Church at Immanuel and a jungle walk

We started our first Sunday in Papua New Guinea by going to Immanuel Church of the Nazarene.

This is a church just outside the gates of the Kudjip Mission Station. I have mentioned that the mission station has a hospital and mission houses for the foreign missionaries, but it also has a nursing college, an MK elementary and high school along with housing for another 1000 people who work at the hospital or college, or are related to those that do. It’s like a village of sorts. 

Many who live on the station go to Immanuel for church services. It was a sweet service. Women in colorful tunics with their hair pulled prettily up on top of their heads and men in button-down shirts sang joyfully in Tok Pisin. I was surprised that I recognized a lot of the words and the melodies, but not enough to really follow.

I knew it would be a long service, so I let the kids bring their journals in hopes that they would document what they were seeing and hearing, but when I looked over I saw each of them were busy drawing cats. Sigh. We can try again next week.

After service, we ate a quick lunch and then joined up with the Morris family for a river walk. 

Our family of 5 and their family of 8 piled into a Land Rover and bumped about for the next 15 minutes en route to a village that they had stayed in two years ago as part of their cultural immersion orientation.

Most of the long-term families actually go deeper into the “bush” for this, but as the Morris family had 6 kids, including infant twins when they arrived, they kept them a bit closer. However, I think they succeeded in integrating because we probably stopped to chat with half the village on the way to the river. People called greetings out from every direction, hands clasped, hugs exchanged, merry waves all around and after we parked to begin our hike, about 15 kids from the village joined us. 

It was one of those happy days that at the end you are surprised, but also not surprised, that you find your cheeks are sore from all the smiling. 

Our guides took us over small streams and up green hillsides cut through with footpaths.

Then we hiked into the bush where the way was lined with coffee trees and kau kau (a type of sweet potato) plants. The children loved to show us how to break open and suck on the red coffee berries. When they found out Lucy loved these, the kids made sure she always had some to chew on. 

When we got to the river, which was refreshingly cool, we waded in and walked upstream. Sometimes the rocks were slippery, but our village friends always had a sure foot and a strong hand to keep everyone upright. 

We played in the river. We found spiders and moths and fish. We slid on natural water slides. We explored. We met even more friends as they came down stream carrying cut bamboo and machetes.

There was a special rock that was used for sharpening knives that a man demonstrated for Tom.

Sometimes on the way back, I had to stop and just look around at the tropical trees, the mossy banks, the rushing waters and watch my family as they picked their way through the Papua New Guinean bush with their new friends. I was amazed at how natural it seemed.

It was good, so very good to be here. 

A great day with great new friends! Does it get any better than this?