It has yet to be determined which is easier on the ears of the people, American accented Maasai or Maasai with a Polish accent. Arkadiusz Nowak, a “Society of African Missions” priest, has come to Olbalbal. He will spend a couple of years with me learning the Maasai language. I am doing my best to help him, although I’m mostly finding out how little I know. Arkadiusz is in his early forties and has had a wide range of missionary experience. He worked among the pigmies in the Central African Republic for two years and has been in parishes here in Tanzania, first in the diocese of Mwanza for a couple of years and for the last seven years in the parish of Moita Bawani here in the archdiocese of Arusha.

Here at Olbalbal, besides his language studies, Arkado has undertaken a number of  trips by foot to visit our widely scattered Christian communities on the plains and in the mountains. Due to my decreased mobility, I have only been able to get to places that I can reach by car. Just this week, Arkadiusz, known to the Maasai here by the much more pronounceable “Arkado”, had his first mass in Maasai. The preaching will come along later. It is great to work with someone who is enthusiastic and committed to our Maasai work.