Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Hangin' Loose



Jeff here.

Aloha! I’m posting from the airport in Maui where we are about to take a little (and I mean LITTLE) airplane from Maui to our next destination, the Big Island of Hawaii. This past week started out as a whirlwind, getting back from Southern Africa around 3 on Friday, spending Friday night, Saturday and Sunday unpacking, doing laundry, taking the girls to see friends, buying a suitcase full of sunscreen, and heading back to our summer home (aka the airport) on early Monday morning. It felt good to be home but also a little surreal. On one hand, it felt like we’d been gone for a long time. On the other, it felt like we had never left. We are very thankful for our family and friends who welcomed us home, were excited to hear about our journeys, and even mowed our lawn!

Mostly what it felt like to be home was an inner quiet. Both Kristi and I commented on how weird it would be to come back from a life-changing adventure and be forced to dive back into normal life. I realized that is completely pretentious to say—99% of the time that is how life always works. But both of us remarked at how nice it would be to have some space to process, not just individually but as a family. We were also excited to have some space to rest, because while our travels for the previous month were thrilling, eye-opening, and fun beyond belief, they were also a tad-bit stressful, worrying about people’s health, general safety, driving on the other side of the road (it always seems to come back to that)…Needless to say, we were in need of some serious chill time.

And Maui proved to be the correct prescription. This past week, we’ve been in Kihei staying at the condo of one of the Hoff’s (Kristi’s family) life-long friends, Pam Thorstensen. Only Kristi had been to Maui before (back in college=a LONG time ago) and we were all excited to live the Aloha, try some fun things, get a little tan, and do some processing. Since I am posting this at the end of our time here, I won’t go in to minute by minute detail, but I will hit some of the highlights and big memories…

1)      Eating at Cheeseburger in Paradise. Yep, Jimmy Buffet is alive and well.

2)      Going on a snorkel trip. The second day we signed up for a snorkel trip (subsidized courtesy of Wyndam resorts. Imagine that, you only have to submit to 2 hours of guilt-laden sales tactics to score a great deal. We are still not sure if it was worth it). Violet in particular was not excited about this. She was scared and decided that she would stay on the boat. But never fear!—to prepare we bought a cheap snorkel set at the store and Clara set to train her in the pool at the condo. After a few days, she got really good, and by the time we hit the boat, she was more than ready. When we took to the water, Violet performed like a young Jacques Cousteau, even following the naturalist around on a mini tour, asking questions, pointing out fish, and was the last one of us in the water. This will not be her last snorkel trip, I would guess. On the boat, we also saw another cool sight—a huge pod of spinner dolphins (over 100 estimated) riding the waves, jumping, spinning and putting on quite a show. It was so cool to have a front row seat. It was definitely a highlight.

3)      Riding the Waves. The other excursion we took while on Maui was signing up for surf and paddle board lessons. Kristi has always wanted to paddle board and while I was indifferent at the time, I decided to go with her one morning close to our condo. After getting a three minute lesson (how to stand, how to get up, how to get up again after falling), we hit the ocean and started paddling. Kristi of course was a natural—not falling but once right when we started. I on the other hand was a natural at falling and getting back up again (the chumbawumba song was playing through my head). But it was so much fun! The water was warm, the surroundings were beautiful, and all the while there were a huge pack of sea turtles swimming all around us. One literally came up and swam directly under my board. Besides a walk or two, this was the first thing Kristi and I had done for fun together by ourselves for a long time, and it was so much fun.


 
Afterwards, we went and picked up the girls for a surf lesson. Lucy, Clara and Dayle (Violet stayed on shore and cheered them on) hung ten, or at least eight, and did an incredible job. They really got the hang of it and started surfing that that girl from Soul Surfer (without the shark). It was fun to see them try another something new (another emerging theme from our trip) and have a great time doing it together.

4)The beach. We have loved hanging out on the beach in Kihei. We mastered the art of boogie boarding, making sand castles, reading, and getting slight sunburns. We even watched our fair share of awesome sunsets with our toes in the water. We even watched one with our own Amber Slate, who was here with her small group on a trip before heading off to Princeton Seminary. We will carry a lot of wonderful memories from this beach.

