Dear Africa,
Thank you for welcoming me with open arms, minds, hearts and souls. You truly made it feel like home. Thank you for showing me what true joy looks like within poverty in Nsoko, Swaziland, for showing me the pure beauty of nature in South Africa, and for teaching me how to live in freedom in Malealea Village, Lesotho. Thank you for your big blue skies and even bigger smiles. For all the locals that are thirsty to know God almost as much as they thirst for clean water and hunger for peace almost as much as they hunger for food. No exaggeration. Thank you for your belly-laughing children whom I pray would also be belly-filled. For your hospitable Grandmothers who desire to know and love everyone they encounter. For the men that confidently will propose marriage to any American they see, though creepy at times, makes for a good story and evangelizing opportunity. For your beautiful women that feel so broken, but smile ear to ear when you tell them just how worthy they are. For the ministry hosts that take too good of care for us, always making sure we are as comfortable as possible. Thank you for your amazing traditional foods, like makoenyas, which taste like heavenly dough balls. Thank you for your views, the breath-taking mountains, luscious valleys and calm rivers. For incredible adventures like safaris, 4 day backpacking trips, waterfall hikes and even for your cool shopping malls! Thank you for the lessons learned, sights seen, relationships made and lives changed, including my own. I miss you already and will cherish every memory from there until the day I die. I pray to return to you someday to maybe retrieve the half of my heart that I left behind! You were magical, filled with the best moments I have had in life so far. I feel like the luckiest 21 year old girl in the world because I get to say I lived in, embraced the culture of and had such an amazing journey in Africa for 2 (too short) months. So, Africa, the incredible countries of Swaziland and Lesotho, THANK YOU for starting my 9 month journey off right. I will take these experiences and lessons and apply them to the rest of my race! India, I’m so ready for you . In fact, I’m writing this on a layover in Mumbai right now! I have wanted to visit India since I was 4 when Grandmommy told me about her amazing Indian adventures, and have felt a calling to ministry here for almost 3 years now. You could say I’m excited! I have no idea whats ahead for me here in India these next 2 months, but I am more than willing and able to tackle this new country. But for now, while I have a 12 hour layover before arriving at my final destination, I reflect on my time in Africa and greatly appreciate all that happened there.
With that being said, thank you, Africa. I will always love you!
Xoxo, Elisabeth/ Lissie/ Smangdele/ Mableke/ Palesa Butler
