Time flies, even in Malawi.

Wow, we can hardly seem to keep up.  Got an e-mail from Mom and Marcel and they reminded us we had not posted anything since the 12th and a lot has happened since.

We have had 3 more babies born, and our first funeral.  We have hosted a zone Conference in our home for 18 missionaries.  We have held many training meetings, piano classes, and taught missionary and church lessons.  We have taken some to the hospital, passport office, bank, shopping and numerous other places.   We have replaced two of the tires on our truck (423 US dollars each, YIKES!!!--there are still pirates in the world, even in this land locked country. Actually it's the government taxes that make anything to do with vehicles astoundingly expensive.) started searching for a flat for the two new sister missionaries who will be posted to Lilongwe--Yay!!!.. (we think..)  President Padovich once commented that looking after sister missionaries can be like counseling with a bag full of cats.  Think about it.

In the last few days we have sent another Elder home early, (medical concerns)  outfitted a branch missionary to replace the one going home, and refereed for a couple of Elders who chose to fight rather than compromise.  Oh well they are still very young at times.

Let me tell you about our funeral. .......be back.....
Sorry We had to run.  We had a man who was baptized about 3 weeks ago.  Age 41, divorced.  A few days ago he was walking along the road when he was struck by a bicycle loaded with some scrap metal.  The blow knocked him over backwards and he struck his head on the pavement causing a sever head injury.   He was rushed to hospital and kept alive for several days on life support but finally succumbed and passed away last Friday.  The tradition here is for friends and family to gather at the home of the deceased and to remain there, holding a wake until the service and burial.  It is the responsibility of the family to feed all that come for the duration and also to provide transport money for those family and friends who live away to be able to come.  This is a terrible burden on the family of the deceased and I am not sure what can be done to change this tradition.

Anyway our brother who was killed was originally from a village about 4 hours away. ..........will finish later...

Yipee!!! I finally figured out how to upload a video.  This is the Kauma Branch Relief Society Anniversary Party. Just thought you might like to meet some of our cute sisters here. The party was scheduled for the 17th but the RS president got swept up in the funeral group that accompanied the casket to Blantyre for the burial and she didn't get back in time so, in her absence, we rescheduled for Wednesday. This scene is in the kitchen at the "church" which is really a rented house. The sisters were all eagerly participating in the food preparation. It was their first event with our brand new fridge and stove. I am sure most of them had never cooked on an electric stove before. They did just fine. Don't let me forget to tell you about the chicken though.
Everyone is sure loving the fridge. They all have a cup or bottle or something full of water in the fridge or freezer all the time. It was actually the RS party that we used as leverage for a deadline for the FM people that finally got us the appliances. They had been approved for some time and we don't know what the hold up was but we finally got them so we didn't have to cook out in the yard again.

Let me tell you about the chicken for the RS party. Sorry....another work in progress.... be back later.

This is a building that is going up next to the Zone Leaders' apartment. Is that not a bit scary? You couldn't pay me enough to live on the bottom floor of that place!

Another bicycle load, this time it's squashes. Any idea how heavy that many squash weigh? The guy could hardly push the bike and keep it upright.

A flower off one of the big trees that are all along the streets. They have been blooming almost since we got here.