We also will bring with us one sad and scary memory—we saw a man die in the surf. A few hundred yards away was a rock outcropping that many kids and adults were climbing on, fishing on and diving off. Sunday afternoon, we all of the sudden saw a lifeguard running by us on the beach and a wave runner speeding towards the rocks. We looked and saw a man laying on the rocks and someone giving him cpr frantically. It turns out he was an older man who was out there fishing (possibly a little drunk) and apparently collapsed in the water and wasn’t pulled out in time. It was so scary to watch something so out of control—all we could do was pray. It spurned some good conversations though afterwards, not just about water safety but about life and death and God’s presence even in the midst of pain. People even die and suffer in Maui—hard to believe but it is true.

 5)Church. On Sunday I had the chance to go to a little church on the island (the name escapes me). It was started in 1860, and was the cutest little stone church. They had a visiting pastor that day from ironically enough South Africa, who had taken part in the anti-Apartheid movement, was imprisoned and continued to work for justice and peace in his homeland. loved it.

 6)2048. That’s right, last night I mastered the game 2048, finally getting to the 2048 square. I realize that for many, that is chump change, but for me a big accomplishment. J

Today we are heading for the next to our next to last destination in this incredible summer-the Big Island. We are having a great time and loving every minute. Aloha!

 
 


Friday, July 18, 2014

Fish Tales for our Last Day


Violet here. Our last day in Africa we stayed outside Cape Town in a town called Camps Bay. Our hotel room was a HUGE apartment that was right by Table Mountain and the beach. We went to dinner at a place called the CodFather and had fish. It was good. That night was the biggest storm I’ve ever seen. It was LOUD!

Speaking of fish, the next day we did something I really wanted to do—we went to the aquarium! It was very fun, and the best thing we saw there was sharks! There were also cool fish tanks that you could stand up in the middle of and look out. It was really fun! Because there are two oceans here, we saw fish from both warm and cold oceans. After doing some last minute shopping we went to the airport for the last time Africa. Our planes have been really fun, too. On the way back to London, I watched Rio 2, the Muppet Movie 2, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Now we are in the Airport before our LAST FLIGHT HOME. I am really excited to see my friends and grandparents and my room.

Violet (for the family)

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Toto meets Jurassic Park

Jeff here. So the Toto song "Africa" is rolling through my head a lot these days, and especially these past 24 hours. We made it to our next to last destination, Botlierskop, a Private Game Reserve just a bit outside Mossel Bay in the middle of nowhere--think Toto meets Jurassic Park. This place is awesome. Just a few minutes after we checked in to our rooms we wandered outside to see three massive Rhinos lounging about. Apparently they (and the rest of the animals) just wander around, such that they suggest you call for the golf cart to get a ride back to the lodge after dark. Shortly after checking in we went out on our first game drive of the stay, a three hour jaunt around the 3000 hectare farm (around 7500 acres). I'll let one of the kids write about the game drive, but it was really fun. We saw 4 of the big 5 up close and personal (Elephants, Water Buffalo, Lions, and Rhinos. No Leopards here, although they've seen a few tracks they say), along with a lot of other incredible beasts. We have another game drive this afternoon.


The other big news is that we all rode elephants this morning. Yep, cross that off the old bucket list. It was very fun but I don't know if my hips will ever be the same. :) Kristi, Violet and I rode the big male, Clara and Lucy rode the female, and Dayle was on the baby. A fun ride and quite an adventure.

We leave here tomorrow and are heading back to Cape Town for our final night before heading home.

Sunday, July 13, 2014

Truckin'

Jeff here. The last few days have been awesome. A few highlights.

Friday, Kristi and I had a chance to head to a local (close to Hebron) winery for a wine tasting, Tier Hoek. First, let me paint the picture of getting there. We drove on paved roads for about 15 minutes, took a right and drove on gravel for around 45 minutes until I thought we would never come out again. But at the end of the road, we finally reached our destination, a boutique winery based around a farm built in the 1880's. The wine tasting was hosted by the vineyard manager, Raynard, who was a wonderful mixture of farmer and Afrikaaner. We sat in old farm house at the kitchen table and tasted some incredible wine from an incredible place.

The vineyard is set in what I would describe as basically a huge gully with massive cliffs on either side which apparently protect the vines and keep them free from outside influences. It was about as much fun as you could have. On the way back we picked up the kids quickly and watch this sunset from the bluff. Incredible.



