Sawubona!

Hello everyone!

I'm sure people have been wondering why I haven't written about the Cherish studies yet. Well, that's because 1. they don't start until next week and 2. my role in them is a little bit different than I had thought it would be. I had thought I would be working with Becca and 3 Swazi girls (Phumlile, Hlonphile, and Zabiba) to lead 3-4 groups of 8-10 girls. That is a maximum of 40 girls. Instead though, we are having Swazi girls who have been through the study and are in form 4 or 5 (the two top grade levels here) lead groups of the younger girls at the school. This means that instead of up to 40, we are going to have at least 180 girls going through the Cherish study! I am so excited about this! Becca is pulling back from the studies to focus on other projects, so it is my job to drive everyone all over Swaziland to get to the 4 schools we are doing Cherish in (one in each region of the country). Also, Hlonphile, Phumlile, and I each have one of the four schools of which we are in charge. Mine is Ngwane Central High School. We will be at all of the schools overseeing the groups the Swazi girls from those schools are leading. We did preliminary visits this past week where we met with all of the girls and gave the leaders transport money to get to our house in Manzini for training today. The training went very well, and we are all very excited about what God is doing in the lives of His daughters here in Swaziland!

You can see all of my pictures here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2121896&l=35852&id=23210853

care point

05/26/08
I went to a care point for the first time today. Care points are places where orphans and vulnerable children can come and get food and have a safe place to play for a few hours in the afternoons. I spent two hours at a care point today while Becca was in a class. At first there were only a few kids there, but as time went on, more and more kids came. When I first arrived, there was this one little boy that was just standing there that really caught my attention. He was about 2 and was so adorable. I asked what his name was, and my friend Swazie told me his name is Dudu. I talked to him for a minute and then reached my arms out to see if he wanted to be picked up. His face lit up, and he threw his arms up to me. He stayed in my arms or on my lap the entire time I was there. I would hold him and spin around or toss him into the air, and he would just giggle. I'm convinced his laugh is the world's most beautiful sound. When I sat down with him after he'd warmed up to me, he really showed how playful he is. He would get down off of my lap, and walk away while saying "Bye-bye! Bye-bye!" Then he would walk a bit, turn around, run towards me laughing, and jump into my arms. How can I even begin to explain how precious he is? After I'd been there about an hour, the kids all sat down together and Swazie led the kids in singing songs. They sang a Swazi song I'd never heard before, Kumbaya (I'm unsure of the spelling here, but I'm sure everyone knows what song I mean. Something about hearing orphans and other vulnerable children sing the "Someone's dying, Lord" verse is very poignant to me; it was nothing like hearing it around a campfire!), a Swazi version of a song we sang a lot in Zambia (Journey interns, there is a Swazi version of "Takwaba!" It made me miss you all!), and then a prayer of thanks song. Swazie commanded everyone to close their eyes and she swatted with a stick those that didn't listen! Dudu (who did not have to be swatted) closed his innocent eyes, bowed his small head, and folded his little hands in prayer as he whispered tiny, precious prayers to our big, loving God. There are not even words to describe what seeing him pray was like. I cannot wait to see him again next week!
By the way, Umuhle (ooo-moo-h-lay) is how you say "You are beautiful" in SiSwati.
Also, my SiSwati name is Buhle (Boo-h-lay). Zabiba gave it to me. It means beauty/beautiful. She asked what I first noticed when I came to Swaziland, and I said "The beauty," so she said Buhle, which is a name in Zabiba's family, should be my SiSwati name. I am not sure a Swazi name is really necessary though, since Faith is already a familiar name here. When a man asked my name and where I'm from the other day, he said "How come you have a Swazi name if you are from America?" I thought that was funny.

