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Times-Advocate, 1988-05-18, Page 6Page 6 Times -Advocate, May 18, 1988 Fraynes return to Senegal in July By Yvonne Reynolds After a year's furlough in Cana- da, Exeter native Peter Frayne and his wife Susan arc packing for an- other four-year stint at a mission base in Senegal. Tucked in with their clothes will be cans of cran- berry sauce, bags of brown sugar and_ Wel:ages of Kraft dinner. These items arc almost impossible to ob- tai'n in the tribal village of Fanda, and prohibitively expensive if available in an arca where the an- nual wage is $400, and a can of peas `is` $6. Gas is almost $7 a gal Ion,_ and. a pair of jeans is $50. - The cranberries will be served at Christmas with a turkcy,importcd from France. Last year's bird cost S22.50 per kilogram. Every scrap of meat. on that ex- :-'pensi. ..Christmas turkey was cat - en. Even the bones were crushed to gat=at'the marrow. "The•pcoplc are desperately poor, --so we try not to .waste anything. Our African friends go around and borrow -spoons From their neigh - 'hours in -order -►o have enough when they invite _us for dinner", Susan said. She related how she recognized a place mat adorning the wall of an African friend's home as onc she had thrown in the garbage. Imported western food is very ex- pensive, but the Frayncs -rave about the healthy and delicious fruits and .vegetables and meats available locally, accompanied al- ways _by .the main culinary -staple, rice. TheY happily -anticipate. more sere n;,s: of hot palm oil sauce -on boiled millet. • • The Fraynes will return to a mis- sion compound• in the heart of a villae=00,000 situated on`a large river supports commerce in fish -and shrimp. Fanda's main strect.runs through the base and- the compound is surrounded -on three sidesby the village. Susan and Peter remember vivid- ly the.tremendousculture shock on arrival for the first time in 1983. Twelve months of training at the New Tribes Missions Canadian base at. Durhanin Ont. under simu- lated third world onditions andsix months, of French language in- struction had not prep�ired them for - a country so different frond Canada. The only familiar sights were tel- eplIonc poles and Coca Cola'signs. Everything else was alien and strange. Even the smells were sign. Peter wishes it wcrc possi- ble to send home "scratch -and- sniff" postcards. "You go with a learner's attitude, or you don't go", was Pctcrs ad- vice. "And don't expect anything to be the same as at horns", Susan -add- cd. - Senegal, on the wcstcoast of Af- rica, is fairly stable politically, boasting the third-largest army on the continent. Thcpopulation is divided among 19 major tribal groups speaking 27 dialects. Eighty- five percent of the people are Moslems, and less than 2,000 of the 6,700,000 Senegalese arc Christians. Inter -tribal jealousies and conflicts and certain centuries- old customs hold the people back economically. Senegal is open to missionaries. \However, becoming a Christian means being rejected by one's Mus- lim relatives and neighbours, and being ostracized by one's own fami- ly. Allprevious social and eco- nomic tics arc severed. During their first term, the Fraynes acted as dormitory parents for the teenage children of the other missionaries working in the head- quarters and the teachers in the mis• • sion school. "There, we arc controlled by our .environment, and people become most important. We make our own fun - water fights, cranking ice cream, singing, talking, going for walks, watching the pelicans fly in tion of field treasurer, running the local mission bank, and other paper work. Susan will resuinc her Bible stud- ies with the Senegalese women who work at the mission base. "Their heart needs arc the same as SOUVENIRS FROM SENEGAL- Missionaries Peter and Susan Frayne display -some of the items they brought back from Senegal while on fur- lough In Ontario. The stick with the quadruped base is spun between the palms.as a manual mixmaster, and the wide piece of wood tipped with an- gle -shaped metal is a hand-held plow. at sunset", Peter said. For one spe- cial outing, ho and three other adults accompanied,20 teenage boys on a seven -and -one-half hour pemguc (ca- noe) trip to the. island of Caraban for swimming and fishing. Asked what they had learned in their -.first four years, Susan said they have learned to deal with them- selves under`lpressure and to work things through: to get along with others. As for -what they had ac- complished, the0rcply was "We be- came part of the lives the Lord gave Its to look: after, and part of their