Lesotho is a beautiful country of which I think is mostly mountains. After riding in a small bus/big van for 15 hours and a couple of getting out and pushing the bus and walking up the mountains which was harder than we expected because we are so high up that we’re not used to it. But the bus had a harder time than us going up those mountains. We made it to our host in Mokhotlong at 11pm. Woke up to a beautiful view of the town and mountains! And for the second half of our stay there was a dusting of snow! It smelled like winter which made me think of home.
We came along side Harvesters Hillock Bible Church. Our main project was building the orphanage. We built the foundation. Which was a lot of hauling rocks and dirt. Thankfully everything needed to go downhill. So we didn’t have to push a load of dirt uphill. We didn’t get as much done as I was hoping too, because of the weather. June is the coldest month of the year here and I believe it. So we would have prayer meetings on days when it was to cold to go out and work. The orphanage was right next to the school so the kids loved to help us during recess and after school was out. It was really fun working with them. They have such a heart to serve and work alongside us. We also did ministry (spoke, shared and prayed with) at the prison, hospital, (we also served food to the HIV patients there) soup kitchen, preached at the church here in town, out in the village and at the women fellowship on Fridays, we also did testimonies/bible stories at the high school and grade school and just getting to know the people and building relationships with them and encouraging one another.
This month was a struggle for me at first because it was so cold all the time! I would have been fine if there was insulation or heat in the house we stayed in so we could thaw out a bit on the days with no sun. But there wasn’t, so we were cold all the time. I would go to bed at 7:30/8 just because my sleeping bag was the warmest place to be. I got really homesick thinking about the fire place at my parents and my nice warm bed in which I would wake up in a warm room. Complaining about the cold was really easy to do. It hit me one day I was walking down the street wrapped in a blanket like baby, just like the locals. That I was called to this race, and part of the race is to live like the people you’re serving. Part of the race is to put yourself in their shoe and live in their culture. Every time I caught myself complaining whether it be verbally or in my heart, I was reminded of why I’m here. After the first week I got use to the cold and it didn’t bother me that much anymore.
The food here is good! At first I didn’t think I would like it, but our cooks know how add flavor. We were served chicken hears several times and I had only one, not because it tasted bad, but because my mind couldn’t pretend that it wasn’t a heart I was eating. They also made us a Lesotho dish called Baba or Pap. Its crushed kernel corn cooked in water. It looks like mashed potato but it has its own taste and it’s stickier. They would make spinach or cabbage stir fry loaded with flavor to add to it. It was good! We were served Baba several times a week. After the first 2 times I had a very restless night and threw up that morning. I only lost the baba. The next two times I had it was a test to see of it was the baba that made me sick. And I got sick again. So there was no more baba for me for the rest of the month.
Here is a video made by one of my teammates Aly Badingerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NooGI-l5YKA&feature=share
The day before we traveled to Lesotho from our debrief location in South Africa we went on a safari in Kruger Park. It was a lot like hunting. We drove around and had to be on the lookout for animals. My group saw 4 of the “Big Five” which are the lion, buffalo, elephant, leopard and black rhino. No one saw a lion that day. But we did get to see a leopard stalk an impala. That was really cool! We kept a list of everything we saw. By the end of the day we saw 35 different animals.
For the month of July we’ll be in South Africa! My team will be at Winterten. We will be working in a Professional Development program called Zimele. Their mission is- To empower women with the skills, resources, and support networks to start businesses and social service projects to sustain themselves, their families and their communities. Our entire squad will be working with this organization, but each team will be in a different location.
Praise and Prayer
Praise- I am almost fully funded! Only need $2000 more by July 1st!
Prayer- That the Fusion squad would be well rested and healthy physically and spiritually for another month of ministry starting on the 1st of July
