A Fallen House

We went to Lutfotja Methodist Primary School today to check on the OVC’s (Orphaned & Vulnerable Children) that are being helped by a program we’re calling “Lutsandvo LwaKrestu” (for the love of Jesus in Siswati.) We started this program in August, 2008 with 4 children at this school and are now up to 16 children. Three or four of them are in visibly better health because of the medication and Doctor’s visits that are being funded through this program. Through this program we met a family of four children which I have written about a couple of times. This is the family whose mother’s whereabouts are unknown and the father works on the other side of Swaziland and rarely comes home. He doesn’t support his children in anyway. So the children live on their own and are often without food or other necessities. Mthokoisiwe is the oldest child, a boy aged 14. He wasn’t going to school because the father didn’t pay the required school fees. Through a grant from the Manyano (the Methodist Church of Southern Africa’s women’s organization), he started High School (8^th grade) a few weeks ago. After Lutfotja, we went to Mthokoisiwe’s High School to check on the status and speak briefly with the child. While at the High School, Mthokoisiwe told us that their house had fallen down in the rains that have been hitting Swaziland so hard in January and February. Of course we took him home to see the house. Rain, dirt roads, hills, valleys and streams don’t mix well but we made it. I really don’t know how to explain to you what we saw and how we felt. These children are staying by themselves, it is cold and damp, the house they were sleeping in, which is really their father’s house has fallen down around them because of the rain and the poor construction. The smaller house which is their kitchen (just a bare floor where they build a fire and a window for the smoke to go out of) is about to fall down but that is where they are sleeping now. I watched the little girl who is in 2^nd grade try to start a fire out of sticks of gathered wood under part of the roof of the fallen-down house wondering how their wet school dresses were going to dry and how they were going to cook a pot of mealie meal (thick ground corn) with such a small fire. I wondered how at such a young age the child knew how to do such things. I wondered where and how they could do their school work and how they washed their clothes. I wondered how they would stay warm, and how they wake up and get to school on time. I forced myself not to be angry with the father and stay focused on the children. I had to leave and start walking back to the car so I could shed a few tears in private and ask God why and for him to take care of these children, because no one else can do it but Him. Then we left. It took me 4 hours to get home because of the rain and muddy roads and because I took Thoko and Thini home because they had missed the last transportation to their homesteads. The short cut to Thoko’s house, through the country and across a small river is impassable now because the river is too high so we had to go the formal, but long way which took at least an hour after we got to Manzini. It’s still raining outside.

Please pray for these children and for God to reveal the right answer because I know what I might think is a good thing to do may not be the right thing in the long run and for the resources to help their situation.

If you build it, they will come.

After about an hour of watching, learning, clapping, and covering our eyes as cars attempted to make it up the slippery muddy last hill on the way to Lomngeletjane, I decided to give it a try. A couple of the young truck drivers kept telling me I could make it up, even after other cars failed. And then there is that good old pride that was at stake. On one hand, I didn’t want to turn around and not attempt it, but on the other hand, I didn’t want to get stuck and have to have the guys who where standing around watching have to push me out like they did about a half a dozen other cars. So Laura and I each took a deep breath and let out a good old Texas “yeehaw” and up the hill we went. I’m proud to say we hardly fishtailed as we made it all the way to the top. Everyone was cheering us on. Lesson for the day: watching and learning from others is a very good thing to do.

Then on to Lomngeletjane. It was so good to see John (the Builder) and the office/storage/kitchen building almost finished (there are just a few finishing touches left.)

When we dedicated Lomngeletjane last November, there were 29 students and about 10 preschool students. Now there are 88 students in grades one to three and 24 preschool students. It is amazing. Unfortunately, there are only about 10 desks and maybe 50 chairs in the primary classes and just two tables and benches in the preschool. The government still hasn’t officially registered the school so there is only one teacher that goes between the three classrooms. Until the school gets registered and the money flows from the government there aren’t funds to provide the basics (i.e. desks, chairs, chalkboards, teachers, etc.) for this new school; and who knows how long it will take to get the funds from the government once it is registered.

