The Shooting

You never know how you're going to react in a crisis...until one happens.

Today's crisis situation in Juba ended up safely. But it was an unpleasant and frightening situation. It seems less significant in retrospect, as the outcome is that everyone is safe- but you can't know the outcome at the time.

This afternoon, about 4:30pm, I was busy in our little schoolroom at the end of the MAF compound. I had returned to "school" to do some preparation for lessons.  Our 3 children were not with me. They often play outside in the afternoons, in the common play-area on the other side of the compound. Or they may go to play at the home of another family. I have a strict rule though and this is it:

• You must ALWAYS tell Mum where you: whose house you are in or where you are playing. 

They know the rule.

Esther had duly been to tell me that she would be in little Imani's house (one of Joel's classmates).

The boys had told me, "We will be playing either in the playground or in Caleb's house". 

Caleb, aged 5, is a great friend of our boys, from another MAF pilot family. Their house is right on the opposite side of our compound from the school room. On the way to Caleb's house, Ben and Joel would cross the playground. Because we have guards on the MAF gate, I am usually confident and relaxed about the children having the freedom to play in the playground by themselves. It is situated right in the centre of our MAF compound, with houses on 3 sides.

4:40pm

 I thought I heard some shots being fired, but I wasn't sure. I opened the classroom door and listened hard. I am always alert for these kinds of sounds in Juba! Especially at the moment, when compound break-ins are becoming more and more prevalent and so many perpetrators are armed with guns. Only yesterday I had sat with a Burundian from our church over coffee while he told me that 2 of his housemates had been shot and killed in a burglary on a Saturday night, at the house where he stays in Juba. That happened just a few weeks ago. Then last weekend, we heard about a night-burglary at another Juba NGO compound where their offices were emptied of anything of value while the guards were threatened into silence by armed thieves.

I tuned my ear to the sounds coming from the neighbouring compound. It seemed that the South Sudanese children on the other side of the fence, close to our schoolroom, were playing happily. If that was so, then maybe I had imagined the gunshots? I thought perhaps I had just heard the noise of something heavy being dropped from the building site situated immediately outside of the compound walls, behind the schoolroom.

4:45pm

I had turned to go back inside to work- but a few minutes later, there was the unmistakable sound of gunshots- and very close by. So I had not imagined gunshots- but now they were louder and closer together. I jumped. Then I ran to the door again, flinging it open and listening. "BANG! BANG! BANG!" There was no mistaking the sound of shots ringing through the Juba air! But where were the shots coming from? I felt sick as I realised that they sounded like they were coming from the playground area...

That was when the panic set in. Immediately, my thoughts were, "What about my children??" I knew Esther would be looked after at Imani's house, but I wasn't sure if the boys were still in the playground, or whether they had decided to play indoors at Caleb's house. Had they made it indoors or were they in danger? Was someone shooting in the playground?? PANIC!

Suddenly, adrenaline set in- but so did confusion. I did not know what to do. Dash across the compound as fast as I could to see if my children were in the playground? I looked out of the schoolroom window. The place was deserted- except for one of our workers running, his mobile phone pressed to his ear, keeping low and close to the wall. Maybe it was not safe to run? So what should I do? If I got shot, I was not going to be any help to my children. I knew I must phone Caleb's mum and check if my boys were there, but in those few minutes before I could definitely locate them, I turned to jelly and my mind was a fuzz of indecision. 

I grabbed my phone to call Caleb's mum, Kristen. My fingers were shaking so much, I could barely pull up her number on my screen. It seemed that my fingers had been replaced by fat, uncontrollable rubber. Frustrated, I tried to focus my mind to make my fingers work. Kristen answered immediately and before I could speak, she firmly stated, "Liz, your boys are both here. They are in the house with me and my kids. They are fine." It was just as well that she spoke first, because when I tried to speak, I found that my voice was malfunctioning along with my fingers! I managed a grateful sob of relief and a few gabbled sentences. Kristen was fantastic, calm and in control and happy to keep Ben and Joel until the crisis had passed- until we knew what was going on.

 Now I must check on Esther. I had every confidence that Imani's mum, Chantal, would take good care of  Esther, along with her own 2 small children. But I still wanted to speak with her. Thankfully,  as I hung up from Kristen, Chantal was already calling me. When I answered, it was Esther who spoke to me, as Chantal wanted to reassure her that I was OK.

