Afterthoughts...

Now that I have been back 2.5 months, a few experiences and affirmations are constantly in the forefront of my mind and are continually processed on a daily basis. Some are very tangible while others are intangible or being processed or testing my ability to really take leaps of faith. It has been an interesting and exciting and frustrating return all combined into one.

One experience I won't forget is the day we ordered fish & chips for lunch and took it back to our guest house to eat. I always fear not having enough food so we ordered a little more than what we actually ate and we had no way to store the food so we reluctantly took it to dispose of it. The worker in the kitchen told us to just put it on the counter. We did so and went on about our day expecting that this was in her job description to clean up after us. A team member went back in to the kitchen to ask a question and saw the worker going through all the parcels taking out what was left to take home to her family. I don't think I have ever been leveled as much as I was on that day. I still think of that story on a daily basis. I like to think I'm a conscientious person but I can be wasteful when it comes to food. If you know me well, you know I always have tons of food left over at parties because I always fear "running out." I've definitely been better and I'm constantly trying to "reduce" and "reuse" as much as possible.

Another resounding theme was finding hope in despair. I went in to a few seemingly dark places--serving alongside the homeless, serving the prostitutes at night, going into the prison. While the circumstances were "dark," there was light in people's eyes that I didn't expect, a sign of hope--hope that their situation is temporary and will improve, a hope that someone sees them, a hope that God will redeem.

I think one of the best places I saw this faith in action was in the prison. I've always wanted to visit the prison but it was always something the guys did on the trips (if it was part of the schedule) because some prisons won't allow women in at all. Mqokeleli (pastor at Harvester, http://backtosa2010.blogspot.com/2010/11/where-did-we-attend-church.html) offered to take me to the prison with him so I jumped on the opportunity. I was scared at first as I had to lock up all my belongings and go in to such an unfamiliar environment, one that can easily invoke fear among women. This is not really "my cup of tea" so to speak even though I have wanted to go. The barrier was quickly dissolved as the men were very friendly. I was worried that the men would be silent since I was an outsider, a woman, and an American. The opposite occurred, and they opened up and shared many of their testimonies and how they wound up in prison and how they believed their lives were being transformed through Christ. I left with a better idea of how much I need to shift my perspective despite my circumstances.

As for as South Africa goes, I keep getting my annual questions "When will you go back?" or "When are you going back for good?" It has definitely brought me to a place to fully embrace God's plan for my life even if it sets me apart from others from a lifestyle or financial standpoint. I'm slowly trading the dreams I have/had for my life for His dreams as mine are surely limited. Who knows where this will take place, and I don't think I have to know right now.

One thread keeps weaving in and out of my life at opportune moments though. When I was at a Christian women's conference this summer, the one question that I took home was: I have been placed in this place, at this time, in this moment in history. Why? For what purpose? I often reflect on that. During one of my quiet times in SA, I was thinking about that and then opened a devotional book that I brought and decided to skip ahead breaking the intended order. These bullet points were in the side margin of the lesson which was titled "Submissive to the Lord's assignment:"

• My life means more than the temporary
• I live at this point in history for a reason
• My existence is no mistake
• I'm here for a purpose -- to fulfill my God-given role

I hadn't given this too much concentrated thought until this past week when it came back up during a morning conversation with my mom. We discussed this based on some personal things I'm working through. She doesn't know the history of this "thread." The next day, I received a card in the mail from her with this on the front (which had already been mailed from Mississippi and en route when we had our conversation about this topic):

• You are not here by chance, but by God's choosing. His hand formed you and made you the person you are. He compares you to no one else-- you are one of a kind. He has allowed you to be here at this time in history to fulfull His special purpose for this generation.

The inside read:

• You are God's servant in God's place at God's perfect time.

I'm a little scattered all over the place since my return as I'm processing next steps. However, I'm comforted by that affirmed message as it has recurred in the best of the worst of times. 'Nuf said.

That's it for now, folks. Thanks for keeping up with all my posts and random thoughts before, during and after the trip. We're all in this together.

