Off to Argentina

So I am off to Argentina. Jim and Cathy Hill and Linda and Donald Gheen are also going. At least I will have company this trip! Our first stop is Buenos Aries. Our plane takes off at 4:30pm today! It's 12:38pm now. We stop in Buenas Aries for a day then take a 12hr bus ride to Resistencia where I will be staying with Cheryl and Larry Foldoe. We will stay there for 2 weeks or so then go up to Salta and go into the Andes Mountains into two towns. One is Molinos where it is a town of 6,000 and only 6 believers. The other town is San Antonio de Los Cobres. That town drinks water that is poisoned with Arsenic. We are taking a couple of wheelchairs up there with us. O yea if you want to learn more about San Antonio de Los Cobres, Jim Hill's son James has done a documentary on it. www.troubledwatersfilm.com . You should check it out. It's very interesting.

I am actually nervous about this trip as I think I will be stretched in my faith more tan I have ever been before. Actually, I have to speak at a church to youth on Saturday...ugh. Ok I'm going to go now. I need to pack some food for the flight!

Going Home...

Tonight is my last night in Mmabatho, South Africa. It has been such a wonderful experience, it's hard to leave. I have met so many new people just from working in the university...it's sad to say goodbye. I have a feeling though I will be back. Whether or not paths cross again will be up to God, but I think it will be fun if they do. I have learned so much from being here. What I learned is on other posts, but some things that I have learned I can't even tell you yet because I am not quite sure. I do know that I am not the same person as I was on Sept 15th when I started my journey.
I am happy to go home though. I get to tell you all things in person rather than you reading it or emailing it to my parents. I did learn that I really need to study the Bible more. Some of the Baptists here know it inside and out, while I could just tell you the most famous Bible stories and not in any detail either...it's actually quite sad. I do know some verses though, but these people quoted things like crazy. I also have to keep myself more up to date on politics and world events. It's sad how much I don't know.
The Ulrich's have been like family to me this past month. It's like I have two younger brothers and another younger sister. Micah (AKA "Squishy"...refer to Becca's blog) hides my pocketbook all the time...like now for instance...he stuck it somewhere and ran off to go play football...so now i have to go track it down...boys...It has been fun though..I will miss them all...Hopefully I can come back before they leave, who knows...I hope so.
Well tomorrow at 8am i will start my journey home and will be there at 11:08pm (that's what my ticket says) Friday night! I hate layovers...11 hrs in Jo-berg tomorrow...yuck
See you soon!

my parents were "punked" last night

These are students from NWU. I really only know the one on the bottom, but he is a good friend.



As the loving daughter that I am, I decided to entertain my parents a little...far far away from smacking distance...They have Skype and so do I so I video cammed them and Paula gave me her wedding ring...This was an Ulrich approved prank by the way...they actually got popcorn and were sitting in the same room out of the way of the camera...snickering might i add...so i told my mother that I was engaged and showed her the ring...I wish we recorded it so you could all see her face...it was wonderful...I told her it was this guy i met in the clinic and that he was really nice and he asked me and i said yes. She was like, "What!??" and of course the Ulrich's are in the background laughing and Mom was like, "Is this a joke??" Then the Ulrich's came out and all laughed, but i still had to actually tell her it was a joke, because i think she was really confused.
Then my dad came home with Rebecca. So i had Mom play along with my joke...haha Dad looked at me through the camera and actually walked away...and Rebecca just stared with her mouth hanging open...then Dad came back and said, "Why on Earth did he ask you??!" So then i said JUST KIDDING! I think my dad was going to have a heart attack so i figured it was best to come clean at that point...so the Ulrich's once again laughed and laughed at the expense of my family across the ocean....good thing they were across the ocean...i probably would have died...
But what made this work out the best is that when i started helping in the clinic and still today there have been several guys that asked me out...it's very funny...Tim and Paula told me I should ask my parents what my bride price is (how many cows they want for me) or Lobola...so I already talked to them about all these guys...it was very funny....

I am a wimp!

