Who can do this job?

As a missionary in a remote part of Africa, I can’t always call the local plumber, electrician, or internet expert to come over and help me fix something. As many missionaries know, often when something needs to get done, someone is either volunteered or volunteers to do it in order for life to continue to function. You do the task, and if you don't know how to do it you have to learn.

Some people are really good at their jobs, like the local tailor down the street who is making my bee suits. He has a lot of sewing experience in general so he was up to the challenge of using an unfamiliar design, but struggled with the project because he did not have the final product in mind. It has taken many trips down to his little shop to show him photos with detailed explanations to move forward with this project..  

Many projects have never been done here, or are done so rarely that there are no specialists or even people familiar with the procedures. As a result, those of us who are the most familiar with the project have to do the work. Since coming to CAR I have learned about and helped with electrical work, plumbing, management, and now a little about setting up a computer network and internet systems!

During last year Gamboula got a satellite dish for internet. There was a missionary here who knew all about the process and did a fantastic job dealing with all the technical craziness that is involved in it. Since the evacuation in March, he and his family have been in the States. Therefore another missionary named Josh had to come finish setting up the system and train myself and a few others how to keep it up and running.

As a younger American, I can maneuver around technology a little. Learning how to set up servers, troubleshoot problems in the network, and set up relay systems all in a short period of time was quite challenging. Time will tell how well the three of us taking the classes learned the material.

My last project was to go out to the relay antenna/tree, climb up it, and do some last minute tweaks on the system. So I found myself hanging from a harness 40 feet above the brush doing something I don’t really know how to do. My agricultural work at the farm was on hold, and I was playing IT guy. I am learning a lot here, and wonder what the next thing I will be learning is!

CEFA has its first Seminar

      Yesterday CEFA had its first seminar!  Over the past few years gardens have been planted, fish ponds dug, and buildings erected, but the research and training center has not had any official training on the grounds.  There are finally buildings, experiments, and gardens, so the staff thought it was time to start having seminars and teaching.

This first one was more of an introduction to what CEFA is and what on the property. Seventeen important leaders in the community were invited to come out for the morning. Roy and the director spoke about CEFA: its history and its commitment to agricultural research and application within the Central African context. 

They shared some fruit samples and then we all piled in to two trucks, taking a tour of the farm. Many from the CEFA work force also came to hear Roy, and go on the tour.

We stopped to look at work taking place in gardens,the fish ponds, and vegetable gardens.

After the tour we drove back to the Garden of Eden, and all the people who attended got to pick out a tree from the nursery to take home.

A Home for a Swarm

     Last week I was checking up on one of my empty hives, when I noticed about 10 bees buzzing around it. This is odd to see around an empty hive. I began to clear leaves and twigs off it, to try to make it more appealing to the bees when suddenly they all flew away. About 30 seconds after they had disappeared the sky began to hum with a familiar noise. This humming noise I know well as the sound of a swarm of bees. The cloud came right overhead and hovered above me up in the treetops. I thought it best to move away from the hive, so I moved about 8 feet away, and crouched down with my camera rolling. After hovering a little while, bees started to land on the entryway to the hive. Pretty soon the whole swam was buzzing around me, waiting their turn to land on the hive.

      Swarming bees are not aggressive, and so even though I was not in a bee suit, I felt pretty safe, and just enjoyed the moment.

      Less than 5 minutes from when the hive was empty, the swarm had almost all landed in or on the hive. It was a good size swarm, which should make it a strong colony.

      This brand new little hive has been in its place now 8 days. During this time I have checked up on it two times including today. It is amazing to me that during a random visit I would not have spent more than one minute on, God allowed me to see it being occupied. 

      As of right now I have two occupied hives. One from the wild bees I caught three days ago, and one from today’s swarm. It is been a good few days for bees. formerly empty hive had a strong colony of honey bees in it! That makes two hives in one week!

The Bee Project has Begun.

      Today I worked my first bees in the Central African Republic. Maybe I just happened to hit one of those few docile hives, or maybe these bees here at not as aggressive as the ones I am used to, but I was shocked at how little they tried to kill me. Actually, I did not even have many signs of aggression!

        This was a great first hive to work, for a few reasons. The first: I took my friend Alexander along to give him a feel for the job and see if he wanted to be a part of this project. He had never worked bees before, so it was good to get him in a bee suit and be able to start training him on a simple hive.

        Secondly, I was testing out a new bee suit design made from local materials. I had no idea whether it would work or not. The more I worked on it, the more little things I found that could be altered. If we had been in Congo, I probably would have been stung more than just a few times with the current design. Today I did not get stung once!

The stump the bees’ hive was in

Cutting open the cavity to look for the queen

       The hive was in a rotting log in a coffee plantation. After chopping it down, we split it open and in a matter of seconds I found the queen! I saw a piece of wood that was covered in bees and thought she was probably hiding under it. As I picked it up and told Alexander to help me look for her, we both saw her. Alexander, who had never seen a queen bee in his life except in the pictures I showed him before, was very excited to see her.

        After she was captured and put in the hive, the rest of the colony followed. We wrapped the hive in a mosquito net, and walked home. The hive is now sitting in the Garden of Eden, in its new home. 

Alexander proudly holding the piece of wood
we found the queen on

Alexander holding up the queen in the little
queen catcher

What is CEFA?

     Before evacuating in March, I had posted a video about the Garden of Eden, one of the places I worked.  I said I would talk more about the other places around Gamboula, but then had to spent two months in Cameroon before I could come back. Since being back internet has not been working, but as of yesterday we now have it again! I am now able to post video and photos again.

     Click on the link below for a short video of if Roy Danforth talking about CEFA where I have been spending most of my time.   

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gn3MajuZFu4&feature=youtu.be

Caterpillar Season!

This time of year is one of the caterpillar seasons at Gamboula. The black and white butterflies will spark another wave of caterpillar hunting in a few weeks.

Butterfly migration

         

        I have heard and read from several sources that CAR is the butterfly capital of the world. Since being here, it seems that every time I turn around there is another kind of butterfly I have not seen before.

   The last week here in Gamboula we have been experiencing an annual event in many parts of central Africa. There is a period of about a week or two when thousands of white and black butterflies hatch from their cocoons, and are everywhere you look.
        A few land on fruit, or damp places for a drink, making the ground speckled with little white spots before taking off again. These little white flakes dance by, going up and down, and always moving one direction. I am not sure how they all know which direction or where they are all going in such a hurry, but it is sure fun to watch.

   This migration is also a sing that caterpillar season is almost here. These butterflies will lay their eggs in trees, and soon there will be tones of eatable caterpillars.