Moving Day - Carole's Post

We are always happy to help the lives of the members in any way we can.  Last week we were able to help Sister Kandioni move to a new home.  When we use the word "saint" in the church, I count Sister Kandioni as one of the very special ones.  Whereas I am not sure many times whether I am making a difference here in Blantyre, I can always see that Sister Kandioni has made a difference in the lives of many people.  
We frequently stop by Sister Kandioni's house, as do the missionaries and many other members, because she was located in a central location.  Not only that, but there were always people there, some church members and some not. It's clear that her door is open to everyone.  So I was a bit sad when I heard where her new house was because it would not be as convenient.

Several months ago, we took this photo of Sister Kandioni in her home.

On moving day, we arrived at her home (which is behind the building in the photo), and we could see that people were beginning to bring everything in the house out close to where we could load the car.

Sister Cruikshank, the Relief Society president, was there and helped us load the car for the first runs.

 Sister Cruikshank with Faith, Sister Kandioni's grandaughter who lives with her grandmother.

There were many people to help because there are so many people who live with her.  Lilian (in yellow shirt) is Faith's sister who also lives with her grandmother.  Next to her in white is Maria Paul, who has lost both of her parents.  She also lives with Sister Kandioni as did her older brother Felix who is now on a mission.  Fiskani, in the white shirt, just came to live with her a few months ago.  He is recently orphaned, his mother having been a good friend of Sister Kandioni's.  She went to the village and brought him back when she realized his relatives were not sending him to school.

Just as at home, there are many opinions as to how to best pack the truck.

The entire process always takes longer than you think...

and the last items are the trickiest.

After about six trips (which meant going down a windy road and through a VERY narrow market), we had managed to move everything, except for the bed frames.  They would have to be manually carried and walked about a mile to the new house.  Here is Sister Kandioni with Maria.  The house she left is in the background.  We always had to step over the water pipe to get to her house.

Her daughter-in-law, Sister Tchongwe (light blue shirt), had lived next door so I am sure they will miss being neighbors.

It's always easier to unload than to pack up!  
Still, we were delighted to find out that Sister Kandioni had purchased this home and would no longer have the burden of paying rent.

Here, we are carrying things in the back door.  The house has just been constructed and the builder/seller of the land is still working on the front of the house.

In Malawi, nothing is done on credit so you build as you get money.  He is bricking up the windows, leaving small spaces for light and air,  until the time when Sister Kandioni can pay for frames and glass.

Since it was impossible for us to sort things, we piled everything in the living room and one of the bedrooms.  (See the bricked up window on the back wall).  This room still has a dirt floor but two

of the bedrooms now have a cement floor, which were still drying on moving day.
In one bedroom, there was a raised cement pad in the corner and I asked what that meant.  She said they would eventually build a wardrobe in that spot.

Sister Kandioni said the man who was built the house was a very good man and had slept in the house to protect the building materials, in particular the two wood door frames that she had purchased.  So the new house will really be a blessing to Sister Kandioni and her household. 
She will soon have her own faucet for water outside.  And eventually electricity will be added. Did I mention that about two months ago she had two young grandchildren, Madalitso and Vitumbiko, come to live with her, so she is back to buying uniforms and paying school fees.  

Meet the new neighbors!  We always gather an audience and this was not an exception.  I don't think anyone will lack for playmates.