Palm
Sunday was a festive celebration. We
started outside and processed in. The last two years we have not had palm
branches because here you have to bring your own. Of course it is not hard to find palm
branches here - you just have to think ahead.
We
celebrated Easter weekend with the other two Missionary families in Njinikom. I
really enjoyed the whole-hearted exuberance of the priest and the congregation
as we sang joyfully of the resurrection of Christ. It is so amazing when you
feel the power of the Holy Spirit when such a large number of people are worshipping
authentically.
It
was nice to see the Hornes and how quickly their Cameroonian baby, Gabriel, is
growing. We were fighting for chances to
hold him. The kids had a blast playing
with each other and we adults always have lots to discuss and process about our
experiences here. We also brought a young German girl with us who is coming
back for a visit after having lived here as a child. She said that little has changed since she
was here 20 years ago. All that is added are the cell phones and motorcycles.
While
in Njnikom we also got to stop by the Orphanage and drop off some cupcakes that
Jennifer had made. One of the girls was wearing a skirt that was donated by the
Martins when they left Cameroon. The Martins live on in Cameroon in many ways.
They touched so many people here and gave fully of themselves.
While
we did not attend the 5-hour ordination of 7 priests in Bamenda, we did attend
the first Mass of one of the priests. Pete has him in two classes. It is
exciting to see them ordained and ready to serve. Pete has truly loved his time
at the Seminary and has learned as much as the students he taught.
-Joy
