Moments in Africa that bring me Joy

We only have two weeks left of Africa (I know it’s insane) and three weeks left of the Race as a whole. As all of this is slowly coming to an end I’ve been looking back at my time here in Eswatini and wanted to share some of my favorite memories and moments with you! 

-To start us off I must mention my friend Mackenzie’s popcorn recipe. She buys huge bags of popcorn kernels, cooks it in a huge pot on the sketchy stove we have and then shares it with the whole squad. It’s always the funniest thing to see her making the rounds with a huge pot of popcorn in her hands around the squad to make sure everyone has gotten some. Just last night we had a late night popcorn snack that ended up in a dance party to Justin Bieber. I have never been a fan of popcorn until she made it for me. 

-Here in Eswatini it is currently their winter season. This doesn’t mean bone chilling cold like it would mean for some in the states but more like chilly in the morning with lots of rain. For a couple weeks all it did was rain. Rain rain rain rain. Moments that brought me joy were the days after the rain finally stopped. The sun and warmth came out and everyone on the squad just flocked outside as if they were drawn by a magnet. All the rain flys on the tents came off to dry out moldy and damp tents and every person was outside tanning or reading or painting. It was as if everyone just took a deep breath in and was refreshed. It’s so beautiful to see everyone so drawn to life. 

-There is a little boy at the care point we go to who takes such pride in teaching me the seswati language. Every day he takes me to a little spot and pulls out all his schoolbooks and has me repeat after him. He tells me what each word means in English and will wait patiently while I try to figure out all the clicks that confuse me so much. It’s good practice for both him and I even if I make a fool out of myself trying to pronounce some of the words. 

-The children don’t understand the concept of hair left out to frame my face. My curtain bangs confuse the kids so much when I leave them out of my ponytail. And everyday the kids will come around me and tuck the hair behind my ears for me. It makes me smile every time. 

-Since being in Africa there hasn’t been much to do. The closest city is an hour and a half away which means a lot of journaling and painting and reading. I’ve lost count of the number of books I’ve read in the short amount of time here. A couple of people on my squad started a book club that happens weekly with tea and good conversations. We talk through the books we are currently reading and make reading lists for all the books making their way through the squad. We had a poetry slam night and came up with intellectual sounding names for ourselves, It is so sweet and so fun. 

-There is one gas station down the street from our house that is like the hub for everything. Everyone in the community goes there. It’s a gas station/supermarket/hardware store/furniture store/produce market. It is always teeming with people. Almost everyday after ministry we go and buy whatever snacks we need (My go-to is the “death by chocolate” magnum chocolate ice cream bar) It is just so funny to see everyone in the van eating their after ministry snack, covered in dirt from the day of playing with all the kiddos. 

-This day of ministry is probably one of my favorite days of ministry in the race. My team and I arrived to our care-point for the day, but the children weren’t out of school yet and we had a couple hours to kill. Our shepherd, cook, and our team ended up outside tanning in the sun and braiding each other’s hair. We talked about our lives and dreams and sang seswati hymnals. When the kids arrived that day we taught them how to play kickball. It was one of those games you don’t realize has so many rules until you try to explain it to someone who doesn’t speak your language. The end result was us using old cinderblocks for bases trying our best to teach whatever we could and I just couldn’t help but laugh as the kids tried so hard to learn. 

-After ministry there is a group that walks to a nearby sand volleyball court. We play with local Swazis who just enjoy the sport and play volleyball as the sun sets. This brings me so much joy because it doesn’t matter if either side wins or loses, it is all about the simple enjoyment. I was on a team with only local Swazi men last week, and I was easily the worst person on the team. But every time I messed up they would laugh and pat my shoulder, and everytime there was a good hit they would cheer even louder. Our team lost every game but when we made a point my team would sing Swazi cheers and talk trash while laughing. As we walk the 20 minutes home we watch the sunset, which is always stunning. It’s peaceful and fun. 

-There is a 16 year old high school girl who comes to our care point. Her school is a two hour walk away from the care point though so we don’t see her very often. One day last week she skipped school and hung out with my team. She is passionate about singing and tries so hard to teach me how to dance to no avail. The day she came my team mate was out sick. She wanted so badly to write her a get better soon note, but she didn’t have any paper. So instead she took a pen and wrote a note on my team mate’s hand to “give to Emily” when she got home. All over my team mates hand were hand drawn hearts and words of encouragement and love for Emily. It was easily the most wholesome thing I have ever seen. 

-Every day we arrive to the care-point a couple hours before the kids do. This gives us time to spend building relationship with the cooks there or do house visits in the community. But right around 1:30/2 everyday we will hear the kids coming to the care-point. Before we see anyone hit the gate we hear the laughter and giggles of the kids on their walk from the school. We can hear their feet padding on the ground. We simply wait and listen to the stampede of children headed right our way. The sound of them coming to the care-point everyday brings so much joy without fail. 

-Recently my favorite game to play with the kids at my care-point is something called “Russian Net Ball.” Think ultimate basketball, but instead of a basketball hoop there are two people at the end zone waiting to catch the ball. If they catch it, your team has a point. The kids and I take this game pretty seriously, and even the cook who makes the meals for the kids plays with us. By the end of it I am always beet red and caked head to toe in dirt. The kids on the opposite team like to make a game of tricking me into thinking they are on my team so I will accidentally pass it to them, and even though we don’t speak the same language my team mates know how to say “good job” when we make a goal. It is so much fun. My favorite part is when I am passing the ball my name is always called out as “Delane.” There is no end syllable of my name.  And because of the game it is my new name amongst the kids. Everyone on all sides just screaming “Delane, Delane!” At the top of their lungs. It makes me giggle.

Africa has been the sweetest season on my race so far. Everyday there is a moment where I am caught off guard by the simple beauty of it all. From the seswati hymns that are sung 24/7 to constant hair braiding, there is joy mixed in with it all. There aren’t enough words to do it all justice, but I hope that this small glimpse into my life was able to show you just a little bit of what the Lord has brought me here in Eswatini. 

Sending you all the love from Nsoko Eswatini, 

“Delane”