Hey there!

Dear parents/supporters/friends/family/pets/mailman,

 It’s team Saahas writing our first collective blog! We’re so sorry we have not been in any communication with you since arriving in Swaziland (now known as Eswatini), it’s been a little tricky. But, here’s everything you’ve missed in the past few weeks…

TRAVEL

Hey Mamasita, it’s Mykayla here! Travelling to the Kingdom of Eswatini consisted of 22 hours of fly time, 8 hours of drive time, and 20-30 hours of layover. On Wednesday, September 12^thwe all met at 1 a.m. with all of our belongings ready to start the 3-4 days of travel. Our first flight was at 6 a.m. from Atlanta, GA to Boston, MA that lasted 2.5 hours. We had a 14-hour layover where we were able to tour the city of Boston! Then we had a 11 p.m. flight from Boston to Doha, Qatar on Qatar Airlines (funny story… they almost didn’t let us get onto the flight, but that’s for another time). If anyone was wondering, Qatar Airlines are literally the BOMB.COM. They gave us two full meals, movies, snacks that I slept through, pillows, blankets, face wipes, ear plugs, headphones, lip gloss, tooth brushes, tooth paste, socks and eye masks (they were the mom we all were missing). We had an 8-hour layover in the Qatar airport, which was HUGE. Our last flight was at 2 a.m. from Qatar to Johannesburg, South Africa that lasted 8.5 hours. We then speedily went through customs and got our passports stamped!! Our ministry host picked us up from the airport and we drove 8 hours to our base in Nsoko, Swaziland.

CULTURE

Hi Momma, it’s your Liz!! You might be wondering, “What culture exactly are these girls living in?” The kingdom of beautiful Eswatini has a lot of cultural differences from our home in the USA. For example, using your left hand is very disrespectful whenever it comes to serving others; like a few other countries we’re going to, that cultural standard is the same! It’s considered highly respectable if people don’t look you in the eyes while speaking. Another cultural note here is that boys don’t wear bright, vibrant colors, which has been confusing for some local boys when it comes to interacting with guys on our squad. Also, as just a personal observation… if someone asks for your phone number, say you don’t have one, and if someone asks how many cows you are, it’s definitely in terms of a dowry. (hi dad, miss you lots, I promise I won’t come home with a husband. like… really.) Although we haven’t been here that long, we’re realizing that the people of Swaziland are overflowing with love and joy, and are so much fun to talk to and be around! 

COMPOUND

It’s Lex here! Beyond the country we are living in, where are we literally livingyou might be wondering? Well, let’s just say we are BLESSED! Upon arriving to Swazi most of us expected bucket showers, laying on the ground with our sleeping pads, and unclean water. We are so grateful to say that we have real showers (not warm, but that’s okay), bunk beds, and clean water! We live on a compound surrounded by beautiful mountains out of the way of most things. Down the compound is a soccer field and small playground always filled with beautiful kids we get to hang out with. There is a common room where the kitchen is, where we eat all of our meals, and spend a lot of our free time. There are currently two bunk rooms and one more on its way. The boys are currently tenting in the backyard as the last room is continuing to be built as we speak. That’s why none of you have heard from us yet, don’t worry moms we haven’t been ignoring you! We arrived and found out there is no power yet. Nor is there Wi-Fi. Communication with America for these first three months will be inconsistent and unreliable. But, we are here and thriving! 

MINISTRY

Emili here! We have been loving ministry. We began ministry on Tuesday, September 18th. As we approached the gate to our care point, I was so excited. Care points are basically a safe place for the youth in the community where they can play, eat, and learn about the Lord. They receive one meal per day. Our care point has two cooks that alternate days when they cook. Each day, around thirty kids ranging from 1 year to 23 years come to our care point. We have been learning all kinds of fun crazy games, some of which I still do not understand how to play! The kids are very dirty. They wear old, torn clothing, and a lot of them are sick. This may be due to the dry, dusty air and lack of medical presence. Also, many of them don’t wear shoes, which is sad and concerning as they are always running around on the gravel and broken glass. They are very tough and they don’t let anything hinder their playfulness. While there is a huge presence of witchcraft in the area, all of the kids at our care point know and love Jesus, which is so beautiful and humbling. Our goal is to love them like Jesus does and show them that they are cared for and fully known by our Father. Please pray alongside us as we are excited to keep loving them, teaching them, and knowing them.

