snooow!

So, my trip to Lesotho was great, and there were a few surprises along the way including a snowfall that kept us stuck in Jayne's village for a couple of days. It was really cool to get to visit Jayne and see what she does. She moved into a village called Molumong in the mountains of Lesotho to improve her Sesotho skills, but she really saw the need there and felt like that was were God was calling her to stay for now. So she's helping form a support group and linking them with the local clinic and hospitals. People are hearing about her and come knocking on her door to be tested for HIV. She's also leading workshops and reaching out to previously unreached people, like the herd boys who spend days and days alone herding sheep and cattle. Once she has the support group to a point where she feels like they are self sufficient, she's planning to move to another village and start over. She talks to the people in the village about Jesus every day. She's living in this little house with no electricity, no running water and I think she's one of the most content people I've ever met.

For me, using the village outhouse would take some getting used to...especially in the snow! I had a really good time visiting her though, even when we rode horses into another village to check on a patient. I hadn't ridden a horse in about 10 years and even though it was better than I remembered I suffered for it for a couple of days every time I tried to sit down. One of the local women who didn't speak any English taught me how to make Basotho steamed bread with a lot of hand motions and just talking to me in Sesotho anyway (since I've been in Africa I've learned that a lot of things Americans get stereotyped for are not only American things, such as telling someone who doesn't understand your language the same thing over and over again, just louder). On Sunday there was no church because of the snow and a leak in the church roof, so like good missionaries we skipped church and played cards all afternoon. Jayne and I played with 3 of the guys in the village, only one of whom spoke English, but I'm pleased to report that trash talking and bragging transcends cultural boundaries. I would also like to report that I am the reigning Molumong Crazy Eights champion, much to the dismay of several Basotho men.

I posted more pictures of my trip to Lesotho and the kids at Lily.

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2058704&l=40373&id=34104123

Here's one of my favorites videos I just took a few days ago. Enjoy! Bonus points if you can tell which verse is in English ;)