Craft project!

     At the recent pastors and wives retreats here in Angola while the men had a Saturday afternoon session on filling out their yearly reports, I had the privilege of meeting with the wives. As the ladies gathered I told them that we were just going to enjoy being together. I started by sharing a picture of my adorable grandson – Eli, 7 months old – and receiving all the appropriate “oohs” and “awes”! Then I showed them my sample of the wreath they were going to make out of electrical wire and strips of cloth and how it could be hung on the wall or a door. I distributed the rings of wire, displayed the different colors and patterns of the pieces of cloth I had prepared, as well as the Bible verses printed on cardstock that they could choose for their wreath. As I demonstrated how to attach the cloth to the ring, I told them the design was up to them if they wanted to just use one color or many colors of cloth. The ladies caught on quickly and soon fingers were flying as the wreaths began to take shape. There was a wide variety of designs from one color to two or three colors to all the colors of cloth available! As they worked there was conversation and singing in local dialects I do not understand. However since laughter seems to be a universal language and there was a lot of it, one thing was clear to me – they were enjoying themselves! Soon there were new ways of using the wreaths from crowns to necklaces and one group even waved theirs as they sang and entered the closing worship service on Sunday morning! I hope you enjoy the pictures below. As for me, after repeated requests for more projects, I must begin brainstorming other craft ideas using the limited supplies and resources available locally…