One Final Step

We are in the process of getting the school registered with the government. As I mentioned in an earlier post, we have received certification of ownership and management, and now we must pursue this one final step.

Today I was assisted by the headmaster of a Catholic school down the street from our own. He shared with me his school's application for registration and gave me some tips regarding the Chief Zonal Inspector of Schools, who must inspect the school and forward the report to the ministry of education.

So....today I'll be putting together the portfolios of required documents and will write a letter requesting an inspection. After waiting months for the ownership and management certification, this final step will go very quickly -- so I have been told.

Also today I will interview a candidate for the biology/agriculture position. Say a prayer that he or she is outstanding in his/her field -- couldn't resist that pun.

Heri ya Krismasi!

Merry Christmas! (A greeting that's good, remember, until 6 January.)

Though I have been here for 1.5 years, this is my first Christmas here in TZ. Last year I returned in mid-December for my mother's funeral and remained through Christmas.

So what can I report? Well that it is less frenetic, certainly. There is some exchange of cards, but gift-giving the way it has been constructed activity in the US is nowhere to be found.

Our festivities began with Mass in the Night (the technical term that some interpret as Midnight Mass). Ours began at 9 p.m. It was a big production. One of our German volunteers, Jana, has a friend (Dorian) visiting here. I enjoyed watching his facial expression at different points. Two in particular: (1) When there was a procession at the beginning of the Liturgy of the Word. For big feasts this procession is customarily done here. It includes dancers, women with braziers of incense balanced on their heads, and a toddler holding the Bible in a kikapu, also balanced on the head of a man. (2) When the goat was brought up as part of the offertory.

On Christmas morning I had Mass at the outstation a few kilometres outside of town. There were about ten infant baptisms. (Don't know quite how this tradition began, for the usual time for such is on the Sunday that ends the Christmas Season, the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord (this year on 10 January.) In any case, the folks at this mission parish are always so kind and patient with me and my bad Kiswahili. As I told them (in my bad Kiswahili), not only can I not speak the language properly, I can't even manage to read it properly.

I ended my post communion remarks with a call-response, which the people here love. I said Mungu-pamoja-nasi (God is among us). And they responded, Mwokozi wetu amekuja (Our saviour has come.)

Today I was not scheduled for any Mass, so I did something I rarely do: I went to our domestic chapel for Mass instead of the parish church. And not only that, I spent much of the day lounging around doing nothing -- and it was wonderful!

I Think We Can, I Think We Can

Those words of course are from the children's book The Little Train that Could. They are my mantra right now -- I'd be less than honest if I didn't admit that the mantra is interspersed with "I hope we can" and "We better"! That is I think we can [I hope we can; we better] get our buildings ready for the 23 January 2011 arrival of our students!

I went to the site today with two Salesians -- Brother Jos and Father Jos. The Salesian high school and technical school are a couple of kilometres down the road from us.

Here are some pictures I took -- you'll note glimmers of green following our rains.

The Multi-Purpose Hall is Painted.

The Classroom Block is Ready (except for tiling and chalkboards)

The Jesuit Residence Should Be Completed by June.

Did you know that all the woodworking (door jambs, doors, furniture, cabinets, etc.)
is made on site?

Hope you noticed the glimmers of green above -- it doesn't take much for nature to show its thanks.

Kwa Heri, Baba Askofu!

Farewell, Father Bishop!

Today His Lordship, Jude Thaddeus Ruwa'ichi, Bishop of Dodoma, presided at a morning liturgy at which service he confirmed countless children and a few adults. I'm sure that someone knows the number who were confirmed -- someone better know the number confirmed. From my part, all I can say is that it was like the proverbial sub-compact at a circus: they didn't stop!

The bishop is very counter-cultural. By that I mean to say that I have never been at a Mass where he presided when we didn't begin early. Today was no exception the Mass scheduled to being at 9:30 began about 9:22 -- and we ended just after noon. Our bishop is known for his knowledge of the scriptures -- and known for being generous in sharing that knowledge in his preaching.

The celebration provided the opportunity for our parishioners to wish the bishop (beloved by the people) all the best as he moves to Mwanza, on the shores of Lake Victoria, where he will become the archbishop. In addition to the large parish celebration, there was a smaller celebration with the parish and domestic workers in our Jesuit residence. It was a delightful afternoon filled with laughter and conversation. I do very well with the laughter part; for the conversation part, I continue to struggle!

Before the bishop left, I asked if he wouldn't mind taking a picture with some of the young men who regularly help as servers and otherwise. These young men are always quick to welcome me, to help me with my Kiswahili, and to assist folks here in any way they can.

