"It`s been a wonderful morning."
On the morning of 23rd September the staff in the office at Elmore Green Primary School may have been a little surprised to have three visitors in clerical collars! Bishop Samuel, Rev Paul Nzacahayo and Rev Phil Hoar were joining in a morning with the years 3 and 4 to launch a twinning with the Nyabinaga Methodist Primary School in Rwanda.
Three children did an excellent job welcoming the visitors to the school and introducing the visitors to the staff and work. Some pictures of the classes were presented as gifts. The children were excited to get to know their visitors and to hear not only about the Bishop`s children but the cows in his compound! Then there was a tour of the staff and classrooms by two excellent and courteous guides who were very patient every time the adults got into conversations and photo calls!
Paul talked about his
experiences of attending the Nyabinaga school as a child and how it had changed
over the years - the classrooms now have desks. He talked about children
sharing their food at lunch, especially if some didn`t have anything that
day. Then there were lots of questions
about life as a child in
..Because there was a session of African singing and dancing in the gym, led by the Bishop. The visitors also attended assembly time and heard of the plans for harvest, and were very grateful for some refreshments.
We still were not finished. Children drew round the shape of their hands and wrote names and messages of friendship on the hand shapes for the Bishop to take as the leaves of a tree of friendship to Nyabinaga. And the guests left their hand prints too - with some words from Rwanda about "Peace", "Friendship" and "God`s Blessing."
Everyone had a brilliant time - and waved goodbye to Bishop Samuel and Pastor Paul after he had said a prayer for everyone.
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