Day 5 & 6 at ethembeni!

[My amazing group!! Rob, Cynthia, Kailey, Alyssa, Alex, me, and Eli!!]

Okay, so I feel like there is so much to write about! Oh my goodness... Ok, well let me start with Thursday! On Thursday my group and I had the opportunity to split up and go to different home visits with volunteers who go out to these homes every Thursday. I went with Kailey (in my group) and a woman named Norah and Tutu. We went to a few different houses and they all were unique and different in their own ways. It was difficult in some of the house visits that we do because most of the time they speak in isiZulu. It is very hard to understand and since we only know a few general phrases it becomes frustrating with the language barrier at some of our visits. But today, I was thankful that one of the woman we were with were able to translate for us.
At one of the house visits I went to, there were two woman who were HIV positive. One of them I assumed was about 25 years old and the other mid forties or so. They both were interested in Jesus and having their own bible. So we brought them brand new bibles (in IsiZulu) and food for the next week. Kailey and I mostly watched/observed because they all were speaking in Zulu. Norah would translate in english for us afterwards. When they opened up there bible, they were so overjoyed and happy... it makes my eyes fill with tears just thinking about it. They asked Jesus into their hearts that day. I didn't know this until after Norah translated the zulu prayer she and them prayed... and all I can say is that it was very rewarding to see this.
The next home visit was with a couple who has been together since sixteen years old and have nine children. It is pretty uncommon for the husband to be the father of all nine children... And this couple is on fire about God. They are wanting to get married and have a white wedding! Norah, the volunteer we were with, made the wife a wedding dress and got them wedding rings. They had the biggest smiles on their faces and were so thankful. They are waiting for a few pieces to fall together before they are legally able to marry but it was just great to see that this family can be an example to many families in the community. They asked me to pray before leaving and I was so happy to pray for them! This visit lifted me up so much and I found that their happiness was so infectious that I could not help but to smile. I was thankful for the opportunity to go these home visits and see some amazing things that are happening in mpophemeni.

This morning, I woke up feeling pretty crappy. I had a bad cough and terrible allergies and I was not particularly looking forward to the day because my health wasn't up to parr. But we prayed as we got to the service site for all of our health because other members of my group have been feeling sick too. We also spent time praying over the family center building and for the Holy Spirit to fill the place. Throughout the day, my health slowly got better and I was feeling more like myself.
I enjoyed playing and cuddling with the kids today. It definitely feels so comfortable to see them every morning... I wonder what it will be like going three days without seeing them with the weekend now! I am not going to think about that.. haha. Later today, we also went to the community's "museum type thing," where we were informed about how mpophemeni was formed and some of the hardships it has faced, especially during the apartheid years. There is a memorial of a 6 year old girl who died by being ran over by a white policemen on purpose in the late eighties, I believe. It was a very sad story, but it was reality during those times and is sometimes very hard to understand that incidents like that happened all the time. [below is a picture of some of the kids helping to paint the Jesus mural on one of the walls!]

Before we left for the day we learned more of the "diskie" dance with all the kids! It is so much fun to learn from them. I think they like teaching it and I like learning from them. I also think It is entertaining for them because whenever I look up from my very "skilled dance moves", they are laughing at me! hahaha So I'm assuming that I am butchering a dance move and making a complete fool of myself. But hey, TIA right? That's what I keep telling myself anyhow.

So today started out not promising with the way I was feeling, but by the end of the day I was feeling great. I am thankful for the weekend, however, because I definitely need to recharge my batteries! I would say our whole group is pretty exhausted so please pray for strength and good health for next Tuesday. Tomorrow, (Saturday) we are going to Durban for shopping in the morning and maybe also to beach it up if the sun is shining. After that, our group at Ethembeni is planning on going to a soccer, aka "futbol" game, with Kakhla, Zwe, Claire, and Nanklhanhla (The staff and some of our mentors from the family center) tomorrow afternoon! I am so excited to go to my first soccer game and the coolest part is...it is at the world cup stadium called "moses mabhida." This stadium looks surreal.. and I am pumped to hang out with everyone and have some more bonding experiences!! Check out this sweet picture of the stadium!!

Prayer Requests:
-Ethembeni is struggling to have sufficient funds to pay the employees and keep running the full 5 days a week... startin April 1, they will be open only 3 days of the week instead of 5 days, which means that employees are struggling to have enough salary to support their families and it has a ripple effect on the community including all the children and their lives at home. For some teenage moms, this may mean that they will have to skip school to take care of their child during those days... and for some children, it may mean that they might not have meals for the day. This is heart breaking to think about but please pray for Ethembeni family center and the clinic to have faith that God will provide in unimaginable ways.
love, jamie