With much love and gratitude.

solo week 3

Every year that I go to South Africa, I think how I would love to stay longer and spend some time alone. I never end up making it happen. This year, I wasn't sure what would happen in the future with me regarding teams so I knew I had to make it happen this year--no excuses. After a little back and forth with staying, not staying, staying, not staying, I paid the price to extend my trip by one week and return the following Saturday from the time the team left.

This was the best decision I've made for many reasons--some to share and some to keep to myself for now.

What did I do?

• spent a lot of time in quiet and reflection alone or at the MCM coffee shop
• spent more 1:1 time with friends there
• rode the train from Paarl to Cape Town for the day (no, this is not a train like Amtrak...)
• celebrated Blom's birthday
• served at Butterfly House
• visited the men's prison with Mqokeleli & Portia

Where did I stay?
I stayed in the home of Andre & Ameaka Visser. I stayed in their flat below their house. They were the most gracious hospitable hosts. I felt like part of the Visser family by the time I left. Ameaka works for MCM and manages the coffee shop. She is also part of the group that goes out and serves the street women (http://backtosa2010.blogspot.com/2010/09/bringing-hope-to-streets.html). I can't say enough wonderful things about this family!



Pictures from the week:


breakfast at Proviant with Blom on my last morning in Paarl


Proviant

A Dream, respect for a language and culture, an Englishman who met, fell in love and married a local girl, and the crossing of pathways with a very special Mason family, is the story behind the story of Proviant.

Signature dishes are Bobotie Springrolls, Curried Tripe and trotters, Venison pie, Beef oxtail served with samp and beans, Masala crusted beef fillet, Deep fried Ice Cream and Cape Malay Milk tart.

On the menu you will find old friends like the farm breakfast, mixed grill, vetkoek, malva pudding and of course rusks and boeretroos.

calilillies that grew along the roads and ironically were a sign of renewal and beauty among some places of despair


Blom -- one of my favorite lady peeps


Luba -- one of my favorite man peeps


cappuccino


my blogging and emailing station with my favorite breakfast at the MCM coffee shop


Danielle and Luba
At Under Oaks pizzeria for Blom's birthday


Devona + Margeurite (Ameaka & Andre's daughter and my little sister for the week)


Marnelle (MCM host) and Margeurite


Ameaka & Andre Visser


Blom + Gary (MCM CEO/host)


Rayleen and Danielle

Lions, giraffes, zebras & buffalo, oh my!

Every year, MCM plans for us to go on a safari toward the end of our trip. This is a nice time and beautiful opportunity in which to rest and debrief as well as sort through emotions and experiences before heading home. A couple staff members usually accompany us. This year, Blom & Rayleen, went with us. It was Rayleen's first safari so we had a lot of fun with her!

The safari is something we are all excited for and greatly anticipate for months until we are on site..when things change. Team members often feel guilty about going especially after spending days among immense poverty and with people who live there but have not been able to afford going themselves. Feelings of guilt arise because we are using time and money for ourselves that we could be giving to a ministry. [Remember, all sightseeing expenses are personally funded...no supporter money is used].

Because I have gone to SA with new people each year, I have been on a safari 4 times. It's hard to complain about that, right?! Poor me, I have been dragged on 4 safaris. I've come to see the safari as something very different than the first year. I, too, felt twinges of guilt that first year.

However, I have come to realize that the safari is an important part of the spiritual journey that we embark upon well before we step on/off the plane in South Africa. This is the time we can be swept away and marvel at God's creation. Seeing the sun rise and set over vast expanse filled with incredible free roaming animals is indescribable.

It's also a time for God to be able to reward a faithful servant with rest and quiet messages whispering "well done" and "enjoy this time I've given you for I have put you in this place at this time."

This year, our team closed out our trip with a debrief before leaving the safari site for the airport. Want to see where we went? Visit: www.aquilasafari.com.

"For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse." Romans 1:20



dusk


pool with the elephants and a drive in close view


Aquila game reserve + our ride


where Susan + I bunked




Danielle + Rayleen


Danielle + Janet on a "pit stop"


Blom and Danielle








baboons we saw on the way to the safari


the part that scares me











ready to go!




