Here are a few more news notes. Journalism in this part of the world is not sound bites however, but a thorough discussion of the issue. You may just want to scan the articles.
1.) More political intrigue involving a broadcaster. Though the curfew has been lifted the undercurrent of political instability continues.
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=68&art_id=nw20070627130140821C423006
2.) A further update on the drought situation and the paradox that while there was insufficient rain last season to nourish the field crops, Lesotho continues to export water to South Africa.
http://iafrica.com/news/features/143921.htm
3.) The local football (soccer) side recently defeated the Egyptian team, 1-nil.
http://www.supersoccer.co.za/default.asp?id=220274&des=article&scat=supersoccer/sasoccer
Saturday, 30 June 2007
Monday, 25 June 2007
Dust and Ashes
Late last week I was driving my 1989 Chev truck with its paint peeling and the odometer over 280,000 kms. A fellow about my age (50+) drove up beside me in a shiny new sporty convertible. In that moment I grumped a bit at God. For me, what that car represented was simply out of the question given my decision to go to Lesotho. And so I grumped a bit, and asked of God, "Why me? Why do I have to go? Why can't I stay here, earn more money, and enjoy more of the comforts and good things of life?"
That was Friday, and Wendy and I held our garage sale the next day. It was a bit of a bust. The things we had collected over the course of almost 30 years, which had meaning to us or which we found useful, were of little interest to others. They and the other things which we had been given or had saved for or sacrificed to be able to buy, were just used, second hand or trinkets, dust and ashes, to others.
After the garage sale, Wendy and I considered what we really had after 30 years. We had some used furniture, much of it no longer in 'style'; the essential stuff to run a kitchen - pots, pans, dishes; a collection of books, movies, and music; and other 'stuff'. 'Stuff' that we clung to, sometimes because of the memories associated with it, but most often because 'we might use it again some day'. Stuff that mostly just collected dust or took up space.
So the garage sale was a bust in terms of getting rid of things and making money. Most of the stuff remains, in the garage, awaiting a rendezvous with the thrift store or the dump. The garage sale was, however, a good reminder to me of what is important in life: relationships and doing my part to bring a little bit of heaven (a smile, a thank-you, an encouraging act) to the life of another. As the words on one of my trinkets reads, "The most precious things in life, ... aren't things."
So as I reflected on the guy in the sports car and the results of our garage sale, I thought of the words another guy once said, "Don't store up treasures here on earth, where they can be eaten by moths and get rusty, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven. ... Real life is not measured by how much you own."
Lesotho - here I come.
(But aaghh, I still have to get rid of that 'stuff' ... )
~ Benno ~
That was Friday, and Wendy and I held our garage sale the next day. It was a bit of a bust. The things we had collected over the course of almost 30 years, which had meaning to us or which we found useful, were of little interest to others. They and the other things which we had been given or had saved for or sacrificed to be able to buy, were just used, second hand or trinkets, dust and ashes, to others.
After the garage sale, Wendy and I considered what we really had after 30 years. We had some used furniture, much of it no longer in 'style'; the essential stuff to run a kitchen - pots, pans, dishes; a collection of books, movies, and music; and other 'stuff'. 'Stuff' that we clung to, sometimes because of the memories associated with it, but most often because 'we might use it again some day'. Stuff that mostly just collected dust or took up space.
So the garage sale was a bust in terms of getting rid of things and making money. Most of the stuff remains, in the garage, awaiting a rendezvous with the thrift store or the dump. The garage sale was, however, a good reminder to me of what is important in life: relationships and doing my part to bring a little bit of heaven (a smile, a thank-you, an encouraging act) to the life of another. As the words on one of my trinkets reads, "The most precious things in life, ... aren't things."
So as I reflected on the guy in the sports car and the results of our garage sale, I thought of the words another guy once said, "Don't store up treasures here on earth, where they can be eaten by moths and get rusty, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven. ... Real life is not measured by how much you own."
Lesotho - here I come.
