SUBJECT: Teenage Mission Experiences

AUTHOR: Heidi Burgdorff, Age 15, lives with her parents, 2 sisters, and cousins in the village of Kaikan, Guyana, near the Venezuelan border.

DATE: January 14, 1997

Heidi Burgdorff (Kaikan)
c/o Anita Devonish
40 Pike Street
Kitty, Georgetown
Guyana, South America

Dear Friends and Family,

I decided to write a Christmas letter so you'll know how we're doing here. When we first arrived in Kaikan we were greeted warmly by the people. They carried our luggage for us and we followed them to the small church. When we entered, it was packed, Everyone waved to us as we were ushered up front. We sat facing the audience. I was holding our puppy ( we got it in Georgetown and it looks like Cheyanne) and it wouldn't stop moving. We sat through a nice ceremony that included singing and welcoming us. After that we went to the "police station" to register. Then we were escorted by the whole village to our new home. The walk seemed like hours, but in reality it was less than 10 minutes.

Neighbor Boys

When we arrived at the mission "compound" I noticed a small house completely finished, and a larger house with only the roof and the main structure up. I went inside the finished house, and noticed 3 small rooms. We hadn't eaten in awhile, so the villagers gave us some crackers and juice that they had purchased from Venezuela. We were grateful for this snack and we quickly devoured it. The whole village was there, so we visited and became acquainted with our new neighbors. The kids were staring at us. Lina and I went down by the river which is about 50 yards from the house. A bunch of kids followed us and sat next to us. After everybody left we made a meager supper out of things we brought from Georgetown, then fell exhausted into bed. Lina, Katrina, Kristen, and I squeezed into one room. (page 2) My mom, dad, and Kara got a room with a (single) bed. And Aunt Becky, Kristopher, and Carlos got the other room with a (single) bed. We slept pretty well, awoke early the next morning. We spent most of Monday unpacking and settling in. On Tuesday we started going to their little school. That

Troy with a Pet Monkey

afternoon one of the boys killed a poisonous snake next to our house. We skinned it and watched the heart. It kept beating for over an hour. It was cool! After that some of the kids hung around and started talking to us. Pretty soon we started playing games. They taught us some new ones. They are really fun! The Kids came over several times after that. That helped us get to know them better and make friends. On Thursday night when we were playing games my dad caught a boa. It was pretty big. I want to see an Anaconda. Sabbath we went to Sabbath School and Church. It was ok. They referred to us as "our friends from America".We attended the AY in the afternoon. Lina, Kristen, and I sang Amazing Grace. They really enjoyed it. On Monday ((November 25)) we were taken on a boat ride up the river to see the falls. On the (way) up we passed beautiful trees. It made me want to live in Guyana forever. The waterfall wasn't tall, but it was powerful. Some of us went swimming there. On Thanksgiving Day we spent all day cooking. We baked apple pie, pizza, and cinnamon rolls. We also had stuffing, mashed potatoes, glutton, custard, cookies, and chocolate milk. It was delicious! We (page 3) had some extra cinnamon rolls so we shared them with our neighbors. In the night we slept in the new, larger house. They had the floor and some of the walls up, but it wasn't complete. In order to go shopping we have to cross the river to Venezuela. The people we usually go to were sick with malaria, so Lina and I had to go to a different store. We walked to the place where we cross and saw a canoe with no one there. Lina wanted to paddle across, but I didn't think we should because we didn't ask to use it. Lina was just saying that if we pray then we can make it over safely, when Benson, a kid from school, walked up. Lina and I were so embarrassed that we couldn't stop laughing. He offered to take us across, so we quickly thanked him and climbed in the boat. He was pushing it away from the landing when he lost his balance and fell into the water. It was so funny. We finally got across and made the necessary purchases then returned home and told the story to our family who found it quite humorous. On Thursday night, December 5, we had practice for music and some skits. Some of the kids were using Lina's guitar. We forgot to bring it in, so in the morning we couldn't find it. Someone brought it in the evening. It was fine, but someone had cut a string and stuffed it with leaves. Nothing else happened until Sunday. At about 7:30 A.M. a girl ran past and said that Benson had cut his head. We didn't know what to think, so we waited to

Large Grass Hopper

see if it was serious. (page 4) At about 8:30 Benson's dad came and got us. We found out that Benson was throwing a stick at a fruit. He hit the fruit, but the stick stayed in the tree. When he reached down to pick up the fruit, the stick fell and hit him in his head. He fell down and was knocked unconscious for about 10 seconds. When he came to he couldn't move his right hand. After examining his head wound, my parents said that he needed to go to Georgetown to get better medical attention. His dad chartered a flight and a few hours later they were both taken to Georgetown. Last night ((Tuesday)) we made radio contact with a doctor there and he said Benson is doing better. He thinks his hand is ok, and said he was coming home Friday. We were all relieved that he was going to be ok. Well , let me tell you about the weather hear. It gets pretty hot in the daytime so we go swimming several times a day. In the morning it gets pretty cold. I don't know if it's humid here because I don't notice it anymore. It rains quite a bit here. Before it rains it gets windy. I love watching the rain come. It's neat. Well, I'm going to have to close this letter soon, because the plane is coming and it won't be here for another week. Merry Christmas to all and a happy New Year! Please write soon because I love to get letters. I'll write later when I have time. Your Friend, Heidi Burgdorff

You may write to Heidi at: gates@andrews.edu

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Last Updated: March 10, 1997