"Mummy, are you OK?" came her little voice. As soon as your 9 year old asks you that question, you have to be sensible, for her sake! So I took a deep breath and managed to find my Calm Voice.

"Yes, Esther, I am fine," I answered. "I am in the schoolroom. The door is locked and your brothers are safely at Caleb's. Stay with Chantal and listen to her."

"Yes, Mum. We are all lying on the floor with our heads down," she replied. 

What an image for me to think about, of my 9 year old daughter.

Now that I knew my children were in safe hands, I could think about what I should do next. Should I just lock up as best I could and remain here? Close the schoolroom shutters and carry on with work? But it was impossible to concentrate. My mind was buzzing! Looking back, it is incredible how many questions suddenly jostled in my mind. I think the worst thing about the situation was not knowing what was happening. 

Were there armed robbers on the compound? 

Would they try and break into the schoolroom, thinking it was an office with money and laptops to steal? 

What should I do if they broke in? 

Would I be shot? 

Or was there some kind of bigger trouble happening in Juba- and were we all in danger, on or off compound?

Before I came to any decision, Andrew called my phone. He had just landed at the airport across town and been informed of the situation, He was not allowed to come back to the MAF compound until we knew who and where the shooting was coming from. 

What a relief to hear his voice- so calm and sensible! My voice sounded rather wobbly in contrast. He advised me to inform the office staff of my whereabouts and to try to get out of the prefab schoolroom to a solid brick house. He had also asked another member of staff to check on me. I had not realised that I was not protected from bullets by the thin walls of the schoolroom. Naively, I had felt safe...

Over the next few minutes, staff member Stephen came by, calmly reassuring me that there was no sign of a shooter actually on the compound, that all we had to do now was be sensible, take precautions and wait for the All Clear text message. People were starting to move about. Next, Chantal delivered Esther to the schoolroom, on her way to a "Safe-Room". I called our next door neighbour, Sue and told her that Esther and I would make a run across the grass from the schoolroom to the house. She said she'd keep a lookout for us. 

When we got to our house, Esther and I did not feel like being on our own, so we knocked on Sue's door and she welcomed us in and locked the door behind us. We sat in her darkened lounge, the curtains drawn for safety. And if course, with Sue and I both being British, we drank tea! What a welcome cuppa that was :-) and even better with the bourbon creams she managed to rustle up for Esther and I!

5:30pm, 

The crisis was averted and we received the All Clear. Esther and I thanked Sue and bounded across the compound to be reunited with Ben and Joel. Shortly after this, Andrew was able to come home.

Thankfully, no-one on the compound had been hurt, although all of us had been shaken up. We found out that immediately outside our compound fence, near the kid's playground, a shoot-off had occurred, to do with an armed robbery. Two men were killed, right there in broad daylight. Sadly.

But not one of us on the compound had come to any harm.

This morning, I had woken earlier than usual. I got ready for jogging with Sue, but had a bit of time before our 06:40 meeting time. So I picked up my daily book of Bible readings and read the passage for today: Psalm 5. 

It seemed like verses 11 and 12 jumped off the page, even though the day's focus was supposed to be on earlier verses. I actually started as I read them, as they seemed to be almost highlighted. I decided I would use parts of verse 11 and 12 as a prayer for the day, for all of us in Juba:

"Spread your protection over them (all who take refuge in you)... surround them with favour as with a shield."

What a great picture, of being well protected, as if a blanket were spread over us. And what incredible timing! I don't think I could have read a verse more apt, to prompt such a relevant prayer for the events of today. 

We certainly felt that protection, just like a "shield" keeping bullets and robbers with guns outside of the compound boundary. Ensuring that all the children on the compound were safely indoors exactly at the time they needed to be. Keeping us all secure. I think many of us here are spending this evening feeling very thankful!

I also know that I learnt much today about my reactions in a crisis and some new lessons in "dos" and "don'ts". But that would be a new topic altogether. Right now, I need some sleep. It's been an exhausting afternoon!

Crocodiles on the Nile

Earlier this week, Andrew was invited to go kayaking along the River Nile, with a fellow MAF Juba pilot who owns inflatable kayaks.Ben was also invited to go with Andrew.

Andrew thought this would be a great opportunity for Ben. There would be 7 adults in total. our friend's 5 year old son and possibly Ben.
I knew Andrew would love the outing- but I was nervous about Ben going! Andrew asked me what I was thinking...
"Taking Ben? Absolutely not!" I exclaimed. "This is the River Nile you are talking about!! A deep, murky, fast-flowing river! If Ben falls in, I'll never seen him again! This is not some nice, calm little river, with a coastguard on hand in case anything goes wrong!"