(But aaghh, I still have to get rid of that 'stuff' ... )
~ Benno ~
Friday, 22 June 2007
More Information on Lesotho
If you are interested, the link below to a UNICEF report provides some very current information on Lesotho and the challenges facing the country. This site gives the population of Lesotho as 1.8 million. I am finding population numbers for the country vary significantly from site to site. The CIA fact book site has the population at 2.1 million. Nonetheless, I found this UNICEF site provides an excellent overview of many of the challenges faced by the politicians and citizens of Lesotho.
One sad fact is that nearly 20% of the children born in the country do not survive to their 5th birthday. About 9% do not survive childbirth and another 11% die before reaching their 5th birthday.
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/EGUA-74DLTP?OpenDocument
~ Benno ~
One sad fact is that nearly 20% of the children born in the country do not survive to their 5th birthday. About 9% do not survive childbirth and another 11% die before reaching their 5th birthday.
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/EGUA-74DLTP?OpenDocument
~ Benno ~
Tuesday, 19 June 2007
Introducing Lesotho
For many of you, Lesotho is just the name of a country. So, to help introduce you to where Wendy and I are going, here are two links which will provide a sense for the country.
The first link is to a web-site that has a great variety of pictures from Lesotho. Check out the "Winter in Lesotho" ones. (Brrrr ..., I am asking myself why I chose summer to leave Canada to arrive in Lesotho in winter.) Yes, most of the winter pictures are from up in the mountains, and not Maseru where we will be, but you will see that it does snow in Africa. Here is the link: http://www.trc.org.ls/country_picture_galleries.htm .
The next link is to a weather site where you can check out the temperatures in the area. So visit http://weather.msn.com/local.aspx?wealocations=wc:LTXX0001 for the latest temperatures and forecast for Maseru (though sometimes the latest update will actually be for Bloemfontein, an hour or so across the border in South Africa).
The first link is to a web-site that has a great variety of pictures from Lesotho. Check out the "Winter in Lesotho" ones. (Brrrr ..., I am asking myself why I chose summer to leave Canada to arrive in Lesotho in winter.) Yes, most of the winter pictures are from up in the mountains, and not Maseru where we will be, but you will see that it does snow in Africa. Here is the link: http://www.trc.org.ls/country_picture_galleries.htm .
The next link is to a weather site where you can check out the temperatures in the area. So visit http://weather.msn.com/local.aspx?wealocations=wc:LTXX0001 for the latest temperatures and forecast for Maseru (though sometimes the latest update will actually be for Bloemfontein, an hour or so across the border in South Africa).
~ Benno ~
Monday, 18 June 2007
Lesotho - News Briefs
The news out of Lesotho recently has highlighted the struggles this country is facing. A severe drought last year has resulted in a substantial food shortage and escalating costs for basic food, especially maize. The UN is estimating that by early 2008, nearly 20% of the population will be short of food. If I thought the challenges were significant when I accepted a role in this small country, they seem even larger now.
Compounding the ability to produce food in this country is a visible shortage of labourers to work in the fields. This shortage of workers is related to the death and dibilitation wrought upon the working age population by the high HIV/AIDS infection rate in the country.
And, then there has been a recent rise in political tension in the country, with the capital, Maseru, under night time curfew following attacks on the homes of government ministers.
News 24, 14 June 2007
VOA News, 18 June 2007
Compounding the ability to produce food in this country is a visible shortage of labourers to work in the fields. This shortage of workers is related to the death and dibilitation wrought upon the working age population by the high HIV/AIDS infection rate in the country.
Medical News Today, 15 June 2007
And, then there has been a recent rise in political tension in the country, with the capital, Maseru, under night time curfew following attacks on the homes of government ministers.
Mail and Guardian, 19 June 2007
Saturday, 16 June 2007
Following - One Step at a Time
Somewhat more than a year ago my wife, Wendy, and I each began to experience separately a stirring in our spirits. The times previously when we had experienced this sense it presaged significant relocation in our lives–God moving us to different places to experience new things and learn lessons he had for us. Whereas past stirring had led us to different places in Alberta, God had something bigger planned this time.
