#hatcliffe

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Streams

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The phone still works

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Hatcliffe

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatcliffe

[grimsbywargames]

The lovely @janinestones who came 3rd Overall at todays Lunacy Run #lunacyrun #hatcliffe #mablethorperunningclub (at Hatcliffe)

[grimsbywargames]

Looking towards the top of the trees in the woods while at the Lunacy Run this morning #woods #lunacyrun #trees #hatcliffe (at Hatcliffe)

[kinetic-energy3]

Singing, Teaching, Laughing, Exploring

In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. -1 John 4:9-10

Days 33-35

Day 33

In the morning, we went to the school in Hatcliffe and taught them "marketplace" skills. We cut out fruit and vegetable shapes and fake money, and had the kids come to the "marketplace" and "buy" food. They had to do all the math and speak only in English, and they did a great job!

In the afternoon, I went over to Daniel Jenkins's house to record a cover of "The Fault In Our Stars" by Ed Sheeran--which we were clearly very excited about! 

Perhaps too much.

He's a local Zimbabwean artist that I met the week before. This song is seriously SO beautiful, and I absolutely loved recording! I am so grateful to Daniel for showing me the ropes. Have a listen here:

https://soundcloud.com/dannoj44/ed-sheeran-the-fault-in-our-stars-cover-daniel-jenkins-and-kymberly-murray

In the evening we went to Dax and Shep's house. They are two wonderful, hilarious locals we met through ACTS. They invited our team over for dinner and a game night. I can't believe that I don't have a single picture with them, yet somehow I have a million selfies that Evy took that night:

Typical.

Shep, Evy and I all rode together in the back of the truck on the way there, just cracking up laughing the whole time as we bumped along those pot-holed roads--the millions of Southern Hemisphere stars just sparkling over us. I have no clue what we were laughing about, but it's the moments like that that really stick with you.

Finished off the night with some unofficial martial arts lessons from Daniel on our team (not to be confused with the Daniel I recorded songs with). Despite his great instructing and Jackie Chan-like skills, I still could not throw a successful punch at the end. But Daniel, if you're reading this, I want more lessons! You better come back next year!

Day 34

Went to Hatcliffe in the morning. Everytime we went, I became closer and closer with this little girl named Chipo. The second that Chipo saw me, her eyes just lit up. She loved me for reasons I do not know. Maybe everyone else was taken?--already surrounding the others in our group?-- I'm not sure. But everytime we pulled up, she would always find me and give me a huge hug! She is kind and shy and so, so sweet, and I absolutely love her.

Bekah and I taught math class that day (or "maths" class, if you ain't from 'round here). We taught on the area of a circle which is something I left wayyy back in like 10th grade (along with shell necklaces, potato shoes, and my Sansa mp3 player). But for the record, area of a circle = πr².

These kids are smarties and learned quickly! And let me just tell you--anyone is qualified to teach. What they need most is the love we bring, the hope we have for their education, and our ability to speak English.

We spent the afternoon chilling at the Team House with Barry and Emily. This is our Team House by the way (I haven't shown you this yet?!?), where I lived for my 4 weeks in Zim:

Barry told us a bit of his story and about ACTS, and he told us a little about the trip options they have for next year. Let's just say I am VERY INTERESTED in them, and I'm already saving up!

Then Emily and I had a great heart-to-heart. Oh my golly, I miss that Australian heaps and heaps! ;)

Day 35

Hard to believe that our time in Zimbabwe was finally coming to a close! So we took a day to relax and visit Bushman Rock--a beautiful estate and event center.

We had lunch on the lawn and then went on a horse safari! My horse, Lima, was so cheeky (although he's apparently a great polo player). He bit anything in his way (people, dogs, other horses...) and walked me straight through a tree! 

But although my horse was evil, he really did a great job of showing me around. We saw giraffe, eland, impala, zebra & wildebeest. Can you spy 2 giraffes??

The wildebeest were my favorite that day. We came upon a whole herd of them and watched them gallop right in front of us. They are so weird looking, yet still somehow majestic.

Oh and FYI, I just googled and found out that a group of wildebeest can be called a "herd" OR an "implausibility"......seriously. An implausibility of wildebeest.

We "parked" our horses by a creek, and our guide, Jono, led us up to the bushmen caves.

Jono is a real Zimbabwean cowboy and Bushman Rock is his family ranch. He told us all about how Bushmen lived there forever ago and showed us the cave drawings. 

Then it was back to the stables, a quick cup of tea, then back home again. That night we all squished together on our little couch and watched a movie. All in all, it was a wonderful, chill day in Zim.

