Friday, February 25, 2011 – Safari Day!!!

Kelsey and I went to the team meeting we have every Friday at school, it went well.  We then headed off on our grand adventure!  We went to the Winera bus stop in Blantyre and got on a minibus headed to Nchalo at 11:00am.  We got dropped off in Chikwawa at 2:00pm; however, it only takes an hour to get to Chikwawa from Blantyre.  Doesn’t add up?  Let me explain.  When we got on the minibus for Nchalo, Kelsey and I sat there for two hours before the bus was full, so we did not even leave the station until 1:00pm.

Once we got to Chikwawa, the minibus dropped us off in the middle of a very long street with many little stores along it.  We were supposed to be picked up there by a driver being sent from the wildlife park.  However, we spent a half an hour and at least two dozen phone calls back and forth before we figured out where exactly he was picking us up, what the person’s name was and what type of vehicle he drove.  To make matters worse, it felt like we were dropped off in a hell hole (pardon my word usage), it was very humid, the sun was directly overhead and there was not an ounce of shade.  I would like to say that the heat was so bad it was like we were in an easy bake oven and these white girls where getting baked, but that analogy does not do it justice!  What felt like forever later and despite the sweat and frustration, we got picked up.  Surely, you would think that after the hours of being on the minibus and then being tortured by the sun would be enough, but no, it gets better. 

We got picked up in this little white wanna be pick-up truck and we start driving the longest 45 minute drive I have ever experienced.  The pick-up (for lack of a better word) is only a two person vehicle; however, there are three of us, I had to sit in the middle with my legs basically in Kelsey’s lap so that the driver could shift.  Shortly down the road I start to notice the side mirror taped on by duct tape and the rearview mirror hanging on by one small piece of tape, the driver had to adjust it every five minutes so that he could see out of it.  So, eventually we turn onto an unpaved, rough dirt road.  About ten minutes into our journey the knob on the top of the shifter fell off and into my lap!  Before I can get anything out, the driver looks at me and says, “Don’t worry, I’ve got this handled.”  Now, things like this are very typical in Malawi, the vehicles are always falling apart or falling off, but just the same from that point on I was earnestly praying.  Oh and by the way, I held onto the knob off the shifter the rest of the trip.  Only by God’s grace did we make it into the Majete Wildlife Reserve and at the Thawale Camp where we were staying. 

Once we arrived at the camp, Kelsey and I became a little concerned because we were their ONLY guests.  I could see the new commercial in my head: “Saw VII”, Starring: Kelsey and Becca in the African Jungle”.  Though Kelsey and I both felt that way, we were also so exhausted from our trip that we did not care too much; however, it stayed in the back of my mind. 

We had been told that we were staying in a tent at the camp, now Kelsey and I were a little hesitant to see what they meant by ‘tent’, but we found that the tent was a large platform and looked like a nice hotel room with two nicely made beds and had a built in bathroom with a shower.  After our crazy journey, it was a sight for soar eyes. 

After getting settled, we went on a game drive.  It was just Kelsey, me, our tour guide (who had a really big gun) and our driver.  Though we were a little uneasy about being the only visitors, it was nice going on the safari by ourselves and not worry about other people being noisy or anything.  The vehicle we rode in was really neat; it was open and had two bench seats with a cover to shade us from the sun.  The park was not an open plain, like you think of when you think of going on a safari, it was like a jungle.  It made seeing animals a little bit harder but the scenery was so beautiful, especially when the sun was setting, it was incredible.  We saw a ton of animals, impala, waterbuck, water buffalo, warthogs, zebras, hippos, alligators, baboons, elephants and monkeys.  Unfortunately, the park did not have giraffes, lions or any other big cat, but the animals we saw were magnificent. 

 Aligator across the river

 Hippo across the river

Pumba! (warthogs)

During dinner we watched buffalo drink at the waterhole a short distance away from the lodge where we ate.  The lodge was like a large open covered patio and it was relaxing to sit there in the coolness of the night.  After dinner we went back to our tent and showered, I still felt sticky but at least I was clean.  The camp had electricity from 6pm to 9pm which ran off a generator, it was nice to have lights and the ceiling fan in our tent going but it was a also a bummer when it went off.  Anyway, we’re going to bed early because the bush walk starts at 6am. 