Pictures:

1. A car stuck in mud on the last hill going to Lomngeletjane.
2. New food storage / head teacher’s office / veranda for cooking.
3. Catching rainwater for future use.
4. Kids in “lunch” line at school. Children are getting a cup full of mealy meal, or as we would know it, ground corn with water cooked into a thick porridge.
5. Kids eating.
6. Kids washing their plates.

I'm back.....

My friend, Laura and I arrived in Swaziland on Wednesday afternoon February 4th. Richard Bosart was kind enough to drive us over. Much to our surprise, it misted most of the way from Johannesburg to Swaziland, and by the time we got to the border it was outright raining. The summer (which we are in down here) is the rainy season, but this rain is very out of character. It has been raining a lot over the last two weeks.

I was pleasantly surprised when I found out that they had called Lungile, the girl who normally does some laundry and cleaning for me, to come and clean my house. I didn’t have to walk into a mass of cob webs and lots of dust. Unfortunately, because of the rain the clean floor got muddy very quickly.

My toilet bowl wouldn’t fill after flushing, but Richard cleaned out the filter and fixed that problem and my phone didn’t work. But other than that everything was fine. What a difference from last year. I called the phone company today and they came this afternoon to fix it. Amazing.

I’ve only turned onto the wrong side of the road once so far so things are going good. I saw Thoko today and we had such a good time catching up, although there is much, much more catching up to do. It sounds like she and the volunteers did a super job while I was gone, which I had complete confidence and faith that they would.

One of the real blessings that happened while I was gone was that as we had planned, food parcels were taken to the homesteads of the children we are helping through one of the grants. As it turned out, the chairman of this committee went as well as one of the associate pastors. When they took the food parcel to Mthokosiwe’s homestead, his father was there. Mthokosiwe is the young man who will now be going to school thanks to a grant from the Methodist Church of Southern Africa. He also acts as the head of household to three younger children because the mother’s whereabouts is unknown and the father would rarely come home from where he works about 3 hours away. The father met Thoko and the others and expressed how bad he felt that he didn’t come home more often and that he couldn’t provide much for his family. Indeed that is part of the reason he stayed away; he felt so bad and people kept giving him a hard time. But he was so touched by what the children had told them the ladies have done for the family. He said obviously God loves his family and he wants his children to go to church to know God better. The father stayed home for the holidays and started building again on a house he had started so the children will have a better place to live. Praise God! Miracles do happen every day.

We tried to drive up to Lomngeletjane today to see if the kitchen/storage/office building was completed, but the mud was so slippery that after three attempts, Richard turned around. The rain has stopped a little bit this afternoon so I am hoping we can make it up there tomorrow. I need my kid fix and I can’t wait to see the finished building (hopefully).

It was a great time in the US. It was so great to spend so much time with so many of you. Thank you all for your support – financial and emotional. I have carried it back with me. I look forward to an exciting 2009 serving God by loving and helping his children one child (of any age) at a time and heart at a time.

God bless you all.

Merry Christmas

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
-Philippians 4:4-7 (NRSV)

The above was the scripture for my daily devotional on the day I left Swaziland for the US. I have always loved this verse, but it seemed to be speaking to me again as I prepared to come home for the holidays.

First, I must apologize. I have been so busy the last couple of months and at times overwhelmed by all that I saw and that the ladies and I accomplished each day that I didn’t have the energy to write in my blog. I would write an entry in my head, but when I got home I was too tired to actually write it on paper. I also want to thank those who e-mailed me and said they were concerned because I hadn’t made an entry since Oct 28th. I thank you for that concern and for letting me know that you care.

October and November were busy times trying to get the sewing project finished. Early in the year we received money from a donor through the Missions Unit of the Methodist Church of Southern Africa. We have been working on the project since May but before we knew it the end of the school year was upon us and we had to get all of the uniforms finished and delivered before the beginning of December. The ladies, Thoko, Thini and Thembie sewed over 40 uniforms for some of the neediest kids in our schools in Central circuit. In addition, we hired out an additional 53 uniforms to a local seamstress.

In October and early November I was also trying to deliver teaching aids to the Methodist primary and preschools in Swaziland. I was trying to hurry with both of these projects finished because 1) the school uniforms were being dedicated on Nov 15th and 2) Gregg Bouchard and Dan Rybaski from my home church were coming to visit the beginning of November. And then I would fly home two weeks later.