What I Learned About God & Life

Lesson #1: Love has no reason or rhyme.  As I mentioned above, the little girl, Chipo, loved me. And I'm really not sure why. I did not single her out at first, but she did that to me and I was so blessed to be able to spend time with this little girl! It made me realize how love cannot be explained. And how easy it is to reciprocate love that is shown to you. Chipo loved me without knowing me at all; just like God loves us before we are even born. It's love that is unconditional, and it took a 7 year old girl to remind me what that really means.

Lesson #2: Share your Story. Whether your life has been short or long, you've learned a lot in life. Your experiences and the things you've learned are unique to you, but they are rarely just for you. Your story is meant to be shared. Because you never know how someone can relate to it. Or be encouraged or inspired by your story. Or maybe you just need to work some things out in your head that you didn't even realize until you starting talking.

That day where Barry shared his story with us and then Emily and I had a great chat.....those were hours of story-sharing. And during that time I was inspired, encouraged, entertained, and I also got to share my story--which was healing to me and hopefully helpful to others as well. Don't let all you have learned end with you. Share your story.

Lesson #3: You got skillzzzz. I do not consider myself to be a good teacher, but in Zimbabwe we went to schools several times to teach. I was really not sure how much help I could be. But one thing I learned is that we have so much more to offer than we think we do. Just simple spelling or basic math is easy enough to teach and is a huge help there. The students are SO respectful there and SO eager to learn. And I realized that even though teaching is not my forte, I did have something to offer them. So if lack of skill is holding you back from ministry--don't let it! You may be more qualified than you realize.

How unjust it would be for God's work in your life to start and stop with you. Your lifespan is simply not long enough to contain the heights and depths of His activity, then to swallow it whole without offering anyone else a bite. -Priscilla Shirer

Love is not a because, it's a no matter what. -Jodi Picoult

[kinetic-energy3]

Danai Orphanage, Hatcliffe, & the Best Team Evaaa!!

I bear many scars, but I also bear within me many moments that would never have happened if I had not dared to go beyond my limits. -Paulo Coehlo

Days 29-32

Just a warning, this post is long! If you make it to the end, I'll throw in a surprise bonus pic. :D

Day 29

We spent the mornin' a'singin' and a'dancin' with a class at a nearby school. Evy led them in songs and dances that she learned at church. It was awesome to see her lead! 

The team went to the hospital in the afternoon, but Evy and I chilled out at home. More on that in the Life Lessons section.

In the evening, we went back to River of Life church for Youth Group. This youth group is genuinely going full-blast after God, and it is inspiring.

Later, we went to a surprise going away party at Gail's house! (She's coming to America for college). We met some great friends of hers and also learned to do a traditional Afrikaans dance. Bekah and I thought we were pretty good at it, until we saw how it was supposed to look. And then we realized we were awful.

That night we all hung out together as we usually did.....

Emily probably made some incredible dessert--like caramel popcorn, yum!!! .....and don't even get me started on her sweet potato pie!

Daniel probably played the guitar like a professional, all the while claiming he wasn't really that great.

Evy probably turned the lights out on us a million times, took a few selfies, and then came and snuggled on the couch with me.

Betty probably spent the evening trying to get the iPad back from Evy and making us all laugh.

Gail probably kept the house in order for us, sipped a cup of tea, and had a wonderful heart-to-heart with someone.

Bekah probably told us hilarious life stories that made us laugh.

I probably sang way too loudly and laughed way too hard--just happy and content with all of these wonderful people around me.

I miss those times so much. Just hanging out with the team on our lounge room couches. I love this crazy, inspiring, encouraging, Christ-following group of people. And I'm so thankful that God put us together for 4 weeks in Zimbabwe.

Day 30 Saturday!!! The best day of the week! We went back to WIT Sports Ministry. If you missed my post about this ministry, here it is:

http://kinetic-energy3.tumblr.com/post/93998496434/zimbabwe-world-impact-trust

We played soccer & volleyball, taught a Bible lesson, and then the memory verse, "Your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." 

Emily got the group super pumped up with her sweet dance moves:

We spent the afternoon relaxing and probably went to the Pick'n'Pay to buy Cadbury chocolate.....Because that's pretty much what we did whenever we had free time.

Day 31

We had a nice, leisurely Sunday. We had tea at Barry's in the afternoon where we got to spend quality time with his family. Barry tried to teach me to play cricket, which I loved! (Even though his kid's cricket skills put me to shame).

