Gösta Luboyi and his little Toyota Jeep has provided for most of our needs of transportation. The other night, we had a engine failure in the middle of rush-hour traffic. The car was completely dead, and the thought of having to walk the remaining 10 kilometers to the hotel threatened to become a reality. Yapeco and I jumped out of the car and started pushing it off the roadway. To our surprise, when we had gained some momentum the engine ignited and we could continue driving through the chaotic traffic of Kinshasa in a grateful and happy mood. Not too many fellow road-users had to curse and swear or use their horns to show disapproval of us blocking the way.

Today, Gösta picked us up at 9 am and took us to his home where we had breakfast with him and his wife Clarisse. When we got there, the table was already laid and the breakfast consisted of tea, bread, omelet with ham and onions, and a glass of cold water. You have to keep on filling up with fluids to feel well in this hot climate. Apart from Clarisse, her sister and a maid who takes care of the daughter Gunnel 2 years old, was at home. The son, Gösta 5 years old, was at preschool. Gösta and Clarisse also employ a person to pick up Gösta at school and bring him home, but that person was not present at our breakfast.

After breakfast, we went to the Ndjili Church, where the Luboyis are members. The church has 2.000 members and is the largest congregation within the CEC Church. It is the friend church of the Immanuel Church in Stockholm. We talked to pastor Mavuzi and his wife about friend church activities. Their main friend church activity is prayer for the other church. When we were there, about 50 women had a meeting in the church and three women were preparing a meal for them outside in cauldrons on open fires. Pastor Mavuzi showed us a nearly half-finished building close to the church. The building is supposed to become a conference center, restaurant, offices and apartments, but not much has happened for the last ten years. Could it be a project for the friend church in Sweden? Pray and work.

In the afternoon, the son of the Nyambudis, Tutondele also called Tuto, came to pick us up. We were going to meet the partners of the Nsanda Group. We went through the upcoming steps of their (our) entrepreneurial project. Bernt and Steve had each made a schedule for the coming year, and we reviewed them as well. On Wednesday, the management group will meet to look at machines and the fields. The tractor, a BM Volvo 350, will be ready to use by the first of July. I brought a new engine starter for it, donated by Brunnegård in Vesense through Ingvar Alriksson. In July, the preparation of the soil will start. One of the group members, Nina, told us that she’d had plans to go on vacation to Rwanda in July, but she’s cancelled the trip in favour of the Nsanda project. Such a spirit gives energy to the whole group, and especially to me and Bernt.