Voo-Doo's and Witch Doctors

My last month here is proving to be very interesting.  It started off with the administrator from Accedes that works at Tabitha Center  resigning.  I have been mentoring him this past year and providing tools to help him be an effective administrator.  He is a fine young man that unfortunately went about changing jobs in a very clumsy way - he just didn't show up for almost a week while he was working for his new organization.  Even his boss at Accedes didn't know until after the fact.  We've picked up the slack - buying needed materials, assisting in decision making and financial affairs, maintaining attendance records - until Accedes replaces him.  The Center will close for August because of rainy season.  It's already an adventure trying to drive on the rutted dirt roads.  The rain makes them even worse.

Last Wednesday a voo-doo was found in the children's play area.  It was a piece of orange plastic tubing about 1/2 inch in diameter and 3 inches long.  A nail had been driven through the tube with a piece of human hair attached and sticking out of the top of the tube.  We burned it.  On Friday, one of the kids took Autumn to the large chalkboard area on one of the walls of the play area to show her a picture that had been drawn of a demon.  She erased it.  This is Africa and many people still believe in witch doctors and evil spirits.

The people are very literal here.  In my devotional on Friday  I was trying to use an example - "What if we heard there was an elephant in the church building across the way?  We would all want to get up and go see it."  The translator couldn't believe what he was hearing because he thought I said there WAS an elephant in the church building.  Being very perplexed, he told the women what he had heard.  They were all shocked and confused.  Finally, with great relief, he understood that it was only an example.  The illustration was completely lost.  On top of that, a big rain storm was blowing in.  The women were concerned about securing their huts and bringing their children in.  Sometimes it's best to realize what the situation is, smile, and go with the flow.  That's a pretty typical day at Tabitha Center!