What time is it? I woke up on Tuesday morning to the sounds of the grandstand loudspeakers making some kind of announcement about toilet inspection… About 15 minutes later, I checked my watch - it was 5:45 a.m!!!
Early Morning in a Valley
Tuesday Morning’s Program
2 preachers (which meant 2 sermons), 5 different special guest speakers, announcements and innumerable musical numbers – all before 11 a.m.!
December 15th
Opening Ceremonies
When my friend and I arrived at the camp site, we noticed the grandstand and the many temporary shelters which were constructed for this occasion. A little further down, at the bottom of the valley, was a newly constructed foot bridge, with leaves and bush rope covering the path. The bridge was a tangible symbol of the theme for this camp: A Bridge to a Satisfied Life. The afternoon that we arrived, they decided to open the camp by clearing the bridge and having people walk through as a way to symbolize that the camp was open.
Part of the symbolism of the bridge was to represent the language group moving from non-use of their language to a revitalization of the language. They insisted that my colleague and I participate in walking across the bridge to represent our part in helping this revitalization to happen. And so, I had a dilemma. Dilemma: I firmly believe that if they are going to “save” their language, they are ultimately responsible and should be the ones doing the work of re-introducing the use of their language in everyday life situations. However, if we were to cut the ribbon and walk across the bridge, we would essentially be symbolizing our participation and responsibility for their language being “saved”. So what did I do? I stayed back and took pictures!!!
December 15th
Haus Paia! Yes, the house with all of the smoke coming from it… it’s on fire. Guess that can happen when you start a fire in the middle of your grass house! People came running...but mainly to watch the excitement...
December 15th
Tok Ples Camp For those who are curious what a Tok Ples Camp might be all about – let me enlighten you. The camp reminded me of the Bible conference that I attended when I was a kid (with the exception that there was no separate program for the children). There were about 4 different preachers, special guests, and a series of programs which were all to be conducted in the local language of Usarufa. The afternoon programs were supposed to be skill building activities in tok ples: learning how to sew, learning carpentry /construction, beginning literacy classes in tok ples, etc… The reason behind the tok ples camp: The use of the local language is in decline, as many children in the area are able to understand the local language, but are not able to speak the language. The cause for this phenomenon is varied, but really, unless the language group does something significant to reverse the trend (such as teaching people to read and write in the local language, using the local language in their homes and communities, refusing to use Tok Pisin, etc…), the language will die with the current generation of adults. I do not know this for a fact, as I am not an expert on (or have I ever even experienced) language death, but it seems fairly evident that if the current youth are not able to speak the language or read it, they will not be able to pass it on to their children…
December 15th
On the road (again)…
A common sight when you are travelling on the rural roads – vehicles, loaded down with weight bogged down in the mud! We stopped to help pull the truck out (literally, with a rope and about 15 men) and the black spot in the pictures – that is the exhaust from the vehicle trying to drive out!
December 15th
On the road… I travelled out of Ukarumpa today, in order to go and attend a tok ples camp (a camp celebrating and promoting the use of the vernacular / heart language). Every time I travel in this country, whether by road or plane, I am again convinced that this place is one of the most beautiful places on earth.
This afternoon marked the beginning of a Tok Ples Camp among the Usarufa. People from all over the country who grew up there and who speak Usarufa are supposed to be gathering for a week of preaching, learning, and skill-building (learning things like carpentry, sewing, planting crops) - all of which will be conducted in their native tongue: Usarufa. Tomorrow morning, we (my supervisor and I) will be traveling the 3 hours in a 4-wheel drive vehicle to the camp to help support the work that the Usarufa translators are doing and to encourage the use of their native language. Pray for safety, for us to be an encouragement, and for my ability to take pictures (because if you want to see any good ones, my skill level has got to miraculously increase!!!).
Please be praying for peace among the West Kewa people. We just received word (via radio contact) that there is some fighting going on in their language group. So far three men and one woman have been killed.
A new group of people just finished the training that we did earlier this year (POC) and came up to Ukarumpa. We were particularly excited about being able to help one family transition into life here – a place which is quite unlike any other place on earth… Interestingly, we are no longer the youngest married couple, as the family we are helping is a young married couple who are a year younger than we are. We had them over for a few meals and are thankful for more workers who have entered the harvest.
So, since there is next to nothing to do here in terms of entertainment, I (Aaron) thought it would be fun to learn how to play the guitar. I was able to get one from someone who was leaving and have really been enjoying finding a few moments a day to play. Sorry – no pictures until I can play a song without my fingers hurting...
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