The Last Hurrah

Monday – Wednesday were great days of therapy! Another of the kiddos got to go home which was awesome and sad at the same time. Through the first few days of the week we watched the King’s Speech one night (how on point is that hahaha), played banana grams with the peeps, and had our weekly Share Time Meeting. In that meeting we talked about how everything was ending and how quickly/slowly time has gone. We’ve only been here for three weeks, but it feels like we have been here for months. I’m not sure if it’s because the culture here in Africa is so much laxer and laid back than in America or what, but these days are looooooonnnng, but the weeks are short. There have also been suddenly quite a few additions to our group here at the mission. There is a medical mission that happens every year and there are so many people and families that have come and have been coming for years on end. And now almost all of them are here at the mission as well. So quarters are little cramped, there’s people and noise everywhere, but it’s fine. It honestly feels a lot like going to Alaska in the summers and seeing all of my family there + any guests my grandparents have. Except here, I know no one and they are all definitely strangers hahaha. Nice strangers, but strangers.

Thursday was SO. MUCH. FUN. We had
a regular day of therapy, but then left the Haven about thirty minutes early in order to get back to the mission to change before going to Jordan’s Rock. We all had no idea what that was or what we were doing there, but people started carrying wood, hotdogs, pokers, coolers, and a box of suspicious-looking s’mores ingredients…it was so legit! We ended up trekking out in our ancient bus to the middle of the bush somewhere, getting out and walking for a bit with our headlamps in hand because the bus couldn’t go any further, and finally stumbling upon this rock apparently belonging to Jordan. It was beautiful. We all watched the sunset, took group and goofy photos, and then cooked hotdogs over the bonfire, made s’mores, stargazed, and even sang a cliché song or two. It was perfect. Being outside outside was exactly what everyone needed.

The whole group

We're really all five-years-old

View from Jordan's Rock

SQUAD. "MAKE A GOOD FASHION!" "Everyone do the Owen!"

We eat gourmet here in Africa

BWeave and Mrs. T got that photo bomb game strong!

Then we used our headlamps to trek back to the bus, all aboard, and promptly began bus singing all the way home; singing anything and everything we could think of besides children’s songs because we know and have sang all the songs in the world every day for three weeks. Key players were Adele’s Hello, Bohemian Rhapsody, One Two Step, any and all Hannah Montana, and even a few rap songs. After getting back, BWeave had the firepit all set up for more s’mores for everyone if wanted, but Chloe and I got to go first because we did not get one at Jordan’s Rock. We accidently spent too much time chit-chatting and went to get a s’more and were told there weren’t anymore. Tears were shed. But all was saved once we got back to the mission. A few of us sat around that fire, making s’mores, accidently eating strawberry marshmallows in the darkness (ill-advised), and talking about speech pathy things like what to do in the first five years after having my C’s. 

Dr. Candace Mitchell was here with her husband so I chatted with her for a while about what to do, the pros and cons, and it was awesome hearing from someone so successful, but not terribly older than me. Top night. It too was perfect. Definitely one of my favorite evenings.  

Friday was bittersweet. It was our last day of therapy. We had group one more time and individual time one more time and afternoon baby therapy one more time. Before starting the afternoon time we went to each Haven building and gave the Benas a cake and sang them a song. We ended with Haven 1 as that was the one we would end up at to do therapy that afternoon. We gave the Benas and Mama Cecilia (headhancho Bena) the cake and sang We Love You with the Love of the Lord and then all burst into tears as they all walked towards us singing a beautiful song in Tongan and crying themselves. We are all a bunch of crying pansys and proud of it. So sweet. Then we had our very last afternoon singing and therapy time, which we are all sad to be leaving the kids, but no one was sad about not having to sing another children’s song for the rest of the time that we are in Zambia. 

Before we left, Meagan had us all take a giant group photo with most of the kiddos and it was perfect. I had Fresha and Priscilla, two of my little buddies. 

Then the squad made our last walk back from the Haven to the mission. We have walked that walk, that road, about 63 times (4 times a day, 5 days a week) with a grand total of 188 miles. HOLLA. Take that fitbit. Friday night some people went to the last sing at the Merritt’s house while others (me and Kelsey) stayed at home, blogged, showered, and relaxed after the hard week.

