May 29, 2012- Sanibonani bazalwane. :) It's been a few days since I've updated my blog, so I hope to catch you up even though I don't have very much time this morning. First of all, on Sunday morning, we went to church at a new work area where the Allens have just started a church within the last few months. The church meets at a school in a place called Nsangwini, which is on the way to another location where we have Bible Study- Ngowane. The people in this area have been so excited about having a church started there, and we had somewhere between 75 and 80 people in attendance. About 50 were children, 10-15 were youth and the remaining few were adults. This is pretty typical for a Swazi church, especially now with the HIV/AIDS crisis. I was really excited to see several men there, two of whom led the worship service. In a country where male leadership in the church is especially hard to find, this is very promising and exciting. We had a good worship service. We began at 11:00 but Steve didn't start preaching until 1:00 because of the singing, testimonies, etc. I love being in church in Swaziland where no one has taught these people to worship. They just do it however they are led. Please join me in praying for this new church plant in Nsangwini. We are headed there this afternoon for Bible Study as well. Below, I have included a picture of the school where the church meets, several kids from the church, and Steve Allen with some of the congregation.
We got home from church around 4:00 on Sunday afternoon, and one of my Swazi brothers, Sandile, came by for a visit. It was good to catch up with him and hear all of the things God has been teaching him this past year. After multiple trips to Africa, there's one thing you learn: be ready and prepared for anything. Well, this was put to the test later Sunday night. It was about 8:00 so everything was completely quiet and pitch black outside. I was sitting in the back bedroom of my house writing an email to my parents when all of a sudden, there were loud noises on the roof. To say I was scared to death is an understatement. First thought- people had climbed the barbed wire fence, gotten into the yard, and were on the roof. I ruled this out and thought- monkeys on the rood. Well, I didn't hear any other sounds so that couldn't be it. Only thing left- wind. I grabbed my flashlight and walked around the house looking out the windows to see if I could tell if the wind was blowing or if I saw monkeys or anything else. As I'm tiptoeing through my house, the doorbell rings. Nearly dropped the flashlight as I jumped out of my skin. It was Steve coming to see if I had felt the earthquake. Earthquake. Really??!! A few minutes later, one of my Swazi friends, who is a police officer, called me to make sure I hadn't had heart failure staying by myself and feeling the earth shake. Be ready for anything. This is Africa.
On Monday morning, Gogo Shandu and I took public transport to a rural community to begin my research. We got there a little early and had time to visit with several friends and people from the community. At 12:30, we met with 5 women who had agreed to be interviewed. I explained to them that the purpose of my research was to hear from the Swazis about how HIV is perceived in their community, what people believe about it, what things need to be changed to help with this HIV epidemic, questions about HIV testing, etc with the ultimate goal to use this information to better reach the Swazis. As expected, I learned a lot from these women. One of the reasons AIDS is so widespread here is the lack of knowledge about the disease. People know about it, but don't truly understand how it is spread, how to take care of themselves when they are HIV+, and how to prevent it. Over the years, I have heard many myths that the Swazis believe, and I heard even more yesterday. Many believe it is a curse, or it is witchcraft. A few of the women told me that some Swazis believe HIV is injected into oranges that come from South Africa and other countries and are sold in Swaziland in grocery stores. Several years ago, there was a project called "Dream for Africa" that came to Swaziland and was led by Americans. One thing this group did was plant vegetable gardens. Well when the Americans planted the gardens, they wore gloves, which to me means nothing- they're American. To the Swazis, however, it meant that the plants were contaminated with HIV. The gardens were pulled up by the Swazi people and the project was never successful as you can imagine. These are just a few of the things that people believe about HIV. There is such a need here, and it is more obvious every day that I spend on this side of the Atlantic. Please pray for the Swazi people and their battle with HIV that is devastating this nation.
Lastly, in one of my earlier blog posts, I mentioned that Monica, Lacie and Nathan Allen were in the US visiting Monica's grandmother. Mrs. Daisy died yesterday, and I know Monica's family would appreciate your prayers. I am so glad she and the kids were able to be home in Florida during this time, and I look forward to seeing them when the team arrives. Also, please be praying for my grandfather, my dad's dad. He is back in the hospital and battling a list of things. Pray for wisdom for the doctors, strength and recovery.
I have included two pictures of some friends I ran into yesterday. It was good to see them, and I am sure some of you may recognize their faces. The last photo is a 3 or 4 year old girl who came to the store to buy oranges for her family.
Until the whole world hears,
Hunter
