Today was quite busy for us. We left the compound at 7:30 this morning and traveled east of Yendi for 75 minutes to the village of Nyangpala. The large village near Nyangpala is Zabzugu. We have to go through Zabzugu to get to our destination.
Upon our arrival we were greeted by Brother Elijah who showed us the congregation’s mud ball building. These mud ball buildings are constructed by making about a 2 foot band of mud and then allowed to dry so another 2 foot band can be molded on top. This building had 4 bands of mud balls. When the desired height is achieved a 2×6 board (plate) is laid on top and holes are made approximately 2 feet down into the wall and a metal band or small diameter metal rod is inserted and bent over the wooden plate to secure the roof to the building. Well, The carpenter didn’t tie rafters together to keep the roof from splaying out so the walls on both sides of the building moved. The building also needed an apron of cement laid around the foundation of the building to keep the ground and the walls from eroding.
We still had some time before the members arrived so we went to see the chief. He was building himself a concrete block squat toilet. It looked very nice. He allowed me to take some photos to show the mason at Kulkpeni. We will need several toilets and this one looks like a winner.
There were 31 children present and only a few adults so I taught the account of Adam and Eve. I think the adults enjoyed it as much as the children.
At the end of the service Elijah’s eldest daughter (14y.o.) Sarah requested to be baptized so we drove down the road a ways until we came to a dried up river bed with a large pool of greenish water beside the road. Timothy pulled off his shoes and socks and waded out into the pool where he baptized Sarah.
We went back to Elijah’s house where we were given a meal of rice and spiced oil. After eating Timothy and Elijah started loading up the pickup with yam seedlings for Timothy’s farm. Yam seedlings can be small immature yams or bigger yams cut up in large pieces and planted like you would plant Irish potatoes in your garden. We thought they were never going to get the truck loaded with the 1,300 yam seeds. These yam seeds filled the bed of the truck. The sun was hot today even if you were sitting under a metal roof. The church presented us with some yams and a hen so we shared some of the yams with Timothy and gave him the hen. The pickup was loaded down; when we passed through Zabzugu I had to stop at a vulcanizer and have the rear tires inflated more.
By the time we got back to the compound after off loading the yam seedlings at Timothy’s house it was 3pm.
As we were coming back from Kulkpeni tonight Brother Divine called and said he had a nephew who was involved in a motorcycle accident and was being treated at Yendi Hospital. He needed some of his money he had accrued working on the church’s paperwork so we dropped by the hospital to give him the money.
That takes care of our day. Hope you had a good Lord’s Day! May God bless.
In His service,
Stephen and Kandie Taylor
With Skeeter
