Monday 27th
May
Tomorrow
morning I will leave Monze and – internet willing – this will be
my last post from Zambia this year.
I
will travel to Lusaka and stay overnight in a hotel. My flight isn't
until 02.10 on Thursday morning and it would be possible to travel to
Lusaka on Wednesday. Bus times here are not predictable! You need to
allow at least 3 hours just to cope with buses arriving late or
coming across hold-ups. From Monze you can only book on the day, so
you might have to add another hour or two if the first bus is full.
Lets just say it is safer and less stressful to travel the day
before!!
However,
even if transport could be relied upon I would still choose to spend
a day in Lusaka before returning to the UK. As I am sure I have
mentioned in previous years, it is a huge culture shock returning to
the UK. It is not so much the different environment, it is that
people who have not been here and spent time with the people will not
understand the situation I try to describe - we live in such
different worlds and it's so complicated!! Someone with a smartphone
might not know where the next meal is coming from or be able to
afford school shoes! Poverty and hunger isn't something that is easy
to spot!!
I
need a day to prepare me for returning to a world in which I don't
fully belong, because we speak different languages. I only touch the
surface of the reality of life here. I never go hungry and usually
have most of the facilities we in the UK consider essential. In
Lusaka I will wander through some of the better areas and see how
wonderful life is for some in Zambia. It provides a bit of a bridge
and a time to reflect on the past three weeks or so.
Greetings
and farewells are very important in Zambia. We were welcoming a new
sister to Our Lady of the Wayside – an Indian nun who has already
spent some time in the Country. As well as a formal welcome the
service was enhanced here and there! At the offertory procession
there was a chicken trying to escape from a basket and ladies dancing
up the aisle with various goods on their heads – including one lady
with a full crate of Coca Cola. I was given a rousing farewell from
St. Veronica's and they insist on sending me back with a present for
my wife, which will represent a significant cost for them – more
than the 20 kwacha (£1.30) they couldn't find between them last
week! However in Zambia it would be wrong not to mark such occasions
properly.
Yesterday
after my day of “prayer” at church and with St. Veronica's Small
Christian Community I had a final session of pool to finish my visit
properly. Fr. Clement and a young man from the church were my
challengers for the evening. It turned out triumphant for me and I
finished the evening undefeated! A feat I remember at another final
session in 2006 which took place the day after the EU Referendum
vote. I'll admit I needed something on which to focus my anger –
there was no way I was going to be defeated that night!! Last night I
hadn't such anger, but was a bit distracted because my back has been
giving me pain for the past few days.
I
arrived back home just after midnight!
I
will let you know about any adventures on the journey back home and
some more reflections on my visit when I return to the UK and find
another laptop!
Best
wishes,
Chris
P.S. Internet did not permit!! Hence I am posting this from home!
