Language and Church Arrangements

Someone asked my about whether I was having problems with the language here.  I have to say that Shona is beyond me, though I’m not butchering names as much as I did in the beginning.  I had real trouble wrapping my lips around the name “Mbakaya”!  I now can handle most of the paired consonants that don’t exist in English, and I can say “good morning”, “how are you?” and “I’m fine”, thanks to my self-proclaimed Shona tutor from my graduate class.  I can also say goodbye, because it’s “bye” as in English.

English is the academic language, but understanding it is trickier than you might think.  The students from the Democratic Republic of Congo speak it with a French/Swahili accent, and they speak VERY softly.  I almost always have to ask them to speak up.  The Zimbabweans speak with a Shona/British accent, and I can catch most of that.  My main problem is that some of them speak whole sentences very fast, with no pauses between words.  That makes it very difficult for me to understand.  The worst time I’ve had has been the sermons in Wednesday chapel services.  For two weeks in a row I’ve understood only about 2/3 of what they’ve said.  However, the music, both by the choir and the hymns the whole group sings, make the experience a very uplifting one even when I have to struggle to understand the message

Someone also asked about church.  Since I’m living in Mutare and not on campus, and since bus runs are few and far between on weekends, I have started going to St. Columba’s Presbyterian Church in the city.  It’s within walking distance of my apartment.  Several other people from the Health Sciences faculty go there, and I’ve also joined a home group/Bible study that meets in homes from 7-9 Monday evenings.  Participants take turns teaching, so I feel right at home.  I’ve met about twenty people at church, and have been a guest for dinner with a couple from the Bible study whose home is near my apartment.  Between the staff at the university and the people at church, I’m beginning to feel connected!