Today was pretty full, and just saying that feels like an understatement! In the morning I almost completed refinishing the wood doors on several of the ROS houses. (I still have one more coat to do on one door.) Around noon Eileen took Mama Abigail and me to the Mzuzu Central Hospital. Mama went to visit her niece, and I went just to see what the hospital was like. My impressions were that it seemed like a very nice facility, but there seemed to be a real dearth of doctors and nurses. From what I’ve read in that AIDS in Malawi book, it’s was difficult in the 80’s and 90’s to keep medical clinics and hospitals staffed with nurses because they were dying of AIDS (hopefully not acquired through their work) faster then new ones could be trained. It’s now several years beyond that point, and the knowledge/experience gap is readily apparent. We met a British medical trainer there, and she stated that when she had arrived a few months ago, many of the nursing students there were working unsupervised!
This afternoon during the children’s playtime, I helped Rebecca and Nick in “gazebo time,” when they lead the children in singing and dancing. I had missed this time last Wednesday, and this time around I made sure to be there. Nick was about a half hour late, so Rebecca and I held down the fort, so to speak, as best we could. I tried my bread-and-butter song, “The other day I met a bear,” but for the most part the kids just stared while I belted out my part. The kids liked our American songs well enough, but they really got going when the Mamas led them in their own songs. It was tons of fun, and I really regret that I won’t be around for another Wednesday song time.
At dinner, we were treated to an even more spectacular scene. One of the kitchen workers, Eden, was finishing his last day here before his wedding in two weeks. As a send-off, one of his co-workers, Nation, gave a short speech in Eden’s honor. Then he asked the Mamas and the children to sing a particular song. Their voices filled the dining hall and reverberated all around in a traditional Malawian melody, and their feet moved in unison in a simple dance. We later learned that the song declared the goodness of God, but I didn’t need any interpreter to tell me that the song was sung to His honor. I found myself yearning for heaven, where all peoples will raise their voices in praise to our God and King.
Tonight, I went to Mama Rose’s cabin to be a part of their evening devotions. Her ten children ranged in age from about two to seven or eight, I’m guessing. Big, soulful eyes looked up at me as I read a couple stories from their children’s Bible (Wicked Judas and Moses Leads the People Through the Red Sea). I sensed a certain sadness during our time together, especially as Mama Rose learned that I would be leaving on Sunday. She asked me to remember them in my prayers. It was at that point that I realized how difficult life is here, even for those living in the Rafiki village. Mama Rose seemed so tired as she asked me this that I felt ashamed of my life of comfort and relative ease. It’s easy for me to think that she and I are both doing work for the sake of these children (and we are), but the reality is that her work is of much more importance. Her work also has no end in sight, and mine will be done in a few days. The least that I can do is pray for Mama Rose, her children, and all of the rest here. God is the one who will sustain the ROS, the Mamas, and the rest of the workers here. God is the one who will establish this work and ultimately raise these children up to do His will in this world. All that I can do is pray for them and obey the Lord as he reveals His will for my family and me.
What a rollercoaster of emotions and experiences today! I can’t quite make sense of it all, but I don’t know if that’s required of me right now. What is important is that I get some good rest so that I’m ready for what tomorrow brings.
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