As I noted, our mid-day meal was shared among the Jesuits, the bishop, and the parish and domestic employees. One of the things that made me very happy was the question, "Shawny na Rolla, wako wapi?" "Where are Sean and Laura?" (It is very hard for folks here not to end a word with a vowel --99.99@ of Kiswahili words do. Thus Shawny. Likewise, the confusion of the English 'l" sound with the "r" sound is also common; thus Rolla. Laura is considering going by her middle name in Kiswahili -- Neema, Grace.) We are very lucky to have these two American volunteers (along with the German volunteers who are working in projects other than the high school) who are not shy and who in a month's time have manage to burrow deep into people's hearts. In fact, Sean and Laura left today to join the other volunteers from Dar es Salaam and Moshi at a retreat in Tanga. I'm sure they'll profit from the retreat, and I'm also sure they'll return even more thankful for our wonderful climate here in the Dusty D.

A Word of Thanks

I just received a report of donations made through the Chicago-Detroit Provinces (soon to be Province without the "s"!). Thank you to our generous benefactors.

Your generosity will make an amazing difference. I will try to get out to the site in the next few days with my camera so that you can see what sort of progress we are making. And I cannot wait for you to have the opportunity to meet the members of our school community, who are pretty special people.

Karibuni nyote St. Peter Claver High School!

Habari Njema!

Martin Waweru, SJ, just called me from Dar es Salaam with good news: We have received all of the exemptions we applied for from the Tanzania Revenue Authority and a school bus will be arriving in the next few days. We began the process of purchasing the bus 2 1/2 months ago! This is a great relief.

We've applied for assistance from two foundations for the purchase of a second bus, too -- ours will be a big school! Say a prayer that the officers of these foundations see the merits of this project -- AND that if they so see it and do provide the funds that we don't have the same difficulties with the TRA again!

Martin had further good news: Our tractor should be on its way to Dodoma soon.

All good news -- habari njema.

Pole na Majukumu

That is one of the secondary greetings one hears here -- or at least that I have heard often these last days. After the traditional Habari za asubuhi/leo/jioni/kazi/nyumbani?, etc. -- What's up this morning/today/this evening/with your work/at home?, etc. -- the second greeting might be something like pole na majukumu, sorry for all your responsibilities/tasks/duties.

My days have been filled with lots of tasks -- but the days have been for the most part delightful. Six of our seven teachers showed up (if anyone knows of an agriculture/biology teacher I'm in search of such!) and we've had some very good time together so far; but this time together requires a lot of planning on my part (even though I did remote planning for these days a year ago!). I am very happy with these folks, and I think we'll make a very good team.

We've met for two weeks now. Our meetings serve as a sort of crash course regarding Jesuit education and some details regarding the school. We've had some nice discussions of the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm and how we might make use of this teaching model at our school. The presence of our volunteers Sean and Laura has been invaluable because they can speak of their own experience of Jesuit education -- from a student perspective.

We've also had other productive conversations about the educational realities here in Tanzania. I'm thankful for the presence of a Jesuit scholastic who has been assigned to the school for the coming seven or so months, Maurice Mkhotya. He'll act as a sort of assistant -- and at times as my vicar.

Maurice is from Singida, which is about 3 hours away; he was an English teacher before joining the Jesuits. His contributions have been very helpful.

I meant to take pictures of the teachers today, but I was distracted (see above re: many tasks!).

My days start at 5 a.m., when I make the proximate preparations for our daily meetings -- reviewing my notes, getting materials prepared, etc. I then have morning Mass (today I was at the Brothers of Charity -- Upendo Brothers -- just outside of Dodoma proper). I grab a quick bite to eat and then continue getting things organized for our meeting that starts at 8:00 a.m.

The afternoon is spent with other tasks involved in getting the school opened: working on some continuing admissions issues, preparing orders for textbooks, reviewing teaching schedules, etc. In the evening I do more planning for the teacher meetings and do some correspondence.

My relaxation these days really has amounted to trying to keep up with family and friends. Folks have noted my presence on the Internet at odd hours. In fact, I am often texting or talking at 2 a.m. in the morning -- wireless broadband has been a great thing for me!

Things are only going to get more hectic, I know -- and I'm happy for that. I am eager to get my office moved from the parish offices to the school site and to be able to hire a secretary. I am not the most organized person, and having a secretary at this time will be a great help to me (I won't be searching through piles to find things, etc.).

Post-Rain Flora & Fauna

The flora can wait until things turn really green. For now, it is enough to share with you the immediate effects of our rains: scorpions, toads, and bugs of every sort -- along with the advent of some birds that have been otherwise absent.

