My time in Swaziland has proven to be almost as crazy as the past few months. After spending time with my team up on the mountain at El Shaddai, I couldn't wait to head back up the mountain and spend the rest of the month with my team. God had different plans. I think I mentioned in my previous blog that as Erin and I were heading back to be with our team, we received a call that two girls had been hospitalized with Malaria. We continued our trek up the mountain in hopes that we could spend the rest of the month "resting" in this peaceful place.
The next morning, we headed back in to town to go to the hospital. One girl, Jenni, had gotten worse and there were talks of transferring her to South Africa. The other, Micah, would then need some TLC from Erin and I so her team could continue to do ministry in Swaziland. When we got to the hospital, we agreed that Jenni needed to be transferred to South Africa. That night we moved Micah to a different hospital and the next morning Jenni was transferred by ambulance to Johannesburg.
When we arrived at the new hospital with Micah we were amazed. The two hospitals were like night and day. Crazy difference. We were now at an all-womens hospital (that was a tad bit awkward). They placed us in the maternity ward for the first night since there weren't any private rooms available (also a tad bit awkward). The next morning the room began to fill with expectant mothers and the sounds of children being born filled the room. They finally moved us to a private room in the afternoon. After just a few short hours of being in the hospital, Micah improved significantly. She was no longer throwing up after they gave her medicine and she was feeling and looking 10 times better.
After just a few long days of sitting in the hospital watching movies, playing games, and trying to keep Micah and ourselves entertained, Micah was released. She was almost back to normal, only needing a few more days of rest to regain her strength. We returned her to her thrilled-to-see-her team and headed back to the mountain. In the meantime, Jenni was also doing 10 times better in South Africa (I knew you were wondering).
We had to spend the night in town to wait for our ride back up the mountain the next day. We crashed out and met Elvis, our driver, the next morning. It was awesome to be back on the mountain. The team had finished a lot of the manual labor that needed to take place so I asked Charmain, the host, what else needed to be done. She told me that the play structure that had just been dug up in on place needed to be installed in another place.
Laura and I cut off the rotted part of the beams of the play structure that used to be in the ground. We recruited some help to dig holes in the new location. We finished digging the holes and setting the play structure in the holes in the first day. The next day, the Friday before we left for South Africa, we mixed concrete and filled the holes! By lunchtime half of the holes were completed. After lunch, we mixed some more concrete and filled the remaining holes. We braced the pieces that needed to be braced and were confident the play structure would be unmovable.
I was so blessed to have the little amount of time that I actually had on top of that mountain in Swaziland. I am so thankful for each and every sunset witnessed and quality time spent with the teams that were there. Unfortunately, during the last week of my time there, one of my squad mates, Johnny, had to make the hard choice to go home. His mom's cancer came out of remission during the Race and he had received a call that it was time for him to come home to be with her. Please be praying for him and his family as they live this terrible situation. Please pray that Johnny can be a witness to her and that she will come to know Christ during this trying and hard time.
We're heading out for South Africa today. It'll be a long and beautiful drive. I'm super excited for the potential for month 11. More to come as soon as we get to South Africa!
