Our days here have been busy but also rewarding and exciting.  In
addition, the students are doing a superb job of extending themselves
wherever we go.  We could not be prouder of them all!
       Mornings here typically start with a bowl of cereal eaten outside on
the verandah, listening to the sounds of Africa –the unmistakable call
of the Cape turtledove, the twitterings of various other species, the
mooing of nearby cows, and the occasional calls of local children
setting off for school.  For the earliest risers there is the wonder
of watching the sun come up over the nearest hill, slowly topping
those quintessentially African umbrella-topped trees.  Dawn here at
Pioneer Camp is nothing short of magical.
       Our first week, as you no doubt are aware, was spent at Birdland
School, where the Head treated us to several traditional meals of
nshima with sides (relishes) of chicken, tilapia, visash (pumpkin
leaves cooked with a peanut sauce), and much, much more.  Students
gamely tried it all and, in most cases, loved it.  Again, it has been
an example of the very adventurous spirit of this group.
       Interacting with the Birdland pupils is always one of the highlights
for the group.  On the first day they helped the seventh graders get
started writing short stories.  Their help was invaluable since the
children are accustomed to learning by rote and found it hard to
invent plot and characters.  However, they were very excited to each
receive a notebook of their own in which to record stories.  In the
process of working with the children, many bonds were forged.  For
example, a little boy named Blessings fell in love with Josie and Izzy
and wrote them a special letter telling them more about himself and
declaring that they were his BFF’s (best friends forever).  Jack also
received several similar letters, and no doubt others in our group
have received some I am unaware of.  This past week whenever I have
gone down to the Birdland campus alone, children come up to me, asking
“Where is Jack?  Where is Carly?  When are Reed and Gigi coming back?”
 You get the picture: the youngsters adore each and every SAAS
student!
       We had an amazing experience visiting the families of four recent
graduates of Birdland.  These were children that the Middle School
Zambia Club specifically supported this year by paying tuition for
them to continue their education.  All of them lived in the poorest of
poor compounds.  In each case the families had only dirt floors in
their huts/homes.  Particularly moving was the grandmother who was
single-handedly raising five children.  She earns a few kwacha by
crushing rocks, a brutally hard form of work.  A painful injury to her
leg, which was still very swollen after some weeks, has kept her from
working.  She feeds the children by gleaning from others’ garden
plots.  Our contribution was to pay for the cement for all four
families to put down a decent floor on which to sleep.  Perhaps the
most sobering aspect of it all was to see the excruciating poverty of
these homes and then to meet the children in the context of school,
where they looked just like any other student dressed neatly in a
uniform.  It made us wonder just how many of the children we see every
day go home to such difficult circumstances.
       Although I have not been personally involved in the technology
training at Munali this week, it appears to be going well.   Both Gabe
and Mercy have commented on how effectively the SAAS students work
with peers who have had very little exposure with computers.  They are
kind and infinitely patient.  Just yesterday they had a chance to
teach some computer skills to the Special Needs students at Munali,
which can be even more challenging since they must communicate in sign
language.  Yesterday outside the computer lab I watched Sam, Reed,
Alice, Grace, and Emma either individually or collectively carrying on
conversations with students in sign.  Sam even managed to sign the
national anthem!  Our group comments repeatedly on how sweet these
particular Munali students are and they have requested as much time as
possible to continue engaging with them.
       Visiting St. Clare’s Church last Sunday was another highlight.  Leora
particularly vocal loved the nuns’ singing.  As it turned out, our
long-time friend there, Sister Lilato, had composed one of the
beautiful liturgical pieces herself.  After the service, we were
welcomed as a group and then individually greeted by every single
member of the congregation!  Sister Lilato visited with us afterwards,
and Gabe and I managed to meet again with her yesterday evening.  She
is one of the loveliest people you could ever hope to meet, and so
intriguing with her perfect English.  Yesterday I asked her about that
and learned that she had gone to school with mostly white children
since her parents were well educated and her father had been involved
(presumably with whites) in collecting data on the impact of tse-tse
flies on local cattle.  When I asked if it was difficult being in a
white school, she winked and said, “No, but then I worked hard and did
very well!”  She has a wide range of interests and is very active in
the local community, occasionally even taking on various
bureaucracies; for example, she seems to have extracted a promise from
some official to actually pave the deeply rutted road that is
thoroughfare near the church!
       On Saturday we head out on safari, for which we are incredibly
excited!  We all send love and greetings to friends and family and of
course look forward to sharing more once we return from safari.
Sonja