Mountains are ever in sight, and at your finger tips, (hence the name mountain village) as the road follows the river (see Bella’s blog post) our teams get to our new home for the month, Mokhotlong, Lesotho. The drive to our location was by far the prettiest drive I’ve been on. One of the main things I’ll think of when I think back to Lesotho is the shepards. They’re the real deal. As the Shepards walk aimlessly, so it seems, hiking mountain top to valley everyday, guiding their sheep with a simple throw of a rock or whistle, they’re oblivious to the great beauty that surrounds them. Shepards are seen whenever you walk though the town as they get ready for their next venture. As we hike or drive further into the mountains, often times the men in their carpet coats (thats what I call the blankets they wear) and their sheep can easily blend into the terrain. Although they can be overlooked, once you see them, the mountain side becomes alive in its great beauty. We’re not much different than they are, seeing ourself both in the sheep and the shepard at times.
We’re the sheep when we’re being guided by our Shepard, the one that never leaves. Their survival is pivotal to their shepards survival. Weather they recognize it or not they won’t be put to their full potential without the guidance of their Shepard, the same goes for us. This gives us an even better understanding of our God, the patience He has as He constantly whistles us in the diretion we must go.
But in a different way we can relate to the shepards of Lesotho, being so oblivious to our surroundings. They don’t see the vast area of countless mountains standing in front of them because they live within them. They’re so used to the routine of hiking mountain top to mountain top, getting their sheep where they belong. They don’t have the aw factor to God’s creation that often times we have. Rarely seeing the faces of the men behind this job they continue to hike countless miles and hours through ruff mountainous terrain to protect and care for their sheep, just as our Shepard does for us.
So much of our lives seem aimless at times. Even being away from home, there are many times in my day that I feel like an aimless Shepard. There’s quite a bit of down time out here. Coming from the American culture of always having something to do. I see the woman in this community so often just sitting, all day. I ask them in conversations if they have any plans for that day or for the upcoming weekend and they always respond with a no (said in a very curious/disgusted tone, as if they wondered why we would ask such a question in the first place). The American life style will honestly never change, but we’re able to see this great difference in life styles because of where we come from and the background that we have. The people here don’t have much background to grab from. As much as we, spoiled Americas, take for granted, I believe they (Masotos) also take their simplistic life’s for granted as well. It all comes from experience, I believe that’s one of the reasons I love traveling so much. I love learning how others live their lives and are able to function just as much as I do, just in a different way.