"Are we out of the lion's den yet?"


Susan & I were scared to be parked among all the lions, with the vehicle turned OFF

Where did we attend church?

One of my favorite parts of each year is attending church in the communities we serve. We sometimes attend different churches, sometimes 2 per day, but we always attend Harvester in Mbekweni.

Because of my frequent visits and continued relationship with several church members, this church has become my 2nd church home and an extended family. The pastor, Mquokeleli and his wife Nosipho, are very dear and lead this church along with several up and coming youth leaders who I have had the pleasure to see grow over the past few years. [To further make the connections, their son is Luba who is in a recent post.."Finding my niche in South Africa" from a Sept. post regarding our project at Boland School for Autism].

We usually attend church on both Sundays during our 2 week stay but due to arriving a day later than usual on Sunday morning, we only had one available Sunday.


Portia


Andisiwe + Yonda


Nosipho + Mqokeleli

Butterfly House 8/12, 8/19, 8/24

One of the best projects in which to be involved yearly is spending time at Butterfly House. Butterfly House is a community center working to care for families with HIV/AIDS and other long term illness. More information about Butterfly House will be at the bottom of the post after pictures.

The team and I went on 8/12 and 8/19. We divided into groups so half could work with the adults while the other half played with the children with plans to switch the following week.

On the first day, I worked with the adults. I think the word that summed up the experience for us was "awkward." We felt like more of a nuisance because we couldn't speak the languages of the women we were working with. We were all a bit out of our comfort zones for sure and kept giving each other that "What do we do now?" look.

On the other day we played with the children and helped them with their school activities and eating lunch. A few experiences stick out the most when remembering our time at Butterfly House.

The first was a story of a precious child whose mother sold her for R400 for alcohol for the weekend. That is about $57 for us. When you meet her, your heart breaks more. She has the most outgoing personality and is one that everyone immediately gravitates to when they enter the room....a parent's dream for a child.

During my 3rd week, I spent one morning at Butterfly House. At lunch, the kids were given a different meal than they usually eat, as evidenced by the disgusted looks on their faces. I think most of them ate enough to kill the hunger but left some food on the plates. One child, however, ate his meal so quickly which really grabbed my attention compared to the other kids' paces. When he finished, he began eating what was left in other kids' bowls. With the "after lunch chaos" that ensued, some of the bowls were knocked over littering "samp & beans" all over the floor. Forget about the "5 second rule" we have, the "hungry boy" began eating what fell on the floor as well. At that moment, I almost lost it. I turned to the teacher and commented on the situation. She said that earlier when he got to school, he told her he was hungry and that they didn't have any food at home.

I couldn't shake that experience for a while and it still is fresh in my mind. Sometimes at work when I get hungry for a morning snack, I try to let the hunger go a little longer to really feel the hunger pangs as a reminder to think of and pray for all those people in the world who feel this the majority of the day or week. It is hard to relate because I know that I have a snack or meal within arm's distance or in the near future.

I used to think hunger sucked but didn't really realize the global ramifications from hunger beyond the nutritional standpoint. For me, I have low blood sugar so if I don't have snacks, you'll hear "timber!" I've got a few scars to show it. Think of how hard it is to concentrate when we are "starving" by middle class American standards. If I had been born in a different part of the world with little access to food and snacks at my disposal, I would not have been able to concentrate or make it through school thus reducing my ability to learn and later my earning potential.

Malnutrition compromises the body in so many ways. In an attempt to converse energy, the body compensates by slowing down physical and mental processes. A hungry mind cannot focus. A starving person does not have the strength to work. A child who hungers loses the ability to learn and the desire to play. Mothers who survive childbirth do not produce enough milk to sustain infants. Brain development in children is stunted, leaving mental impairments. The immune system becomes compromised leaving both children and adults vulnerable to a host of illnesses and diseases. (The Hole in Our Gospel, Richard Stearns)

A few statistics:

• 1 in 4 children in developing countries is underweight
• ~350-400 million children are hungry
• 1 in 7 people worldwide do not have enough food to sustain them
• a child dies every 4 seconds from hunger-related causes
• ~25000 people die yearly from hunger or hunger-related causes

The cycle is viscous -- the poor are hungry, and their hunger keeps them poor.
What is worse? The world can and does produce enough food to feed everyone.

