Reflections from Daniel Wozniczka about his experience of Explore My Mission 2010 in Tanzania

"Above all else, Explore My Mission 2010 was a learning experience. Before the trip, I knew nothing about Maryknoll. I knew nothing about life in Tanzania. And as I soon discovered, I knew nothing about what mission is. I am proud to say that I now know a great deal about mission, have truly experienced the culture of Tanzania, and have many friends in Maryknoll. But more so than just learning about mission, Tanzania, or Maryknoll, the trip allowed me to learn a great deal more. It helped me learn about my relationship with God, and it helped me learn about myself. That, above all else, is what I am most grateful for."

Farewell Tanzania!

We would like to thank all of the Maryknoll Brothers, Sisters, Fathers, Lay Missioners and Affiliates who worked so hard to make Explore My Mission in Tanzania such a wonderful experience for us!

Maryknoll Missioners, your work is truly inspiring! Thank you for offering us the privilege to share in it!

Special thanks to Maryknoll Brother Mark Huntington who arranged all of our logistics and made everything go so smoothly!

Asanteni Sana!

Katherine and Daniel with Fr. Mike Bassano (holding Mikaeli) at Kigera Community with Tanzanian Servant of Love, Theodora.

Katherine with friend, Petro, at Kigera Community

Daniel conversing with friend, Danieli, at Kigera Community

Enjoying Water Balloons with the Children

Lisa's Pride Supports Children with HIV

Lisa's Pride is a project founded by Maryknoll Sister Marion Hughes assisted by Maryknoll Lay Missioner Liz Mach which supports children who are HIV+ and allows them to enjoy their childhood and maintain good health.

Helping to feed Ernesti, who suffers with leprosy

Daniel helping bathe disabled man at Kigera

Doing Dishes with Kigera Community

Katherine caring for Anita at Kigera with John (left) and Batista (right)

Maryknoll Father Mike Bassano (holding child Mikaeli) and Edina with Theodora to left at Kigera Community

Fr. Mike works at Kigera Community, a place which welcomes excluded and abandoned peoples of society, including the physically and mentally disabled.

Sundown on the Serengeti

Safari Here We Come!

We had the privilege to spend a day on a safari in the great Serengeti National Park where we saw over 35 different kinds of animals, including: lions, zebras, giraffes, wildebeest, ostriches, hyenas, jackals, crocodiles, hippos and of course, the famous tsetse fly! Look for our slideshow post from the safari!

Visiting a Family attended by Uzima Centre

The man living with AIDS declares "God is trying to heal me."

Katherine & Daniel at Uzima Center

The 53 Most Memorable Quotes

The main purpose of this blog is to help share our experience with those back home. However, for this post, the purpose is the exact opposite. The quotes of this blog post are all inside jokes between the six of us: Katherine, Francisco, Karen, Father Dennis, Brother Mark, and myself. This blog post is meant to celebrate the 53 funniest and most memorable quotes of Explore my Mission 2010. Enjoy.