School

5/24/08
Today is a day I will never forget. I know people say that a lot, but I really mean this: I will never forget today. My friend Phumlile (pronounced poom-lee-lay) and I took kombis (the public transportation here, they are like little vans that hold about 15 people) into Mbabane, where we met up with a woman named Dolly. Dolly is an incredible Swazi woman of God. She has such a wonderful attitude and personality and is amazingly selfless and humble. Dolly lives in a poor village in the mountains outside of Mbabane. Dolly , Phumlile, and I took another kombi to get near her village and then we walked a ways. She took us to her home, which she said calls "The special," because everyone she brings inside the house is always special. Her house was one small room and it was packed tight with all of her personal belongings. Her bed was in the center and her tattered Bible lay open in the middle of the bed.
Dolly works cleaning houses and has little education, but Dolly is the village teacher. Dolly recently began noticing that the children in her village were not going to school, since they couldn't afford it. She said "I don't know much, but I know how to read and write and I know the alphabet," and so Dolly started a free school in her village. They meet on Tuesdays and Wednesdays for normal lessons, and they recently have begun meeting on Saturdays as well for Bible lessons. The three of us walked about half a mile down and around the side of the mountain to get to the edge of the village where their school is located. Their school is a large, flat rock underneath the shade of a tree. While we walked there, we rang a bell to tell all the children it was time for their lesson. The view as we walked was absolutely breathtaking. When we got to the rock, Dolly's helper had started the meeting already, and she had the kids singing and dancing. The day's lesson was on Moses, and it was entirely in SiSwati. There were about 30 kids on the rock listening to the lesson. They were all so precious.
After the lesson was over, I used the few SiSwati phrases I know to converse with the kids. These kids were very shy, and one little boy screamed and ran away from me when I tried to talk to him. Dolly's helper told me that "people like me" didn't come there very often, so he was frightened of me. I felt bad that my skin scared him so, and I really hoped the other children weren't frightened. This one little girl probably about 3 years old latched on to me. She walked all the way back up and around the mountain with me. Well, actually I carried her up the mountain in my arms almost the entire way. She was so tiny and so adorable and she laid her head on my shoulder in the most precious way, so I didn't have the heart to put her down. Her name is Thubelihle (Tu-ba-lee-hlay). She was so funny. She did walk beside me a few times and she would do a funny shuffle walk sometimes, so I would copy her. She would just giggle.
I am going back in 2 weeks, since we are doing Cherish leadership training next Saturday. I cannot wait to go back. It was such an incredible experiece relationally, spiritually, and culturally. It was so beautiful to see how God is working in amazing ways in a tiny, poor, mountain village through the kindness of one women with a servant's heart.
In other news, my cell phone was stolen today when we got back to Manzini. Luckily, I had my amazingly cunning friend Phumlile with me. She snatched it back from the thief before I had even realized he had reached into my purse to get it. I just saw her holding my phone and him standing by me going "I was just going to check it for you." Phumlile's my hero!

I am here!

