Friends (Thabana Li-Mele Reprise)

For two weekends in May I spent some time with ‘friends’. What are friends? Friendship here can take on a different hue. It is easy to be a bit uncertain about friendships, at least when it comes to our Basotho friends. In many ways it is an unequal relationship. I have so much -, opportunity and resources. They have so little - materially. There is so often the temptation to cynically ask, “Do they really want to be a friend, or do they see me as just a means to possible material gain.” It is a question that so often clouds my mind, but those two weekends in May have offered me a different perspective. Yes, friends are those whose company I enjoy and who enjoy doing things I do. However, what I was reminded these two weekends is that friends are those whose presence enriches my life.

The initial May activity was a planned hike with my niece, Jillian. We would climb Thabana Li-Mele, a hike that Wendy and I had done some months back. Bokang, our Sesotho guide would be along, but why drive out with only three in the car. (Wendy was busy with something else.) I knew of others who were interested in climbing the mountain. So many Basotho only know about things in their country, but it is us foreigners that get to experience them. So I filled up the spare seats (plus one) in my car with Basotho ‘friends’. Though the forecast promised rain, we were undeterred and off we went.

Our goal, the twin peaks, shrouded in cloud.

This was a 7 hour hike with a significant elevation gain. Amongst our troupe was a twenty-six year old mother of two. It was delightful having her out front, leading the way and calling back when she needed directions. We literally had to put a pack on her back to slow her down so we could keep up. Then there was a couple. Their home village lies beyond the mountain, and they could hardly believe that they were climbing the mountain that they had looked at so often, doing something they had never dreamed of doing but quietly thrilled that they were.

A loving husband tending to sore feet.

Approaching the second summit peak.

The sun peaked out now and then to encourage us on the trek up, and then the clouds parted and we spent a few glorious minutes in the sun at the top. The rain finally caught up with us on the way down, but even trudging through a light drizzle for the last hour did not dampen their spirits. The mother of two was actually doing a little dance when the drizzle let up and we were nearly back to our starting point.

Goofy gals celebrating at the top.

The summit view.
We started down near the center of the picture.

The contentment and quiet enjoyment I felt, watching and listening to their delight and pleasure … maybe they should be questioning my motives for hanging around with them.

Then a couple weekends later, Jillian and I visited the rural village, 80 kilometres (but three hours driving) out of Maseru where the couple mentioned above are from. (The source of my ‘Village Vignettes’ photos.) It was a great two days. The ‘store’, where we gathered maize and pumpkin, was a fifty minute hike away. Nearly as far the women gathered firewood. Ah, but the joys. The extended family includes two small boys. One quietly took my hat, and made it his. Luckily Jillian had brought some gifts from Canada, and I was able to get my hat back for one she brought from Canada. The other was a little shadow, but always ready to help. The pace of life in the village is certainly slower, and the simple pleasures I derived from just being and sharing time with this gracious family enriched my soul.

Jillian with a cool kid.


Hat one.


Hat two.


Our gracious hosts.

So what is friendship? If it is being enriched by time spent together, then any small material gain my friends realize from hanging around with me is more than compensated by the joy and pleasure I experience spending time with them and enjoying their presence. My life is rich beyond compare.

~ Benno ~

(Post Script: Even before the stiff and sore muscles had healed, the hikers were considering another hike, Thabana Ntlenyana - the highest point in Southern Africa at 3482 metres. But the elevation gain will be less than Thabana Li-Mele as in that area the road runs through mountain passes over 3200 metres.)

Village Vignettes

Hello folks. It has been a while since I started a couple of entrys. Before I could publish we lost Internet service for over two weeks, and then I was in South Africa for a week+. Now it is time to catch up a bit on computer work.

The weekend of May 23, 24 I spent with my niece in the village of our friends, Ntate Kuena and ‘M’e Malibuseng. It was a most enjoyable visit. When there, I am always confronted with the challenging rhythms of life faced by those in remote rural communities. The road out continues to deteriorate, but the piles of rock and gravel along the road suggest that improvements may be forthcoming.

Here are some pictures from our visit.

Me and my littler cousin, ... I love her.

Bath time.

