It Takes a Village

by Amy Straub

In the airport now about to board our plane for the journey home. What a time it has been. I have had once in a lifetime kinds of experiences. I can now say that have been feet apart from a lion on a beautiful plain and heard its roar in the dark of night. I have shopped at beautiful markets filled with handmade items to bring home to my loved ones. I have visited the most amazing African wine farm at sunset. I have gathered seashells from the Indian Ocean. So for all of this I am grateful. These are the moments when I got to experience South Africa as a tourist that I will surely not forget. 

I recognize fully, however that those are the moments that are a product of my privilege. And I have also now seen poverty the likes of which I have never observed. Housing communities and situations that will be engrained in my mind for the rest of my days. I have met and played with child after child who has lost his/her parents. This stuff was hard. Really, really hard in a way that I do not have words for. At first it felt like ok, so there is the fun stuff, then there is hard stuff. I’ve got this. A little blend and back and forth and that will get me through emotionally. 

BUT, come to find out, the true once in a lifetime experiences, the true joys, were the ones embedded in all that I originally perceived as so sad. It was inside the bungalows, tattered and torn, but filled with the love of caregivers, so scarce in resources, yet committed to raising children that are not even necessarily their own. It was in the dancing and singing of the children of mosaic praising God for their life and what they DO have. It was watching the teachers and leaders hugging and kissing children of their program as though they are their own. The “boots on the ground” people that were all around me. Everywhere I turned! People committed to the children of this world so far beyond what I have ever observed. I have seen the literal interpretation of “it takes a village”. This is not just a saying. It is real. And it works. This partnership of loving families in a community with the support of organizations like Mosaic and Ma’s of Wellington made it clear for me to see. 

I am coming home different. Yes, I have new ideas for preschool and The Well thanks to the good people of South Africa. I have new vision. My heart feels too big for my chest right now- with joy AND hurt. My brain feels muddled and exhaustion is at its peak. I am not the same person because of what I have seen and I am good with that. 

Filling My Bucket

by Michele Zincone

The second part of our trip has been in lovely Port Elizabeth, near the Indian Ocean - just breathtaking. Upon arrival, we learned of a severe water shortage that they are experiencing. So much so that we had buckets in our shower to conserve water. It got me thinking…

This trip has been so incredible and I know we will all treasure this time and we are are forever impacted by this amazing place.

This visit to P.E. was so moving. Once again, we were received with open arms and generous hearts. You can feel the love all around - amongst the children and teachers, at the beautiful Mosaic program, in the township homes, at Amani Guest House with Carl, on Safari with Zane and the list continues…

Witnessing Mama Estelle with the children and community is inspiring; she is an angel here on earth. And Carl, Big Fish, with his generous heart, so giving of his time…he serves with such strength and passion.

A trip like this is filled with emotions, actually so many that you may have a day where your bucket of energy is running low. But Port Elizabeth more than filled my bucket. Estelle, Carl, Judy, Nozi, Bruce, the beautiful children and families - they filled my bucket and for this I am forever grateful and will never forget.

And to my travels mates…Cammy, Vicki and Amy - thank you! You fill my bucket and bless me with your kind, giving hearts and friendship.

Brantzeg family, you fill my bucket in ways I couldn’t have even imagined. What you have built and the lives you touch is a gift beyond words.

I leave South Africa with a full bucket and I give thanks to God for this time and the chance to meet so many amazing new friends.

Labyrinths and more...

Labyrinths and more…

Those who know me have a sense of my love of Labyrinths.  On that walking prayer path, I find peace, clarity and blessing beyond measure.  But the greatest gift of the Labyrinth for me is to share this spiritual practice with others.  So imagine my joy as I walked the stunning new Labyrinth that has recently been built at Tony and Cammy Brantzeg’s South Africa home.  But greater still was my joy when I had the opportunity to introduce the teens from the MOSAIC after-school program to the practice when they came to spend time with us at the Brantzeg’s last week.

That afternoon, we divided our group into two small groups:  Amy and Michele in the back yard with one group, enjoying a crazy fun game called BeanBoozled; Cammy and me in the front yard at the Labyrinth with the others.  After a bit of time, we switched out our groups.  