After some sad goodbyes to our friends at Hebron, we hit the road yesterday and headed down the coast, past Cape Town to Simon's Town, a small hamlet on the Cape Peninsula. First off, Simon's Town is incredible. Not only is it one of the few places in the world where you can see wild penguins (check that off the bucket list), but the b&b we stayed at, The Boat House, was the best place we have ever stayed. Set up with a nautical theme, the Boat House looked out over the entire harbor, with incredible rooms at reasonable prices. Thanks to the Mathis family for the great recommendation.

After checking in we went on our big excursion for the day; the Cape of Good Hope. This is a huge nature preserve at the tip of Africa--I've been dreaming of going there since I did a little research on the lighthouses there for a sermon a while back, and the whole experience didn't disappoint. First, the scenery is incredible. Brush and incredible rock formations for as far as the eye can see. Second, baboons--finally we saw some walking around, sitting on cars, scratching themselves...it was a 6 and 10 year old's dream. Third, the awesome Cape Lighthouse "at the end of the world" (as we have been calling it) which we hiked to the top of (scoffing at the tram riders the whole way). Finally, the awesome drive to the beach, where we saw more baboons, wild ostriches, and the place where the Indian and Atlantic Ocean meet. It was so fun.



After a great night at the Boat House, we started the long drive towards our penultimate destination--our Safari/Game Reserve. We decided on a drive along the coast, which was a bit longer but absolutely stunning. We went through Stellenbosch, an incredible wine region where we saw vineyards bigger than we had ever seen. We also saw the biggest "informal settlement" (read: shanty town) we have ever seen--bigger than the eye could see. It is such a harsh contrast to the beauty and makes us realize that there is so much wrong in the midst of a place so privileged. We even accidentally drove through one today and were reminded of how scary it would be to have to live in one permanently. I don't think I could survive.

Tonight we are staying in Mossel Bay, a coastal town about 30 minutes from our Game Reserve/Safari. Can't wait for the next few days, but am sad this part of the adventure is coming to an end. Thanks for all the prayers. We can feel them!

-Jeff (for the family)

Friday, July 11, 2014

A Day At the Farm


Kristi here. Yesterday we had the chance to visit the Philadelphia Farm with Olivia and Neil Hall.  This is a special place where they raise flowers. The Hall’s farm flowers as their living and some of the profits go to support the Hebron Community Projects.  Their goal is to support the farm workers and their families as well as have a place of retreat for those from Cape Town that could use a refuge.  Our church, SPC, has supported this ministry by contributing the funds to build the Life Center here.  The Life Center will be a place for the Farm workers’ Children to come for movie nights, games and fun.  They have started the clearing for a soccer pitch to have games and practices on this land as well.

We got to the building site and see how it’s coming along. It has walls and rooms and is ready for the roof!  And the soccer pitch is presently hay, but it is cleared and ready for grass once the irrigation system is set up.  We also took a hike from this site up the mountain as they have been clearing this for recreational use as well.  It promises to be a very fun place to go and find friends and activities for those kids that have nothing else to do while their parents are working on the farms.  Neil says that once this place is set up, he hopes to have person here at all times to welcome those that need it.  Many times, the police come and arrest parents working on the farms for being illegal workers and then their kids have nowhere to go.  This place offers a safe drop off place for the police to use.  Something we quite take for granted at home.  No one would ever think of taking a child’s parents away and not finding a safe stay for the children.


I have to say, this farmland is located in the most beautiful valley I have ever seen!  It is a vast space and is a never ending green landscape surrounded by beautiful rocky mountains.   It is breathtaking.  And the sunsets in the valley are incredible to see.  I have never seen a horizon that stretches on longer that the eyes can see.  And the hope that the farm workers will find here will also be a beautiful thing.  Many good things growing here on Philadelphia Farm.
Tomorrow is our last day in Hebron before we move on to Simon’s Town, the Cape of Good Hope, the Penguins and up the Eastern Cape.


Thursday, July 10, 2014

The People We Meet Along the Way


Jeff here. I’m writing this back in Hebron, early in the morning (well not that, but it is dark at 7 a.m. and the house is still asleep). Yesterday was our final day in Swaziland as a family and all of us to a person thought it was one of the best weeks of our life. I’ll catch you up on a few details and fun pieces.

