Q & A

I asked you for questions, and you responded so, now it’s time to answer some of them!  Below are a few questions I’ve received and their answers. 

First, a work-related question…

Q: After you make a survey trip, is there a lot of paper work to do to pass on what you found?

A: Yes.  Since we finished the Benabena Scripture use survey in the end of January, we (the survey team) have been working together to write a report about what we found out through our interviews and observations.  

The first step in this process is analyzing our notes to determine what we actually found out.  We do this by finding trends in the data.  For example, I looked at each pastor’s answer to the question “In what language was your pastor’s training?” and saw that all of them had at least part of their training in Tok Pisin, while some also had training in English or Benabena.  Bits of information like this will all be compiled in our final report.

Last week we finished analyzing our data and have now been working on writing the report.  We plan to be finished with the report by the time Dan leaves in early March.


That leads us to the next question…

Q: Who replaces Dan when he leaves in March?

A: Dan is currently the only guy on the survey team and he is leaving in early March.  

After he leaves, we will continue working mostly as usual.  Bonnie, Juliann, and I are planning to survey the Wagi language area the week after Dan leaves, but for some other surveys we may need to find another man to go along for cultural and safety reasons.  Another male surveyor will be joining our team in December.


And one more question…

Q: Have you had any seismic activity lately?

A: Yes.  Last week (on February 8), I woke up around 1:30 in the morning to find my bed moving.  The quake only lasted about half a minute and just felt like a gentle shaking.

In Papua New Guinea, earthquakes are fairly common, but are rarely serious or even noticeable.  Often, unless you’re sitting still, you completely miss out on an earthquake and don’t realize it until someone asks you later “Did you feel the earthquake yesterday?”!

Well, I think that’s enough Q & A for now.  Keep the questions coming!