Roggie Report
After meeting the Johnson-Hammack team (another MPPC-based teaching team) we boarded our tour bus for the five hour drive to Roggie. We mixed and mingled with the other team (16 of them) and it was interesting to hear their stories and their excitement about their trip. They had just arrived in Addis the night before from the US so we did feel a bit like “locals” as we described our past month’s adventures to them.
The view out the window quickly changed as the kilometers went by. From the crowded, noisy streets of Addis to the more wide open agricultural areas on our way south. I’ve previously described this view as more like a National Geographic picture of Africa – round huts clustered in compounds, thorny wooden enclosures for animals, and small cooking fires being tended by women and children.
We left the paved road and made the last 5 km journey on a rutted dirt path passable only because it was not currently raining. The leftover “puddles” made the trip a bit like a cross between Great America’s Log Ride and Disneyland’s Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride but we made it safely across.
The road represents the journey that many of the school children take each day and it was dotted with clusters of huts and grazing animals of all kinds. As our bus passed, the sight and sound brought dozens of running children to the bus windows, waving and cheering our arrival.
As we rounded the last turn we could see in the distance the school buildings on the hillside. This was especially exciting for me since on my last visit to Roggie in January 2005 there was only a single church building on the site.
We were met by what appeared to be the entire Roggie community but before we could enjoy the welcoming ceremony they had planned for us we couldn’t help poking our heads into the classrooms where the KG1, KG2 and Grade 1 students were sitting quietly at their desks. Who knows how long they had been waiting for us but they greeted us enthusiastically (WELCOME!!!) and eagerly presented all of us with pictures they had drawn thanking their MPPC sponsors. Another personal highlight was meeting Meskerem Terefe, a KG1 student who I am sponsoring. What a blessing to meet her in person, see her smile and hold her hand.
Our team spent some time doing a few songs and some crafts (Todd’s team worked on a photo project for MPPC) before breaking out the jump ropes and playing with the children. Before leaving Roggie for the day, we visited one of the school children’s houses and delivered gifts that had been sent by MPPC families to their kids in Roggie.
Our overnight stay was at a lodge on the shores of Lake Langano.
This was our visit to mosquito country and the large and numerous ones were waiting to greet us when we arrived. The grounds were beautiful and we enjoyed a dinner together before heading to bed. Yeah, about that…..this was the first time for all of us (except Stephen) that we spent the night under mosquito nets. Katie and Victoria had the added adventure of sharing a twin bed under a mosquito net. The 90+ degree temperature inside and our inabililty to open any windows (“Will we have a goat in here?, because that’s my only concern” V.G.) made for an interesting night’s “sleep”.
In the morning we returned to Roggie. We stopped at the site of the well, another MPPC project which is completely changing the way these villagers will spend their days. The construction of the pumping stations and generator will begin this next week so future visits will show even more progress. Zenebe had asked the kids to come to school this day bringing with them their goats. Last summer’s MPPC children’s offering had been designated to purchase goats for each of the children of the school. What an amazing sight to see all of them and their goats gathered together on the school grounds. Many of the goats had offspring during the year so I think the kids outnumbered the kids.
We spent some time again with the children in their classrooms teaching some simple songs and a few English lessons. By mid-day it was time to leave.
I know as I approach the end of my month’s stay in Ethiopia I am facing several difficult goodbyes but hugging Meskerem goodbye was especially tough for me. As with all of the many lives we’ve touched and been touched by, we count it a blessing to have been here even briefly and we trust God with the continued care of His people.
