Well we are here to make a difference and i have to say Steve has already made a big difference to my life! He has been Playing with routers all day and even without the big aerial in position we now have good wifi all over the Beautiful Gate site! No longer do i have to sit in the same old chair to write my blog which is just as well as i am too cold to sit out any longer, pretty tired too. All my peers are asleep and there is just a buzz of conversation from the younger girls in the next room.
So what has today brought?Well most importantly it brought the sun and it has been a lovely day weather wise although the wind which blows straight up from the Antarctic is pretty biting! I did get as far as taking my fleece of for a few minutes at lunch time sitting in the sheltered area behind our house but i soon put my jacket back on.
We started our day at 7 taking advantage of the new solar powered showers and having a do it yourself breakfast which means we all made our own toast and coffees which worked well. We met Bryan at 8 for a site tour which i was meant to be doing with input from Bryan but i have to admit i was pretty useless as everywhere we went i met people i knew who wanted to have a conversation and a hug so i kept deserting the group and catching them up so Bryan and I did a bit of a double act in the end. When we got to the baby houses I lost everyone anyway as they all wanted to pick up the babies (the older children were at playgroup and preschool). It was a delight and actually i found it quite moving to have cuddles with babies who i had got to know so well 6 months ago and i was amazed i remembered their names (well some of them).Many have grown and they are all looking really well and so happy.
We finished our tour in playgroup which has moved from the hut i was in in February to the house i was living in which means they have so much more space. All 12 of us walked in on them and the children went crazy wanting cuddles and fun. Having totally destroyed the structure of the playgroup morning some of us left and went to buy food and blankets.
Fiona drove admirably into town and coped with me not knowing where the entrance to the car park was very well - It had all changed since February as more building work had been done! Shopping was an experience and I was quite glad only 5 of us had gone to buy food or it would have been a much longer trip I think! 4 women and 1 man going shopping in Africa for food? You can probably imagine the bedlam we caused deciding whether to buy ham or polony. I think our star buy was pink cling film! I am not sure we have that in England.
After lunch we had 'Time with God' which I led and talked about the olympic ideals of Excellence, Friendship and Respect being the same as the ideals of Beautiful Gate and how we should live according to those ideals. We all sang to the staff and I believe we sounded pretty ok despite being totally unrehearsed! I even managed to sort out some guitar chords to accompany us which was a shock to Brian whose guitar it was and who didnt know i could play! I kept that quiet in February!
To end the time together the staff sang to us and I really thought that the whole team were going to break down and cry. From my position at the front I could see many tears welling up as the African sound engulfed us. Boy these people know how to sing and all the older children who had sat through 40 minutes of boring adult talk very beautifully all joined in and clapped and danced. It was very moving.
Then it was snack time for the children and a bit of indoor play as they considered it too cold to play outdoors even though by this time the sun had really heated up the air - it was like a spring day for us
Everyone has been allocated a house to work in and I am back in Khotso 2 but this time with Emma and James and it was wonderful for me to be able to introduce Emma to the housemother and for her to see what was my life back in February. We fed a lot of hungry children and James was a real hit with the boys who wanted to climb all over him and generally have some rough play. They were a lot noisier than when i was there on my own!
The highlight of my day was to be able to hug the little boy that had been brought in when i was there before who had been malnourished. If you had not read my previous blog he had been left by his mother at the age of 2 and had basically been ignored for 3 1/2 years so was stick thin apart from a bloated starved tummy. He is now walking a few steps and his little legs which were like sticks are now more like a 5 year olds should be! He did not stop smiling all day and was enjoying playgroup this morning. He is very special to me as I gav ehim his first meal at Beautiful Gate and it was beautiful to be able to feed him again tonight and then undress him and get him ready for bed.
Another lovely moment was when a little chap of 5 came and held his hands out to me for a cuddle and said 'Me Jenny' and when i asked if he remembered me he smiled and said 'yes' and snuggled in. Lots of the older boys seemed to remember me which was heartwarming. Nearly all the staff remembered me too even a couple who i am sure i had never in my life seen before!!! They have better memories than me! I missed not seeing Nurse Tiea around the place, he had been a big part of my experience here before but he has moved on to work else where and fortunately they have replaced him with a lovely lady who has just started work here.
It is great too to be able to pick up where i left off with Bryan and Anita and Donna and Allan (the Australian couple) and i have not got to be all shy and polite as I was when i first arrived.
Cheeseboy came to join us for dinner tonight (beautifully cooked Chilli con carne and rice prepared by Annette and Brian) and it was good to catch up with him again and introduce him to everyone.
One thing that has caused a lot of amusement to me and others today is when i introduce the team to others who know me I introduce Steve as my husband and they all say, in the same town of voice, 'Oh' and laugh! Not quite sure why.............but their tone of voice has interest and amusement in it and it makes me chuckle!
Anyway the snoring around me is getting louder (and its not even Steve as he is with the boys down the corridor) so I think i need to sign off and hit the sack myself. I have not written my journal since we arrived - dont seem to have any time to myself but I guess i was expecting that. had planned on re reading a book i read here before but have not even opened the first page yet!
Until tomorrow from a still very cold Maseru - Somia Hantle ...........Go well x x
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