Swazi Tales

Hitting the 1 year mark

I’ve heard it said that a journeyman’s second year is much better than the first. That the first year is about adjusting and figuring out your job, and the second year you have a better idea of what your doing and can better enjoy the job. So far, even though it’s only been one month into my second year, I agree that the second year is much more enjoyable than the first. So, as you are guessing, May 6 I hit the one year mark in my term. May 5 was my one year anniversary for graduating PBA.

Homestead stay

One Saturday I spent the night at a family’s homestead. I stayed partly for fun and partly because it was close to the church I was going to the next morning. Their homestead consisted of two buildings. One was the kitchen and it was also where the family’s only son slept. The other building had a sitting room (where the 3 daughters and I slept), a bathroom (literally an empty room used to take basin baths), and the parents’ bedroom. I stayed with the Gama family. The mom and children go to Peace Baptist Church, but the husband is a polygamist and leans towards the traditional Swazi beliefs. The husband is a fireman in Mbabane and the wife, Wendy (who I adore), teaches preschool at the local church. They have 3 daughters, Lando (15), Lihle (13), and Gcnile (10). They have one son who is twin to Gcinile. Nearby is the husband’s family’s homestead. That night I went over with the girls to visit their grandma. She was sitting on a grass mat near the fire under a mud hut. The uncle did not know that I was visiting and so he almost fell off his stool when he saw me walk in. He tested me by offering me something similar to boiled nuts, but the joke was on him. I ate those things up, they’re good.

That night when we were getting ready for bed Wendy showed me pictures from her album. It is a real treat to have pictures and so I know it was special for me to see pictures of the family. As we were laying out the blankets we were to sleep on I opened up the sleeping bag I brought. I didn’t know what the sleeping situation was going to be like and I didn’t want to assume they would have extra blankets for me. They were so amazed at the sleeping bag and the inflatable pillow that goes inside it. I have to admit, the inflatable pillow impresses me too. Wendy and the girls asked questions like “how does it work?”, “how do you lay in it?”, and “do you put blankets inside it?” Wendy wanted to try it out so I got a picture.

Sunday morning we woke up with the sun almost. The girls took me hiking up the top of the mountain that they lived on. Also, I ate sour porridge for breakfast (which I do not recommend). Wendy had told me the night before that she wanted to give me a chicken. I only saw a few chickens so I told her that she didn’t need to give me one, but she insisted and said that they had more but they just weren’t in the coop. I was assuming that they were going to give it to me live. I have no problem killing a chicken if I am starving and that’s my only means for meat, but I’m not going to chop a chicken’s head off when I can just go to the store. So I decided to keep it as a pet and began to think of places to keep it so the dogs could not get it. I saw Lando carrying my new pet chicken when it was almost time for me to go. A few minutes later I went into the kitchen and there was my chicken, headless and Lando had blood on her. I wasn’t too upset about the loss of my new pet. I took it home and fried it.

Soccer team

I have mixed feeling about the girls’ soccer team. There are about 10 girls who are serious about it and want to have a team. But I need at least 12, and would prefer 15. Some practices I’ll have 20 girls. Then the next practice I might have between 8 and 12. Sometimes we practice at a community field and not at the high school. When were at Ntsintsa’s community field local children come and play along, so I set up their own drills on the side. The sweetest thing happened last week. As I was dropping some girls off, I past the corner where the Ntsintsa field is. When I was first learning my way around I knew where to turn for Ntsintsa Baptist Church because of this corner. I called it the corner of the begging children because the kids would always stand and yell out for sweets and money. Well, last week when I passed they started shouting “Kimba! Kimba!” I aksed the girls in the truck with me if they were shouting my name and they said yes. I almost got a little teary eyed right then. I was like, “they’re so sweet. They’re not sweet when they’re constantly trying to steal soccer balls, but right now they’re so sweet.”

Prayer Requests

We are having a meeting this Saturday, June 14 with the national youth committee to, hopefully, finalize plans for youth camp. Also, June 21 will be the national youth leaders retreat. There are two youth leaders from each church and so all are invited to come for the weekend for leadership training. Also, please continue to pray that God will work through me while I’m here. Really, I guess I should say pray that I will continue to be willing to let God work through me. I realize that my time in Swaziland is limited and I do not want to become useless, or become busy with many things but it not be the things God wants me to do, so therefore be busy but still useless becomes I am not busy doing God’s will. Pray that I will take time to stop and listen to the roosters crow, smell the bus exhaust in town and the cattle in the country, to watch the sunsets, to enjoy the flowers, to smile and give a friendly word to those I meet, and to take captive every moment God has given me here.