Day 32

On the way to Hatcliffe that morning, we stopped to buy some supplies for Rujeko school. I cannot claim to be part of that idea or that purchase, but it was a really cool thing that my team did, so I wanted to share.

Many kids cannot afford to go to school because it often requires the purchase of a school uniform, a notebook and a pen. Lovemore's school doesn't require uniforms, but students still cannot afford the notebook and pen.

Supplies can be found for less than a dollar, but sadly that's enough to keep children from receiving an education. So a few people on my team purchased a bunch of notebooks and pens for the school! Here they are in front of their school with big smiles and the new supplies:

The very next day there were 3 new students at school! Who now have a chance at an education. Which can lead to better opportunities and life without poverty. Wow.

While some people taught at the school that day, I went with Betty because she wanted to purchase new benches for the school. Students sit on these rickety, old wooden benches that fall over all the time. Someone gets up from one side and BAM! it falls over and 4 children go tumbling off.

Betty had the idea to go find a local carpenter and get some made. This supports the hard-working local carpenters in the village and helps the obvious need at the school. She got 3 brand new benches made!

In the afternoon, we went to Danai Children's Home--an orphanage in Harare.

There are so many children there and the nannies are worn out. While physical needs are met, the children often do not receive enough love. As soon as we walked in the doors they JUMPED all over us. (Really, I had a kid climb up me like a tree.) They are desperate for attention and love. We helped them with homework and played with them for hours.

Confession: I spent most of playtime with this little boy named Shekinah, and he was so adorable! But when I was talking about the day with my team later on, I was informed that Shekinah was actually a girl. Ummm.....Oops! It's so hard to tell when they all shave their heads and wear the same clothes!

Despite this little mishap, it was fantastic to be able to give love to these kiddos! 

What I Learned About God & Life

Lesson #1: Look around. The people on my mission team in Zimbabwe were part of my mission. We were not a group of perfect super-human Christians, we are all real people going through real struggles. And we came to Zimbabwe for all kinds of reasons, but mostly because that's where God wanted us to be. And I'm convinced that part of the reason was to minister to each other.

I think sometimes as Christians we go out of our way to minister to those in need. Which is so important and completely commendable. But sometimes we neglect the people that are doing daily life with us. In Zim we were such a tight team, so I was constantly reminded that we're all in this together (cue High School Musical theme...). We needed each other. And for the most part, we were there for each other. 

The same applies for back home. My coworkers, friends, the people I spend time with--they are my team and my mission. We need each other to speak life and share and listen and experience, so take a look at the people around you. That is your team. They are your mission. Lean on them and be someone they can count on.

Lesson #2: What I am and what I'm not. Over the few days I described in this post, I was feeling a little down about what I was (or was not) contributing. First, I chose not to go back to the hospital after our first week in Zim. Honestly, I just do not handle hospitals well at all. To me they are scary and yucky and most of all--they're covered with a heavy shroud of all the emotional intensity that is happening there. It hits me like a wall when I walk in the door and kind of freaks me out. Part of me was okay with not going--after all, different people have different gifts and hospital ministry is clearly not mine. But another part of me felt inadequate--like I was failing as a mission trip go-er. Strike 1.

Then people on my team thought of buying the notebooks and benches for the school. So thoughful, so giving and so impactful! And while I was physically present for that, those weren't my ideas, and i didn't really take part personally in any of them. Not that its a competition or something, but it was like everyone kept finding these amazing ways to give and contribute, and I was just dragging along. That's strike 2 for the mission trip go-er.

Then, I really wasn't feeling great that week; I was just worn out. So I couldn't contribute like I wanted to in other ways. Couldn't play with the children with as much energy as I wanted to. Couldn't engage in conversations as intentionally and enthusiastically. That's strike 3. 

And I guess I don't really have a life lesson for all of that, because I am still figuring it out. I believe everyone has special gifts, and that week I was confronted with situations that required gifts I didn't have. But that doesn't mean I'm exempt. Like, if you don't have the natural gift of giving, it doesn't mean you get a free "no-give" pass. I think there are elements of me that were too selfish. Times I should have set aside my own comfort and given more in ways that I could.

And then there are other parts of me that think, that's just life. I can only do so much. I am finite and limited in so many ways. And it's good to have those days where I stretch myself and find a wall where I didn't realize there was one. And maybe that wall will stretch just a little bit each time, until the wall is miles away, and I'm doing things I never dreamed.

Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. -Romans 12:6-8

You have officially made it to the end of the post! If you made it this far then here is your bonus pic. An educational moment of what it looks like when white girls take out their cornrows: