Jennipher

Jennipher

I write this on 29th March 2020. The UK and the world is a very different place, even compared with a few weeks ago. In Zambia they only have 20 or so confirmed coronavirus cases, though the true number is likely to be much higher - they too are introducing measures to try to reduce the spread of the virus.

However, I want to continue providing outines of my friendships with people I meet in Zambia. Here I will say a little about Jennipher, her family, friends and clients.

Today Jennipher is not well. I met her in 2004 soon after she had started taking medication for HIV/AIDS. Zambia had just started providing the drugs and Jennipher was one of the first to be put on the treatment. She had agreed to disclose her status and from that time began to encourage others to be tested and to be treated with the anti-viral medicine.

Jennipher has a determined and forceful personality, formed from a difficult life, requiring a fight just to survive. She has been there and experienced the difficulties which led her to the bars and the disease she now lives with. She talks from this experience and has been able to help hundreds of people to start living positively with the disease.

When I first met her however she seemed quite timid and in very low spirits. She came to the hospital guest house where I was staying and asked for help. As is my usual approach, I did not provide any money, but tried to listen. I was in Monze for 4 months in 2004 and as time went on Jennipher would see me around the hospital and approach me. I learnt a bit about her life and she leant a little about mine. After a couple of months she told me that she needed to re-thatch her house before the rains, otherwise water would get into the mud walls and her house would collapse. She also had an idea about a small business making and selling soured milk. She needed the equivalent of about £5 to finance these two projects. She caught me on a good day and we had come to know each other a little, so I gave her the money. Next time we met she was smiling and seemed to be a different person. To be honest I didn't care what she did with the money - it was worth £5 to see her smile!!

Since that time so much has happened. Jennipher has established many AIDS support groups. From being regarded as a nuisance, she is now very highly regarded among the health professionals and has helped move services such as testing nearer to the people. She has saved many lives.

Jennipher moved to Pemba - about 35 Km south of Monze and was given a piece of land where she grows maize and vegetables, she has a growing family and established a pre-school class. Her life still has many challenges and unfortunately she has experienced many deaths among her clients and also in her family.

Jennipher has always been willing to take in children from family members who have died and more recently from her clients. When I first met her she was looking after Sandra, Selina and Osward - nieces and a nephew. One day, after our friendship had been established, she told me Osward was having fits and needed to go to the hospital. In Zambia you cannot ring for an ambulance, so I borrowed a pick-up and headed for Pemba. When I arrived it seemed that he was responding to malaria treatment and no longer needed hospital treatment. Unfortunately, a couple of days later, the condition worsened and Osward died.

Sandra spent a lot of her time looking after Selina who was four or five at the time and doing the housework instead of attending school. When the opportunity arose I was able to help her back into school. She completed her schooling and gained her grade 12 certificate. She then trained as a nurse and took on a position in Livingstone. Unfortunately she became ill and, despite surgery in Malawi, she too died.

Since I have known Jennipher and her family, there have been several children who have joined the family - most have probably been infected with HIV/AIDS from their parents. I have come to know them and have felt the grief with Jennipher, when they have died. Baby Twambo, a toddler Chimunya, who fell down a well, Mike, who was training as an engineer and Raquel a lovely teenager, also died.

Jennipher has shown me some of the challenges, but also the joys of life. Emmanuel and Obadia were children whose parents died in childbirth and who Jennipher was willing to take in if I would buy a few months supply of dried milk. What a privilege to be able to give a chance of a reasonable life for children will little hope - both children are growing up strong and well and are at school. Jennipher and Maggie, who are also children of clients, have joined the family.

Selina - a two year old child when I first met her is now a mother herself, her daughter Maria is named after a friend of mine who died a year ago. Selina is about to finish her schooling and hopes to train at the local agricultural college. Maria is also being looked after by Jennipher.