Later that evening we went over to Meagan’s to chat. She told us her story and we asked questions and laughed and talked and it was amazing. I want to be her when I grow up. I know probably a lot of other people have said that, but I legitimately want to be her when I grow up. Meagan graduated from Oklahoma Christian University with an English degree and a minor in teaching. She had not a thought to be a missionary and truly considers herself, even now, to just be a normal person. She spent a few summers in Zambia helping at Eric’s House, a home for street boys, and after graduating, moved to Zambia to work with Eric’s House, hopefully doing like a sports camp for the boys that lived there. Once there, she realized the boys were in school all day so she really only had Saturday’s with them. She found herself with a whole lot of time and nothing to do all day every day. So, Kathy, head hancho lady of Eric’s House, suggested she help with these babies that were staying at Eric’s House that were about to go home. They had just started the Haven, right across the road, and that is how Meagan got started with the Haven. She slowly started as a Bena, or a house mom, and took care of the kids that were brought there.

The entire mission of the Haven is to reunite the children with their safe, stable family, whether that be an aunt, grandparents, or father. Community and family are everything here and the Haven works to support that. Meagan always stresses to the families that the Haven is a last resort and reiterates how important it is for children to be with their family. Most of the kids that come to the Haven do not have a mom because the other died. Some of these babies have a medical condition, whether that is malnutrition, possible HIV, serious neglect, or any other kind of issue. In earlier years when HIV was a bigger issue than it is now, many of those babies died, buried at the graveyard that we visited last week. Most of the kids that are at the Haven now are there until their families can be stable and safe enough to take them in. But while those babies are there, and even after they are gone, they are loved by Meagan and all the benas like they are their own children. In addition to being taken care of and loved, each child has language class every day with Meagan or Bena Natasha. So this place is more of a transitional orphanage and a preschool is divinity not a sad little orphanage where sad little orphans live. These kids are BELOVED and it was so amazing getting to hear Meagan’s story, both her journey to getting where she is at now, the hardships she went through to get here, the spiritual growth she has had, and to get to see her as the result of all of that. I have rarely met someone with such a heart for people, for children, and for the lost and brokenhearted than Meagan and I didn’t even really get to see or talk with her that much. It’s in her face, in her gait, how she treats all the kids and benas, in her everyday actions, that scream out to the world that she loves these kids with everything that she has over and over and over again every day. Her heart truly yearns after the Lord, seeking out glory to glory, and burns for the nations, for the people that assume they are unwanted, unloved, and unseen. In short, I want to be Meagan when I grow up.

This trip had been amazing in that it has showed what speech path could look like missionally, but more than that, that the mission of loving people and literally being Abba’s love to them, can and should be, done any and everywhere. It makes me excited and scared for the future after hearing how Meagan had all theses plans and has all these desires of her heart and the Lord completely revamped them and gave her new passion and gave her a completely different lot in life that was more fulfilling, life giving, and rewarding than anything she could have dreamed of. She held nothing back when telling us her story, the good, bad, hard, impossible, and ugly. There is literally nothing else that could have brought her through everything and taught her so many things but the Lord.

I am so honored to have gotten to love on these babies, even for as short of a time as it was, and to have been so encouraged to continue running and running hard by someone who is still doing that each and every day. We left with her encouraging us to know that we each have something to offer this world that it’s okay and good to know what the Lord has blessed us with and to not downplay it, and that we can be used in any way and any fashion. Just wow. Such a deep and wide heart, so much wisdom and encouragement and raw real radical-ness (that’s a word, just made it up). When I grow up, I want to be like Meagan because she lets the goodness the Lord placed in her shine out for all the world to see and she does it humbly and without even trying.

Then on our way back to our house we hit a bit of a conundrum… we got locked out of our house because we talked for 4 hours and it was 1am. Whoops. We knocked on the window and manages to wake up Jonathan, the youngest son of the family that recently moved in. Thankfully he was sleeping in the living room or we would have crashed at Meagan's. 

Saturday we went to a town about an hour away called Choma. We went to do some last minute shopping and to see what another town looks like as we have only really seen Livingstone. It looked very interesting. I’m pretty sure we were lost at one point because everyone and I mean, EVERYONE, stared at us as we walked through what was their market place. It was really cool to walk around and look at what a typical market looks like. Lots of dried fish. 

