[1]
John 1:5
Good News Translation
5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has never put
it out.
I stood there. No one was awake at night, and no electricity
existed within 25 miles at that hour. No vehicles of any kind were on the road.
Nyamuswa was pitch black. There were no phones, not even at home. Cell phones
had not been invented. No one knew when I was coming. There was no way I could lug
my heavy luggage the three miles to my home at Ikizu on foot. I knew no one in
the hamlet. There was no gas station, no café.
Puzzled, I stood there in the night. I hadn’t planned what I
would do at this point. Stars were bright in the moonless sky. They made the
white-washed walls of the buildings visible, ghostly visible. About four or
five low thatched roof buildings down on the right was the maternity clinic
that always had several women with complications awaiting their babies. There
would be a caretaker there in case an emergency happened at night.
My mind clutched at a faint hope. Maybe I could awaken her
and leave my bags there. Of course, men were not welcome there, day or night. Every
idiot knew that! I was a foreigner, mzungu. Maybe, just maybe, I could
persuade her to let me store my bags there.
I trudged up to the dark, heavy wooden door. “Hodi!” I
called loudly. I knocked on the door—no one knocks on a door; they always call “Hodi!”
After repeated calling, a highly suspicious voice replied “Ni
nani?” (“Who’s there?”)
“Ni Wilton Clarke kutoka Ikizu!” (“I’m Wilton Clarke from
Ikizu.”) With that I had practically exhausted my Swahili. Fortunately, she
spoke more English than I did Swahili. After some protracted talking, she understood
that I just wanted to leave my bags in her clinic until the next morning. She
showed me where to put them, and I left her with a heartfelt “Asante sana!” I
would be lying if I said there was not a hint of a worry as to whether I would
see them the next morning.
Elsewhere I tell about how the military had been called to Nyamuswa,
and they had shot 9 elephants in the Nyamuswa gardens, so wild animals did come
into this area every so often. I hadn’t heard any actual reports about animals
recently, but I did know that leopards would roam where ever they pleased and
that they often killed just for the thrill of killing. Of course, you’ve heard
about poisonous snakes and other undesirables. All of these things were in my
mind as I started to walk, by starlight, the three miles home.
It was bright enough so I could see where the road surface
was. The stars were brilliant. Orion was high in the sky along with its
accompanying constellations. The Milky Way was spectacular. So, I really did
enjoy the walk. I let myself into the house shortly after three o’clock. Sylvia
expressed surprise and joy at seeing me. Later that morning I went back and
picked up my bags. They had been moved but were totally unmolested.
Thank You, Lord, for the beauty of a still, dark night
with a bit of tension yet filled with Your care.
[1]
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/light-pollution-star-night-sky-england-rural-census-orion-campaign-a8873096.html
No comments:
Post a Comment