This past week was our last few days at service sites. Tuesday was the last time we met with the women at the support group and it was one of the best days spent with them yet! They helped us finish our hats we had been crocheting and they also gave us the skirts and aprons we had ordered from them :)

I had an opportunity to talk with Nelly, who hadn’t been at the group for a couple of weeks because she had been in the hospital. Nelly shared some of her struggles with my friend Danielle and I. She is going through so much right now, but I was amazed and encouraged because Nelly is so strong and has so much faith. She kept telling us about how God always provides for her and how He is always is with her. I will never forget Nelly and even though the amount of time I spent with her wasn’t much.  

Another thing I will never forget is what the women made us for lunch on Tuesday. They walked in with bowls of cow intestine, tripe (cow stomach) and pomtu. All eight of us slowly grabbed a bowl, looking for a bowl with the least amount of food. It looked absolutely disgusting. I didn’t try the meat for awhile and we all looked around at each other wondering how much we were expected to eat. After my first and only bite of the intestine, I was very very close to crying. I was on the verge of tears because it had the most horrid texture

 and because I thought we were going to have to eat everything in our bowls out of politeness and I was about to throw up thinking about eating any more. I have never wanted to eat something so badly. These women had made it for us and none of us wanted to be ungrateful or make the women disappointed. But, I think all of us were wondering if it would be worse to not eat it or to eat it and then throw it all up. I later found out that my friend Emma threw the meat in a plastic bag in her lunch box when no one was looking. I was sitting right by the window and I honestly considered discretely throwing some of this “lunch” out the window. I thought people only got rid of their food like this in the movies. However, I now know that sometimes this occurs in real life too. Thankfully, the social workers who translate for us told us it was okay not to eat it all and even they did not eat the cow intestine! I have not eaten meat since this experience and I think it might be awhile until I do. 

Saying goodbye to our friends at the support group was incredibly difficult. We took so many pictures with them and gave them hugs and the only reason it wasn’t sad saying goodbye was because they were joyful! It still hasn’t hit me that I probably will never see these woman again. 

Wednesday was our last day with the kids at RivLife. In the afternoon we painted their faces and blew bubbles with them and gave them popcorn to eat. I think they had a lot of fun but this too was also difficult realizing that it was the last time we would get to hold them, sing with them, and play with them. I even let some of the girls twist my hair, which turns into knots, because it was the last day. 

Overall, these three and a half weeks have been an amazing experience. I am still processing everything and I know it will take awhile. One question I keep asking is “Where do I see God in this?” I am so thankful for the many conversations I have had with my RivLife team and that together we can attempt to figure some of this out. 

On Monday, we will leave to go on safari for two days and then to live with a Zulu tribe for a couple of days. It should be an interesting transition going from service site

s to the safari but I am so excited!!! The safari is something many of us have been looking forward to since we arrived in South Africa! I miss everyone at home and love you all! Thanks so much for reading!