We have had restricted access to the internet for over two weeks up until July 1st which is the reason for the long gap between my first blog from Kedesh and this second one. Hopefully now that we have full access again, I can catch up with my Blogs from Kedesh
I am not going to give a long explanation here of what Kedesh Santuario is and how it is run. You can get all of the information about Kedesh by searching the internet at www.kedeshmozambique.com. You should also be able to find out about the two people who run Kedesh, John Wickes and Heather Prickard. There are also some good video clips on You-Tube. This blog will focus on a brief summary of daily life here at Kedesh.
The day officially starts at 5.30 when we are woken up to the sounds of half an hour of gospel music. Unfortunately we are nearly always awake before 5.30, thanks either to the sounds of the 4.30 heavy goods train passing over the level crossing about 3/4 of a mile from here and making as much noise as possible warning people on the road that it is approaching, or by the cockerel in the tree outside our bedroom window which wakes up between 04.00 and 04.30 every morning and wants the whole world to know about it. A few well aimed stones have been used on occasions to try to curtail its noise I wonder how many people knew that hens sleep in tress during the night. Apparently they used be known as Jungle Fowl, according to my fellow BMS volunteer Ashley, and they stayed in trees during the hours of darkness to escape predators. There will be more about this cockerel in another blog.
We have breakfast outside as there are no dining room facilities yet. These will be available after the new building is completed. Breakfast starts at 06.00 outside with a prayer before everyone eats either a semolina type dish or a dry oatmeal mixed with hot water. Ashley and I nearly always mix in some jam or chopped up banana to give breakfast some flavour. John Wickes then reads a passage from the bible for about ten minutes.
Once breakfast is over, some of the boys head for school. There are not enough schools or school places for all children to attend at the same time so the days are split with children either going in the morning or in the afternoon. The boys that do not go to school in the morning are expected to clean and tidy their living areas and also outside around the accommodation.
There is a small herd of cattle and a small herd of goats kept at Kedesh. They are kept locked up during the hours of darkness. During the day they are let out to roam over the eight acres of field area that is owned by Kedesh. The boys are assigned shepherding duties, the older boys tend the cattle, and the younger boys the goats. The rotas are two hours each and they are changed every week. The purpose of this duty is to teach the boys how to handle responsibility and how to be part of the team.
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| Herd of cattle at Kedseh |
The boys also help Joyce the cook in the morning with preparing the lunch time meal. Joyce leaves after lunch and the older boys who are back from school prepare the evening meal with help from the younger boys who collect the vegetables from the Kedesh gardens, and also twigs and branches to help with the fire for cooking.
The older boys are expected to help with general maintenance around Kadesh.
All of the boys have to do their own washing by hand and hang it out to dry. They are not allowed to wear dirty clothes.
There is usually time for some volleyball or football in the late afternoon before the evening meal.
A movie is shown each evening by John Wickes after the meal except on Friday evenings when we have Bible Study. A super large bowl of popcorn is provided for the boys to eat during the movie. The boys have to make the popcorn themselves.
The day finishes when the movie ends and we are usually all in bed by 9.30 pm. That may sound early to most people in the UK but after working all day outside on the new building, going to bed at 9.30 is something that we look forward to, especially as we know that our resident cockerel is going to be exercising his lungs and vocal cords outside our bedroom window from anytime after 4.00 am.
So that is a brief summary of daily life at Kedesh. I will update all of you with the progress of the building work in my next blog later this week.
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