Other Other People

Just to set the scene for you: I'm sitting in my hut, listening to the scuffling of the mouse that we think has been cohabiting with us for about two weeks. And I am ready now to fill the huge gap I left a week or so in my blog about other people - the Malawians. 

There are now 12 teachers at Chimbowe L.E.A Primary School, if you include me and Mike, and the other 10 have been an absolutely, unforgettably glorious part of our last six months. I've already told you a fair bit about Brian Mkanda, so here are some other highlights for you...

Abel Chunga is the grandfather of the staff - and a kindly, wise, noble grandfather too. He has been teaching for 40 years, and has something like 13 children, with countless grandchildren. He is a round, friendly, slightly teddy-bear-esque man, who cycles to school every day, and is literally addicted to nsima. He says if he came to England he would have to bring some maize flour in his suitcase because man cannot live on rice/potatoes/bread alone. Interestingly he also told us the other day that he's trying to stop eating mouse and pork because they are against the Jewish food laws in Leviticus - me and Mr Bwanali had a good go at explaining that we are free from those laws now, in fact we live by faith and by grace, not by the law at all - I'm not sure if he was convinced!

I am constantly amazed by how similar Macdonald Chimangeni is to Michael. He is incredibly casual in his attitude to life (and to his job!) but seems to be quite good at both anyway! He loves reggae, and also enjoys showing other teachers utterly horrific videos off the internet on his phone. I am deeply glad to have missed out on the execution and disembowelment videos that he's treated Michael to following the challenge, "Are you brave enough to watch this?" He is, interestingly, also a very good netball coach. He is always happy when we see him, and he got so excited about making musical instruments in Expressive Arts that he did it three weeks early!

Faeton Thaulo (I think I spelt his name right...) is lovely, with remarkably big and expressive eyes, and a hilarious line in acting things out to illustrate his point - there is a certain resemblance to Rowan Atkinson if you look hard enough. Sadly though, Thaulo has a problem with drinking. Spectacularly for this country he is the only one of the 10 for whom this is a problem, and it must be said that he is nothing like as bad as a huge number of the men around. He did however spend a night in jail this weekend for turning up to his MSCE exam (lots of teachers retake the end of school exams to boost their mark) drunk. Happily he was released in time to take the rest of the exams, and he has been allowed to keep his job.

Robins Doctor Rabson Kamanga, or as we like to call him in honour of his obsession with football (in general) and Manchester United (in particular), Robins Van Persie has to take the prize for the most hilarious of the bunch. I cannot possibly convey to you the entertainment value of this man. He comes out with the greatest lines, from the unforgettable (and inexplicable) "He who brings coconut, brings life!" to his glorious borrowing of phrases from sports commentary - "We have clobbered them in grand style, in their own backyard!" When he had malaria he asked the doctor to give him the required bottom injection through his trousers, and explained this request with a reference to Shakespeare that I still don't understand! He absolutely loves Lord of the Flies, and the Merchant of Venice. When somebody goes to the toilet he will remark that they have been "taken short, like Sam'n'Eric", and when Mr Msiska turns up of an evening in his thick jacket he will describe it, every time, as a "Jewish gaberdine". Honestly, I wish I could remember and explain the tiniest fraction of this man's genius - but you will all just have to come here and meet him. Ah, Robins. You will be greatly missed.

Luke Msiska is a fierce disciplinarian, who once argued on and off all morning with the head and deputy head because he refused to allow some Standard Eight kids who had come late into class. He is the 'workmaster' of the school, so you can usually find him overseeing some learners at work sweeping or carrying or cleaning. He has a love of debating, and in meetings there is a little, foxy sort of grin that emerges on his face when he's about to raise an objection and start an enjoyable argument that is now one of my all time favourite facial expressions.

Thanks to the confusing practice of using women's married and maiden names interchangeably, I though that our Deputy Headmistress, Triphonia Chiwambo/Gidala was two different people for quite a while at the start - and to be fair she's got enough personality for any normal two human beings. She's your classic, Ladies Detective Agency style African matriarch, big, ever-changing hair (my favourite style actually is her red and white striped wooly hat) and an air of being incredibly welcoming and caring, but at the same time not to be messed with. She taught us to cook African cakes, cooked a guinea fowl from flapping to frying before our very eyes, and would be an eminently sensible choice for President of the World.

Perhaps the only better choice for that position would be the Headmaster himself, 'The Big Man' as we like to call him - Joseph Bwanali. He has been running this school for 16 years, is part way through a correspondence degree in Theology, and we reckon he'd make an incredible CEO for anything at all. Michael likes to call him 'The Malawian Jesus' - and while he says this partly to annoy me, he has actually got a point. He is one of the most Jesus-like people I have ever met. He is gentle, and quiet, and self-sacrificial. He spends all his time it seems thinking about the needs of others - whether that's the kids, us, or his elderly mother who lives half an hour's walk away in Kalenga, and whom I think he visits every day. He is humble enough to lead the way Jesus led - by serving others not by being served. He doesn't assert his authority, he simply has it. I sincerely doubt there is anyone who knows him who doesn't respect him. He is tactful and gloriously polite - he has perfected the art of sincere gratitude. Not once has he asked me or Michael for anything, he even tries to stop us being included when all the teachers contribute money for something. When my aunt helped us to build some desks, he wrote her a beautiful and heartfelt letter of thanks and asked me for her address so he could send it to England. The man loves God and he loves other people. He has a heart that has been thoroughly warme and transformed by the love of Jesus. It is an honour to have become his friend.

In fact, it's not just Mr Bwanali. I can honestly say that it has been a delight and an honour to live amongst these people. And I'm not allowed to bring any of them home...