Tonight is the last night in Haniville. Tonight is the last night at Walk In The Light. Tonight is the night that I had to say goodbye to all of my friends from the last two months. Tonight I will go to sleep, dreaming that I will see my friends again tomorrow. Instead I will be getting on a plane at 7:30AM.
Somehow, despite this sadness of saying goodbye, I know that I will see them again. There have been so many memories made here and I know that I will return to this place. My heart has become fused with the hearts of my friends and family here, and I know that I will see them again. I hope and pray that God will allow me to return sooner rather than later but, regardless of when I do get to return, I know that it will be a wonderful and beautiful thing to see my friends again.
Last week I was in Lesotho, a beautiful country within the borders of South Africa. It was such a wonderful experience to return again to Lesotho, this time during winter. I went with Eli, another APU student, Doug, a professor of psychology from KZN in South Africa, and Dave and Tish, a couple that we met here. It was the most wonderful and unexpected experience. We never had a dull moment. We were always talking and enjoying each other’s company. I have never felt so alive. I loved being able to discuss psychology and have others understand and be able to converse with me. I interpreted everyone’s personality types according to the book that I got here. We talked about how psychology and Christianity intermingle. We talked about creation and evolution. We talked about the Bible and we talked about world religions. We talked about politics. We talked about the American economy. We talked about cars. Oh… and we also hiked up Sani Pass. I guess that is the most important part. We were initially going to drive up the pass but it was snowed in at the top third. So we walked. We passed the first border and we walked. We kept walking, and kept walking, and kept walking. I stopped repeatedly. I drank water from the same waterfall that I had taken a drink from last time I came up Sani Pass. I drank the water of Africa, again.
We kept walking. I just about died from the elevation. When we got to the snow, I really thought I was going to die. But it was so beautiful. It was white and pure and clean and quiet. Everything was silent. Everything was quiet except for the sheep on the side of the snow-covered hill. I am in South Africa. Thank God. I am climbing up a pass in snow in the middle of America’s summer. Thank God. I am alive. Thank God. I am breathing. Thank God. All of these things that I frequently forget to thank God for kept coming to mind. I kept climbing and I kept thanking God. I got to the top and I thanked God profusely for that. We made it to the top. We went through the second border and went into the lodge which had no heat, initially, because the butane tanks had frozen in the snow. We got to eat dinner and we talked to a German man who had lived in Berlin when the wall fell. It was unbelievable hearing his stories. We all went to bed early and continued discussing psychology and how relationships work, especially those at APU. It was wonderful getting to talk with people who understood exactly what I was talking about. It was a wonderful night, warm inside the double sleeping bag. We woke up and hiked back. If I could, I would do it again in an instant. Maybe someday I will.
This last week has been quite a whirlwind. We built an entire playground in 5 days. Everything that could go wrong went wrong. The playground design was one that I had drawn up a month ago and I was worried that it would never happen. I got to spend the whole week working with Peter, one of the Godliest people I have ever known. He truly loves the Lord and loves people. He cares for people regardless of if they are black, white or colored, whether they are rich or poor, whether they are Christians, Zionists, Muslims or Hindus. He always has words of wisdom to share, besides the fact that he always knows how to encourage and lift up the spirits of those around him. He truly does spur others on towards love and good works, as Paul says we should do in Hebrews 10. I got to experience the funniest things with him as we tried to put the play structure together. The first day, we had to dig all the holes for the posts but it started raining. The next day, it kept raining so no work got done. Another day we went and bought the rest of the tools, and the 16mm drill bit broke. We had to buy another. After we bought another, it started raining. The next day we had to put the monkey bars together and bought a 30mm bit to drill holes for a 30mm wide pole. The drill bit was too small. We bought a 32mm drill bit. The drill bit was still too small but we made it work anyways. That day, I got food poisoning. The structure still got finished by the grace of God. The day after the structure was finished I went outside to say hello to the kids playing on the swings when Cepo, one of the little boys, ran down. He looked up at me and said thank you. He went to give me a hug and then gave me a kiss on the cheek; “I love the swings, thank you, thank you, thank you.” Even with all the bumps along the way, I know it was worth it.
There are about a billion funny stories that I could share right now. I am excited to go home but I also know that I will be missing everyone here too. I miss Sne and I miss Sihle. They were my two best friends here. I know that they are why I came. I know that I will see them again. As I walked them up the hill so they could cross the road into Haniville, we talked about life and how I would see them again soon. I convinced Sihle to “rhyme” for me and told him that he can’t forget me when he becomes famous. I told Sne that whenever I sing I will think of her and that she has been the biggest encouragement to me. She is my sister and she has been the greatest example to me of what it means to have faith and trust fully in God. She has seen so many things and yet she still loves God. As 1 Timothy 4:12 says, “Do not let anyone look down on you because you are young but set an example to the believers, in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity.” She has been an example to me in all of these things. I will not forget my sister. I will not forget my friend. Though she is only 14, she has taught me more than anyone I have ever known. I will see her again. I will see Sihle again. I will come here again.
As they always say, “Once you have tasted the waters of Africa, you will always be thirsting for more.” I know that I will once again taste the waters of Africa. I will once again see my friends and family. I am at peace tonight because I will come back.
Tonight I am at peace. Tomorrow we go to Cape Town.