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Today Kelsey and I met Abigail at Queens.  We played and prayed for the kids in the orthopedic and oncology wards.  We then went outside to the grassy area by the maternity and infant wards and prayed for the people out there.  We basically went to one group at a time, introduced ourselves and then asked if they had any prayer requests.  Most of the guardians had new babies in the ward and were waiting for them to be discharged.  It was a nice time praying, thanking God for new life and asking for Him to bless the life of a child. 

We had an early lunch and then Abbie and I read Psalm 23 “The Lord is my Shepherd” to the guardians.  A couple of the older women knew it and quoted it as Abbie read it, which was neat, but most listened.  We went to one group of guardians to the next outside for an hour, then we visited the Moyo ward.  The positive side of seeing the same kids and guardians every day is the fact that we can give then continuous encouragement and actually build a relationship with them, which is important. 

After we were finished at Queens, Kelsey and I ran some errands in town.  We ended up finding DVDs for sale in the Blantyre market which were only $3!  Because we both miss watching movies, we both got a couple.  They are in English and have English subtitles, which cannot be turned off, and they are definitely not HD plasma screen TV quality but when you’re far from home and just want to watch a movie, it works.  Maribeth mentioned that the movies are probably pirated copies, which I honestly did not even think of, but thankfully that is not a big deal here in Malawi.  This evening I watched The Lion King because #1: I’m in Africa and what better movie to watch?!  And #2: to get me ready for the safari Kelsey and I are going on tomorrow! I am super excited!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Today we went to Queens with the ABC Team.  We broke up into groups of two this week so that we could go into more wards and pray for more kids then all six of us going into one ward together.  I was paired up with Yamicani and we visited one of the orthopedic wards.  The kids in that ward usually have a broken arm, a broken leg, a shoulder or a hip problem.  Basically they are stuck in bed, even for a broken arm because it is suspended by a bar above the bed.  So, I passed out the books we made for our project and read it to them and prayed for them.  We spent a good about of time in that ward and I enjoyed it.  Then, we went to the oncology ward.  There were still doctors working there so we sat in the corner the nurses have made into a play area and played with three kids.  It was fun, we played catch with some foam balls and I build a train track for one of the little boys and he loved it. 

After lunch we visited the Moyo ward and prayed for the kids and guardians.  It is really encouraging because the kids are slowly getting better and it is neat to celebrate their recovery with the parents, share their joy.  Once we left the ward I went outside and read the story of David and Goliath to the guardians.  There were so many that I ended up reading it four times in different areas so that most people heard it.  They really enjoy and appreciate hearing the Bible stories.  By the time we finished reading, it was time to leave so we came home. 

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Today was day two of working at Queens Hospital and it went well!  Kelsey, Abigail and I went into the orthopedic and oncology Pediatric wards and prayed for the kids and guardians.  We saw a lot of the same kids and guardians as yesterday and it was encouraging for them to see us coming again.  Most of the kids are getting better, it is a slow process sometimes, but it is still very encouraging!  After spending our allotted hour in the wards we went to town to make more copies of the book we are handing out.  After getting 500 copies of the book made to pass out to the sick kids, we went back to Queens and had an early lunch. 

When the three of us originally brainstormed things we could do at Queens, we came up with an idea to read the Bible to the guardians (parents of the sick kids).  Well, today God really placed on my heart to do it, so after lunch I did.  I read the story of Job and gave a brief message on how we need to trust and have faith in God in both good and bad situations.  They all seemed to really enjoy hearing the story and because there where so many sitting outside because it was their lunch hour, I ended up reading and giving the message four times.  Thankfully, I had Abigail to help me because I can not read Chichewa well enough so she translated everything for me.  I have come to realize that these people do not hear Bible stories, they go to church and hear a sermon but they do not know most Bible stories.  For me to read one of the stories and then share a basic truth is fairly simple because these people are spiritual babies, I feel like I am teaching Sunday school.  Which is not a bad thing, I love teaching Sunday school and I am teaching them where they are at spiritually, it works out wonderfully. 



