Saturday was shopping day – not just for us but for hundreds of other folks in Swaziland and South Africa as it was payday this week and also the weekend. The nearest shopping town to Bulembu is Barberton, S.A. which is about a 45 minute drive through the mountains full of timber farms. It was rainy and foggy weather but not much traffic on that road. Barberton was founded as a gold town about the same time as Johannesburg but now is mostly a central shopping and services town for the surrounding communities. We started at the Shop Rite which was chock a block full of shopping carts that made the aisles barely passable. Every cart exiting the store was over full with goods for several weeks as transportation to a store is not a trivial matter. Lee Ann was buying supplies for the daily lunches at her Community Care Center for the children living in the local homesteads who have little or nothing to eat. Feeding 50-75 six days a week takes a lot of food. She often buys canned corned beef or a canned inexpensive fish to make a simple stew to put over rice to provide some nutrition.
Next stop was the Pick and Pay – a step up from the Shop Rite and less crowded. We bought ingredients to make our own pizzas for dinner and for stir fry next week. By the time we finished shopping it was 2:30 so we had lunch at the Wimpy's next door as the S.A.-Bulembu border closes at 4:00 p.m. SHARP. If you are late, you have to retrace your steps and spend the night at Barberton.
The reality of Lee Ann's ministry is that there is very little downtime. Unexpected events occur all the time that she needs to help with as she is so caring and willing to provide the transportation to those in need. She is an inspiration to us all and it is a blessing to be able to witness her giving spirit.
We are looking forward to coming home but know each day here increases our knowledge of what the reality of poverty is for most of the people who live here. Thank you for all your prayers, Jane
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