Day #1

Talking at church in Kapuna before heading to Ubuo
(D.Petterson)

‘They’ (whoever ‘they’ are!) say that each day is the first day of the rest of your life. In many ways I subscribe to this and can be a Grinch about New Year’s celebrations because the timing is so arbitrary. On the other hand, I recently experienced the sort of day which really did seem like the start of the rest of my life.

Sunday February 22 was the day. It was the day I went to Ubuo village to start the relationship building and language learning that will (hopefully!) be the foundation of my work and life for years to come.

Until now, my village trips have all been for no more than a few weeks, with the next trip being to a different place. Relationships have all been short term and language learning has not progressed beyond polite greetings. This arrival was the start of the long term. I was thankful that Robbie and Debbie, who already have strong local relationships, were with me to smooth the way.

Our cargo pile on arrival at Ubuo (R.Petterson)

The day started with a low tide, meaning we could not leave until late morning. This gave us time to go to church at Kapuna Hospital before we left. The Kapuna crew were all very excited about this new start to a ministry in their area and sent me out with much prayer and encouragement as their missionary. Being sent locally, as well as internationally, is so encouraging to me as it shows that there is local ownership of my work and that it is not just my clever idea.

As we wound along the rivers to Ubuo, we stopped to visit people in Baimuru and Era Kiti. My GPS tracker says we did 64km. The journey felt longer, partly because of the stops, mostly because of my awareness that this trip signified the start of something new, something I’d been looking forward to for a long time.

Spending time with my village family (D.Petterson)

Our arrival in Ubuo was friendly and low key… the way I like things to be! We had meetings in the house where we were staying and in the church to talk about what me joining the community meant. We talked about how it will take me a while to learn Kope, but that while they are helping me learn, I can be helping them with translation. The helping will need to be mutual to be successful. We also talked about this translation being for all of the Kope people, and not just for Ubuo, and that at times I will spend time visiting the other villages. Smiles, handshakes and more names than I can remember, but a good start in what is now my other home.

Soon I was adopted into the Aumarie family, meaning I have more brothers and sisters than I can keep track of, but a place to belong. In the week we were there I enjoyed getting to know some of my new family and had loving hugs from them when I left.

Day one in Ubuo village, Kope language… the first day of the rest of my life.

Ubuo from the river (H.Schulz)