After reading to a young group of women they asked us to go into the ward that their sick babies where in and pray for them.  So, of course we did, it was neat to go into another ward.  The ward was filled to the max with sick babies from new born to two years old.  They were all mostly sick with flu or a cold and we went around praying for them.  The funny/sad thing was that most of the babies were scared of us because the only other white people they have ever seen have been doctors and there is no way to explain to an infant that we are not doctors.  As we moved from one end of the ward to the other, you could hear the babies crying as we moved.  Despite the crying, it was nice to encourage the parents and they really appreciated it. 

Then we went to the Moyo ward and passed out our books to the children.  It was sad to see that a lot of the same kids and parents where still there but it was nice to pray for them again and give then much needed encouragement. 

Once we finished at Queens for the day, we went to the school and folded the books we had made copies of earlier so that they would be ready to be passed out the rest of the week.  The rest of our afternoon and evening were nice and uneventful.

Monday, February 21, 2011 – Beautiful and Ugly

Today was the first day Kelsey, Abigail and I started our project at Queens.  Today was beautiful and ugly. 

The ugly: Waking up at 5 o’clock in the morning to a raining ceiling in the living room with little sleep under my belt. 

The beautiful: The weather was the perfect mixture of warmth and coolness with the gentle breeze.  It made this mornings walk that much prettier. 

More beautiful and ugly to come but first I must share this funny experience with you. 

On the minibus ride to Queens, I got squished in the very back row against a window and Malawian man.  This is normal, minibus’ fit 14 but they always manage to squeeze at least 4 extra people.  So, halfway to Queens the man sitting next to me asks me to open the window.  I try but it was broken and I could not get open.  After a minute or two the man says never mind and I apologize.  He then hesitates and then says in perfect English, “Just so you know, I broke wind.”!  Now, it took me a minute to process what he said, but after repeating the phrase in my head I realized!  I bit my tongue, shrugged my shoulders and acted like I was no big deal.  I felt bad for him because I know a situation like that can be embarrassing.  However, inside I was busting up!  I could not believe this Malawian man admitted to farting!  What makes the situation funnier is that in Malawi it is illegal to fart in public!  (Now I know why God decided to make me different from my family and a doer of SBDs because I could get in some serious trouble otherwise! Thank goodness God knew what He was doing! J ) I totally could have given this man on the minibus a hard time and told him, “You know, that is illegal, right?” but if I had opened my mouth, I would have laughed out loud!  I love how our God has a sense of humor!

After that funny experience we made it to Queens. 

The ugly: As I walked through one of the corridors a mentally unstable patient grabbed me by the arm.  Thankfully, one of my team members was behind me and got the man to let go.  It startled me but just told myself to shake it off and focus on. 

The beautiful: In the morning we visited three of the Pediatric wards.  We prayed with the children and their parents and passed out a little book we made for them.  The book is about being a child of the King, it is simple but the kids really love it!  We also went around to people sitting out front of the hospital and asked if we could pray for them.  We encountered one lady who was waiting on her husband and really needed prayer.  Her husband had cancer in his leg a couple years ago and was told that if it came back they would have to amputate it.  Sadly, the cancer has come back and he was in the hospital to meet with a surgeon.  God knew that she and her husband needed to be prayed for and He sent us to her to do exactly that; it was a divine appointment. 

The ugly: As the three of us sat on the grass and ate our lunch we encountered the sprit of begging multiple times.  The spirit of begging is very common in Malawi, the people now it is wrong but because of the poor culture and environment that they live in, they do it anyway.  The spirit of begging is not of God.  It is difficult because we want to help them but we can not because we must not encourage the spirit of begging.  Anyway, so multiple people asked for food and money and it was difficult to deal with. 