What is something easy you can do that doesn't require money and requires very little time??

www.thehungersite.com

Open the link and click on "click here to give" and with each one click, you give 1.1 cup of food to the hungry. You can also shop here for Christmas gifts.

For those of you that donated Barbies and books, they went here. The books went in to the classroom to fill many empty shelves, and they got immediate use! The kids loved them and brought them to use to read. The Barbies and accessories went in the play room where they do therapy with the children.

Here are some pictures from Butterfly House:



he picked a book mid way through putting them on the shelves


filling up the bookshelves with your donations




sorting supplies


the smallest of helpers putting away the new books




Me + a volunteer's grandchild





A little more information about Butterfly House:
BUTTERFLY HOUSE MISSION STATEMENT
To manage a palliative community resource of mutual care and support, which focuses on ‘living’ with life-threatening and life-limiting illnesses.
VISION
Quality holistic care; for the community, in the community, with the community.
Butterfly House is the venue for the Drakenstein Palliative Hospice Day Care Programmes. It is situated in Fairyland, an informal (now becoming more formal) settlement between Paarl and Wellington.
Butterfly House was established in partnership with Ivar Koteng & Nina Glad from Trondheim in Norway (supported by friends, family & staff), Familievernkontoret i Sǿr-trǿndelag, Paarl Round Table, Drakenstein Palliative Hospice, Monte Christo Ministries, Dianna Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, HPCA, Pepfar and many other Private Individuals and Community Members and Businesses (see list under Funders).
Butterfly House aims to provide services, often in partnership with other organisations, which will add to the quality of life of patients, their families (infected and affected) and others made vulnerable through neglect, abuse, malnutrition, substance abuse, extreme poverty and illness.
Participation with the Butterfly House activities is guided by the following beneficiary priorities:
a) patients
b) family of patients and then
c) vulnerable community members

The groups are restricted to 20 in order to promote quality care
Butterfly House provides the following services:

1. Adult & Young Adult Care
   
   a) Adult Day care programmes
   Mondays: Craft Job Creation Group
   Tuesdays: Carers Support Group
   Wednesday: Medical Day Care
   Thursday: Psycho-social Day Care
   
   
   
   b) Young Adult Programmes
   5 days a week: Young Men: The programme includes daily psycho-social support group, food provision, gardening and cleaning the community project, Butterfly United Soccer Team, Drama, A Healthy Living Education programme, including highlighting appropriate gender, ethics and justice attitudes and values. Job creation activities are attended by some of the group members.
   1 day a week: Young Women: This programme is focussed of Healthy Living, Life Skills and empowerment of women through highlighting appropriate gender, ethics and justice attitudes and values.
   
   
   
2. Youth Day Care Programmes
   
   a) After School Home-work club supervised by a teacher and Youth Workers
   b) Individual Tuition: Teacher, maths teacher and other teacher volunteers
   c) Life-skills programme: Presented by staff, peer educators and other partners
   d) Job skills: Crafting, catering and computer skills
   e) Recreational activities: Ballroom dancing, street dancing, drama, choir, poetry and youth clubs
   f) Individual sessions: Provided by a psychologist, play therapist, play aunties, social worker & teachers
   
   
3. Pre-school (up to 9 years) Programmes
   3 morning groups: School readiness, life skill and healthy living activities for infected and affected as well as other vulnerable children
   3 afternoon groups: School readiness activities for infected and affected as well as other vulnerable children
   Individual play sessions with play auntie
   Individual play therapy sessions on referral
   Recreational activities: choir, drama, games, crafts

Each week runs according to a holistic theme emphasizing either physical, social, emotional, cultural, spiritual and education aspects of care. Each programme aims to be conducted in a holistic manner with particular value attributed to gender, ethics and justice issues.