As Cammy and I spoke to these young people about our own experiences with this unique prayer practice, they listened intently and respectfully.  That in and of itself was a beautiful thing.  Add to that, the day was stunning, birds were all around us (including the peacocks across the street!), and the sky was the brightest blue I’ve ever seen.  So there’s the setting.  

And then, and then, the kids walked and prayed on the Labyrinth.  I will hold that picture in my heart forever.  I knew at then and there that these amazing young people were/are seeking God.  When the walk(s) ended, we took time for reflection and some shared what they experienced.  One girl said, “I just want to do it again and again!”  A guy said, “I felt peace.”  And another said, “I felt God.”  

After that, we allowed time for the teens to share privately with us their prayer requests.  Those requests were honest, heartfelt and sometimes pain-filled.  We SA travelers surely feel so privileged to continue to lift up those needs to God on behalf of our young friends.  

Our time together ended with the blessing of anointing and then we had to say our final good-byes.  It was a precious and bittersweet time.  May God bless and keep these young people we came to love.

We are not able to share pictures of the Mosaic kids on social media due to Mosaic's social media policy to protect the children in their programs.  Cammy took a picture of the kid's name tags in the center of the labyrinth as a way to share a little piece of our connection with them.  

Home

by Vicki Pry 

Home…

This is my 10th trip to SA and, for more reasons than I can capture here, I feel this sense of coming Home. And why is that??? And, what IS Home, really??? Home is for me, a place where you feel loved and special and valued and welcomed. Home is where you are greeted with joy and appreciation- no expectations. Home is the place where your shoulders relax and your brain stops racing and you find yourself smiling and laughing with reckless abandon. Home is where the love of Jesus is palpable and often brings unexpected tears of joy…simply because the Spirit is moving in such beautiful ways. Home is a place you long for. Home is where the people you love are found. Home is also the place where you comfort one another when you’re hurting or feeling discouraged. Home is, for me in this moment in time…S.A.

I’m experiencing this trip differently than previous ones for several reasons: we are a small team, which is amazing on so many levels. Add to that the fact that my daughter, Amy, is here with me. Also, I find myself seeing things fresh and anew through Amy’s and Michele’s eyes, both of whom are here for the first time. With all of that, my love for this place and these people has increased exponentially. Our experiences~from preschoolers to teens to moms and grandmas, to MOSAIC staff and volunteers, to the precious folks of Avodah (differently abled teens and adults), well, the connections and blessings are practically indescribable. 

Surely I miss Home USA and family and Hopewell, no question. And yes, I find myself counting the number of days it will be until I see those of you there I love so dearly. But for now, I am Home, exactly where God calls me-in this country, with these people who so warmly and graciously receive us and draw us in and who bless us, teach us and love us. My heart overflows with gratitude.

Where's the ketchup?

by Michele Zincone

 As much as we are enjoying the lovely South African cuisine, our group found ourselves craving some American favorites, so we stopped for grilled cheese and french fries at Wimpy's - yum!  But as we began to dig in, we looked for ketchup for our fries only to find tomato sauce!  What?! This can't be right. Maybe the ketchup is called tomato sauce?   So we tried it;  definitely not ketchup.  It was tomato sauce.  That's not what I wanted, I whined.  Can I even eat these fries without ketchup??  Ugh!  Pretty pathetic, right?  Of course I can, so I added some extra salt and enjoyed.

Often we find ourselves gravitating towards what is comfortable or what we know and we have expectations that follow.  We can't even imagine doing things differently.  But sometimes we need to change our course or make different decisions than usual and with that can come some pretty amazing discoveries.  I didn't know if I could travel so far without my family or if I could be away from work for this time - I enjoy my routine!  But had I not taken this journey to South Africa, I wouldn't have had the privilege of meeting all of the wonderful people that I have: Meyer, Louise, Salome, Stephanie, Cornel, Lizette, Surette, the children...and the list goes on!  The faith that I witness from these amazing humans is inspiring and I am blessed that God led me to them.

Trust and Faith

by Amy Straub 

I will be very honest. I was not feeling this trip. It was a lot to wrap my head around. I have summer camp to plan for The Well. I have my own kids who need me. I don’t have a passport. I have never been anywhere. God has called me to work in Downingtown, not Africa. I had decided this years ago and I was content. 