Two nights ago when I went to bed I saw a scorpion on my wall -- one of the little ones (maybe two inches long) that are said to pack the biggest punch. On Friday I was at the school site with our teachers and came across a worker doing battle with a scorpion that looked like this:


Mind you, the photo doesn't capture relative size -- it was at least six-inches long. Not as toxic as the tiny ones, but scarier to look at.

The arrival of the rains will be the subject of my homily for Advent III tomorrow -- God keeps the divine promises, and there is life and hope to be found in those promises. (Doesn't mean there aren't some scary things, too, though!)

Year-End Review

Many folks take this time to review their philanthropy, realizing the tax benefits of charitable giving before year's end.

As you do, may I invite you to remember us, please. Our needs our great. Please use the link at the right of this page, which link will take you to the donation page for the Chicago-Detroit Province Jesuits.

Even the Fireworks!

What a wonderful evening we had on the 9th, Independence (Uhuru) Day. Martin Waweru, the scholastic who serves as our minister (Jesuit-speak for the person who takes care of practical matters in a Jesuit community) organized a very pleasant celebration.

He brought our grill (not quite a grill but a charcoal tub -- I guess tub is the word for it) onto our front porch (screened). We grilled a leg of goat (nyama choma) but also had what folks here call sausages -- American hot dogs.

It was a very nice change of pace, sitting on our front porch, chatting with one another and Sean, Laura, and Jana. As we chatted we began to hear rumbling in the distance. And then the streaks of light from the sky -- nature providing us with Independence Day fireworks.

The exciting thing is that it is 3:20 a.m. as I write this -- and it is still raining, steadily.

Can't wait for 12 December, which is not only the feast of OL Guadalupe but also Kenyan Independence Day -- hoping that Martin, a Kenyan, will have a repeat performance!

Address

I've received a couple of emails in the last few days from people who were ignorant of my mailing address (very wise otherwise, though!).
Even though we'll be moving, the best mailing address remains the one for the Jesuits here at the parish:

Marty Connell, SJ
Jesuit Community at Airport Parish
PO Box 1079
Dodoma, TANZANIA

In general items in Tyvek envelopes pass customs without a problem. (And thieves don't tamper with them either.) Larger packages (for things like, for instance, um, a french press coffee maker or stovetop espresso maker or a coffee grinder) usually make it through. The best way to value items is to consider what you might pay for them at a garage sale.

Mungu Ametusikia! Mvua Inanyesha!

God has heard us! It is raining! (HARD). Now all we need is three more months of this.

Testing, One, Two, Three

Yesterday we held our second set of admissions tests. We were expecting over 60 candidates for admission to Form One, and I made copies for 90 (thinking that many people might just "show up"). Well, I made about 56 copies too many.

Of the 34 students who tested, I will offer admission to 28 of them.

The day went smootly, and I was thankful for the assistance of Scholastic Maurice, and Teacher David, Teacher Sean, and Teacher Laura.

Tomorrow we begin our teacher orientation. I was happy to receive an SMS earlier today from one of the teachers I was uncertain about, and SMS announcing that he was in via. And now Teacher Moses is here (He actually spells it Mosses, but I've changed the spelling for English readers!). I'll start to get him settled tomorrow afternoon.

Rainy Season

It is supposed to be the rainy season, and all of the hints of nature are indicating it is so -- but so far only one rain.

You're welcome to join me in the following prayer:

O God, in whom we live and move, and have our being, grant us rain, in due abundance, that, being sufficiently helped with temporal gifts, we may the more confidently seek after eternal gifts. For the sake of your holy Name.
Amen

Keeping Up

It's hard to keep up with work that requires a computer when there's no electricity. We were without electricity most of the day, the day during which I was going to finish up composing our second entrance tests, followed by proofing, printing, and collating them. Ah well, it gave me a chance to plan our teacher orientation -- using pen and paper to do so!

December and the beginning of January will be devoted to forming the faculty regarding the philosophy of St. Peter Claver High School. It will also give them a chance to get accustomed to my management style. Some teachers at schools where I have served might disagree, but by-and-large, I think former colleagues would agree that my approach to leadership in schools is to listen carefully, to find common themes, to articulate these and encourage discussion, and then to decide. My role following decisions is to follow through with resources to ensure success regarding any decision and the necessary accountability.

Teachers are due to arrive on Monday. There is one slight problem: 2 of the 7 candidates have not signed contracts, though they assure me that they intend to do so. One of the candidates did sign a contract, but he has recently been unreachable. I am learning, my friends, that this is the life of a school administrator in TZ.