150 DEGREES
The passive solar water bug has really bitten me. Out of curiosity I took a shallow, wide basin and put 10 liters of water in it. I laid a clear, thick piece of plastic over the top and left it in direct sun for about 3 hours. It reached 150 degrees! I had to imagine: what would it do if the basin were black? Probably scald the kids and I, so I should leave well enough alone. You can see a photo of the basin at http://poglitshphotos.blogspot.com. It's the turquoise basin on the ground in the lower part of the photo. You can also see the gutter (attached to the roof) and the black barrel beneath it. This we installed to catch rainwater, which it does very well-and it fills quickly, even in a moderate rain.

HOW MANY OVCS?
The government is paying school fees for an ever-increasing number of students labelled as OVCs (orphans and vulnerable children). The idea was to keep kids in school who had lost parents and could not pay the fees. Then, they didn't want to embarrass these kids, so the definition included "vulnerable". This has expanded the OVC pool quite a bit. At a recent school assembly, the headmaster asked all those students who were receiving a government scholarship to remain behind. About 80% of the students stayed behind. Of course the scholarship means well, but it appears surviving and responsible parents are being punished: they are forking out a couple thousand Emalangeni a year for school, while most kids marked OVC are paying almost nothing.

SCHOOL SOCCER
I am happily not coaching soccer this year. Soon after school opened, I gave a letter of resignation to the athletic director, and I've heard nothing since. Really nice. The school picked up a local man to coach; he has played at the highest professional level in Swaziland, and after briefly watching his training, it's clear the players respect him. Wonderful. I did notice, with satisfaction, that he had them running like crazy and not even touching a ball. Magnificent.

UNEXPECTED BLESSING
During the track and field practice, a senior student I had trouble with during soccer last year (who ended up off the team permanently) walked over to me and, unannounced, sat in my shadow at my feet. He said he was feeling sick and asked if I would pray for him. I said "Sure, I'll pray for you" and put my hands on his head and prayed. He then remained sitting at my feet for 10 more minutes as we discussed international soccer. Then, just as unceremoniously, he got up and walked off. We have had a good relationship since then. I don't know what to make of this, but I'm happy with it. Thanks be to God, whose grace is sometimes very amazing.

UNEXPECTED INVITATION
During halftime at a recent soccer game between my "home" club (they come from the area of my adopted Swazi homestead) of Hlokomeni Cosmos and a team called "Sundowns", I was asked by a student/player to give the team some advice. At first I blew him off, because he tends to tease me. He persisted. I told him I could see two men standing in front of the team, talking to the players. He replied "No, those guys have been drinking"-which I could see was true. I said "There's that other guy; he's a player, and he's coaching". "No, he's also been drinking" said the student. Yeah, I could see that too. Okay, I tried to turn him down three times, but he seemed serious. I hesitatingly walked over to the team and said something about sticking with your man even when he doesn't have the ball, and something about passing the ball quickly and then moving to get open for a return pass instead of dribbling it. The players turned their heads more than 90 degrees to see me, and they paid attention the whole time I spoke. After my little talk, they got up and went back on the field for the second half. I walked back to the sideline, astonished. I would say this place keeps you on your toes, but sometimes it just plain knocks you down. Cosmos won the game, 2-1.

TRUCK CROPS
A student named Bhutana Ncongwane (who is related to one of the players on Cosmos) comes from a hard-working family. They grow cabbages and maize for sale, and they also buy fruit wholesale and sell it retail. Bhutana told us in January that they have cabbages, bananas, and mangoes for sale. I placed an order with him, and told him to bring it to school the next day. I can't remember if it was the next day or the same day, but he pulled up in the family pickup truck and let us take our pick from the bed. It was E1 for a banana, E2 (I think) for a cabbage, and E3 for a mango. What a deal! See pictures at the blog. He has arrived at other times and simply honked his horn. The girls (and the other teachers) have figured out what that means, and they run out to meet the ambulatory green grocer. He can keep busy selling things for 20 minutes. We are happy: the money stays local, and we don't have to lug it home from town on bus and back. He recently sold us 16 ears of big, healthy corn for E10-that's enough corn on the cob for 8 people for about $1.50.

TRAVEL AND CONVERSATIONS
We travelled to town on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 17th. The US Ambassador had an open house for US residents at his home. We tried to cluster our town appointments, so Ruth set up a doctor's appointment for the same day. Ruth went in early, and the girls watched a movie at home while I taught for 2 more hours. Then the 4 of us packed up and got into town. After the 4PM get-together we spent the night at the Mater Dolorosa guest house, courtesy of the ever-hospitable Sister Bene (from Italy).

As we made our circuitous way to the doctor's office, Kit said (at least twice) "I know where mommy is". I asked "Where?" Kit replied "Somewhere else."

By the time we got to the Ambassador's house, it was raining pretty heavily. We hadn't packed any umbrellas, and as we walked up the driveway to the front door Grace said "I'm using my head as an umbrella, and it's not very comfortable."

Here's one from Cubby (Faith) to round things off. Faith--while playing with a stuffed pig. "Kit, real pigs don't really have fur. They just have skin that looks like plastic."

Have a nice day,
Rudy for the gang