Monday night we had the chance to go out to a farm restaurant that served authentic Swazi food. We went with Bongi, Solomon (the National Director of World Vision), and their spouses. The food was very fresh and really fun. We tried things like…duck, a bunch of different lamb dishes (my favorite was the curried lamb stew), a mixture of corn and beans that looks a bit like refried beans, pickled beats, sour cheese (a dessert delicacy), and corn meal mush (I can’t remember the name). The girls did really well trying everything and even going back for more. It was an honor to talk to Solomon and hear the dreams and hopes for the World Vision office here. Plus we WERE getting a little tired of our hotel food…

But we weren’t getting tired of our favorite waiter at our hotel, Vucie. Vucie served us every night at the Summerfield, and our family grew to love him (in fact, the girls even made him a card on the last night). Vucie was indicative of all the Swazi people we met; kind, caring, soft-spoken, and thankful.

 
 

We also didn’t get sick of our wonderful guide for the week, Bongi. Bongi and I have been on a few trips together with World Vision, and he has even visited SPC in the past year. But while I already knew I liked Bongi, it was my family who loved him. They loved saying his name and putting it into songs. They loved giving him a bad time about hitting all the bumps in the road on our way around the country. They loved watching him dance around the front of the church as he was leading worship (it will forever be called “the Bongi”). They loved meeting his wonderful wife, Lindiwe, and his two talented and fun daughters (who bore striking personality similarities to our own). In the end, Violet even said, “Bongi is my life!” J That’s right, the word Bongi now is a simile for all things fun and good. While I am sure that Bongi went home and took a LONG nap after catering to a bunch of loud Americans, I hope he knows how wonderful he is and was, and what an impression he, World Vision, and his country made upon our family.


Our last full day in Swaziland was spent going on a small game drive (highlights: Zebras, Crocodiles, and a ride in a Land Rover that was like the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland without the rolling boulder), hitting the Swazi Candle store for some last minute items, jumping in the pool at the hotel (Dayle. In the middle of winter. In Swaziland), packing up, and reflecting on our trip together. It was a suitable end.

Yesterday was another long travel day that was more or less uneventful. Two more plane rides down, another airport traversed successfully (Johannesburg), one bag lost at the airport (Clara's. It is being delivered today, they say), one more car rented, one long drive to Hebron. Our GPS went dead on the way here, and it was nice to know that it was ok because we knew where we were going. Southern Africa is starting to feel more like home.

Today—we are heading out to Philadelphia Farm and the other part of Hebron’s ministry, the farmhands living on the land, and to see the Life Center being built to serve them. Stay tuned.

--Jeff (for the family)

 

Monday, July 7, 2014

The Ones That Make It All Happen


Jeff here. Today I had the chance to go visit the World Vision Swaziland National Office in Mbabane with Dayle and Bongi (Lucy was not feeling well and the others stayed back to look in on her). After being part of devotions with their staff, we had the chance to meet with the National Director and his top staff, hearing about the work World Vision is doing and some of the challenges they are facing. The funding for the field office has been cut by 10% this past year, representing a shift in donor’s investments from sub-Saharan Africa to other parts of the world where wars and more visible disasters are present. The budget cuts have resulted in a decrease in staff and a restructuring of the work here, giving more work to less people as they are committed to the programming and refuse to take it out on the people they serve. In speaking with them, I was so impressed by their articulate vision, their passion to serve, and the desire to grow their country into a nation that is self-sustaining and working for the good of others. of cutting back, they are actually adding a new ADP this year bringing their total to 23 Development Programs. They have big plans here and believe God will continue their work.

A few impressions—I was reminded again of how important the US Church is to the work here. Not only is funding important, but the staff would love for their local churches to learn from the US church on what it means to be a missional church, having a heart and core theology of reaching out. The staff mentioned how the churches here are very insular and do little to help others beyond their community. They would love for churches like SPC to come alongside the leaders here and teach them the basics of missional thinking, thus changing the culture at its roots and where it matters, with the local church. This is something I think would be an exciting venture for us. I was also reminded today of the intelligence and power of the Swazi people. Americans sometimes think that we have all the answers and know how to do everything. These men and women were experts in their culture and their fields and knew their constituency. Every figure I asked for they knew off the top of their heads and every end result they were working towards had a strategy and measurable. It was exciting.

Two things I saw—the mail room where all of our letters come through and are processed (photo!).
 
And a HUGE building being built on our way to the office. When I asked what it was, Bongi told us it was a US Embassy building (!)—that’s right, the US is establishing a base here in Swaziland to service the region (why Swaziland? Because it is safe and a solid government was the answer. I think it is because there are Chinese investments and infrastructure being built all over Swaziland as well).