Some years back Jennipher mentioned that she could get a borehole driiled and a handpump installed for the equivalent of about £200. I was sceptical! My understanding was that a borehole would cost at least £2,000 - £3,000 and a handpump on it's own would be about £400 - £500. Anyway I decided it was worth the risk and found the funds. A year later Jennipher showed me the pump which was installed a kilometre or so from her house, but in a suitable place for her support group. It had been designed to make it easy for disabled people and pregnant women to collect water for themselves. Instead of a stagnant pool a whole community now has fresh clean water to drink and can grow their own crops. Again what a privilege to be able to help this come about.

Over the years I have visited Jennipher's family and support groups and she is a very regular visitor to my house when I am in Monze - often introducing me to clients she has brought for treatment at the hospital. Her house has grown, in no small part due to her cousin Soloman who came to live with her some years back and is a great help looking after the crops, erecting buildings and even taking care of the children. In 2014 Jennipher spent 3-4 weeks in the UK with Dilys and myself, meeting my family and friends and seeing as much as possible of life in this part of the world.

Friendship is extremely rewarding, but also brings challenges. I have experienced so much over the years from my friendship with Jennipher - life in all its richness, but also its poverty and distress. I am very grateful for the opportunities. It is a privilege to spend time with someone who is very close to death and it is a great joy to hold a smiling child on my knee - thanks to Jennipher I have experienced many such moments.

Friends in Manungu

Recently I talked a bit about my experiences in Zambia at our church in Cheltenham. I wanted to stress the importance of relationships and to give a little insight into the way I have come to know people over the years. I tried to show how I been able to help improve a few lives and in return, how the people of Monze have greatly enriched mine.

While I am in the UK perhaps it is an opportunity to reflect over my visits to Monze over the past 16 years and tell a few stories of where our lives have overlapped.

Since leaving Zambia in December I constantly remember my little friend Nancy. Nancy epitomises the joy and pain of Zambia. I met her at a pre-school in 2015 – she was full of life, she had a cheeky smile and knew how to command attention. A girl with great potential.

The pre-school was established by Mrs. Musika not far from Our Lady of the Wayside Parish in the area called Manungu – on the south side of Monze.

About 10 years ago I was walking along the Livingstone Road when a young man approached me. “I have a problem!” he said. This is not unusual – I meet many people with problems, as I walk around Monze. He told me that his problem was that he walked with a limp because one leg was shorter than the other. They used to be the same length, but as he got older his artificial leg didn't grow like the other one!

As I say, I meet a lot of people with problems and I cannot solve them all. I try to listen, but invariably say there is little I can do. I did however promise to let people in the UK know about Obert's problem. Back home a friend gave me money for a replacement leg. It took two years before Obert found me again - this time at Our Lady of the Wayside church which I attend when I am in Monze. I had no idea that he attended the church – in fact, other than his name and that he had an artificial leg, I knew nothing about Obert at that time.

I came to know Obert much better over the years. Obert is a man of determination. When he was a young boy he told his father that he wanted a bike. His dad told him that he would never be able to ride one, so it was with great pride that some time later he rode proudly to his home on a friends bike. While at school he also had a dream to become a taxi driver – again he was told this was an impossible ambition.

Obert has been driving taxis for a few years now, he is married with a young beautiful daughter and with help from his dad has his own house.

Obert is the son of Mr and Mrs Musika who established the pre-school. Mr Musika is a builder who built the house at the Curia where I have stayed in recent years - as well as building the pre-school and other structures for his family. Mrs Musika also hosts a group of disabled children and their parents. They gain encouragement through mutual support and by undertaking some fund-raising activities they can ease some of the financial pressures a little.

The lives of my friends in Manungu are still very difficult – I don't know whether Nancy has any food at home today - but with a bit of support here and there, their prospects are a bit better than they would have been had I not met that young man with a problem 10 years ago on the Livingstone Road.

Chris

From Monze to Cheltenham

18^th February 2020

Despite my best intentions I find it hard to continue my blog in the UK. Here I will just record the final days in Zambia.

