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| 38 weeks |
I am 38 weeks pregnant. And I’ve been working for Heart for
Africa at Project Canaan for over 4 months now. I don’t even know how to begin
to describe to you how different life is now than it was at the beginning of
the year.
Pregnancy has been great so far. Really, I’ve had very
little sickness, and I have felt well enough to keep up life in the way I’m
used to here. Sometimes I don’t really remember that I’m pregnant, and I’m
reminded how large my tummy is when I walk in town and see how many people turn
their heads at me. I have also had way more people stop and talk to me at
random times, either commenting on my bump or asking me some question about the
baby. And occasionally I do bump into things or people with my very large belly! There is definitely a sense of
excitement as we await our baby girl, who could come any day now.
My new job at Project Canaan continues to remind me of the
Lord’s faithfulness in my life. I have learned so much in the past 4 months of
working there, and I believe it’s one of the many ways that the Lord is taking
care of us and blessing us. There have been some pretty intense situations at
work in the past few months. We had a huge influx of new children in
August/September, and at one point we received 12 children within a period of
16 days. For me, new children means getting charts ready, doing assessments,
and trying to keep up with any medical needs. I’ve also been working on a
protocol for our kids who are HIV+. At one point I found myself sitting in an
office with two HIV/TB specialist doctors at Baylor Clinic in Manzini,
discussing the needs of our children’s home and how to make a thorough HIV/TB protocol
for the children that come in to live at Project Canaan. For some reason I just
wished that my nursing professors at IWU could see me chit chatting with these
really awesome, smart, tropical disease specialist doctors to develop new
protocol for the health needs at the children’s home.
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| The jacaranda trees are in bloom - I love the purple flowers... it reminds me of growing up in Zambia |
There have also been some incredibly challenging situations
at work. In August one of the children at Project Canaan got sick very
quickly, and two days after we admitted her to the hospital she passed away. I
can’t explain how surreal that situation was, and still is. She would have been
two this September. Mapile had the privilege of coming out to Project Canaan to
do the funeral for that precious girl. We are thankful that she’s in a much
better place now, with Jesus.
Mapile has been keeping really busy at the college.
Graduation is October 29th (the same as my due date!), so things are
starting to wrap up at the college for the school year. He just finished
teaching a course about ministry to youth and adults to the 2nd and
3rd year students. It’s fun to see him prepare for his classes,
because he is so passionate about what he does and making a difference in the
lives of the students.
As you think of us, we’d appreciate your prayers! Here’s a
few ways you can be praying for us:
- That Mapile would finish the school year strong
- For a healthy delivery for our baby girl
- Safe travel for my mom – she’s coming October 26th
to help with the baby
- Transition to parenthood for Mapile and I, we
are very excited, but also realise that it comes with lots of responsibility!
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| Our garden is producing lots of spinach, tomatoes, and onions! |
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| We are amazed at how huge our onions have grown! |
“The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do
to me? The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I will look in triumph on my
enemies. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man. It is
better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.” – Psalm 118: 6-9
Stay tuned..... for pictures of BABY VILAKATI!........ coming soon...
