The Harvest

Sunday was the Moisson, the Harvest at Thiadiaye,  a larger village near Mbour, about 2 hours away from Dakar.  The Harvest is an opportunity for the church to celebrate God's blessings with song and celebration and a very long church service with a shared meal afterwards.  We had to get to breakfast by 7am, no mean feat for six women sharing a bathroom!

Our Senegal missionaries and clergy hosts

Unfortunately Charissa  got sick from taking her malaria prophylaxis and was too nauseous to go on the road trip so I stayed at the guest house with her and we were cared for by Christine and Paulette.  We had a quiet day and Charissa made a full recovery, though she ate very little that day. I didn't have too strong regrets--the last time I made that journey I got carsick.

The transportation was arranged by Dr. Bashir, as the mission bus was not deemed strong enough to make that journey. Papa Bill is actively seeking a replacement,  something around 7 years old perhaps. (Dionsenour, our driver, says the mission bus is 13-14 years old, but it was decrepit when we first rode in it in 2005. It has to be at least 20.)  Unfortunately the driver did not have a Senegalese drivers license, so a little money had to change hands to keep the mission going forward!

Worship at Mbour church

The service, as noted was longer than our usual 2 hour services. The group was a half hour late and so missed everything but the exhortation and the gift giving. The "Preacher" was specially hired for his capabilities and recalled the congregants and guests several times to dig a little deeper and give a little more. Our team found this very uncomfortable, but it was all done with music, djembe, singing and dancing, but they got through it. They were exhausted when they returned around 5pm and were grateful for showers and some rest.

After dinner, we went to greet the advance guard of the community health workers and tell them what we would be doing over the course of the week. They were really happy to see us and eager to learn more to help their communities. Then home to bed for well deserved rest.

CAM