Sending off

(Scott writing...)

Emily, Bill, and I saw the rest of the team off at the docks today with many hugs (still manly if you thump the back) and even some tears. At least R. wasn't there to set Laura off. In fact, we already got most of the waterworks out of the way earlier this morning with a team meeting / prayer session at H's awesome house with the rest of the P. team where if they (R and L) even made eye contact their tear ducts went into overtime production. We did a bit of a team debrief, which was good but threatened to devolve into a patting-ourselves-on-the-back session. Yet it was saved from that ignomious fate with a healthy humility all around, and the growing shared understanding that each of us has been changed by our time in Tanzania with the P. team and their community of friends.

We have taught, fixed computers, played with children, read stories, learned sign language, greeted others and been greeted ourselves innumerable times (many of which we fumbled, except for Emily, who undoubtedly gets the keeping-poise-in-foreign-language award), prayed for and with many of our new Zanzibari friends, and have generally been all-around wazungu. But we wazungu have something special. We know Issa, and in all of these things we have done, we have - with various success - introduced and shared him with these people that J. & R. have fallen in love with.

Now we are done, with most of us on the ferry back to the mainland. But as R. reminded us this morning, the real work still goes on after we are gone back to our normal American lives. And, joyfully, we get to be a part of it - through prayer, support, sharing fellowship with J. & R. (even if it is just over Skype), talking about the Zanzibari with our various circles, and even someday returning to again lend our hands to this good work Issa calls us to. Inshallah.