All in all it’s been a great day. For those of you wondering about health, Violet is now better (although she barfed on the way to church yesterday—carsickness, Swazi driving not for the feint of heart or stomach!), but now Lucy has been sick in bed all day—probably the Violet virus from a few days ago. She is on the way back up this afternoon, but still a little queasy. Prayers appreciated.

Tonight—off to a traditional Swazi dinner. I’m planning on eating with my hands per the local custom—after a heavy dose of hand sanitizer first (per our family rules).

--Jeff (for the family)

Sunday, July 6, 2014

Swazi Sunday


Kristi here. Its Sunday in Swaziland!!  That means a long drive out to a rural church and an even longer church service!  The church we attended is one of our host, Bongi’s two congregations. It was a small congregation made up mostly of Grandmothers and many orphans.  This means Grandmas taking care of their parentless grandchildren or child-headed households. This church, as with most rural churches, is comprised of these.  Yet, they sing and dance with joy, they give generously and they are so welcoming.  They sang for about an hour, big beautiful songs in Siswati. There was a lot of participation in all the parts of the service. Jeff preached with an interpreter and they had their fundraising Sunday for their new building. People danced up the isles to give their gifts joyfully!  What a sight!

The service lasted about 3 hours and it was a great morning.  We gathered for tea afterwards and the children stayed outside with their teacher so the adults could talk!  What a great idea! Violet was once again right in with the kids surrounding her. They love to touch her hands!  We are looking forward to a nice relaxing afternoon at the hotel after some pretty emotional days. Tomorrow we are off to the World Vision National Office and a Glass Factory!

Meeting Thubelihle



Dayle here. Today we met our other Sponsor Child, Thubelihle. We came to her school to pick her up and everyone crowded around us, amazed. I don’t think they had seen very many white people before.  Everyone was also acting a little sad. Apparently, yesterday one of their second graders had died after a short illness.  They were preparing their singing for the funeral and we got to hear their beautiful hopeful songs .We got to see Thubelihle’s teacher teach a lesson about Fire. Thubelihle was really good at answering the questions. After that we gave all of them hive fives and we took Thubelihle to her house by car. She didn’t seem like she was used to being in a car. When we got to her home, we got to meet her mom, aunt and great grandpa. They were all pretty excited to see us and I definitely was excited to see them.JJJJ   She ended up loving the gifts we gave her. She gave the baby doll to her little sister and she started carrying it on her back just like all the mamas do here. Later, they actually tied it on her back and every time it fell down, she would stop what she was doing, and push it back up. It was really cute. It was really fun to see the scripture notes we had sent to her taped to the wall in her hut!!  Thubelihle also showed us her maze grinder. We all got to try it. It was super fun. I was a pro. Another thing that happened was that her Great Grandpa’s cows just wondered through the backyard. They were huge and there were a lot of them.   At the end, we gave lots of hugs and no one wanted to leave. I loved meeting Thubelihle.

 

 

Friday, July 4, 2014

All Alone


Clara here.

I am going to talk about after meeting Zwakele, which was an amazing experience! We got to go to a child-headed household—which means that there are children “heading” the household and there are no parents or guardians due to the parents or grandparents dying and not being able to leave them with anyone. So the two teenagers we met were named Mosa (who was 19) and Theresa (who was 15). Mosa played soccer on a team and said he went to practice every day after school before his three hours of homework. And Theresa cooked the meals for the two of them along with homework and taking care of the house world vision built for the two of them. She loves to draw. They became orphans when Mosa was 8 and Theresa was five. So young! It astonished me how put together and efficient they were. They both were good students with dreams of becoming a doctor and teacher. They attend church every Sunday and Mosa used to play the keyboard during worship. You may be thinking….how do they get money for food, or even school? Well, they don’t always have enough money for food and their neighbor brings them corn mush when they can’t buy any food, which apparently happens to them a lot. So imagine corn mush for every meal a couple days a week. And to afford school… world vision supports them as well as the government and Theresa Is sponsored. Their house had two rooms and the one I went into had two beds and a nightstand in between, that’s it! We were able to provide them with four months of food and supplies for everyday life in Africa! When we took pictures of them, Mosa said “let me take a picture with my food.” I can only imagine it will feel great to support themselves for a while. Overall, I was surprised at how kind and well put together they were, as I said before. I hope we will be able to keep in touch with them and see how they are doing. I can’t imagine life without my parents starting at such a young age. They will go far in life! I was so lucky to have met them on this trip.
 