It is a fact that I have a wonderful imagination. It can be a gift. It can also be the source of nightmarish imaginings, causing me to fret and worry far more than I should. And in this case. my imagination began to run away with me.
In my mind's eye. I envisioned Andrew and Ben in a capsized kayak, the wild current of the rushing Nile pulling my 7 year old son underwater! Or perhaps Ben would be attempting to climb into the kayak, just as an enormous, vicious Nile crocodile emerged from the tangled riverside undergrowth. Its jaws would be wide open, its sharpened teeth bared and flashing in the South Sudanese sunshine- it would thrash through the grass, poised to snack on Ben!

I asked others what they thought. Would my 7 year old be safe in a kayak on the Nile? Most people smiled indulgently and answered that he would be fine. After all, our MAF friend was taking his 5 year old son! And why should I worry when Andrew would be right there with Ben?? But I still had niggling worries...especially about crocodiles!

 Last night, we had a South Sudanese friend here for dinner, so I asked him whether it was realistic of me to worry about crocodiles in the Nile? He replied that the Nile crocodiles are not found near Juba. The city is too developed and anyway, the Nile flows too quickly for crocodiles in Juba. Crocodiles prefer quieter inlets and calmer areas, far away from urban development.

My anxieties began to dissipate. Andrew had secured a life-jacket for Ben. I agreed that kayaking on the Nile with his dad would be a wonderful experience for Ben.

Andrew and Ben left early this morning. Esther, Joel and I waved them off. I mentally packed up all my wild imaginings, firmly closing the lid on any thoughts of pesky man-eating crocodiles!

Four hours later, an exuberant Ben burst through the front door, a beaming smile spread across his face.
"It's me!" he announced. And his first words?
"I saw a crocodile!!"

Indeed he had. When Andrew followed Ben into the house, he confirmed Ben's report with photos from his camera. Thankfully, it was not too close and it showed no aggression!
My worries about crocodiles were well founded, then! But at least Andrew and Ben had not run into any actual danger- there was nothing as dramatic as my imagined scenarios! They had a fabulous outing. They got a photo of the croc basking on the riverbank. Andrew even saw a second reptile- or at least, the snout and eyes of another Nile crocodile, just before it slipped quietly out of sight, deeper into the muddy river.
Here are their pictures:

Prize-Giving Celebration

It is September: the traditional time to begin a new school year in the British education system. Accordingly, we started Year 5 for Esther and Year 3 for Ben at our home-school on Monday last week.

Before continuing much further with the new school year, we wanted to take time to celebrate the year we have just completed: our very first year of home-schooling!

We chose Saturday morning to celebrate the completion of this first year of home-school. 

Andrew The Chef made a plate of pancakes and we started with a special family breakfast: 

Then we moved on to our miniature Prize-Giving ceremony!
Andrew The Headmaster gave a short speech (even the cat was impressed and came close to listen):

Then it was time for the presentation of hand-made certificates and a small prize (we still have a stock of sweets from England to use for these special occasions!).

Esther celebrated completion of Year 4 (with much giggling!):

Ben celebrated completion of Year 2:

Joel celebrated his fist ever year at school, as he has just started completed "preschool" and moved up to "Kindergarten" at the little local school he attends. We wanted to include him too:

It was a fun way to mark the end of our academic year!

Joel went back to Juba Christian Academy on Wednesday. He was a little apprehensive but is coming home happy each day. Now he is 4, he goes to school from 9-12 and then again from 1-3pm. He seems so grown up all of a sudden! Here he is with his new teacher, at his brand-new desk with 3 of his class-mates:

We are so grateful for Joel's lovely Kindergarten school where he enjoys learning with his MAF friends.

Meanwhile, our initial year of home-schooling has been quite a journey. Sometimes joyful and fun. Sometimes painful and stressful.

The Joys

Teaching in any environment always has its rewards. These rewards are what I love about teaching: seeing children achieve new skills, seeing their enthusiasm when they gain new knowledge, seeing realisation dawn on children's faces when they suddenly understand something new. Most of all, it is so rewarding to see increased confidence in children as they enjoy their achievements. I have rediscovered my love of teaching after several years of being Mum!

