Integrated Health Building. Highlights of the ceremony included the Ngoni dancers and the presence and speech of the general secretary of the Synod of Livingstonia, the Rev. Nkhoma. He quoted a bishop from India who in 1910 asked the English missions to move from sending missionaries to friends. Rev. Nkhoma told how Embangweni has been sending friends and not missionaries for many years, starting back with Donald Fraser more than 100 years ago. The Ngoni dancers, dressed in a mixture of leopard skins and modern clothing, were joined by participants from the crowd, including Chief Mzukuzuku Jere, whose land encompasses the station where the hospital is. His predecessor was a famed dancer. The station is into its second 100-year lease.

There is very sad news. Elting Phiri, our tailor, a graduate of the School for the Hearing Impaired, died while I was away. Many will remember her as full of life, and dancing away at weddings and fundraisers, not letting her deafness get in the way. Mr. G.G. Jere died a week later. There are not enough good words to describe Mr. Jere. He led Embangweni Loudon full primary school as headmaster as it developed to number one in the northern region, excluding private schools. He was a proud African and Ngoni, teaching the children the dances and best of their traditions. He was a devoted elder and lover of his church. He was devoted to his wife and children, and to God. We are all shocked and grasping. He had come back from studying for two years in Scotland, had lost his immunity to malaria, and died of complications of severe overwhelming malaria.

The last time I saw him was when he visited with his wife at my house the week before I returned to the United States. We chatted, told animated tales, laughed, and expressed how blessed we were because of our friendship. At that time, he looked a little tired, but I had no idea that I would not see him again until heaven.

Thanks for your continued friendship and prayers.

Love,

The 2007 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 337