1. "Gimme that one"
2. "Oh yeah, that's nice"
3. "I wanna see a cheetah"
4. "What part of a chicken is this?"
5. "We have beautiful beaches in Venezuela."
6. "I will come to America and search for you"
7. "I know she lives in America, but was she born in Tanzania?"
8. "The diarrhea was like a cleansing...............I'm trying to eat over here!"
9. "I have a question specifically for him (Francisco), 'How would you counsel an HIV couple when one partner is negative"
10. "Please come meet my family"
11. "Once I finish school and become a doctor, I plan to return and work in Tanzania"
12. "I never thought I would hear a priest say that"
13. "I would ask you how you slept Daniel, but it would just make me jealous"
14. "The lion licking her neck was just some foreplay"
15. "What time would you like to go to bed Karen?............Was that an invitation?!?"
16. "Is that a chicken? Or is it a duck? Or is it a chicken-duck?"
17. "Everyone ready? Well even if you're not I'm taking the photo...."
18. "Alright everybody, Let's go"
19. "If you don't worry about it, then it won't happen to you."
20. "My mechanism doesn't work 100% of the time"
21. "Bats don't bite, unless they have rabies"
22. "Just pick a damn jam!"
23. "All I see is three candles.... I'm taking the photo anyway"
24. "Where are the hamburgers? Oh! Here they are. They're still in the freezer!"
25. "Eat those hot dogs, because they'll keep on coming back until we do"
26. "Daniel! You forgot to say last card again!!"
27. "Do you concur?...... Indeed"
28. "Can we put a picture of your hair on the blog?.......... If you want a good rest of the trip then you won't"
29. "- Look there's a lion over there! ............... - No, that's just a tree.......... - No it's not! That's a lion!.............. - Trust me, I'm using the binoculars. It's just a tree."
30. "I can't believe I saw a priest use an I-Phone for Mass"
31. "You have a car, Katherine? How did you get a car?"
32. "I want to go to Canada, because of the way it sounds: Ca-na-da"
33. "I will always associate the Serengeti with Lebron James choosing Miami over Chicago"
34. "African massage"
35. "Where is....... Wazu?"
36. "I saw Katherine was sleeping, and I tried really hard not start laughing. Then I saw Father Dennis was asleep too, and I could no longer control the laughter. I thought to myself, 'Wow. Karen and Francisco must hate the three of us. While they are filming us, two of us are sleeping, and one can't stop giggling"
37. "The real reason is because: You're in Africa"
38. "I even miss those oddly shaped pillows at CPE"
39. "I asked him what the score of the soccer game was, but he didn't speak English, and he thought I wanted to take his radio"
40. "I am going to post the most epic blog tonight guys..."
41. "There's an awful lot of Spanish being spoken on this trip"
42. "Here kitty kitty (while looking for a cheetah)"
43. "Katherine, I can't believe the two of us are watching the World Cup final, in Africa, in a room with 50 nuns and priests, passing our alcohol around"
44. "I've never shaken so many hands as I did after church today"
45. "Daniel! Look at Father Dennis's left ear! I think it's pierced!"
46. "Well Daniel, it looks like we're both locked out of our rooms"
47. "Francisco and I would like to invite everyone to the party tonight at the Rhino rooms"
48. "Are these beers frozen?"
49. "Daniel is going to go through withdrawals back home without that tea"
50. "Wait, you mean that everyone had a TV in their room except for me!"
51. "Did you just put mayonnaise on that hot dog? In Chicago, that's sacrilegious!"
52. "Karen! Get out of the photo!........... okay, now you can go back Karen"

And finally.....

53. "Once Africa is in your blood, you always come back"

I would like to thank the five of you for a wonderful trip. May God bless all of you in your future journeys, and may we one day meet again.

5 Loaves of Bread and 2 Fish

5 loaves of bread and 2 fish was all Jesus needed to feed a crowd of 5 thousand people. It was a miracle that with so little he was able to do so much. The same is truth in the mission field today. The people I have met here in Tanzania are working and doing a lot with their own version of 5 leaves of bread and 2 fish.

For example, using some basic materials and the sun energy, a Maryknoll Sister is able to do solar cooking. She has taken this cooking method to villages where gas and electricity isn’t available.

Also, a school and a couple of after school programs are being run with simple tools. However, the curriculums are great as well as the results.

After all it doesn’t take a lot to improve the quality of living of a community, town, city or country. These missioners in Tanzania are using the resources they have handy --resources that could be limited at times-- but just like Jesus fed 5 thousand people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish, these missioners with so little are providing hope and a future to many.

He (Jesus) told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field." -Luke 10:2

It is worthy to support the missionary cause.

Receiving Gifts of Harvest from the Maryknoll Affiliates Women's Group

We were blown away by our warm welcome with traditional Sukuma singing and dancing by a Women's Group organized by the Maryknoll Affiliates in Tanzania!
You have to see this video to understand why!

Fr. Dennis reading with student at Uzima Centre.

"Some things are not meant to make sense because, if they did,

the beauty within the mystery would be gone."

- Quote on bulletin board in Uzima Centre, which provides assistance for families living with HIV/AIDS.

Katherine converses with Maryknoll Sister Celeste Derr at Uzima Centre

Maryknoll Lay Missioners Michelle Otte and Joanne Miya both work at Uzima Centre founded by the Maryknoll Sisters.

Soccer Teams at Uzima Centre

Karen and Daniel led a soccer face-off at Uzima Centre, which provides assistance to people living with HIV/AIDS. (Daniel's team was victorious!!)

Karibu

Tanzanians use the word Karibu to tell their guests that they are welcome in their homes. It is by far one of the most common words I have heard here in Tanzania. Having guests over is an honor for Tanzanians, as they pull out all the stops to ensure they are comfortable. Certain things are common, such as hosts offering us chairs while they themselves stand. However, when we visited the Maryknoll affiliate woman's group, we experienced a whole new sense of being welcomed. The group works together to help overcome the difficulties of living in poverty. We were greeted with singing, dancing, and they even gave us fruits and vegetables from their communal garden. We truly felt the meaning of the word Karibu.

