A picture says a thousand words!!!
Well friends, we are finaly here and this posting has been a long time coming. I am sorry to have taken so long to set it up but as they say; better late than never. You no longer will need to ask me how things are going just check it up for yourself.
Wil and Yolanda came and picked us up from the Raleigh/Durham airport at about 09H40. It was great seeing them and Wil was wearing his Bafana Bafana jersey which he had purchased here in SA in 2001 when I last saw him. Now some of you may wonder who Will is?
In 2001 when I was in Phase 1 in Soweto, I hosted a student from Duke Divinity in the US. He was on his Summer break and of course they do projects. So I lived for about three months with this 'white guy' in the heart of Soweto. We caught taxis together and he lived like one of the township fellas. He amazed many of us and made an impact in many of the people's lives he touched. He became more than just a friend but a brother to me. He later went to Costa Rica and became a missionary there. That is where he met and married Yolanda.
Anyway, Wil and Yolanda are here in the US, on a sabbatical from Costa Rica.This is where God's timing and planing is just too much for us to sometimes understand. I should have been here a long time ago, if it had happened like that, I would have probably been alone (without Samke) and Wil would have been in C. Rica working there. God's timing is such that when Prof Neville Richardson and Dr. Dion Forster heard of my interest in Duke and began to help me; I truly believe that God was there alongside them. I am truly grateful for their assistence. So we came this year, Samke and I and Wil and Yolanda are also here.
THE APPARTMENT
It is an upstairs appartment overlooking the pool and here it gets to 100F so the pool is very handy.
It is an upstairs appartment overlooking the pool and here it gets to 100F so the pool is very handy.
The appartment is good and furnished with bare furnishings. Wil had suggested that he would ask his home church to set something up so that we didn't have to carry pots and pans from South Africa to the US.
They arrived in this Monster of a van/truck that was full of stuff. This truck is a donation to their work in C. Rica from the churches here. It' s a V8, 7.3 liter turbo-diesel machine. "It's really neat!" as Wil would say.
This was not all. Some of the people in the church had also taken a collection in preparation for our arrival. So Wil had a 'magic envelope' that we then used to go and buy the extra stuff that was needed for the house. Of course the TV was NEEDED! Samke was to take up a new position as the 'House Executive,' now all "HE's" need a TV set to watch the latest episode of desparate housewives. Now I'm gonna get in trouble so I better stop! By the way; what's on desperate housewives? Now that I think of it, it could be a lot of things!!!
This whole week is truly dificult to write or even think about as I think of the many blessings that the Lord has done for us.
We never slept cause after this we then went off to the varsity where we met the ladies who had worked tirelessly in making sure our arrival was smooth. Duke was beautiful as ever. The new buildings that they were working on around 2004 were now in full operation so the place looks stunning. Ah! Of Couse, the Majestic Chapel! The center of this campus and a real churhc even on the inside. Someone was practising onthe organ and it just made being around here all the more beautiful.
Anyway I will keep you updated as to our comings and goings, I'm tired now and am sure you can't read so much.
3 comments:
When I left South Africa in August of 2001 I wasn't sure if I would ever see Sifiso again. My time in SA really affected me deeply, especially the friendships I made there, so when I was suddenly "yanked" out of there at the end of my 3 months, I struggled with being so far away from everyone. Sifiso and I were able to stay in touch through e-mail though not very consistently, so when I heard from him that he and his wife would be coming to North Carolina (my home state!) and studying at Duke (my seminary!) I was thrilled. When I realised they would be here during the time that Yolanda and I were back from Costa Rica...you can imagine! It has been a HUGE blessing to spend time with them since their arrival and just knowing how close they are. We're already cooking up plans for a possible return trip to SA (Yolanda and I both), after Sifiso and Samke go back next year. God is Good!!
Hey S!
This is such wonderful news! You guys will be in my prayers each day. I am so pleased for you and wish you God's richest blessing!!! Now you need to get than M and get back to us SOON! We miss you already!
I was with quite a few of your Professors in Oxford over the last few days. You are in for an awesome time.
Rich blessings my friends, from me and all our colleagues and students at John Wesley College.
Small world! I found your blog thru Dion's blog (graduated from Duke Divinity in 03, and Dion helped me plan a trip to South Africa last August...) anyway, the church currently I serve at takes 3 trips a year to Costa Rica with Wil Bailey (I went on the last February trip). Best of luck at Duke!
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