The Senegal Experience: Geej gi ci Yoff

Today started...with bread and chocolate...but it was donut style this time. The donuts were really more like pastries...but were very good. After breakfast, we went to the school in Yoff. Our purpose in going there was to find the English students, and to talk with them some. So, that is exactly what we did. David and Cheryl dropped us off...and left. It was only the 11 of us...at a school in Yoff. And...we excelled. We split into several groups and managed to find several students who spoke English fairly well. Of course, we drew crowds everywhere we were. We helped the students practice their English, and we practiced our Wolof. It was a very good time for all. It was a particularly good time for Ryan. He made a new friend, his name is...um...well, it sounds like Junior...and we called him Junior...and he was ok with that...so...Junior it is. Ryan and Junior talked for the entire time. Junior was a very, very bright boy, and his English was very good. He is only 10. He wants to study to become a doctor. Several of the students requested our email addresses. We gave them to them. Ryan had already received an email from Junior by the time that we arrived back in Grand Yoff. We talked at the school for a while, Maggie showed up shortly after we did, she was quite a help. After a while, we moved down to the beach...which was only about 150-200 yards behind the school. Begg na geej gi ci Yoff (I love the beach (more literally, ocean) in Yoff). We talked there, took pictures there, played there...for quite a while. Eventually Maggie informed us that Cal was waiting for us by the bank. So..we took a walk..a quite short one. When we reached Cal...and his small pickup truck...we were a bit confused. Nonetheless, we all piled in. I do believe 13 people is pretty much the limit for a truck that size.... We drove over to a different part of Yoff (which David and Cheryl were later dismayed that we hadn't just walked to). We went to the compound of a girl named Fatou. Her family was great fun. We just sat around and talked. A lady there spoke very good English, and one of her daughters was actually born in America...yes...and American-Senegalese baby. She was darling. She liked to play too, I got the pleasure of entertaining her for a while. It was a blast. After we had visited a while, we walked to the fisherman's compound in Yoff. Once there, we sat and talked some more. We took more pictures of cute children and looked at a Pelican...they're way bigger than you would think. Eventually, the fatayas were done. Imagine a tiny apple turnover...filled with beef instead of apple. They were very good. We found out later that they are generally made with fish and not beef...but David had requested that they use beef, because they are tastier that way. After the fatayas, we headed out. We went from there back to Grand Yoff to prepare for the celebration tonight. More than celebration... it was a siesta. We were all quite dead for some reason...even though we got more sleep last night than any previous since our arrival. We did manage to get the house ready. Soon enough people arrived. We are having a mini-retreat this weekend. John Wayne came with his wife. Papa came with his wife. A young man from Malika came. Mbathiou came. We began the festivities with a hamburger and potato chip dinner in the dining room of the Center. The dinner also served as a celebratory party for the arrival of new team members Tim and Kate. It also served as a birthday party for Andrew. He turns 20 on the 8th. After dinner, we sang some songs, and Cheryl and Cal told a story. It was an incredible time of peace and wonder. God was there. After this time, we went to the dining room again...we were going to watch a film...but we couldn't get the projector and laptop to work together. So, the film will be saved for tomorrow. We played some drums and danced on the basketball court instead. After the dancing and drumming was finished, people slowly meandered off to bed. Tomorrow our team will be split. I miss them already. At 8:35 tomorrow morning, Travis, Ryan, Andrew, Chris, Meg, and Rachel will leave for the Dakar airport. Their flight leaves at 11 for Ziguinchor. Once ther arrive there, they will be transported via van to Sedhou. They will work through Wednesday. They will return sometime Thursday morning to Dakar. The rest of us will be staying around Grand Yoff tomorrow. The mini-retreat continues, and there will be more story sessions and probably some more singing. Those from our team who are here will likely sit in on the sessions, and possibly keep any children out of trouble...well...out of the way. If there aren't many children, we will probably take a trip to the artisan village, so that the team may get some kind of idea of what souvenirs they might like to buy. Sunday, Kesha, Chelsea, Erin, Brea, and I will go with the Johnsons to Mbour. We will stay there until Thursday, at which point we will return to Dakar...to Ouakam. At this point, our team will be happily reunited. I am excited, already, for this day. Please pray for our team this week, as we are apart. Pray that we will be joyful. Pray that we will be useful. Pray that we will be welcomed...in Sedhou and in the Lehar villages. Also, please pray especially for the family of teammember Ryan Smith. He received a phone call tonight, informing him that his grandmother had passed away. This was not an unexpected death...she had not been given long to live. However, it is a sourly painful death for one person in particular...Ryan's grandfather. The reason is more than just losing one's wife. This man's daughter was killed a week ago in an accident...by a drunk driver. So, within the period of 1 week...this man has lost a daughter and a wife. I cannot even imagine how incredibly painful that would be. Pray for him..pray for Ryan and his father as well. But, also pray for our team as we work this week. God bless you all.