Everyday life

If I were in Pemba this week...




These are the faces that I would be seeing tomorrow morning if I were in Pemba. I would be getting up early to jog and spend time with God, then I would be either walking (if so, I'd see ladies carrying their loads on their heads on the way there)
or catching a ride to the other base to begin teaching these ladies at 8:30 am.




I would say "Moshellelia Simpwanaka" and "Salaama" (good morning friends! and hello!), give two kisses on either cheek, and hugs, and then start worshiping and dancing! Then we would start teaching!









I would be making time out of my busy day to make sure and eat lunch in the kitchen - because that's where my best friends are!!! These ladies teach me Makua, joke around with me, make special kind of food for me (JUST ME!!!) and save it for me, and sing songs together. They also bring me into the kitchen and try to teach me to make the food with them. This is one of the best parts of my day, and most important, in my opinion (probably the Lord's as well!). Sometimes I get busy and may even miss a lunch meal - but these ladies are the main reason that I make myself stop doing busyness!



I would be getting visits! every night, these two girls knock on my door (the lovely white girl next to me is my roommate, Bridget!!!!! I love her!!) and they come in and just hang out! They are daughters of teachers in the Bible school. They will sometimes jsut sit contently while Bridget and I are doing our own things, or they will play on my computer, or we willl help them with some homework or give them some food. (I had to set some parameters at one point, because for a while I was getting knocks at all times of the day including 6:30 am on a saturday morning! ha!).



This is what I would be doing this weekend if I were in Pemba - sitting on a rope bed, in a hut with good friends, playing cards with a little girl sleeping on my lap and village kids crowing around to see. Or, an amazing friend would be cooking me a meal. I always bring persents when I visit these friends - usually some food, something practical, and something fun like jewelry! I love my weekends. One time I bought bamboo for a friend to fix part of her house.





Seems adventurous, huh? Well this is just everyday life in Pemba!!!


To become a monthly supporter please contact me at Tcierpke@gmail.com
To send a tax deductible gift to me through Miraculous Love Ministries send it here (Always listen to Him first):
P.O. Box 1543
Franklin, TN 37064

Fun Videos from Iris Arts jewelry making class!

Here are some really fun and beautiful videos from our class!
The first two videos are from a day that we had a party and foot washing for the ladies. Because the Pemba base also houses the Harvest School of Missions, we had Harvest schoolers helping with the class for the two months that they were on base. They were in class once a week, and did a lot of other amazing things to help us during the week (we love you, Harvest Schoolers!!!!!). This was their last day to be in the class, so we had a party in which each lady recieved a skirt (an awesome present for them), foot washing, toenails painted, and some brownies!!! It was such an amazing and fun day. They were very thankful and were singing most of the time that we were washing their feet.
The second video down is them getting very excited about receiving skirts! You can hear their token warbling sound that they make with their tongues - it's a type of applause, and it's hard to do!!! I'll master it yet! Ha!

The last video is the ladies having fun during worship. We have worship before class every day, and they have a lot of fun. You can see in the middle of their dance circle that the women bring their children to class, and some of the dance too! One of the little girls is named Regina, and she is always dancing in the middle of the room when we are singing together!!! These ladies have a lot to be upset and worried about - many of them have a lot of children and no husband or way to support themselves ( though Iris does feed them and their families and supply many basic needs). But they are full of joy because of Jesus' love for them, and because they are learning how to make jewelry and will be able to have jobs soon!



Muluku Aureriheni Simpwanaka!!! (God bless you, my friends! - in Makua)

I'm in Nashville - but I'm returning to Mozy!

I am home! Or in one of my two homes.
A week ago I arrived here in Nashville TN, my North American home. Traveling went smoothly, though it took 3 days and I was pooped when I arrived! My friends had a surprise birthday party for me on Wednesday night the 31st, and it was such an amazing gift to me. I am now a quarter of a century old, and ready to live life!

I would love to share the basic life plan with everyone, so here it is:

My 3 months in Pemba was amazing, and challenging. I have been welcomed back by the base leaders in Pemba to to be an Iris Missionary on the base for another 6 months to continue training and loving the 109 ladies that I have been working with. I am excited and have many dreams for the direction of the class!!
Those dreams include working more on technique with them by having small group training, and starting a smaller group on projects with metal jewelry designs such as rings and pendants!! Iris Arts is also working on the business aspect of the project and is looking into selling jewelry online and in the U.S with Heidi Baker as she preaches in other countries.

I am here in the U.S. for about two months, mainly to close this chapter, connect with and say proper goodbyes to YOU, and get better equipped emotionally, spiritually, and physically (with supplies). I am looking for odd jobs as well, looking to share as much as possible about my awesome time in Pemba, am selling my stuff including my car, and am hoping to serve at the Iris Nashville conference coming up Sept. 23-25, as well as at "We Will Go" in Jackson, Mississippi.
I also feel that I need to take advantage of the resources of the U.S. as much as possible when it comes to really equipping myself so I'm going to be studying Portuguese, jewelry techniques and books, as well as hopefully getting to Redding, California to get truly filled and rested and possibly a RTF healing week.
Those both cost money, and my first priority is to get a return ticket to Pemba, and Visa! But I have been feeling the importance of taking care of myself and preparing to be a healthy Missionary and am hoping to be able to do both. While I was in Pemba I started to see the importance of getting rid of my "junk" in order to truly have plenty to give of myself to those around me.
So, those are all the things that I'm dreaming and believing for in this time period!
Please feel free to request getting together with me if you are in Nashville , but do it NOW, because I am going to run out of time quickly, and am planning on going out of town more next month than this one.
Bless you all, and I'll be putting up some more stories from my last weeks there soon!
Love you all so much, and am so happy to be here in my second home!

To become a monthly supporter please contact me at Tcierpke@gmail.com
To send a tax deductible gift to me through Miraculous Love Ministries send it here (Always listen to Him first):
P.O. Box 1543
Franklin, TN 37064