Thursday, July 3, 2014

Zwakele



Kristi here.  

Today was a ‘top 10 in life’ kind of day.  It was one of those days you dream about over and over and try to imagine, but don’t truly have the context to live out the dream.  We all went to bed last night anxiously anticipating today, the day we meet Zwakele.  A little background here….we began to Sponsor Zwakele through World Vision in 2003.  She was about the age of Lucy and had a birthday similar to Clara.  That is how we chose her from a table of hundreds available and we only had the two of our kids at that point. We began to write to her on World Vision Sundays at church, make her bracelets and frames, etc.  We began to pray for her and her little family of 3 struggling to make it in a country I had honestly never heard of…, Zwakele and her Mom and  little brother. 

FF to today, we have prayed for her and her family for the past 11 years.  She has had 3 additional little brothers, Jeff has been there to meet her 3 times, Lucy has met her once.  We have worked extra hard to make the additional money needed to keep her in High School and all its fees.  We have a picture of her on our portrait wall right along with our other 4 girls.  She is part of our family and we feel like she is ours.

So, how does one even begin to describe that love running into my arms for the first time?  The only word I can think of is Spiritual.  Like nothing I have ever known or seen.    It literally was a moment in life that took the very breath right out of me.  I took hold of her and couldn’t imagine feeling any more JOY in life that I did in that moment.  Saying I was moved to tears is a terrible understatement.  I was moved.  The earth moved.  I was standing in the middle of Swaziland, a place I never thought I would be honored to see, and my sweet Zwakele was in my arms. 

We picked her up at her school, met her friends, got to take her in our van to her house.  We drove her out to her home, met her Mom and two of her brothers, age 2 and 5.  We gave her all the food and gifts we brought, saw her chickens, toured the 2 room concrete home World Vision has helped them build, and then we reveled in her presence.  This beauty-filled mystery I held in a photo and a zillion letters.  Dayle brought bracelet kit to make with her and she and Clara sat as old friends would, making memories of a new craft.  Lucy, bright and in her element sat alongside, violet working the crowd of neighbors and world vision staff, as only she could., and playing cars with the littlest boys.   I stood by and cried tears of pure joy.  The purest joy. It was surreal.  

Her mom was different this time around.  All the pictures of past visits and Jeff’s accounts revealed a less animated Mom.  Today, she was bright and happy, overwhelmed with thankfulness for our love for them.  Come to find out she has a new Chicken Project.   She asked for an enterprise for her family and she has a successful World Vision Project with raising Chickens for sale. No eggs, just chickens.  They bought the first round, she multiplied them, she used the funds from sales to pay them back and now has a fully functioning chicken business from her home.  They sell for $5 a piece!  She is supporting her family.  She is a proud provider.  The last time Jeff was here,  she had just given birth to her 5th baby, an overwhelming feeling a lot of us mothers could relate to.  She was reserved and seemed distant.  Today, she was bright and joy-filled. Such a miracle for her family of 6.

We said teary goodbyes, some of us “ugly cried”.  It was a beautiful day.  It was a perfectly joy-filled day. A day I can only imagine widens the Kingdom of God.  Brings it into closer perspective.  We have each other.  We learn from each other and grow in good ways together. At dinner tonight, we all shared what we saw, felt and heard from our day. It was a priceless conversation.

After this encounter, we moved onto meeting a Parent-less home with two teenagers who have lived alone without parents since they were 6 and 8 years old.  On their own.  Parents dead.  I will let one of the girls unpack that.

Wednesday, July 2, 2014

Welcome to the Kingdom of Swaziland


Jeff here. Today was really fun but was more or less a travel day. We left Paternoster yesterday around 4p.m. and drove to CapeTown—a beautiful drive. Such a different experience to be driving along and then drive on a dirt road for 10 miles. I must say, I think I’m getting the hang of left side driving! Very fun and takes one of those things you do all the time and makes you see it a little differently. We arrived in Cape Town (traveling on Nelson Mandela Boulevard) to arrive at our hotel. Had a quick dinner and hit the sack (but not before I saw the first half of the US vs. Belgium Match—bummer!).

