On Thursday, my parents, my sister and Susanna flew back to the UK. We had a great time with them but it was extremely sad to say goodbye to them, knowing that this is likely to be the last time we see them for at least a year. That’s the worst thing about being at Chikankata – being so far away from family and friends – especially during important times. Still, we did enjoy a few days in beautiful Cape Town, a weekend safari to the South Luangwa National Park and a very brief jaunt to Victoria Falls. This is not to mention the trip to Chaanga which, if not in distance, was probably the longest trip we made.

During our time in the Vic Falls we were fortunate to witness a Lunar Rainbow. It was a great sight to see these bright beams shining through in the darkness and to hear the roar of the falls at the same time. When we got back to the B&B we ‘googled’ Lunar Rainbow or Moonbow to give it its New Age name, and it turns out that the Vic Falls is only one of a few places in the world where you can see a Lunar Rainbow. It’s a magnificent sight and I feel privileged to have seen one. I wish I was able to post a picture to show you this magnificent spectacle but unfortunately my camera was not good enough to capture it and even it was, the computer system is not good enough to upload photos.

Another topic that we ‘googled’ was the origin of “Piff Paff Poof!” I was adamant it was Tommy Cooper who used the phrase, Susanna was equally adamant that these were the magic words of the The Great Suprendo. It turns out it was The Great Flippin Suprendo! Anyway the reason we had this discussion was because there is a lot of magic and witchcraft taking place around the mission at the moment. I don’t know what is going on. In the last week we have seen someone break into our mortuary during the night and tattoo a dead body, a man set his entirely family’s huts on fire for seemingly no reason and another dead body brought in extremely suspicious circumstances. The police are investigating all these matters but believe it's related to witchcraft and black magic. It is really a spiritual war! I am a glad that I know that I am on the winning side but there is still a battle to be fought. It’s like that verse in the bible (I am not clever enough to know the exact the verse) where there is reference to the devil, who is prowling round like lion. I am really feeling that the devil is prowling around the outskirts of the Mission trying to find a way into our fortress. I may have to call in my friends in the Council of War for spiritual reinforcements. Please pray for us! It may not be what we are usually used to back home as a spritual war but this one is important for the people of Chikankata.

On a lighter note, we had another little visitor to our garden this week. My sister, who is a drama queen at the best of times, discovered a snake. I was in one of the local villages when Heidie phoned me to tell me it was right in front of the house and wouldn’t move. I told her not to worry I would be home in five minutes and I would sort it. Well, as usual, both her and my sister totally ignored my instructions and called a couple of the guys for our Technical Services department. It turn out it was a Cobra and that even the guys were scared of it. Anyway they disposed of it. So I got that one wrong too, although this was maybe a little bit more serious than my Great Suprendo gaff. Must read up on your common garden snakes for next time.