In addition to these two things we were solidifying our work through another grant from Action for Children sponsored by the Methodist Church of England which involves identifying the needs of children selected by the counselor and head teacher of Luftoja Methodist Primary school. We make home visits, pay for transport for the children and their guardians to receive medical care and/or their monthly ARV’s, and try to enable them to help themselves by growing vegetables or possibly chickens. It is turning out to be a very successful project, but it does involve a lot of driving time, planning, and it is so emotional. Sometimes the needs are so great, and we just sit there looking at each other wondering what in the world we can do. There are some tough times. But the smiles on the children’s faces when they see my car and run up to greet us are absolutely priceless. This project is a reminder that my work in Swaziland is all about showing the love of Jesus (Lutsandvo LwaKrestu) to one child, one heart at a time!

I am now at home in Round Rock, Texas until the first week or so in February. I arrived home on December 7th. As always it takes a while to get over the jet lag and adjust to the time difference. But I must say it doesn’t take too long to adjust to hot showers with great water pressure and my wonderful, comfortable bed! It also takes a while to do all that needs to be done after being gone from my home for 10 months. I am now eagerly waiting for my son Christopher and his wife Jen to arrive from Seattle for Christmas. My brother and his wife are here in Round Rock staying with their daughter and his son and family will be arriving tomorrow.

Have a very Merry and Blessed Christmas.

A day full of emotion

Today started out with me reminding myself that THIS IS AFRICA! Thoko and I had the day planned and were organized and ready to go. About 5:50 this morning there was a knock at my door which wasn’t a big surprise. (TIA) I was just lying in bed procrastinating about getting up and starting on the day. Sphiwe was returning something to me before he left for a Minister’s retreat. He also asked me to deliver something to the church’s secretary at 8:00. No big deal. I sat down at my computer to check my e-mail while I drank a cup of coffee. It was probably my first mistake, because I always end up being on the computer more than I plan and I put checking e-mail above doing my bible study which in the end meant I didn’t have time to do it this morning. Then about 6:50 there’s another know at my door. Dennis wanted the keys to a building up at the church which meant I had to go with him to show him what he was looking for. Ah, but I hadn’t showered yet. So I quickly showered and went up to help him. Then I spoke with Rev. Nyameka, came back to my place, quickly ate a little breakfast and left to make it to the bus rank in Manzini at 8:30. I made it right on time. Thoko was just arriving. Perfect. Then she got a phone call from Thini that she was delayed. First it was one thing and then another. Thoko and I went to get some estimates on fencing rather than just sit. About an hour and 45 minutes later, Thini calls again and says she can’t get transport so we have no choice but to drive about 10 minutes in each direction to get her. So we finally take off for the homesteads we planned on visiting in the Luve area. I get a few kilometers down the dirt road and realize that I forgot to put petrol in my car. We are going way out in the rural area. I couldn’t go without more petrol because there aren’t petrol stations were we were going. But it would probably cause another 20 or 30 minutes delay. I was very discouraged and so was Thoko. Our day’s plans were totally ruined.

On the way to the Petrol station, still angry at how the day was going and frustrated with it being an African day, I started singing to myself the song from youth “This is the day that the Lord hath made…” We got Petrol and I realized I didn’t have small bills to give to the people we had planned on giving money for transport to. The Petrol station also didn’t have change, but we were able to work that out.

So, we finally arrive at our first homestead. We were going to measure the garden area they had to determine what kind and how much fencing would be needed for an adequate fence the cheapest way possible. When we arrived we found out that the daughter, who is HIV+ was sick with “tummy” problems. She needed to go see the Dr. in Mbabane even though it is very far away because that is where she gets her ARV’s. People on “the medication” are supposed to go back to where they get their medication each month if illnesses arise in between the regular monthly visits. The round trip transport cost for the child and her mother is 120E.