SCHEDULE

Still alive but I’m barely breathin’. Hi, Peyton present! As you can imagine, scheduling in Africa is always a little unpredictable. We wake up at about 7 a.m., eat breakfast as a squad, spend time in the Word, go to ministry by 10 and get back around 4 p.m. for showers, hanging out, and dinner. Let! Me! Tell! You! It’s been incredible and exhausting in the best way possible. As I previously mentioned, scheduling in Swaziland really just isn’t a thing. For example, today we arrived at ministry an hour early, no kids in sight and gate to the compound was locked. So we waited around until Jerry (our bus driver) used his magic and found a local with a key…? But yeah, rolling with the punches and being as fluid as possible is really the only way of life here. 

FOOD 

Man shall not live by bread alone, but we’ve had six slices today. Tiara speaking! For all of you who know me, you know that I would take this category. I want to cover what we’ve been eating and what the kids at our ministry have been eating. Starting with the squad: For breakfast we have a heathy dose of protein, which comes in the form of two hard-boiled eggs. This is followed by some oatmeal (or bread if we don’t have oatmeal), which is a great source of carbs and fiber (good for the digestive system, if you know what I mean). For lunch we go back to the good ole’ days of childhood and have two delicious PB+J sandwiches. These literally taste like a gift from heaven after running around with kids! Finally, we end our day with a feast prepared by two amazing Swazi women and another team from our squad. They create a mouth-watering cultural meal that usually consists of a staple, such as potatoes (taste of my Idaho home) or rice, some form of beef to cover the staple, and some cooked veggies to finish off this amazing meal.

Now to the kids’ meals, or to better say it ‘meal’. For the majority of the kids their lunch is most likely their only meal. At our ministry, we help cook up a batch of “One Meal”, which is a combination of rice and soy protein. They top this rice with beans in gravy. That sums up their one meal of the day.  

COMMUNITY

Hey, this is Anna! I am so passionate about our squad! The community here is genuine, energetic, joyful, and kind. There are 45 of us on Purple U Squad; seven men (God bless ‘em) and 38 women. Everyone is head-over-heels in love with Jesus and wants to love on each other and praise the Lord together. There is always music being played. In total, our squad has like three guitars, two ukuleles, one guitalele, one mandolin, two harmonicas, two shakers, 45 passionate, beautiful voices, and… a glockenspiel. Yup. Thanks, Jordan. It has been such a blessing to be surrounded by such unique, beautiful sounds of praise! We laugh so much together, and everyone is so silly. It is the coolest thing to be surrounded by people who want to uplift, respect, encourage, listen, love, serve, and grow with one another. Our common room is always full. This community is inclusive and whole. Our men are so godly and serve us women sacrificially, always taking the last spot in line, volunteering to do dishes, offering up their seats, and whatever else. We feel like a bunch of queens. The sisterhood here is beautiful, as well! UGH, I love my girls! I am overwhelmed with gratitude as I always see girls praying over each other, doing each others hair, sharing make-up wipes, giving hugs, and being bathroom buddies, LOL. We are incredibly blessed. Whenever we miss home we think about having to say goodbye to each other in nine months, take a deep breath, and thank God for where we are at. He is so good to us.

WHEW! Did you really read all that? Thank you for being interested in our journey and for praying over our ministry here. We appreciate it and need it. May the Lord bless your kindness and love!

Until the next moment of wifi,

Team Saahas

To all of our families, we love you so so much and send many virtual hugs.