Activities at POC

 During our 6 week orientation we participated in many mandatory activities: some of which I enjoyed, others I thought I would enjoy and some I did not enjoy.  It was all part of the course and I did it.  I am grateful to God who strengthened and kept me well. Thank you for those who prayed for me. 

One weekly activity was to swim a mile or to swim as far as you could during the 1 ½ hour time period.  I have never been a strong swimmer so I swam as far as I could most of it with a life jacket on.  Jay enjoys swimming and did accomplish the mile.  I enjoyed the hour plus walk down the mountain before the swim.  We would swim out to a rope anchored at both ends in the small bay.  It took eight times around to make a mile. 

heading out to swim around the rope

the kids had a roped off area to swim in 

Another weekly activity was hiking in the jungle.  This hike lasted 2-3 hours. It is beautiful country but sometime hard to appreciate when one is just watching the path: so I enjoyed the rest stops to rest and view God’s creation.  Going uphill, going downhill, hiking through the mud, hiking in the heat was what made it a  challenge. 

We built our our outdoor kitchen(haus kuk) and then cooked in it for 3 weekends.  Even though Jay successfully built many fires in the States  the wet wood made it difficult to start fires here.  We did have a small camping stove we used for a few foods.  The most challenging thing for me was not having ice or refrigeration: plus we only got one shopping trip to town to buy for the 3 weekends.  There was a store on center that opened on Friday to buy very few staples.  I was able to walk to a very small fresh market and buy a couple items like bananas and green beans.  It seemed like cooking took up most of the weekend, but it was fun to eat what we wanted.  Everyone would share their left overs.  My biggest accomplishment was baking a loaf of bread over the fire.

 

ground for our haus kuk

using a tarp as a roof

making the table

using our haus kuk

All of these activities kept us busy and prepared us for living in the village. However we did have some fun evenings with movies for the kids, talent show and a ladies night out.  For a couple hours on Sundays we could take the 30 minute Hino drive down the mountain to a PNG resort,(www.jaisabenresort.com)where we could order food and swim. We did not do this every week because we enjoyed the quiet at camp when everyone was gone. One day we got to take off of class and go to a beautiful spot by the ocean to swim and snorkel.  

   

The day I had the most fun included walking 2 hours down the mountain with 4 fellow students, being followed by a pig, attending a local church, fellowshipping with the believers afterwards and then meeting everyone else at the resort.

outside of church

inside of church

The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, 

to the one who seeks him;

Lamentations 3:24-26

Classes at POC

Praise the Lord all you nations; extol him all you peoples.  For great is his love toward us and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord.  Psalms 117:1-2








 

Classroom before all the students arrived

Classes started at 8am with a devotion by one of the instructors or students. Next we would begin learning Tok Pisin by singing some songs and reading the Book of Jonah from the Tok Pisin Bible.  Next we would learn a few new words and something about the grammar.  After our large class session we would get into a smaller group of six students with a national teacher and an instructor. 

teacher on the far left

 We would practice listening and speaking.  At first we learned terms relating to family.  Next we learned terms about going to market, going to a garden and related to building a home. We actually took field trips to each of those places with our teacher. 

home being built

garden usually found on a hillside

Ibika greens

cocoa

vanilla

demonstrated making a mat

demonstrated making a basket

The later morning classes consisted of geography and history of PNG.  We viewed a few documentaries about Joe Leahy, a Papua New Guinean who was related to one of the first explorers of PNG. We had classes on discovering how our culture affects us and our world view.  The nurse on staff also gave lectures on medical issues that we might encounter such as malaria. There was even a lecture on driving in PNG.

Classes also consisted of hands on activities like building a fire, baking bread, building an outdoor kitchen and talking on an UdHF radio.  Homework included reading articles and books about PNG, spiritual issues and ministries in PNG.  We had to read nine items and write a paragraph about each. One other assignment was to translate our teacher’s 2 minute Tok Pisin story into English.  During this time we also had to write a testimony in Tok Pisin and share it with the group.  All of these activities help us gain insights into life in PNG.

  

Jay proud of his bread

Making bread

       

building a fire