There is also a 13 year old boy in this family, Sicelo, who should be in the 5^th grade, but there isn’t money for his school fees so he stays home. He has the cutest smile. He eagerly helped me measure the garden and then when I took pictures of he and his mother, and showed him the pictures on my camera he just kept saying “how beautiful.” Our frustration of the morning was already starting to dissipate though we were aware of how late it was.

We traveled to the second homestead on our list where we wanted to talk to the gogo about the possibility of her raising chickens to provide them with eggs and meat and also as a way of earning a little bit of money. The gogo could hardly walk when we were there last week because of arthritis, osteoporosis and other ailments. No one was home. We were a bit concerned, but it looked like people where walking to a homestead down the road for some sort of service – possibly a death in the community. So we left.

Then we went to the homestead of the four children who have been abandoned by their parents. We wanted to see if the oldest child, a 14 year old boy named Mthokozisi, had actually planted the seedlings we brought to him a few weeks ago and we also wanted to take him to the High School to see about enrolling him in school next year. He is such a delightful boy; bright, hard working and his teachers said he was a good student. He had cleaned up the homestead since the last time we were there and his little garden was doing well, especially the tomato plants. He showed us the letter he had written to the head teacher at the high school asking to be considered for admittance to form 1 (8^th grade) next year. He had done a great job, but the paper was torn and discolored as if something had spilled on it. My first thought is he wrote a great letter, but it was so messy and dirty it wasn’t going to make a very good impression. Thoko then told me that the reason it was torn and discolored is because he was writing the letter last Saturday when it was raining and the roof leaks. (Oh yes, just one example of life in Swaziland’s humbling moments.)

On the way to the high school we decided to stop by the primary school, Luftoja, to give a child a pair of shoes and leave transport money for two other children that will be going to get their monthly medication next week. We talked to the head teacher and counselor about our plan to talk to the head teacher of the high school and found out that they were there when we first arrived! The head teacher and counselor didn’t seem too excited about our plan, especially the part when we asked them to waive the outstanding fees from last year so he could his results to apply for high school. But they finally consented to our plan to go talk to the head teacher and said the counselor would go with us to the high school. At the last minute the counselor asked the deputy to go with us.

On the way to the car 4 of the children whose homesteads we have visited ran up to great us with huge smiles on their faces. One was the little boy, Mxolsi, who was on crutches and looking very sickly when we first met him. He now is running and looks very healthy! What a blessing.

So finally we made it to the high school. The five of us were granted a short meeting with the head teacher. By God’s perfect plan, the head of the school committee was also present and we found out he was the head of the school committee for the high school and the primary school! He was our stumbling block to get the unpaid fees waived from the primary school so he could be admitted to the high school. They wouldn’t let Mthokozisi go in with us and I felt so bad for him. But the counselor introduced us and told the story to the head teacher. The head teacher agreed to admit Mthokozisi if we could come up with the difference of what the government pays for vulnerable children to attend school and what the actual school fees are. He said he is in the business of children. They would find a way to admit him! I wanted to jump for joy, but I behaved. However, I couldn’t help but put my arm around Mthokozisi as we exited the office and tell him that he was going to school next year!

We returned to Manzini around 3:30, tired, hot, and thirsty. We had bought a couple of rounds of bananas so we weren’t really hungry. But we were so happy and grateful that God had planned for all the right people to be available to say they would admit Mthokozisi in form 1 next year that we were energized. It was so important to Thoko, Thini and I because he is such a bright, nice, responsible young man and we just couldn’t bear the thought of him sitting around the homestead doing nothing, with no food to eat, turning bitter, lazy, maybe even abusive or leave home. Now this child will have hope. He knows people love him and believe in him. Of course, we still have to come up with the money to pay for his fees, a school uniform and student stationary for the next 5 years, but we have faith this will happen. Thoko is going to try to get a 5 year grant from the district Manyano executive officers. If we don’t get the grant, the Lord will provide another way. I just know He will. He didn’t arrange this perfect day for this child to then leave him behind and have all his hopes and dreams taken away.

It’s all about one heart/child at a time.

Pictures:

Sicelo and his mother

Mthokozisi helping Thini through the barbed wire fence at his homestead.

Mthokozisi’s letter to head teacher

Mxolsi and Thephilile (Mthokozisi’s youngest sister)