Yesterday began in a unique and impactful way. As expected, our Sunday started with a church service. After getting ready and eating breakfast, we headed to the dining hall for what we had heard would be a two hour service. Although the time felt daunting, we were anticipating an engaging and entertaining service as we have noticed and appreciated the common occurrence of music and dance defining their particular style of worship. We had heard them sing and dance to many cheerful songs at their daily evening worship. We were all very moved by and enjoyed those lovely post-dinner gatherings and because of that we were looking forward to, and not dreading what was said to be a very long service. We arrived at the dining hall at 8, joined by the students who were either dressed in long blue dresses or a shirt and tie. The first thing I noticed was the attention and engagement from the student body. Rather than looking bored or like they just wanted to pass the time, everyone was attentive and happy to be there. Many were reading their bibles and some were even taking notes. As expected, the service was very musically oriented. Students and teachers went up to the stage to sing and pray and was a few instruments played by teachers in the back. These instruments were not only used for the many songs sang, but also to punctuate speeches and prayers. The students knew all the songs and were engaging in dancing that seemed to be previously choreographed. One thing that stood out to me were that the boys and girls were separated. I had noticed this before during the dance "entertainment" where there was a wall of chairs that separated the girls and the boys. Midway through the service, Mike gave a sermon containing the scripture of Jesus's presentation at the Temple and related it to one of the songs we had heard each night at evening worship. The song said something along the lines of "I want to shine so when they see me they see Jesus" and Mike spoke about how he saw Jesus in each one of the kids. The service was totally different than those at St. Mary's. However, I think all of us thoroughly enjoyed the fun and engaging format and despite not taking the fall two hours we excepted, I don't think I would have been able to sit through and stay focused on such a long service if it wasn't for the abundance of music and dancing. After returning to Karibu House after the service, we had a short debrief. For the students, Sunday was branded as a chores day, which inspired us to use our extra down time to clean Karibu House and the Annex, where we are staying. We swept floors, did dishes, mopped, and cleaned up any clutter. Afterward we took a little time to relax and play games and around Noon we headed out to help with any of the Sunday classes that were taking place and play with the kids. After lunch and a few more card games, we headed out once again. Many of us played volleyball or soccer with the kids, while others including myself played other camp-like games. A few days ago, Charlotte had taught the kids a game called "Little Sally Walker" that they kids really loved and kept asking to play again and again. It was really moving to see a game that one of us had introduced to them become such a big thing. To me that acted as a symbol that we really do have the ability to make a lasting impact and showed that even if it was just a game, we had started something that could hopefully bring them a lot of joy in the future. The day ended like any other, with dinner, evening worship, and a game of "Oh Heck" (cards). As a whole, the group had a good day.
My main takeaway from the day is how important it is to have a balance between fun and still honoring priorities. I've always felt like there is a time to be happy, loud, and expressive and there was a time to be serious and reserved. And although, that is true and a really important important concept, I appreciated that the kids were able to sing and dance and still practice their faith. Church was just a happy place. It wasn't a chore or something just something forced, it was just genuinely fun and I loved that. I think worship should be a joyful experience and that lively atmosphere is something we should definitely think about incorporating in our services at St. Mary's.
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