Day 2 in the community - the community of "Share"

Tuesday

We began the morning with the men preparing breakfast and the women eating and then going to morning prayer. Morning prayer involved a gathering of the women which began by the leader asking what prayers and praises we wanted to share, then reading a couple of bible verses (John15 V5-8) which prompted discussion and led us into prayer about the thoughts which we shared at the beginning of the session. We all focussed around the idea of obedience and being committed followers to God's word. 

After the women's prayer meeting we began the two and a half hour journey to Share, stopping on the way for fat cakes (Fetcok's) which are South African doughnuts!!

 When we arrived at Share we were welcomed by the care workers at the care point and we were able to communicate a greeting in their language as we'd learnt a few phrases on the bus journey. As soon as we had arrived, we began to congregate in the small room which was at the care point and to introduce ourselves to the care workers by sharing our name and one thing which we dislike, as an icebreaker. After this we read from the bible (Matthew 23 V24-28) and had a discussion regarding our thoughts, which was followed by dancing and singing. Our community support coordinator told us that when we went to take part in the holy home visits that it would be better to be fully present at one home rather than to visit many and not give them the time they need. We were then assigned to groups of around 2 or 3 people including one of the care workers and then began our holy home visits. David stayed at the care point to cook the meal for the children once they had come out of school. 

Below are our own experiences and encounters of our home visits. 

Jessica and Adam:

We visited two homes on Tuesday with our care worker. The first was an elderly couple living with their youngest son who was 14 - he was at school when we arrived. The father was particularly ill, he had a muscular disorder in which if he stopped using his muscles they would seize up. There was a clear language barrier however it was good to spend time with them and they were very grateful that we had visited. Oursecond home was another elderly gentleman who lived with his grandson. We had a brief visit, which included us sharing information about ourselves, our families and where we had come. We prayed for him and his household before we left.

Claire and Alice P

We visited Sarah's house who was the youngest of 3. When she was just 6 years old her mum locked her and her siblings in their house alone for 2 weeks. The children were found by a neighbour and had kept themselves alive by eating their own faeces. They were barely alive and went on to live with their grandma, this was 8 years ago. We spent time with her grandma sitting in her porch and listening to her story. The 

language barrier was huge but she appreciated us listening and spending time with her.  To get her through the day and difficult times she drinks her 'happy drink' and sniffs tobacco. This made it really clear that the trauma that her grandchildren had been through was still hurting today and her heart hadn't healed. She had not been to church for 4 years so we bought church to her - the care workers led us in a song and then we prayed for her, Sarah, their health and her family. She was thankful to us for praying and bringing church to her and she demonstrated this by clapping her hands and shouting hallelujah.

Alison, Alice and Nicholas

When we met to our home visit we met a mother of 3 who lives alone and is unable to find work due to a lack of jobs and the isolation of the area. In order to survive she makes reed rugs and sells them in the community and while we were there she showed us how she makes them and we were given the opportunity to make a rug with her. This was a rewarding practical experience. She has 3 children, two older daughters and a younger son. She spoke with pride of their dreams which included being a pilot, charitable accountant and a police officer or soldier. Towards the end of our visit we were prompted to pray for her, her family and their household.  This was a privilege. Leaving them behind felt strange since we knew their dreams for the future but we took comfort from the knowledge that they would be visited again soon.

Alexander, Chris and AJ

We visited an extended family in the grounds of their homes, we were visiting this family because the Uncle was caring for two orphaned children. The family consisted of the two children, their Uncle, his wife and children, the uncles Sister who was also orphaned and her children. The two ladies present at the visit, were nursing two young babies and we were quick to comment, well Alex was, on how cute they were. This resulted in Alex being handed one of the babies to cuddle, which can only be said to have made Alex's day. One of the ladies was sitting on an old water holder with a hole in it yet they gave us their only seats. Whilst this family had experienced a lot of suffering in their lives, there was a lot of joy and laughter during our visit with the care worker, which can only highlight the strength and trust between the family and their care worker and it was an honour to witness this. Whilst we were sitting talking to the family, one of the children returned from school and after hugging each of the babies, he politely introduced himself to us, again with a wonderful smile on his face. The care worker asked the ladies what they wanted us to pray for, they replied that we should pray that they find jobs and that their children did well at school, particularly the niece who has been struggling at school recently. We prayed for the family and thanked them for welcoming us into their homes, it was a privilege.

Once we'd returned from our home visits we played catch and football, and then we gathered together with the children; this included worship songs and prayer. David, as well as the other cooks, began serving food to the children which was Pap with potatoes and stock. We joined the children and care workers in this meal. It was most of our first experiences of eating Pap. Once we'd finished eating, we washed our dishes, said our goodbyes and left for our overnight stay in Wits as we were returning to this care point tomorrow.