Daniel and Katherine settling in to Tanzania after their special welcome ceremony by the Maryknoll Sisters

Maryknoll Lay Missioner Bertha Haas introduces us to Huruma School for Children with Disabilities where she serves as Director.

Francisco with children at Huruma School for Children with Disabilities

Maryknoll Lay Missioner George Otte showing the tools in his workshop for teaching children with disabilities the art of woodworking.

Receiving Gifts of Harvest from the Women's Group

No translation required.

Struggle speaks a universal language.
So does compassion.

Tanzanian Maryknoll Affiliates Welcome Us! Mama Mbagoma (second from right in yellow) is the contact person for the Maryknoll Affiliates in Tanzania

Maryknoll Sister Ann Klaus teaching Katherine and Daniel the Art of Solar Cooking on her home-made oven.

Daniel and Katherine welcomed by Maryknoll Sisters Celeste and Ann

Mabatini Mass Choir Singing and Dancing

Fr. Dennis concelebrating Mass with Maryknoll Father Jim Eble, Pastor of Mabatini Parish.

Sunday Mass Crowd

Praying with a Small Christian Community in Mabatini Parish after doing home visitations to the sick with Maryknoll Brother Mark Huntington.

Meeting with youth group at Mabatini Parish

Arrival in Dar es Salaam

Tumsifu Yesu Kristu!

"Tumsifu Yesu Kristu!" is the greeting used by Catholics as they meet one another. It means Let us praise Jesus Christ! The response is Mi Lele Amina! Let it be forever and ever Amen! Today we participated at Sunday Mass with the community at Mabatini Parish. The liturgy was a three hour long extravaganza! Liturgy here is truly a celebration! The Mass was sung and danced with exuberance and enthusiasm! I felt renewed and refreshed! After Mass I think we were literally greeted by nearly everyone in the parish rushing to shake our hands and welcome us and thank us for coming. The church was bursting at the seams! No wonder with such wondeful welcome and hospitality. The Gospel that was proclaimed from St. Luke is where Jesus exhorted his disciples to go out two by two and to shake the dust from their feet of any community where they were not received with hospitality. We shook no dust off of our feet from Mabatini Parish.

This afternoon we had the privilege to meet with a group of thirteen young men who were struggling with drug addiction and had the deep desire to overcome this slavery in their life. They had three very important qualities that I think will ensure a good start in their recovery. First, they knew they had a problem and they were seeking help. Second, they weren't trying to do it alone. They were gathering together as a group in support of one another. Thirdly, they were reaching out trying to help others struggling with the same problem. If they can get their Higher Power in the equation, I think they will be well on their way to recovery.

Happy Birthday U.S. A. Tumsifu Yesu Kristu!

Karibuni Sana!

"Karibuni Sana" are the words that we have been hearing over and over again here in Tanzania! Karibuni Sana means Welcome to you all! The hospitality we have been experiencing from the Tanzanian people is amazing! We have only been here a couple of days and already feel so much at home.
Yesterday we visited with a Youth Group from Mabatini Parish where Maryknoll Father Jim Eble is pastor and Maryknoll Brother Mark Huntington works with a variety of pastoral activities including community health. We met with ten youth from the parish and had the opportunity to dialogue with them about life as a youth in Tanzania and in the U.S.A. I was moved by the depth of the conversation and how honest it was.
Later in the day we did visits to the sick in their homes. Over and over I saw how people's faith sustained them in the face of so much overwhelming adversity. One 84 year old woman began to dance as we left and cried out that having visitors was such a blessing. She said the visit renewed her. I can say for me that I surely felt renewed after that encounter!

It's all about relationships

I’m fascinated by the cultural aspect of the way Tanzanians are. Instead of self-oriented, they are community oriented and relationships means a lot to them. They have an awareness of God in their daily life. It’s like their set of priorities are just different. Perhaps that’s the reason why they are not bitter people in spite the great needs, challenges and troubles they face. Somehow they manage to be content. Maybe that’s the beauty and mystery of relationships: at the end of the day, regardless of the situation, you know you still have each other. For me they are a reminder that blessings are found in the simple things of life.

"Rafiki means friend," she told me.

As we gather for breakfast in the early morning, I turn to greet the woman who had our meal waiting for us: "Habari za asubuhi!" I say cheerfully (and somewhat confidently as I had practiced this phrase over and over this morning.)
"Mzuri!" she says as she smiles and shakes my hand. "Salama! Karibu!" she continues.
"Uh, Brother Mark?" I turn to him, and as my big smile becomes slightly awkward I whisper, "I have no idea what to say after that."

The simple, yet nervous, smile I returned to her seemed to communicate sufficiently: "I am grateful for you and the food you have prepared for us. Thanks for being patient as I work on my Swahili."

Today was all about encounters. It was a day of learning names and stories. It was filled with friendly handshakes. It was a day of looking people in the eye, even if there were no words. It was an opportunity for understanding when Tanzanians waited patiently for us to make it through new Swahili phrases correctly and when we smiled with encouragement as Tanzanians listed as much English vocabulary as they could: “Mothers’ Day, Fathers’ Day, thank you, you’re welcome.” At one point, we received “Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening!” all in one greeting!

A young man, who is about 24 and known as "Mr. James," was quick to point out as he and I walked through the village together that his tie was exactly the same color as my skirt, and even further, that the color was the same in both English and Swahili: "blue."

A young girl stroked my hair as I sat next to her to take a photograph. After the picture was snapped, I looked over to her and smiled at her unforgettably inquisitive face that was carefully studying the unfamiliar color and texture of my blonde(ish) ponytail.

As we were leaving a faith-sharing gathering in a local community (a very touching experience), two women approached me and, in a combination of broken English and needed-to-be-translated Swahili, said to me: "You are a teacher. We are both teachers. Let's take a picture!"

Reflective of the words of these two Tanzanian women is precisely the message that sits with me as today ends:
"I see myself in you. I hope you see yourself in me. Let's recognize that and celebrate!"

And let me tell you, some Americans and Tanzanians (despite Ghana's loss in the World Cup) had quite the celebration today: simple, sincere...what I hope is the first of many.


(HAPPY 34TH ANNIVERSARY, MOM AND DAD!)


P.S. I am relieved that the mosquitoes are not nearly as brutal here as they first were in Dar es Salaam. Minimal bites, although highly-concentrated insect repellant has replaced my usual “So Pink” scent. Sleeping in pants, a long-sleeved shirt, and socks (while in the African heat) along with a mosquito net over my bed have taken some getting used to. Although out of the ordinary, these things are definitely worth it if it means protection from the bugs. So far, so good.

Jambo!!!

The first thing that I must say, is that the weather is wonderful here in Tanzania. I was expecting it to be overwhelmingly hot, but to my pleasant surprise, it was lovely. Mosquitos are also not as big of a concern as I had previously thought, as I have multiple levels of protection from them and malaria. In order for me to catch malaria, four things would have to happen:
1) mosquitos would have to pass through the net on the windows
2) mosquitos would pass through the net on my bed
3) mosquitos would not mind the bug spray I use, and bite me anyway
4) I would have to forget to take my anti-malarial pills.

Needless to say, I am not overly concerned about catching malaria :)

My Swahili so far includes:

Jambo = Hello
Habari? = How are you?/What is the news?
Mzuri? = Fine/it is good
Asante = Thank you
kuku = chicken
pole pole = slowly slowly

I hope that it continues to grow.

We arrived in Africa!

I am happy to report that we arrived well on the beautiful continent of Africa! On July 1st we arrived in Dar es Salaam (The Haven of Peace), Tanzania. We were so exhausted after 20+ hours of traveling. It was so great to take a shower and have a nice meal and sleep in a real bed! The mosquitoes in Dar were unreal though. They welcomed us in full force. We were grateful to have mosquito nets to protect us so that we could have a good night's sleep! The jet lag messed up some of our night's sleep though, others slept all night long after not being able to sleep on the airplane.



The next morning we had a hearty breakfast of coffee, tea, juice, fresh fruit, bread, cheese, eggs and Tanzanian doughnuts. Then we were off again, on a short flight this time of just one hour and twenty minutes, to the northwestern city of Mwanza on the coast of beautiful Lake Victoria.



The last two nights we were so worn out and exhausted by jetlag, not to mention the fact that we didn't have internet access, that we didn't have the opportunity to share with you our experiences on our blog. Hopefully, tonight we will be able to make up for that! So you should be hearing from us!