I am here! Swaziland is incredible. The journey here was rough, but God showed His providence constantly. Telling my family goodbye was much more difficult than I had anticipated it would be. I have left for long periods of time several times before, but this time was the hardest leaving has ever been. I think the fact that I was going alone made it so difficult. When I got on the plane, I felt incredibly, incredibly alone. I sat there with tears streaming down my face while reading letters my parents had written me for me to read when I got on the plane. I began talking to the girl seatedby me and she said her final destination was Joburg, and I told her mine was too. She said her parents are missionaries in Joburg with the IMB (International Mission Board) and that she grew up all over Southern Africa. I told her my name is Faith and she said "Well, that's perfect. My name is Joy." The flight was about 8 hours long, and I did not sleep at all.
Joy and I stayed together during our layover in Amsterdam. We got breakfast and browsed the airport shops. By the way,the Dollar to Euro exchange rate is ridiculous right now. It cost $11.80 for two small fruit juices! Our layover was a little over 3 hours long.
The flight to Joburg was very long, and I think I slept about two hours out of the 10 on the plane. When I got to Joburg, I was severely tired and after I got my baggage, I realized I could not enter back into the secure parts of the airport until I could check in for my flight to Swazi. It was 9:30, and my flight was not until 6:60AM. I couldn't check in until 2 hours before my flight. I was terrified. Tears were streaming down my face from a combination of exhaustion and fear. Joy introduced me to her parents who were there to pick me up. They were very concerned for my safety (Joburg has the worst crime rate of any city in the world). Her dad walked me across the street to the Intercontinental Hotel, a luxury hotel. He gave me some rand to buy something warm and caffeinated to keep me awake. He was so kind, and I do not know what I would have done had it not been for him.
That began my night in the hotel lobby. It was a little after 10PM when I got to the hotel lobby. I purchased some tea and texted my dad. He called me, and I told him what was happening. He told me to get a room there and get some sleep, but I then found out the cheapest room available was $450. At midnight, a guy came and told me I had to leave. I explained the situation to him, and he took me to his manager. They really weren't supposed to let me stay, but she said it would be alright. I think she saw how alone and terrified I was. I stayed there until 4:15Am. I journaled, read my Bible, studied Cherish, and talked with the people who worked there. There was a maid cleaning around me, and I asked her if she needed me to move or if there was something with which I could help her. She laughed and said no. She began coming by and talking to me every chance she got. Her name is Christinah, and she had a home name as well. About 3:30AM, she told me she wanted to make something for me. She came back a while later with this wonderful hot chocolate-like beverage. It was beautiful and tasty, and it warmed me inside in more ways than one. She gave me her phone number and wants to come to Passion Joburg with me on August. She was a Godsend and a blessing. It was my second night without sleep. I left the hotel at 4:15.
The plane to Swazi was very small. There was an AIM family on the flight with me, and it was encouraging to meet them. When we got into Swazi, the scenery completely changed. All of a sudden, there were beautiful mountains everywhere and lush, green plants. It was incredible.
We went to the house that will be my home for the next three months. It turns out I am living in Manzini, not Ezulwini, because Becca recenty moved to the AIM team house apartment. I have a small room in the back of the apartment. It's perfect. Next, we picked up two of the girls on our team, Hlonphile and Phumlile. I gave them the purses, lotions, lip glosses and bath gels I got them. They started screaming because they were so happy. Becca and I couldn't stop laughing.
We went to the AIM office, and I got to meet a lot of my AIM family for the summer. They were so encouraging, and I am so excited to spend the summer working with them.
We ran some errands to SPAR (the grocery store) and some local shops. Oh, I got my first Swazi proposal my first day there. As we were walking into a store, a man stopped me and said "I need to talk to you. May I talk to you?" I told him I had to go with my friends. As I walked away he called after me "I want to talk to you!If you are willing, I would like to marry you, and if you are not willing, I would still like to marry you."
We picked up Zabiba, our other team member, and then headed back to the AIM house. We talked as a team and then they prayed over me, which was amazing. I hadn't really slept since Saturday night and it was Tuesday afternoon. Also, I have a cold. To say I was exhausted is a complete understatement. I went to bed at 2PM and slept and slept 16 hours!I felt so lazy. I woke up and was alone and locked in the house, which was amazing, because I had time to unpack my suitcase and my thoughts. My room is decorated and my suitcase organized.
I am now sitting in the Royal Swazi hotel with Becca, Kate and Marissa. We had a problem with my bank account. Bank of America did not think I was actually in Swaziland wanting money out of my account and my parents could not unlock it, since they are not on my account. This turned out to be a blessing, since it kept me from buying a cell phone. Kate, who will be leaving Swazi to move back to the US in a few days, just told me she is going to give me her cell phone. What a blessing!

I am having an amazing time in Swazi so far!

Swaziland

It is hard for me to believe that I am less than 3 weeks away from being back in Africa. A week into my stay in Zambia in 2006 I journaled that: "I am beginning to realize that a large part of my heart will always remain in Africa." I had no idea how true those words were when I wrote them. I have missed Africa so much since I left.

Swaziland will be my home for almost 3 months this summer. I will be flying out on May 18, having layovers in Amsterdam and Johannesburg, and then flying into Swaziland the morning of May 20. My friend Becca (http://beccachristian.myadventures.org/), with whom I taught in Zambia, has lived there for 3 years now. I will be living with her this summer. She is on staff with Adventures in Missions and works discipling teenage girls.

I will be working with 3-4 groups of 8-10 high school aged girls in each group and doing an abstinence-based HIV/AIDS prevention study called "Cherish." This study is so beautiful. I have been going through it for the last few months, and I have learned so much from it. I still can't believe how incredible God is for opening the door for me to do this. The study is aimed at learning how to see ourselves the way God sees us and to examine His view of beauty, identity, purity, and sexuality. It talks of how God has a plan for each of our lives regarding marriage, and this plan (whether it be singleness or marriage) will be an incredible God journey. This is a subject so close to my heart. Instilling this concept of marriage and relationships in teenage girls is something about which I am incredibly passionate. I am a strong believer in the concept of guarded hearts focusing on Jesus and being kept safe for a future spouse. I get so incredibly excited when I think of learning with these girls about how to "Cherish" purity and seek God's best for our lives!

I also hope to be working in an orphanage or children's care point while I am in Swaziland. Swaziland has the world's highest HIV/AIDS prevalence rate at around 40% and there are over 80,000 AIDS orphans in this tiny country. My times with the children in Zambia are some of the most precious experiences of my life, and I cannot wait until I get to be back with the beautiful children of Africa.