Mass, Mango Avacado Smoothies, SILC And Soybeans: #CRSMedia #Tanzania Tuesday Mission

Last night, I drifted off to sleep under a billowy white mosquito net and had my first full night of sleep since last Friday in Portland. Tired enough that the five lizards sharing my room weren’t even on my mental radar, I slept like a log for eight delicious hours. About the time that my alarm clock went off, a Tanzanian rooster was crowing outside my window. I lay in bed, saying my morning prayers and smiling at how awesomely blessed my life is.

We’ve only been here for two days, and I have already fallen in love with Tanzania and her people!

Mass at St. Mathia Cathedral

After an early wake up call, we made our way through Songea’s dark streets to her cathedral, St. Mathia. Despite the early hour (morning Mass begins at 6:30 am), the liturgy began with a beautiful opening song. The front pews of the church were filled with over twenty Benadictine sisters who led us in a harmonius chorus of song to greet our presider, Fr. Pascal.

A few observances about Mass… Even though Fr. Pascal presided in Swahili, it was relatively easy to follow along. This underscored once again for me the universality of our beautiful liturgy. I sat next to Matthew Bunson, following along with the readings and gospel in his Magnificat and smiling at how we could so easily “track” with the responsorial psalm as the lector proclaimed it. Another major observance is that Tanzanians spend much more time in Mass kneeling than we do at home. In addition to several extra kneeling opportunities, we received communion on our knees around the altar. All in all a blessed way to start my day!

After Mass we quickly toured the Cathedral, snapping photos and then meeting with our presider Father Pascal. Although Father has only been a priest for two years, he shared with me that he knew for most of his life that he had a priestly vocation. Father’s joy is infectious! I can’t wait to share the photos I took at the Cathedral!

Breakfast and a Road Trip

After a great Tanzanian breakfast featuring “mango avocado juice” that had the consistency of smoothies, we jumped back into our Land Cruisers and hit the road. Our destination was the distant village of Nahimba to visit the “SILC” group “Twende Pamoja”. SILC—Saving and Internal Lending Communities—brings together village members to work communally on saving, lending and economic development for both the community and the individual members.

I’ll write more when I have more time on the nature and purpose of SILC. For now, I just want to share the joyous sung greeting we received from the SILC members and how incredible it was to interact with such gracious men and women.

After the SILC meeting, we enjoyed a cooking demonstration of local Tanzanian cuisine. Matt Swaim volunteered on our behalf to work along with one of Nahimba’s finest to prepare ugali and bean soup. This delicious recipe is one of this year’s featured recipes for Rice Bowl. Soon, you’ll be able to enjoy the video that Matt recoreded so that you can prepare this delicious dish in your own home.

Once the feast was prepared, we dined alongside our new friends from Nahimba. It’s kind of amazing that despite our lack of shared language, we could pass such a fun afternoon together. After lunch, there was more singing and more dancing, more smiles and new friendships forged. All too soon, it was time to say our goodbyes and being the bouncy trek back to Songea.

As I type this, we are sitting in Crystal Park restaurant in Songea, in search of wifi. I’m hoping that I’ll be able to find enough connectivity to share a few thoughts from today, and perhaps a few pictures too. The landscape here is so lush and green. But it’s Tanzania’s sweet souls who have captured my imagination. From our CRS guide Neema, to Father Pascal, to the women and children of Nahimba, I feel as though I’ve been blessed by so many friendly people along this path we’re taking.

God willing, I’ll be back tomorrow to share more. Please keep those thoughts and prayers coming!!

Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of Tanzania, pray for us!