I have been working in the Animal Clinic with Paula Ulrich on North West University campus (NWU). We have only been in the clinic because some of the students are on strike...they have burnt down a couple of buildings...the strikes have never been this violent before but classes have been on and off this whole month (sept.) I asked one of the students why he was on strike and he just looked at me and never answered...so the students dont even know why they are on strike...but because of the violence in this strike the other students that want to go to class can't because they are threatened as well.

so i have been in the clinic. I have come to the realization that I am such a wimp...it's ridiculous...i have absolutely no problem watching Paula do a surgery on an animal or seeing blood. Actually yesterday i was watching a dog surgery and my stomach started growling...I was starving! But when the sick dogs come in it just grosses me out...Some are so sick with blood parasites you can count their ribs, they go to the bathroom all over the floor and i have had to clean up after them and honestly i am surprised i haven't pucked yet. Paula and some of the other students have to hold down the animals and i just don't even want to pet them. The other day she asked me to hold down a dog that was attacked by a bigger dog and it had a nice hole in its neck from where the dog bite him...and i was like what kind of diseases can i get from these things?!! Then other dogs have fleas crawling all over them. I watched a dog be euthanized, but no that didn't bother me...i was much more disturbed about the living, breathing, sick animals that actually needed help...this makes me sound terrible..haha Paula doesnt know that I feel this way either...SHH! don't tell her! I do it anyway though...everything she tells me to do, I do...she wouldnt let me do anything that put me in danger anyway. So i better just do it and suck it up! So i have been...

I really don't understand what dealing with sickly animals has to do with me...but I am sure it has some lesson to it. Maybe it means that when God asks you to do something and even though you really dont want to...you better suck it up and take it like a man! and do it anyway..he knows better than we do. There will probably be an amazing outcome if you do it anyway. Paula does it everyday...I think she saved a dog's life yesterday, but i was worried about touching it because it had fleas and was sitting in its urine all night probably...see i am a completely ridiculous, the dog is like dying and i am worried about fleas...but no no Paula has a job to do, so she does it. hmm i think i mught have just answered my own question about what lesson i am supposed to learn from this...but please feel free to enlighten me more...please!

South Africa

I have finally made it to the place where God has taken me in dreams...or at least thats what I believe.

I'm staying with the Ulrich's and so far it has been very exciting...the first night there was a gecko in my room and Becca almost stepped on a giant toad.

The people in Africa are so nice and friendly. I actually got a chance to meet Tswana people and go into their home and pray for them. There are pictures of the family. They have had a really hard year and need so much more prayer.

I also found several things that were very shocking to me that I just did not expect. The most shocking is that plastered all over the telephone polls and electrical boxes are posters and ads for abortion...not to end it though...they all say 100% safe abortion Call...that was very surprising to me.

I don't exactly know what I am supposed to do just yet but i absolutely love the people of Africa.

The UK (mostly Scotland)

So I have actually made a blog...this is the only way I can keep everyone updated...

I have always wanted to travel around the world. I do not know why, but I was always interested in how the other part of the world lives.

Before I left to go on my trip to Scotland and South Africa, our family history became a tremendous interest to my family. We have always known that on my mother's side they were all kinds of royalty. Some were dukes, duchesses and sirs and recently we have discovered some were preachers of reforms in the 1600s. A guest speaker from India came to our church and long story short her great-great-great grandfather was the Maharajah of a town that my mother's great-great-great grandfather was sent by the Queen to. He was sent to map out the first maps of India. They went to parties together (Grandfather & Grandmother) and the Maharajah had a picture commisioned of my grandmother x4...

Our family also owned a castle in Scotland. The castle is called Midmar Castle (second picture)and was built by William Wallace as a hunting lodge. Allison Croley and I finally found it after a very long (and costly) cab ride. James Mansfield (third picture) and his son John Mansfield owned it from the 1700s to 1842. James Mansfield was also burried in the castle graveyard. I did take a picture of the plaque. Blayney Harkness' family also has a castle in Scotland called Comwy which we visited.

Also in St. Giles church (a massive, old church) in Edinburgh, Scotland, Blayney Harkness and I went exploring. Allison Croley's relative is burried in that church and has a statue to commemorate him. Then on the wall right by his cassket is a plaque commemorating James Dalrymple (first picture), which my great grandfather x6 who we think worked with John Knox.

I find it amazing how 3 girls all have tremendous history back in Scotland. Actually Allison's relative and my relative might have even known eachother (we don't really know that but it could be possible) We all got to share our history with one another and I think it is important that we did all share in eachother's history. I think God is working somehow to show us our heritage and how we are all very closely connected one way or the other.