New beginnings

Well it's been an interesting few month here. For some reason I cannot get pictures to download. I am still not doing much, but I am sure that's about to change real soon!
I did go volunteer for about a week, but I had to put my own gas (petrol) in and it was costing to much. It would have ended up costing me over R1000 a month which is too rich for my blood! So here I am again, but change is happening my friends, change is happening. I believe my season is done with working with babies. My heart wasn't really with the babies anymore. Don't get me wrong they are beautiful and it still makes my heart fill with joy when I see those wee ones, but I want to touch people's lives, do something more. Do something radical!

I was on the TLC myfamily web site and Thea (founder of TLC) posted this. It really touched my heart.

On Monday, 28th July, I found a group of 5 people sitting in my kitchen.   Upon enquiry I discovered that the old lady was called Johanna Mathye.   She only spoke Afrikaans.   The two other ladies were her "sisters".   The two children were her grandchildren, Thulani (6) and Tsakane (11).

Granny said that she would like us to take in these two children to stay at TLC.   I told her that we are not registered to take in big children.   We are only allowed to take in babies.   She was very upset because the lady at "Amazing Grace Children's Home" told her that they are also full and that she must take them and drop them at the Police Station and just leave them there.   I said this was not an option.   I asked why she did not want to look after the children herself.   She told me that they were very naughty, especially the girl.   She was disobedient and ran away from home every time.   She thought she should go to a "stout school".

I sat next to the little girl who only speaks English (not Afrikaans).   I asked her why she was giving her granny such a hard time.   She did not answer, but looked down at her hands.   I took her out of the kitchen thinking it would be easier for her to talk.   This was her story:

Her mother ran away from home in January.   She had just found out that she was HIV Positive and took the news badly.   From then on the two children were left with the stepfather.   He is a security guard and is never at home, so the two children have to stay in the shack on their own and they are scared at night, so sometimes they try to go and find their granny.   Sometimes they find her ... sometimes they just sleep anywhere because they can't find her and then they have to go back to the stepfather.   When they do manage to find granny she gets very cross with them and shouts at them and makes them go back to the stepfather's place.   But sometimes she is kind and if she has food she gives them some food and sometimes she even lets them stay with her for one or two nights.

I asked about the stepfather, and what he was like.   This is what she told me:

"My stepfather is a bad man.   He makes me have sex with him all the time when we are together.   I am afraid because I know my mother had AIDS.   I also want to go back to school and I don't want a baby.   I have to look after my brother.   When he tries to force me, sometimes I run away and try to find my grandmother.   I always take my little brother with me wherever I go because I want to keep him safe.   I have been looking after him since he was born on 2.2.2002.   My mother worked and I looked after the baby.   The first year when he was born I was in Grade 1.   I went to school at Eikenhof Primary.   But they wanted my mother to sign the forms and bring her ID.   She did not come for the whole year.   When I went back for Grade 2 they said I could not come if my mother did not bring her ID.   From then I stayed at home with my little brother."

I asked her if her granny knew these stories.   She said 'Yes'.

Then I went back to the granny and told the granny what Tsakane had told me and asked her if she knew all this.   She said 'Yes'.   Then I asked her if we could organise the grant for the two children, would she be able to keep them and look after them?   She was very adament.   NO!   She did not want them.   They were too naughty.   I got a little cross with her and told her that these children were her flesh and blood and that she should at least take some responsibility for them.   I did not think, at the end of the day, that God would take kindly to the fact that she did not stand up to her responsibility for these children and just left them at some police station where who knows what would happen to them.

She started to cry ... really loud.   And then she said ... in Afrikaans ... "I walk from one corner of the earth to another, with my little bundle of earthly goods under my arm.   I scratch here and I scratch there for find a place to sleep.   When I find a place to lay down my head for a night or two, I am so happy.   And when I find a place where they will take care of me a little bit longer, I am so happy.   But then these two children come and if I get soft and do something nice for them, or keep them with me for just one night, I lose my own place to stay and get kicked out.   Then I have to find another place all over again.   Maybe God will judge me harshly.   But I am old.   And I am tired.   And I can't look after these children!”

How much longer can we sit around? I just don't understand? How much longer can the church sit around?! I'm not one to talk!! What Christ has called us to do we ignore. Are we just gonna keep on sitting back and let things happen? Isn't it time we do something?! Read Matthew 26:31-46 With Him all things are possible and with His love nations will be rocked!! That's right

On that note.. Thea did find a place for them to stay, but the problem is only gonna get worse. They ain't going anywhere...