In addition, it is amazing to get to know my own children even better than I thought I knew them!
I have gained more insight into the way they think and learn. It is exciting to share their successes first-hand, as well as being there to support them when they encounter difficulties. It is a rare privilege to have this time with our children whilst they are young (including Joel, as he often joins in with home-school between his own school times).

We have also had lots of fun with topic work, science investigations, cooking experiments and the lovely, hands-on side of learning.

The Challenges

I have had to "re-learn" how to teach! Home-schooling is an entirely different setting from the class-room teaching I did for 8 years. I have had to learn how to teach 2 different age-groups with 2 different topics simultaneously, in a short time-bracket to fit around Joel's preschool hours. It has been a steep learning curve!
Esther and Ben have also had to learn to relate to their Mum as Teacher. This side of home-schooling can actually be one of the hardest, as switching roles for all of us can be extremely challenging.
We are still learning what "home-schooling" means, but with a year behind us, I can reflect on what went well and what went badly. I can learn from my successes and my mistakes.

Last year, I found home-schooling isolating. When problems occurred, I no longer had a team of fellow-teachers to turn to as I did in my teaching career. There's no staff room to share ideas in over coffee, no support network when things are not going well.
When we did home-school in the house, I missed interaction with other adults. I spent some days without going outside of the front door. I was simply too busy, with teaching, then house-work!
Furthermore, I have been sorely conscious of the social scene happening on the compound but have had to accept that now is not the season to be involved. For now, my commitment is to my children and their education. Investing time in the MAF team has to take a backseat.

This year, however, there are some very positive changes making a BIG difference. 

The first, most significant change is our wonderful school-room. Having a place to go to school does make all the difference. Psychologically and physically. School no longer encroaches on weekends and evenings. I don't have to see my place of work every time I walk through my home! It is easier to relax when school is over. It has drastically reduced the stress level.

As I cross the compound to the school room I meet and greet other adults on the MAF staff and even that simple fact is so refreshing!

The school room is an excellent space for learning. It makes the learning seem more like school and helps us all to have better focus and structure.

Secondly, we have new friends in Juba, from France, who are also home-schooling, with children the same age as ours! :-) It has been a revelation to me that other people have been through the same types of joys and struggles- it is so good to know that what I have felt is normal! The support network I felt was missing has suddenly appeared!

Lastly, being in England and feeling the support of friends and family for Andrew's MAF work and for my home-schooling has bolstered me. I have a renewed sense of confidence and purpose as we move ahead.

We now look forward to our second year of home-school, thankful for all the joys and for all the changes which will help us to face the challenges. We have alot to celebrate! It was so good on Saturday to take time out to particularly celebrate Esther and Ben's hard work and their survival of being home-schooled by Mum for their first home-schooling experience!

Questions

One week has passed since my last blog post. We are happy to report that Joel is doing well and is much better! In addition. the security situation appears calm. We are still keeping a cautious eye out for any "developments" but day to day life is happily sauntering along...

Without the more significant issues of health problems and national security, we have had time to ponder some other, less significant, questions.... such as, "What kind of snake is this?"

 Esther discovered this slithery serpent last Thursday. We were walking back from our school room to our house, at midday. Don't worry- we established the snake's certain death before I allowed her to handle it! Esther was keen to look closer to work out how it had died and whether it was lethal or harmless...

The boys also had a good look. They made sure the head was definitely crushed and unable to bite them, before picking up the lifeless reptile and using it to scare as many people as possible on the MAF compound, swinging it close to unsuspecting individuals!

 We are still not sure what kind of snake it is, although a national South Sudanese staff member told us it is dangerous. We also established from the night guard that it was he who had beaten it to death at 3am that morning.

We then discovered from the national staff that handling a dead snake is risky. Apparently, the venom can seep through the snake's skin from the brittle bones after rigor mortis sets in. If we had handled that snake later in the day, we could have been at risk of poisoning!

With that new knowledge, we will be far more careful around snakes- both dead and alive!

A second, very trivial, question has also kept us guessing in Juba: "What kind of jam are we eating?"

There was not a lot of choice in the shop for jam, so this is what I bought!
The label is not much help to me. I asked the shop-keeper what type of jam it was, but he seemed as unable to read Arabic as I am. The picture is so obscure that it does not enlighten us futher! The taste is nondescript- a sugary, fruity kind of flavour- but mostly sugar!
Such an insignificant question! But nicer than time spent recently reading up on periorbital cellulitis or anxiously reading news reports to check on security!