Day 5

Every morning here starts off with a time of prayer and worship. It includes every person that plays a part in the orphanage and is a mixture of Zulu and English. Usually just the younger children come but this morning all the children were included. It is a sweet, sweet time of singing, dancing and prayer…

This morning we traveled back into the community of Sweetwaters. Tabitha ministries does training once a month for the hospice caregivers…also anyone in the community is welcome because basically everyone in the community provides that type of care whether it falls under the umbrella of Tabitha or not. They meet in the future home of Tabitha community center…as of now only one room in the building is complete but they trust God to provide the remainder. Courtney talked to the women this morning about how to give a sponge bath, how to massage the body to increase circulation, and ways to help Tuberculosis patients breathe better. These women were so thankful and so willing to learn. They were like sponges. Whenever she would say something of particular interest they would all lean forward and give a long “Ooohhh!” I realized basic education is something that I have always taken for granted as I watched these women take earnest notes on the simple task of how to bathe someone properly. Prejudice would have you to think that people like this deserve their fate, but I do not think anyone who has ever been given the privilege of access to education, proper nutrition and medical care, and just what we as humans deem to be the basic necessities of life have any right to make a judgement about someone who has not.

Below are some pictures of the ladies from today that volunteer as hospice caregivers with Tabitha. They all report to Zanela ( the amazing lady I spoke of yesterday) and as I said about Zanela…no one is paid…they receive a monthly food stipend that honestly any one of us would turn our noses up at…but it is the way they can keep their families from starving. These people are so receptive and very appreciative. Before we left they asked us to tell them about ourselves and where we were from. They were so funny when we told them that we had been married for 11 years and had 3 children...they just kept on clapping and were so delighted...and we told them that we felt God had brought us here to meet them for a purpose...that He sees their suffering and hears their cry for help...that they were a beautiful people and it has been a privilege for us to meet them...many of them raised their hands to the sky and kept repeating Siyabonga, Siyabonga which means thank you, thank you.

Most of the caregivers are older but they try to find younger women to help also...the caregivers do not have vehicles and have to walk the hilly countryside to check on patients...the distances they walk can be quite far and many times they will walk the long distance only to find that the person has died or else has been taken to the hospital for critical care.

These photos make me laugh so I wanted to share them. Whenever anyone sees my camera, they want me to take their picture and then they want to have a look at themselves. This sweet lady on the right was so funny...I'd say one...two...three...smile and this was the look she'd give. When I showed her she said "oh no,no"...it took three tries but we finally got a good one!! :)

After the training we returned back to the orphanage and just hung out with the kids. Brent and Courtney leave on Sunday so all the team made a surprise lunch to go ahead and officially say how much they have enjoyed having them this past two months. Mama Gail made a speech and then one of the Zulu women starting singing a prayer song and dancing and one by one every single person and all the children came by to hug us and officially say goodbye. I do not know how Courtney and Brent did not fall in the floor weeping...I started crying at the thought of leaving here and I literally have only been here for four days... these children and this place have captured my heart like I would not have thought possible. They asked Jason "Baba, why is mama crying? Why is tears coming from her eyes?" These children are pure sweetness. Pray for Courtney and Brent...it is going to be extremely difficult for them to leave on Sunday.

These are some of the sweet women and Brent and Courtney taken at lunch today. These women are some of the caretakers of the children. The majority of these women live in Sweetwaters. None of them are paid...they all work for the monthly food stipend and also get bus fare for the ride into the city.

We got to spend the rest of the night with the kids. It is amazing to see how these women manage to get 30 children ready for bed so efficiently. It was a sweet night of bedtime prayers and tucking the kids in. Speaking of sweetness…I’ve been dying to introduce some of the kids to you…

Meet Nzuzo (pronounced Zuzu) and Seth...

I wanted to share these sweet little ones first because many of you back home have already prayed for them. Zuzu is 3 and Seth is 7 months old. About a month ago God brought these two little ones across the path of Tabitha ministries. Their mother has AIDS and suffers from mental distress. She buried Zuzu in the ditch up to his neck in the front yard and laid Seth beside him on a blanket. A neighbor eventually heard them crying and found them and someone got them to the hospital. When Gail received a call from the hospital Seth was in critical condition and not expected to make it. On a Tuesday approximately two weeks ago he had a serious lung surgery and was placed on a ventilator with little likelihood of surviving...3 days later he was brought home to Tabitha. He is thriving and getting stronger daily. It is amazing to see the improvements he has made just since we have been here. There is no denying that our God is still very much a God of miracles.

Meet Nqobile (pronounced No-bee-lay) and Moppie....

I love these little guys. Nqobile is 6 and Moppie is 4. These little boys mother died of AIDS and were left with only their father. They are unsure of the abuse they suffered but eventually their father brought them to Tabitha. When they arrived Moppie was healthy but Nqobile was malnourished and had obviously been abused and suffered much trauma. If anyone looked him in the eye he would scream uncontrollably. Gail said it was terrible for many months until she reached the point that she didn’t know what she was going to do. She went in one night while he was sleeping and stood over him and prayed. She said after a while he opened his eyes, looked up at her and smiled. She says since that night he has been a completely different child and considers that as only one of countless miracles that the Lord has performed for these children. If you were to meet these two little boys you would not know the horrendous things they have lived through. They are happy and funny and full of life. It is the case with every child. What this ministry has done with these children is amazing. Some of them have slight behavior issues but none any more than the average child. That has been the most surprising thing to me while being here. They are well behaved, well mannered and well adjusted kids. They look out for one another and take care of each other. They are very happy and loving and kind children.

Meet Emmi....

She is pure sunshine. When you walk in the room her little eyes light up and she immediately begins to chatter loudly and gets so excited. Emmi is 7 months old. Emmi was found abandoned at a bus station. Someone eventually took her to the hospital and that is where she was when Gail found her. Gail was actually at the hospital to check on Seth. She was told that no one would claim this child and asked if she would consider taking her in. She said that she took one look into those eyes and couldn't walk away from her...and you can certainly understand why.

I'll be sharing more about the children, I just wanted to give you at least a few faces so you could see why this place and these children are so special. It has been a privilege to be here with these children and this people. I am so thankful to God for the opportunity to be here and so very thankful that I have seen John 14:18 lived out daily..."I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you."

"I will proclaim the name of our Lord. Oh praise the greatness of our God!"