BUT, I had an invitation from
my mom and Cammy to join on this trip because there would be opportunities to connect with preschool and after-school programs through Mosaic and Ma’s of Wellington. My 2 jobs. My 2 passions. Ok I was listening. But probably couldn’t go. The timing was the small window between the close of preschool and the start of The Well summer camp. Well that’s great, but probably a window too tight, and so on. However, despite my efforts to try to dig for reasons that this would not work, it was materializing all too easily. My husband and my daughters were telling me to go. My first ever passport came in plenty of time despite delays I had heard about, and I was about to experience something big, something very different like it or not!

It became clear in a few moments time from our first stop in to the preschool that this was going to be something life-changing. I was grabbed by an woman that I’ve never met who hugged me harder than I have ever been hugged and told me she loved me. A white girl from the USA. Why?! I had done nothing yet to prove that I was worth this kind of celebration. But in 4 days time I have come to understand this concept of universal love like I have never seen. I am loved in her eyes because I exist. Simple as that. 

I have already had experiences that I will never forget. Two tiny, little children crawling into my lap during their circle time just to be held and loved. Just to give love back to me as a perfect stranger. Clearly I have a heart for small people as a preschool teacher. But actually something has been pulling me very hard to the Mosaic afterschool program teenagers that we have been spending time with.  I work with teens at The Well. I have teenagers. And to be honest, a teenage break sounded kind of nice and yet I find myself thinking about these 10 kids nonstop. We have played silly games together and laughed a lot. But in one of our discussion times sweet Esona asked, “How do you know if the voice in your head is God taking to you? Or just your own thoughts?” It sparked amazing conversation among all of us and I felt really pulled to her as an adult struggling with the same question. I shared with her the idea that I did not want to go on this trip. I was scared. And that God did not speak to me in some loud, powerful voice. But he gently nudged me by lining things up so that it worked. Allowing me no out no matter how hard I tried to find it. He didn’t work through my ears but rather my heart, my gut, my supportive family. I heard myself talking about trust and faith in a way that I had not before this trip. Or maybe ever. 

I will see Esona tomorrow for the last time before we head into the second half of this journey. And I will soak up her face and her smile and store them in my brain. For good. Did I really need to travel 8,000 miles to have a conversation with a 15 year-old about listening and trust and faith to understand my own purpose for this journey? Apparently so…..

From the Afternoon Valley to the Evening Mountaintop

by Cammy Brantzeg

It is 9:00 pm in South Africa.  Today, we had a brief visit to the valley before we climbed back up to the  mountaintop.  When you come on one of these trips, a few days in you get so tired.  You are overwhelmed by what you have seen.  You need to stop to process things but there doesn't seem to be enough time.  Your sleep may be off.  I need to mention again that you are TIRED.

Our Thursday morning started with a visit to the Ma's for Wellington ECD program (preschool).  These kids will be going to grade R (Kindergarten in US terms) next year.  Michele (Hopewell Christian Preschool Director) and Amy (Hopewell Christian Preschool Teacher) were soaking everything up.  You might think that we would be coming to South Africa to teach them how to run their preschool but that would be so wrong.  We visit their preschool to learn from them and find ways to make our preschool even better.  We humbly show up and God opens our eyes to show us things that we never would have thought of.  It was a great visit and thoughts and ideas were exchanged.

As the leader for this trip, I am constantly thinking, adjusting and praying to try to discern and move our group where God is calling us to go.  Today, I had to make some tough choices.  We just won't have enough time to do everything I wanted our group to do.  

I wanted to visit all the Mosaic families (around 27) and drop off the soap made by our youth and the Bible verse that I mentioned in one of my previous blogs.  My church Hopewell UMC also had money available for us to spend on this trip so we purchased a food parcel/package for each Mosaic family.   The food parcels cost $25 each and look like a giant Ziploc bag that contains canned goods, sugar, etc.  The kids will be on a school holiday that last 3 weeks starting on Monday.  Many families do not have enough to eat during this time when the kids are not at school or at the Mosaic programs.  The food will help them bridge the gap while the kids are not in school.  Unfortunately, I realized today that we just won't have time to help do the deliveries.  

