May 21, 2006 (5:00 p.m. by the Fireplace in the Dining Hall)

Just like my last entry I have fallen behind on my journaling and am having to catch up now. So last place I left off was Thursday night. Work on campus started bright and early on Friday morning. Breakfast was at 7:15 a.m. and consisted of corn flakes with warm milk, toast and "ham/bacon type" meat. Once we wrapped up with breakfast we sat around for a while until Chuck came in and briefed us on the work details. Dressed and ready for work, we made our way down to the maintenance shed and got our tools. With wheelbarrows and picks/sledgehammers in hand, we walked up the hill to the top of campus to our worksite; the inhabitable pool. The stones around the edge of the pool had become uneven and many were torn up. So our assignment was to rip up and break up all the large stones around the pool, carry them away to a dump pile then relay new stones and rocks around the pool's edge and pour cement to seal it off. We began hacking away at the stones, one by one, with each swing of the picks we had. At around 9:30 a.m., after about 1 1/2 hours of work, we cleaned up a bit and made our way back down the hill to the chapel for devotions at 9:45 a.m. Teat time came shortly after at 10:00 a.m. and we mingled for a bit over coffee and "biscuits" before returning to work. The tearing and breaking up continued and continued until the lunch hour came and we were off to eat again. This meal was at 1:00 p.m. and was a special meal as it was a braai (meat barbecue) welcoming students who had spent their first semester at NTC. A group of about 15 students shared and introduced themselves to the group and then the braii began consisting of lots and lots of meat! Chicken, rib-like beef and sausage, completed with a grain-based, mashed potato-like South African specialty called "pap" but pronounced "pup." And my prayers were answered when mango juice was on the table in pitchers! Something other than water from my Nalgene. After a few glasses of juice we were back to work.

The work time after lunch was very productive. Some added excitement came when Kensey was hacking away at a stone and out popped a snake. We had been warned ever since we got here that there were Mozambiqan spitting cobras on campus, so there was already a heightened awareness. After playing a game of hide & seek for a while, the snake finally resurfaced at which point Steve with his yellow work gloves and all reached down and grabbed the snake and threw it down on the grass nearby. Much to Kensey's dismay he swung his "pick/sledge" and killed it. Throughout the day there had been several spurts of rain and soon after the snake sighting there was another strong one. We finished work for the day, took back the picks and sledge in the wheelbarrows. Michael, Steve and I returned to Chalet #10, got cleaned up and made our way back to the dining hall at 5:00 p.m. for yet another meal! This meal consisted of rice as usual, salad and a stew with beef and potatoes. Dinner soon ended and then the students of NTC held a "fireside fellowship" which included songs on the guitar, poetry and some other fun activities. After a few games and several hours of dance partying, the evening ended and we were back to the chalet and fast asleep after a long day.