A little about this month…
This month started out with us getting to Botswana not really knowing what our ministry was going to be. We were told we would be in the bush, which most likely means tenting and no electricity, etc. Well… took on a new meaning for us this month.
We arrived at Mike and Heather’s, greeted by 3 energetic boys running full speed showing us the way to where we were to stay. We were all amazed at how the month was beginning, a beginning of apparent blessings. Welcomed by an amazing family that we immediately felt comfortable with and adored their children and family dynamics. While staying with them our final ministry location was being worked on by the team leaders and Len our “Word to Africa” contact. Meanwhile in the few days of working out travel plans and logistical details we were helping out the family doing yard work and I was able to help paint a bedroom. The room was an add-on the Mike and Heather Walker’s home and was to be the older boy’s room, Beracah and Judah. I started helping out in the “Garden of Eden” where everyone else was… but when I heard there was painting that needed to be done, I jumped on the opportunity. Beracah, Judah and Josea ended up helping out and we all got the room done in a matter of hours. This was aided by good music, their little sister Charisma running around being cute, and a beautiful day the job was complete and done well. (Charisma didn’t help but I had to mix her in because she was an important part to the month as well…)
For those of you who don’t know I am a painter and interior designer. Interior painting is what I do mostly. I very much enjoy it. I love putting on music and being able to transform a rooms’ look with a color or coat of paint; colors that add calmness, energy, or a feeling of cleanliness to the room. I also appreciate the before and after effect of starting with a project and seeing it through to completion. So for me to paint after a long time of not doing this… made my heart happy. Not only did it make my heart happy, it made me miss my sister Lauren. Lauren and I paint together all the time and I cherish the time we spend together, we work really well together and are super goof balls after a long day’s work. (I love you Lauren)
Anyway. Back to this month…
We set off to our final ministry location “in the bush” Mahopa, Botswana to be exact. 1000km away from where we were in Lobatse. This meant a 7 hour bus ride to Hance where we stayed overnight at John & Beauty’s (another contact) then caught a 5:30am bus to a bus stop where we waited 2 hours in 45 degree weather for the next bus which was to take us to another stop and we were then picked up by our last contact Dries (pronounced dreese).
Well, Dries picks us up and we head another 150km to his home. I almost don’t want to get into how bad the ride was because it is still a touchy subject with me… but lets just say, Anna and I in the back of a pickup type truck, bounced around like popcorn in a popping machine for about an hour and a half, till we couldn’t take it anymore. The roads are crazy bad, bumpy and unpredictable. It takes quite a bit to toss me around and I easily left my seat (which wasn’t a seat, just me on a pad on the truck bed) a dozen times. Ok. So we got there.
Met by Ilse (ill-sa) and their daughter Jana (yawna). We camp out in their newly built home and find out the next day what we were going to be doing for the next week or so.
Much to our surprise, we came all this way to help this family finish their home and I was thrilled. The final things that needed to be done was painting, staining, some outside roof work and tiling (peel & stick) the house. I was overjoyed to be a part of this project. Especially considering the story behind its existence.
This new home came to being from just a desire to add a room onto their home for Jana. They presented the idea to a church and one thing led to another… phone calls and people knowing people turned into a home being added onto their existing home all donated. A true gift from the Lord, all materials and labor gifted to this family. The other amazing thing is that all of these things came together in a matter of a month. The entire home potentially finished in less than two months. That’s unheard of, not necessarily for in the states, it can happen, tight but unheard of for being all the way in the bush of Botswana. A family with a calling to help the people of Botswana, specifically the ” June-quan-ce” tribe (that’s how it’s pronounced, not spelt) plus there is a click to it… a noise you make with your mouth, not even a word or letter. –kinda cool
Here are pictures of Spectacle working on their place.
It was a really great time for Spectacle. We bonded this month more than ever I feel… we have just really come to a spot that we honestly feel like a family. Because of having experience in doing these things I stepped into leading what needed to be done and kind of directing the project. I was so proud of how well we worked together and how each person took ownership of their task and did it to the best of their ability. It was neat to look through the progress that occurred in such a short period of time.
Huh… a little laugh… kinda like this year and me.
At the beginning of this project I asked Isle if she wanted me to paint any Scripture in the bedrooms or
she would like a paint technique or something special for the rooms. The paint was white for the whole house because it was donated they didn’t really get a choice. Not to mention when the use their electricity it is from small battery
packs that were charged by solar power and they need all the light
reflection they can get. So white it is. I just really hoped I could
help make it more personal and “homey”
in their rooms. On the last day of working Isle said she found some verses for Jana’s room and their soon-to-be baby’s room. I started working on them, things were going fairly quickly so I asked if she and Dries would like one for their room as well. Here are pictures of the process and final outcome.
