At St James I was accommodated in what used to be the store room next to Eelin’s front door, an initially daunting prospect with the bed vying with old tubs of paint for space. However the bed was surprisingly comfortable and after two days of continuous travelling I slept very well. Amon and his wife Senzeni went out of their way to provide good meals, with chicken, meat, eggs, porridge, salad , bread and even margarine in evidence. At the meals we were joined by Stanley and Margaret, who were looking very well, Ms Bafana, and the deputy head of the secondary school Father Ncube who is a geography teacher and recently ordained to assist Amon. So I was able to learn much about life at the mission and get a feel for the personal dynamics. Relationships seemed to be good between all of these people, with humour and conversation continuing throughout. It seemed to me that after eight years at the mission Amon has settled into his role and now does not need to over-exert his authority. With Ms Bafana, who struck me as committed to the school and astute (though wearied by the challenges of finding food and fuel) and the other senior staff there is now a team in place who deserve our support. The adversity of the economic and political situation has drawn people together. My presence and encouragement will also have shown them that they can continue to expect long term support from the Friends for what is a very special place.
I was able to join the school for the Sunday morning service and to enjoy the girl’s singing (still at a high standard through Leonore Muvirimi’s supervision at hymn practice). A few locals were present in the side chapel but no staff at the back of church (the secondary school is fully staffed, though, due to the parents paying them a monthly supplement on top of their government salary). I was invited to preach and the girls were certainly curious to hear what this unexpected visitor from distant parts had to say. I could remind them of 2 Corinthians 1 and how suffering is accompanied by comfort and that they and Zimbabwe were at the centre of the Friends’ concern and prayers at this time. Also that the darkest part of the night comes just before dawn… I could also remind them that this was the 50th anniversary year of Fr Boatwright’s founding of St James, something to celebrate amid all the hardships.
