'A Mars a day, helps you work rest and play.'

This huge playground is only empty during school hours. The children also have a basketball court and a sports field for football. Zimpeto is part of a football league and the team has the opportunity to travel to other places for matches on Saturdays. Most of the ground is covered with sand, with bits of grass growing through on the sports field. The sand permeated everywhere, even our beds!

One afternoon we took five boys swimming to a local hotel. They loved it, especially 'bombing' into the water. Another afternoon we took them to the local market to buy sweets and drinks. There are very strict rules about where children can eat treats, which the boys know about, but they still tried to bring some chocolate and biscuits back into the centre. We knew they had not eaten the large bar of chocolate, which was taken from a refrigerator, and we kept reminding them on the way back. When we arrived at the centre, still not having eaten it, we insisted they gave it back to us for sharing out. Of course by now, it had almost melted in the extreme heat and we felt sad that the treat we had intended turned out to be gollopping down melted chocolate and stuffing as many biscuits into their mouths just before we entered the gate, with the dinner bell ringing!

They also wanted to buy some wool to make named bracelets for our whole family. I distinctly remember buying blue and yellow balls of wool, but when we received the bracelets on the last morning, they were brown and white - we didn't ask!

"Because you did it to the least of these my brothers, you did it to me."

This verse from Matthew 25 verse 40 was just one of the wonderful murals which decorated the walls throughout Zimpeto Children's Centre. This was in the prayer hut, a smaller meeting place for use mostly by staff, visitors and Bible College students. Shortly before Adam and I left, there was a morning meeting when those leaving in the next few days were presented with a colourful capulana (wrap around skirt, shawl, baby-carrier, towel, shopping bag, etc....) this was wrapped around our shoulders as lots of people came forward to pray for us. It was a very moving and beautiful way for them to express their thanks to us for being with them at Zimpeto.

Church for the children is also the dining room, the wooden benches being used for both; facing one way is church and facing the other is food, and everyone has to comply with the rules! Their food is bread for breakfast, and rice with a sauce topping for the other two meals. There was very little meat, but beans or vegetables were often served. Visitors are encouraged to eat with the children, who never use cutlery and eat enormous plates of rice. Many visitors buy extra food to supplement their diets, and I found I only wanted one rice meal a day.

Out of 350 children at the centre, there are less than 50 girls. Boys are far more likely to be abandoned on the streets, as girls are still considered useful around the home. At Zimpeto they all live together in one house, except for the babies, of course. We observed that there is little mixing of the sexes, at mealtimes, at play and in church. The girls probably feel overwhelmed by the mass of boys with their accompanying loudness and boistrousness. Nevertheless, the girls enjoyed dancing and really threw themselves into it - before the boys arrived!

Education at Zimpeto Children's Centre

Zimpeto children's centre was the first of Iris Ministries in Mozambique. It is now the largest and most developed, having a large day school, where the numbers double to around 600, to take in 300 local children, who would not be able to afford education. This photograph was taken as the front gates were opened, as they crossed over the sports field to the classrooms.

The school day starts at 7.30am with all the classes lined up singing the national anthem of Mozambique. I was amazed at the number of verses; there must have been at least eight, each followed by the chorus. Everyone stood very still for this, even the smallest children. I have cropped the top as there was too much light coming through between the trees and the lines.

After assembly they filed off to single storey classrooms for their basic education. Pupils, who have passed their 6th Grade, travel into town to a high school. I was therefore surprised the see a large proportion of the older boys still at the primary school, catching up on missed education. I think the UK is fairly unique in streaming by age, rather than ability, and not keeping back pupils to retake a year.

The school day finishes by noon and in the afternoon there are classes for over eighteens, rather like our Basic Skills classes, which I used to teach. All of the classes at the school are taken by Mozambican teachers who are paid by Iris. One of the activities that short-term visitors can help with is English conversation classes. I took four classes during my time there and it was good to keep my skills sharp. There are few resources and they rely heavily on 'chalk and talk', but I have found that I can be very flexible, scanning the room for any object, using colours, shapes and textures to their maximum effect. Many of the older boys speak fairly good English, having learnt from the numerous visitors over the years. Here are two men who were regulars in my class; Antonio, on the right, is at the Bible School, and Acacio lives locally. This class was held early in the morning in a room next to the front gate.

In addition to the day school Iris runs a Bible School at Zimpeto. Up to 50 pastors at any one time can come for three months intensive teaching and then return to their own areas to put it into practice. They can come again for further three-month blocks, until they have completed their studies. They also get practical training, taking part in joint services with the staff and children several times a week.

Here some of them were setting up for a photo in front of the Bible School. I was in the Baby House and just happened to see them lining up.

Laura's House

Laura is the most amazing long-termer whose love and comittment to the children in her house is an inspiration to every visitor. She was really choked up as she retold the story of Paulo, knowing that he would soon be leaving her. In her house there are four dorms of 12. The smallest children sleep two to a bed, not because they have a shortage of beds, but so that they have someone to snuggle up to whilst asleep.


She bought the trampoline with her own money and her house is the most colourful and activity-based of them all. She has trained a team of Mozambican women who do crafts, play games and sing songs with the children, when they are not in school.

'Jesus took the children in his arms...'

This mural was painted by some visitors to Laura's House, for boys 5-11years. We heard the story of Paulo, now 11, who was stolen at the age of 2 and then abandoned on the streets and found by Iris. There was great rejoicing in Laura's House this day because, after much searching Paulo's mother and grandmother had been located and and brought to Iris to be reunited with him. Obviously he does not remember them at all, so now there will be a long reintegration process, which should result in him finally going home to them by the end of this year.

More Gorgeous Children

Hats, beads or anything dangling or sparkly were quickly grasped accompanied by huge smiles all round. These twins, who are almost one are still unable to sit up unaided, but can manouver themselves around the play pen and certainly make themselves understood!

Gorgeous Children!

The Baby House was a popular place of ours, playing and hugging were high on the agenda. The little girl on Adam's lap is now five, but was unable to walk when she arrived at Iris a year ago. She had meningitus as a baby and her mother abandoned her when she found that she was not walking. However, now she is taking her first difficult steps and Iris are trying to organise some additional therapy to make her more supple and improve her walking. I think she was Adam's favourite!