It turned out that it did not have a selection of the kind of crafty things we wanted, so we went to the Choma museum where we were going to have a picnic and shopped in the gift shop they have there. After shopping and after lunch, some of us hopped on the bus and some walked to the gas station where we were meeting up to leave. While we waited for everyone to get to the gas station, we were greeted by a sudden and abrasive giant bump in the rear end of the bus. Some guy had accidentally run into the back of our parked bus. We were all fine and even the bus was except for the trailer light hook up. But while they figured that out, some of us went to the grocery store near by and got some goods. I found the seasoning Bena Franco made soup with so I get to use that when I'm home! We drove back to the mission, everyone was pretty tired. Plus that dang bus is so bumpy. It’s like a near death experience every time. Once we got home, we chilled for a while, I packed my backpack because we leave Monday morning (wait, what), had supper, and watched The Gods Must Be Crazy. Excellent movie and definitely a great one to watch in Africa. 

Before hitting the hay, Maddie gave me her knock off go pro and I studied it for a little while trying to figure out how to make a chest strap for it for when we go rafting. Well just call me Macgiver because I magivered my headlamp to be a chest strap and it works perfectly. Pretty proud that little inventor is still in my brain somewhere. 

Top day, top night.


Sunday we went to church in Kasibi. We endured a near death experience bus ride for about an hour through the bush and then finally arrived. We were greeted as we pulled up, by the entire congregation singing to us outside the church. 

We went inside and had class, then service, then communion, then sang for about the rest of our lives. It was beautiful, but it was also three and half hours long haha towards the end of the service they requested their visitors (us) sing them a few songs. Singing songs here I think is like exchanging stories or jokes over the campfire. It's always fun to do the classics, but if guests have new ones, you all share and learn new ones. So, with our fearless director Chloe, we all stood at the front of the church and sang. It was like middle and high school choir concerts all over again. We performed Lets Go Down to the River to Pray and then Holy Lord and everyone loved it. After some announcements and directions for the afternoon, service ended.

We all stood and went outside to say hi to people. After shaking every single person's hand in the entire congregation again (glad I had practice from Bena Franco's), we made our way walking, with the entire congregation mind you, to one of the Decon's farm a bit up the road for lunch. People all around me, walking together in the bush, women singing awesome Tongan songs, kid on my shoulders. I nearly almost burst out in "There Can Be Miracles." We basically were modern day Israelites walking out of Egypt to the promised land flowing with nshima and cabbage. 

After lunch, we helped pass out mealy meal as a gift and thank you to each family in addition to clothes for the women, men, and children. As all celebrations have, a band came out to play. 

Holy smokes it was so cool. Their instruments were awesome and homemade. And along with a band there is always dancing. 

And this dancing was no different than at Bena Franco's. Only difference was that my skills have somehow improved. 

The dancing started off as a conga line in which a lady grabbed my hands behind me and pulled me this way and that way, dancing and moving our hips. I danced around with her for a while then was dancing with a little girl in front of me. A couple ACU interns were next to me and I said, "listen it's just like hoola hooping!" And then I moved my butt, hips, and hoola hooped around and these two older ladies behind me hit my butt, laughed, and said, "Ahhhh!! Very good, very good!!" Then of course I finished with the Bernie which they loved hahaha oh my word, so much fun. Love dancing. Then we hit the road again (almost literally a few times) with our near death experience bus death by giant bumps and ruts in the road. We took a celebratory survival pic. 

When we got home after that full day, we helped clean and pack away the therapy materials in the holding container until the next group comes. Then I did some last minute packing of my own bag (crazy we're leaving), we ate supper, and the day finally came to a slowing halt ending the day with banana grams, nertz, hot chocolate, and chatting with the fam squad. We started playing Would You Rather/question game which turned into a legit encouragement time. We answered the question what is something you're talented in and that turned out to be too awkward to answer so we started calling things out in each other that we saw. It was amazing and awesome. I love these girls so much and I am going to miss seeing them and living life with them everyday. Zambia reunions will happen for sure. Another top day and top night for the books. 

All for now! 

Mallory, or in Afrikkan, "Mallory'