Sometimes to me it doesn’t even feel like we are in Africa, because of how westernised a lot of areas are. But then we drive into Sweet Waters where the poverty is impossible to ignore; those are the pictures that come to people’s minds when they think about mission work in Africa. The mud huts with corrugated roofs and dusty, bumpy roads. Load shedding is something that people have to plan for here. Having no electricity for sometimes a couple of hours a day can really interrupt your life. You have to think about the food in the fridge, how cold it’s going to be, whether it will be dark and if things are charged. Luckily normally at Tabitha we avoid regular load shedding. However the last week we have been learning to live without water. If you have experienced life without water you will know how much this affects – no water to drink, no water to flush the toilets, no water to shower, no water to wash your hands or brush your teeth, no water to wash the dishes. This is bad enough but living with 41 kids and no water is stinking to say the least. It’s a funny life sometimes, we have almost unlimited access to WiFi but no water, there is something wrong with that picture!
It’s craziness to me that we have been away for almost five months. I still imagine England to be in February, like when I left, as if time might stand still because I’m not there to see the changes in seasons and weather. But no, it’s June and it’s summer at home even though it’s now winter here (although it’s still mid twenties during the day just cold at night). I have never been away from home for this long before but surprisingly there hasn’t been any time where I have been so homesick that I wanted to leave. I do have moments though. Some nights I look at the stars and it reminds me how far away I am from home. It’s a strange thought knowing I’m halfway across the world. I guess because the internet can make communication so easy, even if you are thousands of miles away. Mostly though it’s people I miss. It’s a challenge to spend such a long period away from the people you love most. I would never be able to do it without the amazing friendships I have been blessed by in the team. I can’t imagine living without these girls now. I also really understand the saying ‘distance makes the heart grow fonder’ now.
Thomas has told me that I definitely win the intern who has received the most mail here. There is something so intimate and personal about getting letters when you are this far from home. It doesn’t matter what is written; its just the thought that someone has put into sending it, and that it’s something that has come all those miles that you can hold. My wonderful friends back home sent me a surprise parcel with sweet things they know I love and miss. My thoughtful Mum has sent us Team Tabitha treats and the cutest cards. My lovely Grandparents have sent me letters with newspaper cuttings to keep me up with news from home. The best part of getting these is that I never expect them. I guess being away this long is a real test of friendship and I am so lucky to have the people I do in my life. Thank you for reminding me that I am loved and missed, encouraging me to keep going and always putting a smile on my face. (Okay the soppy and sentimental part is over, I promise).
So we have brought ‘workout Wednesdays’ to Tabitha…well kind of. I have been running the kids PE lessons from 12:30-2:30 every week. As most of you can guess this has been a major highlight for me. It has been amazing seeing them engage and improve. I quite often get kids coming up to me on a Wednesday morning with shining eyes asking ‘Are we doing sport today?’. Recently the girls have been running Zumba while I run fitness and football so the kids get to choose. I was so happy that I could pass all of the kids when doing their report marks for PE the other day. Now the boys are able to hold the plank for 30 seconds, do ten sit ups (well most of them) and (struggle through) 3 push ups. I have never seen so much energy in such small children, and they are so easy to please – just give them a ball and they are happy to kick it around! Discipline and control is a work in progress…
We have learnt while being here that basically anything we do, the kids find hilarious. So we decided to volunteer ourselves to do one of the Friday morning assemblies, i.e. Throwing away any dignity we had left and making a fool of ourselves in front of everyone. I think we actually showed our budding theatrical talent in our modern interpretation of The Good Samaritan and we might even be signing a record deal with a music company after our awesome rapping (okay maybe I’m exaggerating). In all honestly it was absolutely terrible but the kids loved every second and that’s all that matters right? Oh, the things we do for them.
