Page 1 - Good News December 2009 paper

Valerie Clark walls. Days and days had passed and tree roots. Tembo had been fascinated, and for
He lay on his in a meaningless blur, but some- days he had watched her closely, amazed at the
prison bed, staring one had mentioned that tomorrow things she said and did. She seemed to like them all
at the four dirty would be Christmas Day, and and had tried hard to speak their language. When
Tembo pondered this fact. Tembo’s sister had fallen and cut her knee open,
Christmas Day! When last had he “Mama” Grace had bathed it and bound it up so
thought about Christmas Day? lovingly. Every day, underneath the big thorn tree,
Certainly not for many years. His she would set up a big board and on it she would
mind went back to the carefree stick a cross and talk about a Man called Jesus.
childhood days when he and his “Mama” Grace told the same story every day.
family lived in a small hutted Tembo got to know it well. The God who made this
village, far from signs of civili- world sent His Son, Jesus, to die on a cross. His
zation. death was to wash away our sins. Our hearts are
There the goats ran free, and black with sin, but Jesus’ Blood would make them
every day was full of laughter. Continued on p. 6
Continued on p. 6
Tembo and his three brothers and
four sisters had learnt to do many
chores, from sweeping the
ground outside their family hut, to
herding the goats into the enclo-
sure. At night, they would all sleep
well, tired out from the day’s
activities.
One day, a white missionary lady
had arrived in the village,
manoeuvring her old beaten-up
panel van between the anthills