Threshing beans, using a stick.

Resting on the door step after doing the laundry.


My niece working on a different pile of laundry.


Surveying part of the sorghum harvest.


The bean harvest uncovered.

Winnowing the beans.


Helping hands.

Collecting groceries for supper.
It was a 50 minute walk, one way, to the fields for maize and pumpkin.

My hat ... on someone else’s head.

The view out through the house door.

Gathering firewood included a long and uphill walk.

Bringing home more pumpkins from the ‘store’.
The last few hundred meters we were joined by a helper …

… and friend.

I am the guy in the white shirt and the 'wood lot' is the dark area to the left of me in the picture.
The 'store' is just behind the hill above my head.
And we are about a kilometer from the house in this photo.

A trade to get my hat back.

It is a month later, and as I complete this post I am again awed my the determination and strength of the human spirit. With dignity and acceptance people live life in ways that so many of us in our western world may no longer be even able to comprehend.

Village vignettes.

~ Benno ~

The God of Time...and Perfect Timing

Who can understand the mind of God, for truly—TRULY it is amazing! I am discovering, of late, that God is a God not just of time and eternity but also of TIMING. There is just no other explanation for the perfect weaving of circumstances and people that I have been observing lately. Coincidence just is not a broad enough determiner to explain how people ebb and flow so well here…

One example:
At a local orphanage, MIS, that survives on the generosity of volunteers, I have watched so many volunteers come and go, and I keep thinking, how will the kids survive—how will things proceed when this person or that person leaves, yet someone else is always coming just as someone is going. There’ve been Aussies, Americans, Irish, Canadians…God just keeps leading people from all over the world. And how do they discover this small ramshackle little spot? There just isn’t any other really GOOD explanation, other than the Physics of God.

Another example:
Sarah and Dean, or neighbors, leave for Australia--their home--and leave a big void! Then just a couple of weeks later two young Americans are set to arrive. And they do... And just yesterday one of them, Karlee, was just telling me how she got to attend the university she is at...It was a compact made with a friend who decided not to go there after all, leaving Karlee on her own to go; but if she hadn’t attended that particular university this year, she’d never have gotten involved in the church she’s attending, never have found out about Beautiful Gate or Lesotho, never have met Lauren, never have thought about and then decided to come here…

Then the two young men I mentioned in my last post. They arrive almost at the same time as the two gals next door. I could not have chosen such a good combination of personalities. They are age-mates and they all get along so well, their personalities all mesh so well, even with ours, and having each other here really is enriching the lives of both parties, and me too! They are a joy. They've really added a fun dimension to life, too, since the girls come over almost every day to say hi and stand and visit with me or the guys and me in my tiny kitchen, have Chai or Hot Chocolate, play cards, watch movies, visit with the guys and bring laughter or just quiet conversation, or Sesotho language practice, and shared meals... Yes, God is amazing. It's been neat to see how God has brought us all together here.

Just yesterday the girls, Bokang, three of my IB1 students, and I headed up a close-by mountain for a hike—lovely, lovely day for it—while Raps went over to the college to work on his car, to get it going so he could drive it over to our place. Now Raps’ car is ‘special’. It’s his creation out of any possible scrap he could find, and it won him a science fair prize and a place at Machabeng College. Raps is brilliant in his creativity and determination. Anyway, he’s driving the car home yesterday and some guy in a VERY NICE BMW stops and offers to escort him home since the car is not exactly ‘highway-worthy’. This guy is a young Basotho businessman who is pretty passionate and full of energy and enthusiasm to empower Basotho in this country. He was very interested in Raps’ story and the two of them talked for hours yesterday. It’ll be interesting, no doubt, to see if this leads anywhere. If nothing else, I know it was a big encouragement to Raps, just to know that people do admire what he’s done and support him in spirit.

