didn't sleep well, as up several times with bad diarrhoea. it was also very noisy last night, with a disco going on in the hotel til early hours, cocks crowing at 5am, donkey braying about the same time, then the muslim minaret calling the people to prayer at 5.30am, and finally some early morning christian worship. my stomach is not good, and i decided to stay back today as i need to be close to a loo. i was due to go out with paul and bishop charles to some remote parish, but the travelling would be bad and the toilets non-existent so its best i stay at the hotel. i'm also feeling weak, and need a day to rest.
as i write this, its almost 11am, and for the last hour and a half i've heard some kind of christian church service going on not far away. it sounds like its an outdoor meeting that's being amplified. lots of singing - very long songs; a woman preaching, another giving testimony, some sung worship, and more singing. its quite comforting really, though in my present state i'm glad i'm not part of it.
i've noticed how much slower the pace of life is here, and the effect its had on me. for example, in london i'm always in a rush - i walk quickly, etc. i often wonder, when seeing how slowly africans walk in london, how they can physically walk so slowly. but now i'm here, i can understand. and now i'm walking slowly like them too, and it feels perfectly natural to do so. in the heat, its madness to try to do too much too quickly.
when we were in the outback yesterday, the roads were quite bad and very dusty. it felt bad to be driving past people who were walking, and showering them with clouds of red dust, especially knowing they would not be able to have a shower at the end of the day.
we saw many people herding their cattle (brahman) and various breeds of goats along the roads. when we went over one river, we saw a couple of young boys having a great time rolling down the muddy riverbank into the water. these are a people who enjoy living, difficult as their circumstances are, who are quick to smile, who welcome the stranger, and show generous hospitality. so different to us.
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