DONR I C H A R D S O N PEACE CHILD.

SKULL of a Sawi Warrior. Preserved as a trophy and displayed in an Agats village.

A Pirimapun Warrior.

Sato Tribe Member.

KAYAGAR VILLAGER.

Dani Child

Hato the Kagar Warrior

SAWI TRIBE On the lookout for the enemy.

Modern Sawi.

Imati’s child.

Sawi Child.

Ningerum tribe, Upper Fly river, Papua New Guinea.

Dani tribe, Irian Jaya, Indonesia Dani tribe, Irian Jaya, Indonesia. Woman's fingers are cut off when a family member dies.

Dayak tribe, central Kalimantan, Indonesia.

Dani tribe, Iran Jaya, Indonesia.

Ningerum tribe, Upper Fly river, Papua New Guinea.

Kagar Children.

Dani tribe, Irian Jaya, Indonesia.

Ningerum tribe, Upper Fly river, Papua New Guinea.

Dani tribe, Irian Jaya, Indonesia.

Sawi Ritual

TRIBE ELDER.

Sawi

Decorative rituals – shows prowess and strength.

Sawi Life.

Preparing fire for sago fronds.

Missionary Elinor Young.

Polio at age five had left me with an abnormal gait. God's Secret Weapon September, 1994 "Na'e Yan Meeli, na'e Yan Meeli Gel." It seemed everyone was going out of their way to greet me with this new name, looking so pleased when they used it. "Hello, Bad Legs. Hello, Bad Legs Woman." Polio at age five had left me with an abnormal gait.

This photo is of 6 Yr. old Elinor Young

"But what," I pondered "is the real significance of my new name?" The Kimyals are a tribe of about 8000 people tucked in the high interior mountains of Irian Jaya, Indonesia (the Indonesian half of New Guinea). They live in tiny round huts in tightly packed villages. Theirs is a face-to-face culture with a face-to-face attitude. You always know exactly where you stand with them. Though short fused, cruel, and fierce at times, mostly they are friendly, animated, delightful people. They need little excuse to turn routine into an event of significance to relish.

Siud chose my "welcome back" feast to announce my new name Siud chose my "welcome back" feast to announce my new name. Having lived among the Kimyals for several years, I had recently returned from a break in the U.S. to spend several more years at Korupun. One day I found my chance to ask Siud, "My legs are bad for sure, but what is the source-thought of naming me 'Bad Legs'?"

Bad Legs. What a great name! "Your bad legs are important to us. In our villages people with bad legs can't get out of this valley. But even with your bad legs God brought you all the way here to give us God's Word. People with god legs have come and not stayed. Yet you Bad Legs, God has helped you stay with us. He did all this because He loves us." Bad Legs. What a great name! All those people who had told me that becoming a missionary was an impossible goal didn't understand. My bad legs aren't a hindrance, they are a tool.

God's tool. His secret weapon. At Korupun, they were God's tool demonstrating to the Kimyals how very, very much He loved them. "Before I was born the Lord called me; from my birth he has made mention of my name. He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver. He said to me, 'You are my servant, . . . in whom I will display my splendour" (Isaiah 49:1-3). Though Post-Polio Syndrome finally forced me to leave my special people, my weak body remains a clever disguise: God's tool. His secret weapon.

Stilt houses.

Dugout- VILLAGE TRANSPORT.

Ritual dances.

The Konkel River.