Life update + cute pics from the Vilakatis

Hey Everyone!

It's been awhile since I've given an update on our life. I was hoping that by this time this year I'd be going back to the US for my brother Jonathan's wedding, but the borders are still closed here and there's only repatriation flights that leave every few weeks. Although I could potentially get on one of these flights, if I did there's no telling when I would be allowed back in the country.

So, we embrace what life brings us and do the next thing. Recently a lot of our energy has been focused on a move to our little house that we built. It's one bedroom with a garage, so we've been able to use the garage as a second bedroom and fit our whole family in the house, plus quite a few guests from time to time. We moved at the end of April, and we've really enjoyed having our place, though Mapile will tell you it's not always fun owning your own place. There's lots of work for sure!
We still live close to the Bible College in a place called Ngculwini.

In other news, Mapile resigned from his job at the Bible School in April so that he can focus more on the Community Centre project, as well as other ministry down South. He still hopes to teach classes with the Bible School, and of course we keep up with our friends from Joy Mission. It has been good timing because we had to put a lot of work into our house too, and he's been more free to help with that. Recently we had a borehole drilled, so it's super exciting to have our own water supply! (Before the borehole we were having water delivered by these tanker trucks that deliver 7000 litres of water at a time)

Tanker filling our tanks

Drilling the borehole

I have been back to work at Project Canaan for a full year now. It's been a busy year where we moved to a new clinic, got a new electronic medical record system, and got 30 new babies since last year July. I learn so much at work and I enjoy keeping busy there, as there's always work to do.

Our kids are growing up fast. Simo will be 4 years old in November. She is an active girl and loves riding her scooter bike, swinging, playing on slides, and running around. She also enjoys taking care of her baby dolls/stuffed animals and tucking them in to their beds. She loves singing and dancing. Lately she especially loves time with her Daddy.
Nicholas is 18 months going on 4 years. He is active and tries to keep up with his sister. He gets into everything that he shouldn't, and loves playing in water and turning taps on. He really enjoys playing with my pots and he loves dancing to some good music.
These two are such a joy and we praise God for the privilege it is to raise them!

As far as coronavirus goes, as of yesterday there were 1826 confirmed cases, with 23 total deaths in the country so far. We are all required to wear masks in public, and even if you're in your car by yourself the police want to see you wearing that mask. Kids aren't allowed in grocery stores. Churches have recently started opening back up with precautions of wearing masks and having people sit further apart, but children aren't allowed. It's certainly a strange time. Our kids really miss getting out and they both take longer to warm up to people than they used to. We're thankful that our child caregiver lives within walking distance from our house, so even during the heightened lock-down (for a few weeks back in April/May you couldn't travel anywhere without a written letter signed by an employer or chief saying where you were going), she was able to help us with our kids and we continued working. 

 Praises
- Praise God for His continued provision for our family!
- Praise God for the good decisions some of the youth are making that Mapile has mentored
- Praise God for our good health! We try not to take our healthiness for granted!
- We praise God for the people around us that God has used to help us through this strange season.

Prayer Requests
- Pray for lots of wisdom for Mapile, as he's constantly in situations and advising people that need lots of wisdom from God
- Pray that we would continue to find good balance between work/life/ministry
- Pray that my brother Jonathan and his fiance, Sarah Porterfield (who was a friend of mine in college), have a wonderful wedding that is a great start to a new life they will make together.

If you're interested in getting our newsletter that focuses on Community Centre updates, then just send us your email address and we'll add you to our list. 

Thanks for reading! 

Hannah

Exploring the riverbed near our house

"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters." - Psalm 24: 1-2