The beautiful: After lunch we went into the Pediatric burn unit and Moyo ward (a miscellaneous ward) and prayed for the kids.  It was really encouraging in the Moyo ward because I had prayed for some of the kids that last Wednesday and they were doing better!  So that was really neat to see! 

The ugly:  After we finished at Queens, Kelsey and I had to get some things at the store and as we bagged the items the cap on the bleach came off and I got bleach on my favorite pink shirt!  I was really annoyed, there are spots all down the front of it so I can’t wear it anymore.  Super bummed. 


The beautiful:  We got iced coffees at the café next store and it was really, really good.  It was Starbucks quality for half the price!  It made me feel a little better about the whole shirt thing. 

The ugly:  Once we finished our coffees we walked to the nearest minibus station to catch a bus to town so we could catch another one to go home.  When we got there the men were more obnoxious than normal and where yelling at us, telling us what bus to get on.  It was crazy and quite frustrating.  One man grabbed my hand and tried to pull me to a bus, but I quickly yanked my hand a way.  For a culture that does not touch and is not physical, I got grabbed twice in one day!  Honestly, it was totally Satan, he knows that my love language is touch and to have these strangers grab my arm or hand would freak me out.  It worked until I realized it was Satan, and then I rebuked him.  So, once we finally got on a minibus Kelsey and I were relieved.  You would think that the crazy would end there, right?  Wrong.  Once we got to town we went to the next station to get on a bus to go home.  Well, would you believe it; we experienced MORE shouting and yelling from the men, trying to tell us where to go.  Once we got on the bus the yelling stopped but we had multiple people come up to the bus windows begging.  I’m telling you, it was crazy! 

The beautiful: We made it home safely and some friends of ours came over for dinner.  We had a nice time socializing and it was a nice way to end our insane day. 

Today just goes to show you, and myself really, that there is serious warfare going on.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

This morning I went to church early to help Maribeth with the King’s Kids Ministry.  The ministry does Sunday school Sunday mornings before church starts for the boys who do not have parents and live on the streets.  I ended up teaching a group of seven or eight younger boys, from the ages of 6-12.  They were dirty and smelly but really, really sweet kids.  I shared how God created the world and everything in it.  I read some scripture in Chichewa out of the Bible and despite the difficulty of not knowing much Chichewa I was able to communicate with them fairly well.  I really enjoyed teaching them and giving them love and attention because I could see that they all craved knowledge and affection.  While I was with them I was also able to put band aides on cuts that two boys had.  I had to put gloves on to protect myself even though I was just administering a band aide because I did not know their state of health.  They really needed that caring mother figure to make their bloody wound better and this small little act of placing a band aide on a scraped ankle and cut hand was something I could do.  Seeing their grateful faces and them knowing that I cared for them really touched my heart.  I plan on helping Maribeth with these boys from now until I leave.  I will probably have ten more boys show up next week with bloody wounds needing band aides, but if that is what they need then I will do it. 

The church service was long, every year the church presents their finance book for the past year as an accountability check.  Oh my goodness, we ended up going a half hour later than normal, I was starting to get antsy like a little child; however, the worship time was really good.  Our Chichewa lessons got cancelled because Francis is sick so we came home and spent the nice afternoon relaxing.  It was uneventful but really good.    

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Today was a relaxing day.  The only thing we had planned today was to “do nothing”.  It was really nice.  I spent the morning and most of the afternoon spending quiet time with God, reading a book and updating my blog.  In the evening Kelsey and I went for a walk around the neighborhood.  The weather was amazing, it was warm but there was a nice breeze.  The beautiful orange African sunset was gorgeous.  Once we got back to the house and it started to get dark we realized that the power was out.  So, we made the best of it.  We made a nice salad for dinner by candlelight, light the mbowola (Malawian barbeque) and sat out on the condi.  After we finished dinner we used the mbowola to roast marshmallows and shortly after that the power came back on.  It was fun to have dinner in the dark, admiring our view of the mountain and town below us, but it was also nice to have our electricity back.