When our squad was going to Mozambique only two of our six teams got into the country. I am so glad that my team was one of those. We worked at Kedesh Boys Orphanage. Our ministry was to just do life with the boys and it was one of my favorite months of the race.
We lived on the top floor of what we called “the tree house” and would hang our hammocks in the tree during off days. It was the place to be and all the boys would pile in when the hammocks were up.
At Kedesh the motto is work hard, play hard. All of the boys at Kedesh have a job. The jobs are usually along the lines of construction, cooking, cleaning or watching over the animals as they rome freely. If you didn’t have a job you could help your friends or work on your schoolwork. In the afternoons you can always count on a volleyball game, disc golf game, or even a game of cards.
Mondays and Fridays looked a little different. Every Monday morning a group of widows that live near by would come and we would pass out food and cooking supplies so they would have food for the week. On Fridays we had “quesadilla day” where other missionaries in the area would come by for a late lunch. This was my favorite day for food.
When the chickens just get to be to loud to handle in the morning sometimes they become lunch. The boys would eat every part of the chicken and I mean EVERY part!
There are many traditions at Kedesh that I grew to love. One was when a visitor was flying in you could pile on the back of the truck, sit and wait for the airplane to land while enjoying a cold soda. The only rule was you had to wear your nice clothes and shower and you could go. Another one of my favorite traditions at Kedesh was the popcorn and movie night.
In any spare time you could make some special treats or play with whatever toys you can find. Slui loves his bicycles. He is an original Kedesh boy who still lives there to help get items from town. One day I asked him, “What is your favorite day?” his response was “Every time I am awake I love it.”
The team with some of the boys on our last night there. They set up and preformed a entire dance show for us. I miss them all.
