Gladys Aylward was scared on her first visit to the Missions in Africa

Gladys was only 13 when she first heard orders from the heavenly host to go and work in the missions in Africa.

She had been working a very long shift glass collecting and washing up and mopping the floor in the Hop Bine where her mum and dad held regular lock-ins.

The poor lass collapsed in a dead faint. When she came to she heard 'last orders to serve  or I'll kick the lot of you out on yer 'arris'

Being a pure soul she heard the words 'these are your orders to take the coach to Paris and to to serve the Lord'

She was accepted as a young novice missionary under the supervision of more experienced missionaries on her 16th birthday.

But Gladys was scared.!!

You see in Kenton and Harrow and Wembley at that time you did not have a lot of black people. They tended to live in Nottinghill and down by the Docks,

What scared her the most was the food. How on earth would she eat 'darkie food' as she thought of it in her ignorance that was due to lack of personal experience.

Would she fade away to nothing.- Unlikely as she liked her food and was eleven stone and a bit.

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However luck was on her side as Olave Baden-Powell the lady who founded the Girl Guides was young Glady's guide and supervisor, She  reassured Gladys and calmed her fears.

Just as well!!

When they finally arrived it was night. It was time for dinner.

There in front of a fire of twigs and branches sat a circle of large black ladies who took turns to stir the cooking pot. They also made up a song to welcome the strangers and get them to take a tuen in stirring the cooking pot so that they could be part of things.

Now in that part of Africa all white folks were known as 'Dutch' as the the initial settlers had been from the Netherlands. They also knew that white folks liked drinking tea.

So the ladies chanted and they sang in their lingo and it went something like this

'Stirra Dutcha drinka tea

Stirra Dutcha drinka tea'

One warm bosomy dame who reminded young Gladys of her auntie Nellie offered Glady a cup of the liquid that she skimmed of the goat stew.

'Dinka tea' she said

Oh this was the giddy limit! How in the world could they call this stuff tea. There wasn't even any sugar or evaporated milk.

However young Gladys was tired and thristy so she drank some.

It was not half good!

Soon she was joining in the singing and was bold enough to sing

Knees up Mother Brown, knees up mother Brown  and throw it into the singing and group chanting

Gladys had another cup

'Cor this is a bit of all right int it Olls' she said to Lady Baden Powell.

'I'll drink to that' said Olave Baden Powell!!