Sweet Fellowship!

(Wed. morning, 9/16) Ukarumpa at last! We got here yesterday afternoon.

The plane ride to Lae felt like the Jack Rabbit roller coaster at Sea Breeze, but at the end, waving to us from the other side of the security fence were the McFarlands and the Schwagers (another missionary family from home). What a joy to see them for all fourteen of us! The luggage took too long to collect – even a couple of minutes was too long; we wanted to embrace our friends.

After a few heartwarming moments of greeting and prayer of thanks in this small, dingy, third world airport (for the nation’s second largest city), we loaded our bags onto an old bus that could seat about 18 people and off we went. We travelled quickly and in bright daylight to avoid the hassle of roadside robbers who occasionally wait along our route.

The road from Lae to Ukarumpa runs through the Markum (sp?) Valley and looked, at times, like pictures I’ve seen of the Serengeti Planes – broad, flat, dry and grassy, but bordered on the sides by distant, rugged, grassy mountains. There were brush fires burning frequently (apparently intentionally lit for amusement), that charred large stretches of the valley and mountainsides.

Villages of native huts with thatched walls and grass roofs were scattered frequently along the way. There were also coconut groves with cocoa plants growing in their shade – the essential ingredients for a Mounds candy bar, someone noted.

We sped through the valley as fast as Bruce could take us. Then, after an hour or two, began our ascent to the highlands of Ukarumpa. It was spectacular scenery as we climbed on switchbacks that dropped precipitously. We slowed to a crawl at times where the road had washed away. After about three hours, we reached Ukarumpa, passing through another marketplace where nationals sold bright colored cultural goods (clothing, etc.) a fruits and vegetables. It had every appearance of an impoverished, but happy people.

Finally, we arrived at the SIL (Summer Institute of Linguistics) missionary center where the McFarlands gave us “the right hand of fellowship.” We unloaded the bus and the adults began preparing for our first meal together; the children (Peter & Anna McFarland and John, Nick & Tim) immediately set to playing together, picking up their old friendship. We all, young and older, had a wonderful time of fellowship.

Today, we go to work. More on that later.