I returned to the UK the evening before the General Election and I had once again jumped into another world.

Ireen came around on Monday morning with my shirts before I left for my bus to Lusaka. It was raining so we gave her a lift to her shop before the taxi dropped me off at Tooters Roadhouse.

It was an uneventful trip to Lusaka. Although the roadworks were still ongoing and the rain made the mud a challenge for some lorries – at one point a tractor was used to push lorries up a short hill!

I arrived in Lusaka early afternoon and wondered how I would spend the next day and a half! I cannot remember being in Lusaka when it is raining with time to kill. In the event everything worked out well. I relaxed on the Monday, with a trip to the nearby shops, cafe and a shop which provides internet access. I had been booked into an executive suite! However, they were happy to change it for a standard room – which suited me better. It was an ensuite room and perfectly adequate.

On the Tuesday morning I caught a minibus to the museum and spent 3 hours or so going around. The displays follow the development of humankind including the discoveries in Zambia – notably Kabwe man. The development of Zambia is detailed, including colonisation and the slave trade leading up to independence and the subsequent governments. I had plenty of time and found it interesting and instructive. There was also a substantial exhibit detailing the building of the TAZARA Railway, which provided a route to the coast in Tanzania to get around the problems of exporting goods caused by Northern Rhodesia at the time of Ian Smith's government in the 1960s and 70s. I hadn't realised that the Chinese financed and managed the project. Apparently the Chinese and Zambian workers had a good and close working relationship.

A gap in the showers allowed me to walk back towards the hotel (1-2 Km). I had a bite to eat and logged onto my account to print boarding passes only to find that after lusaka my flights were now referred to as “standby”. I had been getting messages urging me to upgrade to business class, but was surprised that it appeared that my onward flights were no longer confirmed.

Again there was a break in the rain so I took the opportunity to walk to the cathedral. There is always a lot to take in during my visits to Zambia and a bit of quite time to reflect is important, before I return to my other life. The rain returned and for the next hour or so I sat quietly in front of the Blessed Sacrament.

The rain stopped and I was encouraged to return to the hotel for supper. A football match after supper kept me entertained until my taxi arrived to take me to the airport.

In the event the flights home went ahead without incident and I arrived home at about 10 pm.

Chris

7^th December 2019

Briefly!

I have just returned from a late joint birthday celebration with Jennipher , Soloman and Miranda.

We went to Comfort Lodge - which turned out to be a good choice. We had soft drinks and chatted on comfortable armchairs while waiting for the meals to be cooked over charcoal – no electricity!! We returned to the armchairs after the meal for a while.

This is the time when my goods begin to disappear. This laptop will be with someone else later tonight or tomorrow. My flask will go tomorrow along with all my excess food. It might also be dark early tomorrow if my lamp vanishes!!

This will be my last post before I make my way back to England. On Monday morning I will leave for Lusaka and at 02.00 on Wednesday morning I head for home via Nairobi and Amsterdam.

Tomorrow I will have a succession of people wanting to say goodbye and will try to do a quick clean of the house and pack my bags.

So goodbye for now.

Take Care,

Best Wishes,

Chris

Lunch With the Children

Friday 6^th December

Very soon I will start preparing for my return to the UK. As always adjusting to life back in the UK is the most difficult part. This time will be particularly difficult.

Some people will imagine that I have been among people looking like the pictures we have seen with famines around the world - where starving people have been photographed in order to get the maximum response. No doubt if I searched in the rural areas I could get such photos – but this would do a disservice to the people. In practice I have been living with a lot of hungry people even if they don't look emaciated.

The fact that children flock to school or pre-school just because they can get some food says a lot. So when I show you pictures of happy laughing children – be under no illusions -, these children will be lucky to get a meal this evening and they won't look forward to the Christmas holidays when a daily meal is no longer assured!

The usual variety of small wildlife is busy around and in my house. I spend my time with spiders, ants, cockroaches – or are they just beetles, as I would prefer to believe!!, lizards, millipedes, praying mantis, locusts etc.