For me, the bigger plan began to take shape from a chance (or not so chance) encounter with a young father. He briefly shared that he and his spouse were planning to let go of the ‘security’ of job, home, and family, and with their young children, follow God. The challenge to my heart in that moment was, "If this young father is willing to let go and let God, what is holding me back?" Meanwhile, a long-standing desire of Wendy’s heart was to follow God in a cross-cultural context, not necessarily traditional ‘missionary’ work, but going with a servant attitude to wherever God was directing. Thus began a journey, as we sought to understand God’s purpose and plan for us and to follow where he led.
In the months that followed, God invited us to take one step at a time. Each invitation challenged our faith and required a step – an action – taken in faith. As we have sought to hear and obey God’s direction for us, we have seen God lead, direct, and encourage our faith. In July the first phase of a journey we started over a year ago will conclude, and the next phase will begin. On July 17th, we will be leaving for the small mountain kingdom of Lesotho, a tiny African nation totally enclosed within the Republic of South Africa.
In Lesotho I will be volunteering with Beautiful Gate, a small NGO. Beautiful Gate provides care for abandoned and orphaned children in Maseru, the capital city of Lesotho. Care is provided until foster or adoptive homes can be found. Many children are being reunited with extended family, but caring for additional children is a significant undertaking for caregivers in this poor country. My role with Beautiful Gate will be to work with and support caregivers and leaders in outlying villages as they develop community and economic resources to assist these caregivers.
Wendy, too, will be stepping into a new opportunity. She is looking forward to the challenge of teaching in a cross cultural context. She has accepted a position with Machabeng College, an international private school in Maseru. Her context will be with the children of expatriate and more well off families in Lesotho. While I will be volunteering, Wendy's position is a paid one so we will have a sufficient source of income to meet our needs while in Lesotho. We are humbled by God’s goodness and provision.
Our initial commitment will be for just under two years and we are looking forward to the task ahead, though I am anxious. In this extremely poor country with an HIV/AIDS infection rate of nearly 28% what can a stranger from an affluent western nation really offer? While I don’t know the answer to that question, what Wendy and I are both learning is that if we just take one step at a time with God, we will see him at work and our faith will be increased.
For me, the bigger plan began to take shape from a chance (or not so chance) encounter with a young father. He briefly shared that he and his spouse were planning to let go of the ‘security’ of job, home, and family, and with their young children, follow God. The challenge to my heart in that moment was, "If this young father is willing to let go and let God, what is holding me back?" Meanwhile, a long-standing desire of Wendy’s heart was to follow God in a cross-cultural context, not necessarily traditional ‘missionary’ work, but going with a servant attitude to wherever God was directing. Thus began a journey, as we sought to understand God’s purpose and plan for us and to follow where he led.
In the months that followed, God invited us to take one step at a time. Each invitation challenged our faith and required a step – an action – taken in faith. As we have sought to hear and obey God’s direction for us, we have seen God lead, direct, and encourage our faith. In July the first phase of a journey we started over a year ago will conclude, and the next phase will begin. On July 17th, we will be leaving for the small mountain kingdom of Lesotho, a tiny African nation totally enclosed within the Republic of South Africa.
In Lesotho I will be volunteering with Beautiful Gate, a small NGO. Beautiful Gate provides care for abandoned and orphaned children in Maseru, the capital city of Lesotho. Care is provided until foster or adoptive homes can be found. Many children are being reunited with extended family, but caring for additional children is a significant undertaking for caregivers in this poor country. My role with Beautiful Gate will be to work with and support caregivers and leaders in outlying villages as they develop community and economic resources to assist these caregivers.
Wendy, too, will be stepping into a new opportunity. She is looking forward to the challenge of teaching in a cross cultural context. She has accepted a position with Machabeng College, an international private school in Maseru. Her context will be with the children of expatriate and more well off families in Lesotho. While I will be volunteering, Wendy's position is a paid one so we will have a sufficient source of income to meet our needs while in Lesotho. We are humbled by God’s goodness and provision.
Our initial commitment will be for just under two years and we are looking forward to the task ahead, though I am anxious. In this extremely poor country with an HIV/AIDS infection rate of nearly 28% what can a stranger from an affluent western nation really offer? While I don’t know the answer to that question, what Wendy and I are both learning is that if we just take one step at a time with God, we will see him at work and our faith will be increased.
~ Benno ~
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