This morning we had an early start (around 5:30) to catch the plane to Swaziland. In some ways, we are entering the heart of our trip as we head to see our sponsor children with World Vision. It was this trip in 2005 that our family fell in love with southern Africa, and our sponsor child Zwakele in particular. So much spiritual growth has happened in our family through this one little girl that all of us are filled with excitement beyond measure. We arrived in Swaziland without a hitch with all our bags in tact (which is a miracle since I forgot to LOCK OUR BAGS when we reached the airport—a definite no-no for any Africa travel). We were received by Bongi, our World Vision friend and Church Relations Officer, and had a great time catching up and finally making it to our hotel. Another highlight of today was hitting the grocery store. For her birthday a few months ago, Dayle asked her friends in lieu of presents to give her donations to buy her sponsor children supplies and gifts. Her generous friends donated almost $400! After a big trip to the dollar store in Seattle and Target for dum-dums (imagine a WHOLE SUITCASE FULL OF DUM-DUMS), we hit the store and bought more food than you could imagine for our two sponsor children, as well as the child-headed household we are going to meet tomorrow (imagine a household where both parents have died and the oldest member of the household is a child him/herself. There are 10’s of thousands of them in Swaziland due to hiv/AIDS and we will be visiting a family like this tomorrow). I can honestly say I’ve never seen a more joyous shopping trip. J
 
Presently we are on our way to bed, getting gifts ready for our visit tomorrow (we get to see Zwakele and visit a child headed household), and are filled with excitement.

On a different note, please pray for Violet. She is running a fever and we think she has picked up some sort of virus. She is doing ok, but we are a bit worried, as we want her to experience the fullness of our adventure.

Looking forward to tomorrow!

Jeff (for the family).

Paternoster




This is Violet. Yesterday we went to a beach with our new friends called Paternoster. It was so much fun! We stopped at a store on the way called Spar which was like a small grocery store and got food. Then we drove past a town on the ocean that reminded me of Moclips where I go with my grandparents. Then we had to drive down a dirt rode and open a bunch of gates. We even saw an owl! When we got to the beach my friend Noah got a baby starfish. It was on his hand and sucked his thumb. We also saw a dead seal on the beach. It was gross! The funnest part was sand sledding.
 
We went to the top of a big sand dune and sledded down it on sleds! We also walked on the big rocks. I saw a pretty sunset, too. Me and Dayle slept upstairs in our own room with the oil lamps on.

We played a lot of Old Maid, which is a card game I learned how to play on this trip. Noah also found a hurt bird that he brought it to the house. It was black (my dad says it’s called a Cormorant) and they put it in a box in the garage to get better. When we see them again I will ask if it is still alive or not. Then in the afternoon we got back in our mini-van (they call it a Combi) and drove away to Cape Town to stay the night because we are flying to Swaziland. In fact, I am writing this on the plane! I also got a new Zebra animal at the airport. I think I am going to name it ZeeBEE the Zebra. Ok that is enough. I’m having a great time talking to you! Bye.

--Violet

Tuesday, July 1, 2014

Interlude

Just a few pictures from our short trip to Paternoster on the Western Cape with Jennie, David, and their grandkids. Possibly the most beautiful place I have ever seen.We will share more details to come but wanted to post some pics while we have Wi-Fi. More details to come.

 
Thanks for the prayers--We are having an incredible time! Heading to Swaziland in the morning.

--Jeff (for clan Lincicome)

Sunday in Citrusdal



Dayle here. This morning we went to church. Wow! It was a lot more different1 at the beginning we were dancing for 45 minutes! It was really different and fun.it was a 2 hours long. The pastor had to talk in English for us. In the 1650s the Dutch people came to Africa and brought their language, Afrikaans. I learned how to count 5 in Afrikaans: Een,tweea,d’ree, fee , fife Isn’t that awesome!

At this moment we are driving to Paternoster beach which is on the western cape with my family, Sid, Ruby and Noah, Dave and Jennie. We are driving from Hebron so the drive is about an hour and a half.

The other day I saw something really gross………..Lamb heads! There was a lady selling them and they were all spread out on a table and there were a ton of flies. ewwwww!!! Apparently thay are a real delicacy in Africa. My dad bought two much more than I thought all for $4.00!!! They were for Frances and Portia who both work at the Cresh(preschool). They kept on thanking him!!

Finally, I loved Hebron much and I am looking forward to more adventures.