The other day an owl took off as I returned after a session on the internet. The occasional bat also flies around after dark. It is good to watch the swallows in December enjoying a holiday in the sun!

The moon is almost a half now. It is strong enough to light the way in the dark and cast a beautiful moon shadow – something I have always found very special. There is always a chance to enjoy the moonlight and stars during the lengthy power outages. In the distance I often see a thunderstorm – pity that it always seems to be in the distance!

This morning Obert took me to his parents house where the children were having their final lessons before finishing for Christmas. They had a final meal at pre-school and I was also provided with food. Apparently it was the first time the children had seen a 'white man' eat nshima!!

I met three women with severely disabled children. Two of the children were unable to support themselves or to talk and the third was blind and had other disabilities. There is no help for the mothers – or grandmothers. They are expected to cope themselves, but with a 24 hour job looking after the children it is extremely difficult to find a way of getting enough money for food – even in good times. Now life is more than difficult. Gift – one of the children – needs to drink sour milk because he cannot take solids. This presents another challenge because of the cost. Maybe it is only a few pennies a day, but to this mother it represents a major outlay. These women face incredible challenges. I wish I could provide more help, but everywhere you look people are facing intolerable situations

Diven managed to get himself involved in another – fortunately minor – dispute and was stranded with his wife and children outside the courts for most of the morning. He was left without any money to get his wife back home and she couldn't walk the distance!

After spending a little while talking with Diven, I attempted to use the internet. I made a couple of calls with Skype, but abandoned everything else because of the speed (or lack of it!) I will go over after 22 hrs - power permitting.

Ireen will ring me tomorrow when she will have my shirts completed!! I did see that she has made some progress at least!

Best wishes,

Chris

Delivering Food

Thursday 5th December

I keep passing the shop outside which Ireen works as I move about town. Of course you expect me to show you the pictures of the new shirts I was to collect on Monday or Tuesday!! Unfortunately the date has slipped once again!! I am “expecting” a call today to sat that they are ready!! It is already after19 hrs, so I doubt it. Maybe tomorrow – or maybe not!!

I had the usual string of visitors, Diven, Jennifer, Luke and probably a couple of others.

I have been looking at solar fridges as a possibility for Diven's shop. It has been interesting to discover how the bits go together and calculate the figures to determine the size of solar panel and battery required. In the end the cost was prohibitive and Diven decided to try to revive his shop without a fridge.

I rushed to the Internet before the 18 hrs blackout! The security guard came over and told me that Mrs. Chiiya wanted to see me. Mr and Mrs Chiiya are the owners of Moonlite Guest House – formerly Nampeyo. When I came to Monze in 2003 with a small team of volunteers we were accommodated at Nampeyo Guest House. It was in early stages of operation – I think we were the first guests. Mrs. Chiiya was the Head of a local government primary school. Hands Around the World supported a project started by Mrs Chiiya for skills training. Eventually this morphed into a school of nursing.

When my granddaughter Amy came to Monze in 2011 she met Mrs. Chiiya's daughter Saki and spent a day at her home. The two girls were about the same age. Saki is now engaged and will probably marry in 2020.

This morning I was due to meet the children at the pre-school run by Obert's mum. It was here that I first met Nancy a few years back. Something had come up so it has been moved until tomorrow – there should be some nice photos!!

I had to pop into town and Diven agreed to meet me there. I suspected that I would have a few minutes spare, so I decided to call into the hospital. At least I could buy a drink and sit down at the tuck shop. Sebia wasn't behind the counter. I heard that in the past couple of days her brother died.

I decided to check on my friend Sichone. Sichone was stores manager in 2004 when I started doing some work for the hospital on office systems and computers. I developed a stock control database and worked alongside Sichone and others in the stores. I was almost full time for 4 months and then returned for several months each year for four or five years. During this time I acquired a work permit and came to know the staff at the stores quite well.

