Swazi sights, smells, tastes, sounds, feelings. My mind is blown at what my God does in this world and how one side can be so different from another.
One little country. Swaziland. The size of New Jersey. But so much beauty and so many lessons to be learned and senses to take in.
I see children playing, goats eating trash, the red dirt of Africa, a bright white smile of a child, endless mountain ranges, people walking everywhere, cows roaming, an incredible tapestry of stars, flat feet of shoeless people, tiny African shacks, people getting and carrying water from the pump outside our home, a bus (semi-truck) full of people waving at this white girl (me), hurting people but hopeful smiles. I see Swaziland.
I smell burning trash, African people, poop, food cooking, the chicken house nearby, gas burning, un-bathed children, peanut butter, fresh air, stuffy rooms. I smell the smells of Swaziland.
I taste mango, salty water, interesting but great food creations we make everyday, $0.30 coke from the store down the dirt road, guava juice, my dry mouth, a fried cricket (actually not yet… but hopefully sometimes soon J ) I tastes the tastes of Swaziland.
I hear children singing (and it melts my heart), the occasional car passing, cows mooing, crickets chirping, teammates laughing, wind blowing, the siSwati language I’m trying to be learning, women singing as we wait for the bus, tarp walls of people’s shacks billowing, bugs buzzing, and the Lord’s prayer said by 50 children who teach me that “give us this day our daily bread” is so much more than I’ve ever imagined. I hear the beautiful sounds of Swaziland.
I feel the blazing sun burning my skin, the gentle refreshing breeze, the dirty little dark skinned hands in mine, dirt covering my body, sweat falling from my face, the concrete floors and walls against my thankful body, the beautiful trickle of water from our semi-reliable faucet, the love, protection, and provision of God, the beauty of our team becoming family. I feel Swaziland.
My heart is so full and it has been my prayer that the Lord would expand my heart. I want more of Him and I want to see and love these Swazi people as he sees and loves them.