I also wanted to visit families who are going through difficult times and pray for them with my friend Cornel.  This is always a blessing for our mission trip teams and for the ladies we visit.  Unfortunately, Cornel's availability and our teams availability did not overlap to make this possible.  The good news is that I have learned if God wants it to happen it will and if it is not meant to happen then it won't.  This wasn't a part of God's plan for this trip and I will trust his plan that this is how it was meant to be.

As I mentioned in my opening paragraph, we were tired today so I cleared our schedule after lunch until 4:00 pm to give our group some time to rest, relax and reflect.  We just needed a break.  I took a 30 minute nap, had a snack of cheese & crackers and felt like a new person.

After our down time, 2e met with a group of Mosaic high school students from 4-5:15 pm and then went to Stephanie and Kiffie's house to have dinner with some of the ladies from Ma's for Wellington.  

As you can see from our picture, we had an evening full of love and laughter.  When we left Stephanie and Kiffie's house, we were all back on the mountaintop leaving our afternoon in the valley behind.

The feelings here are hard to describe.  The relationships we have with the people we meet are so special.  You think you have had the best moment ever and then a new one comes along that is just as special.  It was a great night.

We will be heading to Port Elizabeth on Sunday.  Right now, the group kind of wants to stay here in Paarl Valley because it has been so special but I keep telling them wait until we get to PE.  I know it will be special there too.  I don't think they believe me but that is ok because they will see for themselves next week.

I need to get to bed.  I started writing this around 9:00 and it is almost 11:00.  I did have a nap today so I am feeling pretty good but I still need to get to bed.  :-)

To South Africa with Love

by Michele Zincone

I have been trying to find the words to properly describe my experience here in South Africa so far and I am just not able to do so.  A few words do stick in my mind though - beauty and tangible love.  

This place has beauty all around, even in some of the most unexpected places.  In the landscape, you may see some very hard living conditions but at the same time you see majestic mountains or a beautiful sky and it is like God is reminding you that he is always here.  The most beauty that you will find here, however, is in the people.  Everywhere we go, we are greeted with the warmest smiles and biggest hugs.  And this is where the tangible love comes in - you feel it everywhere, it's palpable.

We have been blessed to have shared wonderful days already at Ma's, Mosaic and Avodah and each place overflows with love, His love, and you can feel it.  There was a moment at Ma's Supersterre program that I will hold with me forever, I know we all will.  After a few upbeat praise songs, a quiet song takes place and this is a time for the children to be still and listen for God and feel His love.  These precious, beautiful children did just that but while doing so, most of them went seeking human touch and they curled up in our laps without even knowing us. We held each other, were still and listened together.  It was so powerful and beautiful and you could feel God's presence without a doubt.  It was tangible love.

There is a Bible verse that Louise shared with me and it keeps presenting itself - Isaiah 43:18-19 "Do not remember the former things or ponder the things of the past.  Listen carefully, I am about to do a new thing, Now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it?  I will even put a road in the wilderness, rivers in the desert." 

I am trying to listen and I am trying to be aware, but in this beautiful place, it is not hard.  With the love and beauty that is shared here, you can only be present and feel God all around you.  My eyes and heart are open and I give thanks to God for this trip and this very special place. 

 

Wednesday - Avodah

by Cammy Brantzeg

I woke up early so I thought I would try to write a quick blog.  Hopefully later today someone else will have time to blog.  Our trip is busy like always.  There is always so much to do and see.  

Meyer and Louise (co-founders of Mosaic) are leaving on Thursday to go on vacation so we stayed up until midnight talking to them.  We shared a lot of laughter as we ate our dinner by the fireplace in our kitchen.  Meyer braaied (cooked over an open fire) chicken kebabs and roosterkoek (grilled bread/roll).

We visited the Mas for Wellington's Avodah group on Wednesday.  (Avodah means work, worship, serve in Hebrew.). Avodah is a group of close to 20 adults that have mental and physical challenges.  This group started with two members a few years ago and just keeps growing.  Time with this group is always filled with joy, love and a lot of smiles and hugs.  My church Hopewell in the US has a similar group.  I connected the leaders of these two groups in June and they have started communicating back and forth and praying for each other.  