families' lives, ,We learned how to give and receive comfort and encour- agement in a positive way. The ex- perience brought us closer to the Lord, and closer to onc another." Thc Frayncs experienced culture shock in reverse on returning to On- tario. "At first I couldn't handle the big stores - so much choice, abundance and cleanliness", Susan admitted. During their 12 -month furlough, the two have accepted many speak- ing engagements, including Sunday services at the Bible Community Fellowship and, most recently, a meeting of the Centralia UCW. The Frayncs will have new re- sponsibilities on their return to Se- negal. Susan will be secretary to the field committee, and Pctcr's ad- ministrative duties include the posi- • ours. They need to feel they arc loved, cared for, listened to", she said. . The Frayncs will be going back to Fanda without their daughter Jen- nifer. The lovely 15 -year-old was killed in a car accident near Sarnia last October. Though the Fraynes' hearts arc aching, their faith in a "God who doesn't make mistakes" is stronger than ever. The Fraynes are praying God will use their loss to break down cultural barriers when they resume their life in Senegal. "I don't think there is onc African lady ov,:r 25 who hasn't -had a child die in her arms or beside her in bed", Susan explained, noting that now when she and her husband talk about the magnitude of God's love, others will know they are speaking from personal experience. "We are grieving, but we know our daughter is with God, and He is powerful enough to comfort us", Susan said. The Fraynes treasure a poem writ- ten by their daughter a year ago, and published in a special memorial edi- tion of the Fanda mission paper's Student Spotlight. Crushed A snail!, dejected sea shell Sat alone by the sea. A dozen people had crushed it 4th Annual Barn Burner Event Ab' Weekend) 3 Days Only 4.; Sun., May 22 Mon., May 23 FREE HANDS ON DEMONSTRATIONS (Victoria Day Sat. ,May 21 Saturday Sampling o f "Emelia's Preserves" at 1 p.m. and 3 P.M.. 2 p.m. Learn How to Make Floral Bows using Ribbon and "NEW" Creative Twist "Bolt Clearing Event" Clear a Bolt of Fabric and Buy it for 1/2 price Sunday Glenn Herb Farms presenting "Herb Vinegars" 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. 2 p.m. "Su .rise"Demo SUPER SPECIALS Special upto90% off one of a kind items Monday Diane O'Shea presents Company's Coming "Cookies" (Samples) 1 D.M. and 3 p.m. 2 p.m. Craft Demo "Rug Faint" (A variation of counted cross stitch) Any Place Mat or Napkin Buy one get one FREE • Hours: Sat. and Mon. 10:30 a.m.-5:30 p. Sun. 12:30-5:30 p.m. Located on Hwy. 83, ust wast of Hwy 23 229-6429 With either foot or knee. The years had left their toll On this particular one. The shell had lost its shine Been faded by the sun. A small child walked with head bent Looking for some prizes. Shells of brilliant pigment, Shells of different sizes. At last she found this shell, More tattered than the rest. She tossed away the others, And made this shell her best. What made this small child notice This faded little shell, And throw away the others That she had liked so well? Iler heart just couldn't bear lb see this one alone. !ler other shells forgotten, She took this crushed one home. There are mary broken people Crushed by word or deed. Do we, like this small child, Ever see the need? Or do we walk on past them, Just picking up the best, Taking all the bright ones, Leaving alt the rest. Oh, may we like this child, See the need of those around! There's more than one sad soul, Just waiting to be found. Oh, that our heart - like hers, Would weep for those alone. Oh, that we'd quench our fears, And take these crushed ones home. Thc Fraynes often think back to the circumstances that brought them to Senegal, to reach out to some of those "crushed ones". Peter was botn and raised in Ex- eter. He became a hairdresser, and over a period of 20 years gradually built up his busincss until he was a partner in shops in Sarnia, Strat- ford, Orangeville and Godcrich. The Fraynes had everything onc equates with the good life = an excellent in- come, a lovely home, two cars, a boat...but empty sou ls• One night in 1977, when Peter was 36, he and Susan knelt by the side of their bed and turned their lives over to God. A few years later the new Christians attended a mis- sionary conference, and felt p defi- nite call. It took a year of prayer and soul- searching before the Frayncs decided to sell thcir home and their busincss and become missionaries. It is a de- cision they have never regretted. 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