Wow.  I cannot find words to describe the warmth and kindness of the people here in Botswana.  It is good to be here.  We arrived yesterday afternoon tired, beat, and hungry.  For Emily and I, the trip was 38 hrs door to door.  Together with the other 7 folks from the US we enjoyed a pizza dinner as we planned our week.  We know here in Africa plans are but wishes, but the Westerner in us compels us to make schedules and organize to-do lists.  Pencils work better then pens here.

This morning we awoke to the wonderful birds, roosters, and braying donkeys of the village called Maun.  After a quick breakfast we drove to sing and have devotions with the 20 or so local students OneWay is training.  The small cement room amplified our voices, and we sang, clapped, and worshipped together.  I was able to catch a little audio.  It might give you a small glimpse of the wonderful vocal tradition the people of Botswana share.

Frank and Scott stayed with the local team to provide leadership training while Emily, Beth Bounds (college student intern for OneWay), Jim, Derek (8yrs), and Jake (11yrs) Johanik, Hannah Thompson (12yrs), and I went to the small children’s day care to teach, laugh, and hug kids.  The school has about 50 kids whose ages range from about 2 to 7.  The small school gets support from the Botswana government and churches to teach the kids.  Many of the kids are AIDS/HIV orphans.  Most of them stay with “Aunties” or their grandmothers.  A few are able to stay with their mothers.

The kids were so happy to see us.  Initially, they were a little shy.  We do look very different.  But within minutes they were crawling over each other to get a chance to hold our hands or hug us.  I could sum our day with them as “Hugs, Giggles, and Love and an occasional improvised activity”.  Before we left for Botswana, we had somehow gotten the impression that we were going to just help a bit at the school, as they proceeded with their normal activities.  :-)  Of course, experienced readers already know what really happened.  The school staff thought we would be taking the kids for the day.  They did provide a translator, but we were mostly on our own. It all worked out, but there were plenty of “Uhhhhh what other games are good for 5 yr olds?” and “Hmmmm, I’m trying to think of a song….”.  If you have game or song ideas for 2 to 7 year old kids, please leave them as comments in the Blog.  The team and I are busy brainstorming how we will handle things tomorrow.  I think breaking up into smaller groups will help.

Tonight we will be driving to a small village nearby and have a bonfire and sing and dance and pray with the local teens and children.  If I’m not totally exhausted, I’ll try and provide some pictures.

-Pete