Bemuta Village

Today we had the privilege of visiting Bemuta Village. Machi has been running a KYB seminar this week with some of the ladies in the village, and Geoff thought it would be nice for us to come along and see what life is like in a village (it has always been his favourite part of his trips in the past).

We drove for about an hour, through enormous palm plantations (from which they harvest palm oil for things like cooking, palmolive soap/shampoo, etc) and up a little bit into the mountains. The first thing we saw when we arrived was the village church. I was surprised at how nice everything looked - beautiful gardens,well maintained leaf huts and manicured grass around the church.

Millie and Elora standing outside the church. In villages, church is held every night, as well as on Sunday!

We went for a walk to the river, which gave us a chance to see what the village was like. I noticed lovely flower gardens (with beautiful butterflies), leaf huts of various shapes and sizes, narrow dirt tracks winding everywhere, scrawny dogs, chickens grazing, vegetable gardens smoldering fires, washing hung out in doorways and windows, and everywhere we went people smiled and said hello. The village had what looked like a communal area, as well as a soccer field (level and well maintained considering they 'mow' it with bush knives every week) and a 'netball court' (more like a mud pit with rings at either side). We followed a narrow trail down to the river - a beautiful clear, fast running river where the washing and cleaning all took place. Geoff assured the girls we could come back later for a swim with the kids.

Lots of little hands to hold.

We joined in with the ladies for a few songs, and of course it was a pleasure to be a part of such beautiful singing. Then we were asked to do an 'item', so our whole family stood up and sang 'Blessed Be Your Name'. Sadly we kept forgetting the words to the verses, but no one seemed to mind. We followed that with the kids song "He Died Upon The Cross', which both kids and parents all enjoyed, and I was pleased at the good attitude our girls were showing by being willing to stand up in front of total strangers and sing about Jesus positively. I guess they are getting a little used to it, because it seems to happen quite a bit!

After getting all hot and sweaty singing out the front of the church, we grabbed our swimmers and headed for the river. Geoff assured me that kids would appear from everywhere and join in the fun, and he was right! As we walked through the village, kids appeared out of nowhere and ran down to the river. By the time we got there, half the kids had completely stripped off and were making their way over to the log (which went from one side of the river to the other).

Our girls were a little hesitant to get in. The ground was covered in rocks and slippery mud and it didn't look easy to get in. It was beautiful to watch, however, as the local kids took our girls' hands and helped them in. In fact, the kids never left our girls' sides for the rest of the day!

Playing in the river was SO MUCH FUN! The log (which moved if someone jumped on the end) was great to sit on, dive off, and generally have heaps of fun on.

Sophie spent lots of time playing in the sand, collecting tadpoles and little crayfish (ura).

There are so many things to write about, but there's no time tonight. Suffice to say, I feel we are very privileged to experience such wonderful people and places. Even if our girls don't fully appreciate it, I certainly do!