Sichone confirmed the difficulties the hospital is facing because of a severe lack of funding – I understand the government calls it austerity!! Strange,! That sounds familiar. The result of course is that people die unnecessarily.

Businesses are collapsing because of the lack of electricity. No one comes for a haircut at 22hrs when power returns!! Welders cannot work etc. It was good to catch up with another old friend.

Raymond appeared at about 13hrs. When I told him I had a meeting at the church at 14 hrs he said that he was also meeting Fr. Wilson. We walked to the church together.

I have spent the past few hours with Fr. Wilson who drove around the compounds delivering some maize meal to some of the parishioners struggling to obtain enough food. It cannot really be said that there are roads through the compounds. Fr. Wilson drives a pick-up truck which is not ideal for the conditions. You really need a very high wheelbase 4x4. It is a case of off road rallying! Certainly not for the nervous driver, anyone who needs more that six inches at the side when going through gaps or has difficulty reversing fifty metres through small gaps and around corners would best give this a miss! Tarmac roads in Monze are the main Livingstone Road and a couple of kilometres going east towards Huichanga Dam. A few years ago – just before the elections – some tarmac was spread on a few roads to the west of Monze. In general the roads are mud and often are only characterised by the fact that cars have driven over these areas of land and forged a pathway between buildings!

We delivered 15 – 20 10Kg bags of food. Everyone was very grateful. I suspect that this was not just because they were given some food, but that they hadn't been forgotten and someone had cared enough to find them at home and deliver it personally.

I am amazed at weights that people will carry. Two women will often carry a 25 Kg (55lb) bag of maize meal between them, using a hand each. One of the women in the team delivering the food today carried bags (22lb) on her head – apparently with no effort and no need to stabilise it with a hand.

If you look down any road in Monze you will usually see at least one woman carrying goods on her head and a man pushing a loaded wheelbarrow. On the road trucks carry people on the back – often sitting on a variety of goods. These sights become so familiar that I rarely notice. Grass thatched huts, roofs with iron sheets held down with concrete blocks and waterproofed with black plastic sheets are a normal part of the environment with which I have become so familiar.

As I pass through the compounds I meet a few friends – some from PIZZ School, others from the church – or just children who have seen me passing around Monze over the past 16 years!! (Some of course are now adults!!)

The rain has not fallen properly for well over a week and the grass is not growing like it was when I arrived. The past few days have threatened some decent rain, but it hasn't arrived. It needs to arrive very soon or any crops already planted will come to nothing. I was convinced that it would rain yesterday, but the clouds parted and passed Monze by – today was a similar story.

I returned home before the power went, but not early enough to take any advantage of it! So I look forward to my first cup of tea of the day if it returns at 22 hrs!! I also fancy a couple of eggs on fried bread as a midnight feast!!

Chris

Difficult Times

Tuesday 3^rd December

I spent the morning talking to Mrs Sianga and Killian. Mrs Sianga attended the funerals of her relatives at the weekend. It appears that they ate peanuts which where to be used as seed and presumably were coated with toxic chemicals – it makes you wonder what we are using to increase the yield of our crops!

We talked about the current situation. Mrs Sianga's mother said that she had never experienced anything like it in her lifetime! Someone came to Mrs. Sianga's farm saying that they had had nothing to eat for three days. It will be March before there is another harvest – assuming that, unlike last year, there will be one this year. How many people will not survive until then we can only imagine.

I took the opportunity to see the progress of the water project. Some guys had managed to raise the water tank about ¾ of the way up the stand! I said hallo to some of the children.

People are becoming desperate and people are doing anything to get food. There are a lot of thefts and these no doubt will get worse as desperation increases.

I managed some tea and a meal when power came on at 15hrs – though Mrs Sianga provide a cup of tea earlier. I connected to the Internet, but it soon gave up - and then power went!!

Please keep the people of Monze and the surrounding area in your prayers.

Chris