"I'm all wrapped up. I'm all tied up. I'm all tangled up in Jesus. I'm all wrapped up. I'm all tied up. I'm all tangled up in God…."
Picture 18 Swazi preschoolers attempting to sing these words, smiles stretching across their faces. This is one of my favorite things about this month! These kids are precious and I am loving Swaziland!
We are partnered with a Nazarene church this month and it has been amazing to me how different our months look, even though we have worked with churches about half of the Race.
Mornings are spent at a Carepoint preschool with 18 of the most beautiful 3-8 year olds you have ever met! We sing songs, color pictures, sing more songs, count, sing more songs, say the alphabet, sing more songs, do crafts, sing more songs. These kids love to sing, and I love to listen to them! While I've kind of had to let go of the idea that the kids are each learning at their level to their fullest ability, I look forward to just loving them and laughing with them each day!
Around noon, we all head back to the house for lunch, which usually means making a PB&J sandwich (something I rarely eat at home) or on special occasions means your teammates have prepared an incredible meal of grilled cheese and soup (Trust me….. any sort of cheese overseas is a luxury!)
Afternoons consist of playing with and talking to the school-aged kids who come to the Carepoint for an afternoon meal and sometimes sitting in on group grief counseling. Some of these kids speak a lot of English, some speak none. Some just love to run and play and some love to just cuddle on your lap.
In the evenings, Natasha and I spend time teaching two of the men of the church to play the keyboard. We laugh a lot and truly enjoy this "work," as these guys are SO enthusiastic and excited to learn! One of these men plays beautifully by ear and the other has never played before, so we are working on notes and chords. Laughter is a huge part of our hour-long lessons.
This month, my team is blessed to be working with and sharing a house with Team Day 3 (which means spending the month with Jessa, who was on my team for the first 6 months!) We are enjoying having a kitchen to cook in, lots of quality conversations in the "dining room," and having lots of game nights in the evenings.
Our kitchen this month consists of one cupboard, a handful of plastic plates, and four gas stove burners that sometimes spark a little too much for comfort. Water comes from the large tank outside, though our once clear water is now coming out brown since they recently refilled the tank! So, we now use the faucet in the middle of the yard. Our dining room is small with just a little table in the middle and green and black plastic chairs scattered around, shoes piled along the side, and five large tubs of paint. It may be small, but we are thankful for the laughter that fills this room each day. The church stands between the house and the bathroom (outhouse) which is filled with flies during the day and cockroaches at night. We sweep the floor about 10 times a day and the house is still covered with dirt 90% of the time. Our dishes are washed in buckets, we hand wash all our clothes and hope the wind doesn't blow them off the line, and we take bucket showers every couple days. We take public transportation approximately an hour on our day off to get somewhat reliable internet.
I've heard several teammates mention they feel like we've gone back in time, and in so many ways, it does seem that we have. But I wouldn't change any of it (well…. maybe the bathroom!) I love this simple life we're living, taking time to enjoy the beautiful sunrises in the morning, the incredible sunsets each evening, and the brightest stars I've ever seen each night. I never cease to be amazed by the beauty God has created and am continually reminded to give Him praise and honor for Who He is!
"O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the seas. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!"
~Psalm 8
