Changes and Challenges.

                Things have changed here in the past couple weeks. To start with, it is now June here in Richmond as well, but for us this means cold weather as we welcome winter. It’s definitely not your average Canadian winter weather but none the less it is chilly for us here. There is frost on the ground nearly every morning now and during the nights the temperature can creep pretty close to zero as it did a couple nights ago. Getting out of bed in the morning is the hardest part for me as my feet really do not want to touch the freezing tile or hardwood floors. I am thankful that I have hot water to start my morning with but I often think of the majority of people living in the communities around Richmond who first have to fetch and heat water to enjoy that comfort. In the evenings you can find those in the guest house curled up on the couch or in bed very cozy with blankets. During the days the sun is very nice and warm and we are always eager to be able to enjoy it also to stay warm. As I am typing this I am sitting outside of the hospice in the sun as it nicer to sit in the sun than to wear a jersey and sit inside where it is much cooler.

                

               The activities and jobs I have been helping with have also changed up and so I’ve been doing some different things in the past week which have brought new challenges. One of these things was helping lead a meeting along with other EWF staff for the mothers of the crèche children. This meeting gave them the opportunity to talk about any problems or concerns they have as well as see what their children learn and do at the crèche. Crafts and drawing of the children were collected for the moms to see and the mothers expressed their thanks to the teachers who have been doing such a great job at the crèche. What the children have learned has been seen at home by their family which is also good for us to hear since it means that whatever techniques of teaching are working!!

                

               We have been doing some spring cleaning here even though it is just starting into winter. Cloths and linen cupboards, filing cabinets, and storage sheds are being pulled apart in order to make things more accessible and productive.  One thing I can say for sure, it is interesting and sometimes scary what you find when you start pulling things apart. Yesterday we needed to find a file for an old patient and after about an hour of looking and not finding what we needed it looks like some more organization is in order. This is okay with me as I have found that I am a slight organization freak and like to put things in order as long as I have someone to help me.

                

               I have been driving more now which feels good but also is a little nerve racking as before now I have driven a Manuel very little. I now feel confident with it and even drove to the city (Pietermaritzburg) twice now. We went to pick up some Zulu bible which I ordered a couple weeks before. These bibles were lovingly paid for through the donations from my church (Immanuel Reformed Church of Nobleton). I plan to get more bibles in the future as well as I see a need for more and have been given donations by Ivy Presbyterian Church. At a staff meeting just a few days ago each staff was given a bible which was cause for much excitement and lots of thanks. I am thankful that through donations I am able to buy these bibles. Please pray that the words read would be understood and applied to the lives of those who read and hear them. Also pray that I would be able to find and give to those people who need the word of God in their lives.

                

               Tuesday was my twentieth birthday and the first one I ever spent away from my family though thanks to their planning ahead (I’m pretty sure it was Mom’s planning ahead), I got to open a few gifts from them and am excited to start reading a great Karen Kingsbury book and watch a familiar classic movie. When I say I spent my first birthday away from my family, I mean my biological family, because in the end I still spent the day with wonderful people who I consider family. The EWF staff were lots of fun with their many happy birthday wishes, singing, and Chocolate (Thanks Busi). At the hospice we enjoyed cake and cooee with our lunch and later in the day the staff gave me magwinya’s which I love, probably because they are deep fryed !!! That evening was bible study at the church and the Pastor and his wife organized to have cake and coffee for my birthday. This was a surprise and a very nice one though it was odd to feel so spoiled. I got to talk to my family back home at two different times in the day and also received lots of birthday wishes from many friends so all in all it was a very wonderful birthday.

     I’m going to share a story with you so you can see how some people live so differently than the comfortable life I’m sure many of you along with me enjoy and often take for granted. We visited a family at their home today which was about the same size of my home’s kitchen and dining room. The only furniture in this house was a couple of plastic chairs, a cabinet and shelf in the kitchen, and a two piece couch one still together and the other with its seat fallen out. In the one room the entire family’s cloths were folded over a line hung between the two walls as there was no cabinet or closet for them. Many houses in the community have linoleum flooring over either dirt flooring or cement. One of the rooms had very worn flooring and the others were only dirt. This is where the family sleeps with blankets only as they do not have any beds, mattresses, or even mats. I’ve seen living situations like this before but this situation was different as the family living here is made up of fourteen people. They live, eat, and sleep in this tinny house that I wish no one would have to live in. Many homes are similar to this and for many people they can only dream of living in anything nicer.

               

      My heart greaves for the people in this situation as well as many others that live in such harsh conditions. I know there are situation such like this all over the world, but seeing it so close and often really impacts my thinking a lot, both in the past and even more so now after seeing situations like this many times. I couldn’t help but compare this family to my own large family. Number wise we are pretty close yet we live in four different houses that are each many times the size of the place they call home. Yes it is hard sometimes to come home to my very comfortable house, yes I sometimes feel guilty for having so much, but I also feel responsible as I know that what I have been given by God has been given to me for a purpose and I am accountable to him to use it and live wisely with it.

     I’ve heard it said before that if you feel guilty chances are you have something to be guilty about. I think I agree with this. If I feel guilty in such situation, or when I hear such stories, perhaps this guilt should be used to make a reality check, to see whether my actions and my way of living condemns me as guilty. Too often, if I’m honest, I have to admit that yes I look at my actions and lifestyle and find that I am guilty of not using my talents, gifts, and possessions to honor God and for his work. I encourage ach one of you to never be swallowing in your guilt but use it to transform your actions and deeds to serve the Lord and others.

Many thanks and blessings

Laina