Hmm…one last example…Last week Raphalane came into the house, concerned. He’d just gotten a call from his family, and his sister who’s been accepted at Machabeng for next academic year just found out that she was not accepted for Manpower funding because she’d missed hearing the radio announcement about interviews. Well! She has no electricity in her village, so how was she going to hear? When she phoned to check with them, they told her she’d missed the deadline and they were NOT open to considering her plea. I went to talk to our headmaster and his recommendation was that she write a letter, so I had Raps send her an SMS inviting her to come in for a couple of days so she could sort this out. She and I sat down and composed a pretty darn convincing letter (She’s a good English student, I see ;-) and she took it to the Director of Manpower, who was unmoved!
She came back frustrated and disappointed, but still determined. The headmaster had also advised her to talk to the Ministry of Finance. They, fortunately, were sympathetic. She ended up going back and forth between the two for most of one day last week, but finally was able to get a “yes” from Manpower. So it looks like she’s in! Now…things COULD have just gone smoothly, her being accepted without all these complications, but I’m guessing these complications are part of a bigger plan. How else would I have had the chance to connect for a couple of days with this wonderful little lady! Who knows how God will weave this fabric! I just have a hunch that that thread is still hanging, waiting to be woven back in…

I am learning, over here, as I see how people flow in and out of our lives, that God is the God of PERFECT timing. He is a true orchestrator of the incredible.

So Blessed!

Wow, time disappears! I see Benno’s last entry was over a month ago, and mine…well, whew! I keep thinking about writing a blog. At times there is so much I could say, but sitting down to write can be a challenge. Anyway, here are a few current thoughts…
***

What makes people wonderful? Normally I would not think that picking up garbage qualifies, but it does.

Currently Benno and I have four wonderful young people living with and around us. Two of my former IB2 students, Raps and BK, are staying in our ‘guest house’ for six months. They were fortunate enough to get jobs once they graduated and will be working until they head to university in January. Working. Oh yes! From 8:00-5:30, five days a week and half-days on Saturdays. And the pay? They’ll be lucky if they make M1,200 per month, which translates to $167.00. I am not kidding! Isn’t that just…overwhelming. So I am more than happy to have them living with us since their families live out of the city.

Next door we have the other two—two young gals from Oklahoma who are volunteering at Beautiful Gate for two months. They are just delightful! They are so full of good cheer and smiles and fun. The guys enjoy the young company and most evenings we have all four in playing cards or watching a movie. The gals usually drop in for a visit and tea or dinner or whatever. It was the other night that the four of them were just so wonderful—well they always are, but this time, especially so!

We were having dinner together and I mentioned that I was ‘on a mission’ to clean up the garbage at the end of our road. You see, the city only picks up garbage when the mood hits them, so if everyone on the road puts out their garbage bags and it doesn’t get picked up and the dogs get into it…Yeh! Well, garbage is my biggest pet peeve here. I hate it’s ever presence. It is the only disgusting thing here. Anyway, I told the ‘kids’ about my mission and they very diplomatically suggested that they would help on Sunday when the guys had the day off. Hmm…well…when I’m on a mission, it doesn’t wait from Thursday to Sunday. I told them that I did not want to feel like I was living in a slum for another day and that I was thinking of going out after dinner… I KNEW they weren’t keen, but they ARE wonderful. Now, consider the fact that the two guys had left for work at 6:30 a.m., got home, ate dinner and currently were doing dishes for me and the two gals had been at Beautiful Gate volunteering all day and were also helping with dishes when I made my appeal for help. Those wonderful gals! …”We’ll help” (spoken with resolve). Of course the guys came along and soon we were filling garbage bags with lots—LOTS—of yucky garbage. It was gross, but they were all so cool about it. Raps sister, Mapoulo, was in visiting overnight and she pitched in too, so there we were doing out community service for the day--me, with the makings of five very very wonderful young adults that will be world changers because they already are.

P.S. I ‘glossed over’ the guys doing the dishes point, but it IS noteworthy. You see, in Basotho culture men just DO NOT do kitchen things. In fact, men, traditionally, don’t even serve their own food; it is served to them by the women who eat after the men. Men just DON’T belong in the kitchen, so it is just a huge, huge stretch for them and Raps and BK do so with such kindness. I’m really enjoying cooking for them. It’s so cold in the house that any excuse to use the oven is a pleasure ;-) Food AND heat! Bonus! I cook, the guys clean up all my dishes! Good deal.

I AM so blessed!