In celebration of my two months in Lesotho, I decided to reminisce on this season using the alphabet.
A is for Apple- one of our translators. She’s 17, an amazing singer, super fun, and has an inspiring heart for Jesus.
Apple and I on a hike to the waterfall.
B is for ‘Banana fela’- the adopted name of our weekly girl’s sleepovers. In Sesotho, that means ‘girls only’. Whenever we walked through the villages and passed one of our girls, they would shout ‘banana fela’!
C is for Christmas- which we spent in Lesotho. It was one of the best Christmases ever. We ate a pig, sang Christmas carols, and danced for hours in church. I wrote a blog about it. Check out “Be Still and Know”.
Our host (Pieter), some of my team, Santa Clause and I.
D is for Dumela- the greeting in Sesotho.
E is for Every Sunday- we attended church for four hours straight. It’s something you learn to love
F is for Fat Cakes- Fried dough balls you could get from a little shop. They were very addicting. Also known as ‘makuenyas’.
G is for Gratitude- something I learned a lot about and felt a lot of in my time here!
H is for Holiday Club- our ministry for the first month in Lesotho. Children from all over Malealea Valley would come for a few hours a day to play games, hang out, and hear some Bible stories.
I is for Instant Coffee- something I had to develop an appreciation for since it was the only kind they had.
J is for Justin- a World Race alumni who came for a visit in our last two weeks. Even though he was only with us for a short time, I really appreciated his friendliness and wisdom.
K is for Kenayaway- one of our translators. She is 17, quiet but hilarious, and has a super gentle spirit.
L is for Long walks- one of my favorite pastimes in the beautiful valley of Malealea. It was seriously breathtaking. Look up pictures, people!
and for Long drops- the type of toilet we used. And let me tell you, it was a long drop.
One of our first hikes.
M is for Mama Faith- our cook and friend at the base. She was a source of a lot of laughter over the two months.
N is for Neo- one of the girl’s I had a good friendship with. Her name means ‘gift’.
O is for Off- the-grid- Malealea is in the middle of nowhere, but that was part of its beauty to me.
P is for Pologne- a bright pink mystery meat that was a frequent ingredient in our meals
and for Pig decapitations- a once in a lifetime thing to witness. RIP Christmas the pig.
Q is for Quiet Time in the field- I had a special spot I went to every day for hours at a time. I treasured the alone time I spent there. The view was breathtaking!
R is for Rest days- I made it a habit while in Malealea to take ‘Sabbath Fridays’ where I could relax and refresh. Some of the sweetest moments and most fun adventures I had happened on these days.
S is for Singing- My favorite part of the culture here by far was their love for singing! I spent hours listening and learning beautiful songs in Sesotho.
T is for Thandy- Another one of our translators. She’s 14, absolutely gorgeous, and one of the funniest people I’ve ever met.
Thandy!!
U is for Uncomfortable- We slept on the floor in a small room with fourteen other people and were far away from a lot of things we were used to, like restaurants and stores. But the beautiful view made up for it 100%!
V is for Village Ministry- which we were involved in the last month in Lesotho. We would go house to house and ask how we could help them. Sometimes that looked like washing clothes or dishes, and other times it was sharing a word or singing a song. I’ve written a few previous blogs about it; go check them out!
W is for Wheat Harvesting- We had the chance to help a woman harvest her wheat field one day. It’s an experience I’ll never forget. I felt like a real farmer!
X is for Xtreme donkey races- another fun thing we had the chance to try out. A few of the village boys brought their donkeys and we raced them for about an hour one afternoon. I won J
Y is for You would love it here- Seriously, if you ever find yourself in Lesotho, go visit Malealea. I think it might be one of the only times in my life I get to see God’s creation so thoroughly untouched by litter and pollution. Before coming to Malealea, I had only pictured in my mind the landscapes that I walked through there. It’s breath taking!
A rainbow after the rain 🙂
Z is for Zillions of stars- the first thing I noticed the night I arrived and the last thing I thanked God for the night I left. There was many a night we worshiped under the stars. If nothing else has convinced you yet of God’s hand over this place, consider the majesty of the most vivid sky of stars you could imagine. I already miss them!
All is still well here in Siem Reap! I’ll be staying here until the end of the month. Then my new team and I, Team Victory, will be heading to Battambang to work with children on the street. Keep praying because God is seriously doing things that are greater than I could ask for or imagine!