The group from my church sent a poster and a craft to their South African friends.  I was carrying the poster around and they all wanted to look at the pictures of the kids on it.  Below are pictures of Surette showing the kids the poster from their friends in the US.  By the time we left, the poster was already hanging on the wall.

While we visited Avodah, the members did relay races, made crafts, played games, and just spent time together with their friends.  They loved having us take their pictures and hugging us.  We participated in some of the games with them.  It was a special uncomplicated time to love and be loved.  

It is hard to describe all the miracles that happen in South Africa.  These kids prayed for a Bible for one of their members and a Bible was gifted to their organization.  They prayed for mattresses for a handful of their members and mattresses were donated.  They prayed for boxed springs for the mattresses and boxed springs were donated.  In many of these situations, Avodah was not asking for these donations and someone was able to meet their need.  Instead, people reached out to Ma's for Wellington saying they had these items could they use them.  It is just crazy how that happens all the time in SA.  Their faith and trust in God is an example for me that I will never forget.

Before we left, Stephanie (founder of Mas for Wellington) had an exciting announcement.  The Avodah group had been praying for a bus for their transportation.  Transportation is a BIG deal in South Africa.  People DON"T have cars like we do in the US.  Ma's just received the donation of a bus so now Avodah will be able to meet for longer periods of time and it will be easier to get them to their meeting place.  You should have heard them cheer as Stephanie told them about the bus.  After the announcement, one of their members said a prayer.  It was in Afrikaans so I didn't understand it but I know it was filled with thanksgiving.

I will admit I cried multiple times during our visit.  The group and the way they care for each other and the love they so freely give to people they meet is an example of God's love for all of us.  

The place they were meeting at was new for them.  It is a little outside of Wellington.  It has grass and trees and space for them to be outdoors where it is safe.  Before joining Avodah, many of these adults were locked in their bungalow (shacks) all day because it was not safe for them.  It is easy for them to be abused by others in their community.  Avodah gives them a safe place to go and a community that loves them.  

The picture above is the ladies that run the Avodah program.  They share God's love and shine God's light into the lives of this special group of adults.  We were blessed to be able to spend time with them on our trip.

Tuesday - SOAP

by Cammy Brantzeg 

Wow!  God was moving big yesterday but that is the normal when I am in South Africa.  

One story that will illustrate my point is soap.  Sherri Jarvis is a friend of mine in the US.  A few years ago I went to her house to learn how to make soap.  I thought it might be a possible business for Mosaic to employ their mothers.  I made soap and took it down to SA to give away to the Mosaic mothers and Ma's for Wellington community volunteers.  The opportunity for the business never happened but I love the soap we made together.  We were trying to make a simple soap with ingredients that were easy to get and cheap.

Sherri recently made soap with the youth at our church for me to bring to SA.  My son Seth helped to make the soap.  I took some of that soap to give to the Ma's for Wellington volunteers yesterday.  They gave me a moment to talk to the Tannie (Auntie) Mommas yesterday.  I also shared with them on of the Bible verses that I pray for them.  

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace

because you trust in him.  Then you will overflow with confident hope through

the power of the Holy Spirit.  Romans 15:13

After that I went over to Stephanie (Started Ma's for Wellington) and she told me she was going to go buy the ladies soap and now she didn't need to.  SA schools go on school holiday (break) next week.  She created a Bible study of Genesis for the Ma's ladies and was going to talk to them about the SOAP  Bible study method.  

S - Scripture, O - Observation, A - Application, P - Prayer

As you read the Bible, you select a verse (Scripture).  Think about or write down our Observations about the verse.  You then think about ways to Apply the verse to your life.  When you are done with these steps you Pray to God.

Steph wanted to get the ladies soap to hand out as she told them about this method and then I show up giving the ladies soap.  

You might say this is just a coincidence but when you have seen things like this happen over and over in SA you know it is not coincidence it is God.  It is beyond humbling to be in SA again and to see these moments unfold.  So much joy!

Thank you to Sherri and the youth at our church for making this soap!  I am not sure how it came to be that Sherri was making the soap with the youth but each of us did our little part of God's plan to make something much bigger than all of us happen.