Day 4
Today was our last day in Malindza until I return in May – I
hate goodbyes! We paid the Mpaka school
fees for Sharon, Nomalungelo, and Mpilo (we pre-paid Nothando’s last year). We were trying to rush to a meeting with the
Chief’s Council at our new school site but in the meantime the whole school Morning
Prayer assembly had commenced. How do
you escape past 611 students singing their morning prayer unnoticed? Don’t worry – we blend in here in Swaziland... Then Sharon came running through the crowd
toward us to give us a hug and wish us a safe journey home. I will be praying that Sharon keeps
tolerating her ARVs and Luyanda
(Nothando’s daughter) is not HIV positive.
We then visited Give Hope, Fight Poverty’s Malindza New Hope
Primary School to meet our orphaned students for the very first time (the Swazi
school year started mid-January and this is the first service-learning trip
since then). We have 8 preschoolers (one
of which was terrified of white people) and 20 primary grade one students who
go to school completely for free – no uniform fees, tuition, school supply fees
or lunch fees. It might have been one of the best days in my GHFP history to
see the amazing 5 year olds in their new uniforms in brand new desks using
brand new colorful pencils to write siSwati words seen on a brand new chalk
board. Orphans here are so used to being
second-class citizens rarely seeing brand new things or experiencing free high
caliber education. Mr. Maseko (our
village coordinator) and GHFP want to make a change for our kids, and it’s
necessary that they understand it: They
are loved. They are special. They are important to the future of their
nation! The students now receive free
school lunch (thanks Mitali/FOODOM!!) and GHFP employs two teachers, a cook,
and a gardener who manages our vegetable plot that supplies nutrition to the
otherwise rice & beans school lunch menu.
Miss Mahlalela (1st grade teacher) is a petite
soft-spoken very smiley young adult who is just what these kids need. In her, they have not only an educator but an
adorable caring mother figure who gives abundant hugs they so desperately
need. I was overflowing with love today
for these kids and looked them in the eyes searching for a glimpse of their
futures. What will they be doing in 10
or 20 years? Making a difference, I am sure!!
I pointed to one and said “What school do you go to?” and she shouted in
a boisterous proud voice from a tiny little orphaned body “My name is Neliswe,I am 3 years old, I go to Malindza New Hope Preschool!!”. It felt like my heart
broke into a million pieces and then was put back together stronger than
ever. WE CAN DO THIS!! Thank YOU for
your continued support. These kids would
never have an education without you!!
We then played with the kids for hours. You could order them
a command, like “JUMP” and they would do it while shouting, “I AM JUMPING” over
and over until the next command. Ty
loved this game!! He also loved showing the kids his muscles and having the
kids show him their tiny muscles but I am only writing this because Ty is
currently sleeping so he doesn’t know I’m spilling those bean! The kids are brilliant. I asked the kids to start counting and
thought most would trail off around 30 which is the goal for pre-school
students in Swaziland. Most were
reciting all of the way to 110 when I finally stopped them because we were
getting ready to leave! I could not be
more thankful to everyone who has sent a donation, a warm wish or a thoughtful
prayer for these kids. I couldn’t be
happier to offer them a chance at an education and I cannot WAIT to see what
they make of it. There could be the next
Steve Jobs or Albert Einstein in our group – keep reading for the next 20 years
to find out!
Tomorrow we will be taking Mazwi to the hospital. He has been complaining of a fever lasting for
over 2 weeks, a swollen face with bloody sores, and a stomach ache. Luckily I am friends with doctors at Baylor’s
Pediatric HIV clinic who agreed to see him.
I am praying so hard tonight that it’s just an allergic reaction to
something that can be easily fixed. It
hurts every inch of my soul to think that he has had such a tough childhood and
may never make it to adulthood. To
donate to any of our programming: www.ifightpoverty.org/donate.html
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